Miami Lighthouse Music Braille Online Course
Welcome to Music Braille
Click here to read our article "A New Synthesis of Sound and
Tactile Music Code Instruction: Implementation Issues of a Pilot Online
Braille Music Curriculum," which has been accepted for publication in the
Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness.
A series of Braille music lessons from the nationally acclaimed Better
Chance Music Production Program™ is available in a distance learning
format for blind and visually impaired students around the U.S. The course
enables the Level 2 Braille reader to have information on sheet music
equivalent to a sighted musician.
Miami Lighthouse has added a new component to its Braille Literacy and
Technology Program that will bring music instruction to blind students
across the nation. Employment in the mainstream music
industry is within reach of blind and severely visually impaired people
who are educated in the skills and computer hardware and software that are
standard in the music industry and proficient in Literary Braille Grade 2.
In 2013, Miami Lighthouse launched its unique Distance Learning Braille
Music curriculum which is based on expanded course content from its
nationally acclaimed Better Chance Music Production Program™ and Braille
and Technology Literacy Program. The curriculum is specifically designed
for blind and visually impaired of all ages with advanced Braille skills
interested in pursuing a career in music. The curriculum was developed by
collaboration with the Distance Learning Department of The Carroll Center
for the Blind.
Comprehensive Braille Music training is not available anywhere else in
the U.S. Braille Music is the only way for a blind musician to read music
scores directly. Instructor Jin Ho Choi, himself a blind musician as
well as a Library of Congress-certified braillist in literature and music,
wrote the Braille Music course offerings and has been teaching them
in-house for the past year. Now available online, the Grade 2 Braille
reader can learn the basic concepts of musical notation. The copyrighted
online curriculum includes the opportunity for interaction between a
Braille instructor and the student located off-site. Each of the 26
lessons can be completed in approximately 45 minutes.
Miami Lighthouse is currently enrolling new students in the Braille and
Technology Literacy program.
Topic outline
Course Prerequisites:
- Proficiency in Literary Braille Grade 2
- Access to a musical instrument the student knows how to play or the vocal
ability to practice the
lessons
- Equipment to write Braille, a slate and stylus or a Perkins Brailler
- Computer Access with screen reader such as JAWS, Window-Eyes, etc. and
playback capabilities
- Download the free program entitled Perky Duck
- Equipment with digital recording capabilities such as a digital recorder,
an iPhone, or a Smartphone,
etc.
Course Outline:
The purpose of this course is to enable the Grade 2 Braille reader to
become acquainted with the basic
concepts of musical notation. Upon completion of the course, the student
will be able to read,
understand and successfully play or sing a braille music score.
Each lesson will contain an objective, an activity and a home learning
assignment section for the student
to complete. At key points during the course, an assessment or test of the
student’s knowledge may be
administered. A vocabulary of terminology pertinent to each lesson is also
included. All vocabulary
terms are included in the Glossary index.
For more information, contact Miami Lighthouse CEO Virginia Jacko at
(305) 856-4176.
E-mail:
vjacko@miamilighthouse.org
To contact the instructor, Jin Ho Choi, call (786) 362-7458.
Email:
jchoi@miamilighthouse.org
How to submit the enrollment form:
If you would like to enroll in our Braille Music Distance Learning
Curriculum please download the form (Limited
License Agreement) and sign it. The signed form can be scanned and
submitted via email to
jchoi@miamilighthouse.org or faxed to Mr. Choi’s attention at (305)
854-1759 or mailed to Mr. Jin Choi at Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and
Visually Impaired, 601 SW 8th Avenue, Miami, FL 33130.
The enrolled student will sign in to his or her account by clicking on
the following link:
https://MiamiLighthouse.ExpertLearning.net/
Testimonial
I want to thank Mr. Choi for this excellent online Braille Music
course! This is a fantastic course; and if you are an individual who is
seeking to develop or improve your musical talent this is the perfect
opportunity to learn how to read Braille music notations and eventually
able to read an entire music score with all of the symbols and expression
marks.
Now that I’ve completed the course I am very happy with my results, and
I am confident that my time spent in this course was and is a wise
investment. The lessons were thoughtfully planned and easy to follow. It
was a pleasure completing the assignments because they helped me to fully
understand the content and enabled me to gain some valuable transferable
skills that will be beneficial to me in the future.
Thanks a million to Mr. Choi for his vision and his passion. I personally
witnessed a teacher who is very excited about teaching Braille music. He
is very willing to answer any question, play or sing a note or measure,
and he will even write a score to illustrate the example.
I will recommend this course to anyone, “You will never regret it.” My
proof is this: I am now able to use my Braille music hymn book more
effectively whereas prior to this course I would skip a hymn because I did
not recognize the symbol. Thank goodness! This course has made a
difference.
Lorna G.
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