Introduction
As a music tech teacher, are you looking to give your students a fun and creative way to compose music? Do you want a fun (and oftentimes, hilarious!) project that will get your students excited about composition?
If so, then you should try the Found Sound Challenge! This entire project is available inside the Midnight Music Community’s GarageBand, Soundtrap, and Bandlab Course. It will teach your students about found sounds and how to collect different sounds from everyday objects they already have access to.
Students will find an object and then will be challenged to collect eight different found sounds using that object and explore how to manipulate them to create interesting noises. Then they will work inside Bandlab, Soundtrap, or GarageBand to design beats.
How Do I Get This Entire Lesson?
This activity is from a series of entire student projects that I share inside my Garageband, Soundtrap, and Bandlab Online Course for Music Teachers inside of the Midnight Music Community which will give you complete access to:
- Software, Gear, and Set-Up Guides
- Teacher Videos (to help you plan your lesson)
- Student Videos (I’ll teach your class for you!)
- Student Worksheets
- A Designated Community Forum
- Share Your Projects, Get Feedback from Other Music Teachers, and Seek Expert Tech Advice if You Run Into Any Issues Along the Way!
- Plus hundreds of other digital lessons, handouts, and digital activities as well as access to all of my other courses.
What Are "Found Sounds"?
To start this project, you’ll need to teach your music students what found sounds are. Found sounds are any sounds that can be recorded and used in music composition. Found sounds can come from anywhere- common household items, nature, human voice, etc. Anything you can think of can be a found sound if it makes an interesting noise when recorded!
Once your students start thinking about different found sounds they could use, have them consider how sounds can change by tapping different areas of the object or recording different manipulations of the object.
For example, a student could use a stick they found outside to tap on an object, record the stick breaking, or record the sound of two sticks rolling together in their hands. The options are limitless!
Here’s a video of one of my favorite Youtubers, Andrew Huang, showcasing some excellent found sounds on his cover of Bruno Mars’ “24K Magic” being played on twenty four carrots! It’s so inventive and let’s face it, downright hilarious!
Talking to Your Students About Steady Beat vs. "Beats"
“Beats” in the context of Bandlab, Soundtrap, or GarageBand are slightly different than the beat your students might be used to thinking about in regard to music. In music theory, the beat is the steady pulse that holds a piece of music together. In this context, however, “beats” are repeating patterns of sounds.
In the Found Sound Challenge, students will create beats by layering different recorded sounds on top of each other and will work on editing the recorded sound itself to make it more interesting.
The Musical Aims & Objectives of This Lesson:
Students will be able to:
- Explore Different Types of Sound: This is a Great Intro to Timbre!
- Analyze Non-Musical Sounds (Found Sounds) and Identify Characteristics
- Discover Music Made from Found Sounds
- Challenge: Record Eight Different Sounds from One Object
- Use Recorded Sounds to Make a Piece of Music
The Soundtrap, Bandlab, and GarageBand Music Tech Skills Students Will Learn:
- Field Recording: How to use their phone, laptop, microphone, or another device to record sounds.
- Labeling and Organizing Tracks and Regions
- Editing and Processing Sound Samples
- Arranging Sounds to Create a Piece of Music
Three Bandlab Examples of 'The Found Sound Challenge' from Music Tech Teachers
Inside of the Midnight Music Community, we’ve had dozens of music tech teachers already submitting projects ideas! (Don’t worry if you haven’t joined in yet, there are no deadlines and you can work on everything at your own pace!)
Here are a few recent sample projects from music tech teachers. There are so many excellent ones inside of the community!
- Julie Froude’s “Tectonic Tansu” Project in Bandlab – Used an Old Japanese Chest (Tansu) with Iron Drawer Pulls
2. Brian Rizzi’s “Chair Beats” in Bandlab – Using Sounds from a Wooden Chair
a. Brian Rizzi’s “Chair Beats PLUS” in Bandlab – Original Found Sounds Plus Additional Loops from the Library
3. Claudia Sousa’s “Found Keys” in GarageBand – Using Sounds from Keys on a Keyring with an Added Synthetic Voice
Want This Complete Project & More?
To get this complete project, including ready-to-play student videos (I’ll teach your class for you!), student worksheets, expert help, and detailed teacher instructions with videos, check out the Garageband, Soundtrap, and Bandlab Course inside the Midnight Music Community.
Watch the video below for a quick overview of the course!
Final Thoughts
I hope you’ve enjoyed previewing this lesson and I’d love to share this project and so many others with you inside of the Midnight Music Community!
Do you have any questions about the Garageband, Soundtrap, and Bandlab Course for music tech teachers or the Midnight Music Community in general?
What music platform do you use with your students?
Leave a comment below! I’d love to hear from you!
Download your copy
Would you like to take a copy of this with you? Click the button below and a copy of this will be sent directly into your inbox.
Looking for More Resources for Music Teachers?
Hello! I’m Katie Argyle – an Australian music technology trainer and consultant with a passion for helping music teachers through my businessMidnight Music.
I’m a qualified teacher but no, I don’t currently teach in a school. I help teachers through my online professional development space – theMidnight Music Community– where there are tutorial videos, courses, links and downloadable resources.
I like to focus oneasyways to incorporate technology intowhat you are already doing in your music curriculumthrough a range of creative projects. I also run live workshops and have presented at countless conferences and other music education events.
If you want simple, effective ideas for using technology in music education, I would LOVE to help you inside theMidnight Music Community.
2 Comments
This is great Katie – may I share with my pre-service teachers?
I have been using sample bot a lot lately but love sound trap
take care and as always – love your work.
FIona
Please do – anything on this blog is available for sharing! Hope they enjoy it and hope you’re well!