Alfred's Essentials of Music Theory 2.0 Student
© 2003 Alfred Publishing
This is a complete music theory curriculum by Andrew Surmani, Karen Farnum Surmani and Morton Manus that consists of 55 lessons, divided into three volumes. (Volumes can be purchased individually for $29.95, and the Teacher's Edition costs $199.95). Lessons start with note names and progress through inverted chords and ear training. This is the second edition of the series, with improvements including optional alto or tenor clefs, and the ability to customize a single student's curricula and require a passing grade to go on to further units (optional). Also included are online updates and MIDI compatible exercises on some lessons (meaning you can play notes on an attached MIDI keyboard and see the results on the screen). Record keeping features in the teacher edition include the ability to import lists of students, and the ability to individualize the curriculum. The content is based on the material in the Alfred’s Essentials of Music Theory book series and includes narration of new concepts, animation, exercises, games and ear training. Notable features include a music glossary in which each term is illustrated musically when possible, and the record keeping is excellent. Overall, this is not a fancy program; for example, it doesn't know when you are guessing, and hints are rare. But the navigation is nice and clean, and students are given plenty of control to repeat difficult content, if the teacher lets them. The bottom line? This is an incredibly useful music teaching tool that makes learning music theory much easier than traditional methods. See also Dolphin Don's Music School version 3.2.
$59.95, Macintosh, Windows
Teaches: music theory (pitch, note names, ear training, chords, scales and much more)