‘Music Technology 101’ from Hal Leonard

Many of today’s music educators are also tasked with teaching their students about technology, an essential component for today’s musicians for sure, but something that the educators themselves might not have been educated in! The new Hal Leonard book/video Music Technology 101 by Heath Jones helps educators learn what they need to know to set up a successful music technology lab and studio for their students.

Music Technology 101 breaks down the basics of music creation in the technology lab or home studio. It provides practical, actionable, and easy-to-understand information, resources, and advice to anyone interested in teaching a music technology course or learning how to become a do-it-yourself music producer. The book includes online access to nearly 90 minutes of video tutorials as well as lesson plan PDFs.

The book is full color throughout with helpful diagrams, photos, and screenshots. It includes info on basic to advanced lab setups, using digital audio workstations (DAWs), understanding and using MIDI, song forms, looping and repetition, melody and harmony, recording, editing, effects and plug-ins, automation, understanding audio files, sharing and distributing music, and more. The bonus material includes a four-week lesson plan for a song project unit. The video and bonus content are accessed online at Hal Leonard’s MyLibrary platform using the unique code provided with each book. The video content is available to download or stream from any device.

Author Heath Jones is a musician and educator. He currently teaches Music Technology at McConnell Middle School in Lawrenceville, GA. He is the Music Technology Chair for the Georgia Music Educators Association and organized the first-ever GMEA Music Technology Student Showcase in 2020. He began his career as a high school band director and has over twenty years of teaching experience. He’s been a part of working committees for developing curriculum, performance standards, and assessments at both the state and local level. He is a guest lecturer at state and national music conferences.

Music Technology 101 retails for $16.99 and is available at halleonard.com and music stores everywhere.

See sample pages & video here.