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.