Play Music Together
© 2006 iPlayMusic Inc.
A better title for this DVD might be "Play Guitar Together" due to the fact that the content consists of videos of a guitar teacher who performs six children's songs and then breaks the songs down to teach children how to play them. The five options offered are Lesson Videos, Guitar Basics, Song Lessons, Chord Lessons, and Play Individual Songs. When the teacher performs the song, lyrics scroll on the bottom of the screen along with chords. Sometimes Capo, a puppet, uses props like lobsters and fishing poles to match a song's theme such as the song "Crawdad Hole". Guitar Basics covers 11 topics including Finger and String Numbering, Making Sound and Guitar Anatomy. Each topic is explained and demonstrated by the guitar teacher in easy-to-understand language. For instance, in Making Sound, you are told and shown how to finger the string on the edge of the fret while using your pick. Song Lessons includes instruction for six songs such as, "If You're Happy and You Know It". Here,the instructor demonstrates the D, A and G chords as well as the strumming pattern for the song on a triple-split screen. The top screen shows the instructor in his entirety while the bottom left screen shows just his right hand playing the guitar, and the bottom right screen shows his left hand. Chord Lessons shows a visual diagram of a chord (such as C Major) that can you choose to learn where to place your fingers on the frets and which strings to use that produce that chord. Again, the triple split screen is used, with the chord diagram in the center for reference. The Play Individual Songs option allows you to watch a video of the song or view the song lesson. The videos are visually simple with a colorful childlike background that remains stationary. You can also view them without the vocals by choosing that option in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. We thought this DVD offered great, basic guitar instruction for children, but wondered why the guitar teacher wasn't more engaging and upbeat. His dark attire and lack of facial expression doesn't seem well-matched for a young audience. Also, since the majority of the content here is instructional, we felt it was better suited for school-age children who are beginning to play guitar, rather than for preschoolers.
$25, Mac OSX, Windows XP
Teaches: music, observing, memory
CTR Rating: 78%