The ERHS Music Technology Lab

 Get Mr. Gowman's Instruction Book for AcidPRO here.

The ERHS Music Tech Lab is housed in room 526, which is also used for other computer-based classes.

The lab is equipped with 15 Korg X5 synthesizers, which have 64 keys and a large bank of voices. A number of software programs are loaded onto these stations, including: Finale, the music industry standard for music notation; Band in a Box, a program that allows students to simply input a chord progression and a style and come out with a recording of a live-sounding band that they can improvise or play along with; and Acid Pro, a very popular program used for looping, sequencing, and simple sound editing. We have a database containing thousands of “loops”, short sound files that are strung together in Acid and arranged by students to create their own music in different styles. Students are also be able to create their own loops using Acid or the synthesizers. In addition to these three programs, we have instructional software in music theory and piano technique, as well as an instrument recognition program for younger grades.

The final music technology component we have is a digital recording studio, housed in Mr. Gowman's office. This ProTools studio uses a Digidesign Digi002 board and the industry-standard Pro Tools 8. The original equipment was purchased as part of the music tech lab package, but has since been enhanced and expanded. We now boast hard-wired isolation rooms (formerly a practice room and the music library), as well as advanced AutoTune software and oZone for mastering. Celtic Music Society's 2008 release, The Devils of Dublin, was recorded and mixed entirely on-site (although the mastering was done by a pro mastering house), and students have recorded everything from a single song to practice files to entire albums.