By Dale Farris, Reviews Coordinator
Golden Triangle PC Club
October 2006

Game Overview

Viva-Media, the supreme children's software distributor, announces their newest game, the release of a classic in computer music programs. Morton Subotnick's Playing Music is the 4th title in this wonderful series of best-selling children's educational software from Morton Subotnick. Designed for both home and school use, Subotnick's ground-breaking approach makes complicated concepts east to understand.

The other titles in this series include Morton Subotnick's Making Music, Morton Subotnick's Making More Music, and Morton Subotnick's Hearing Music. All these titles are essential to anyone involved in helping children learn music, including music teachers in public schools as well as the private sector. Playing Music is a sure bet for all families with computers and children interested in making music on their computer.

Playing Music teaches advanced musical concepts in a fun and engaging manner. Using videos, interactive animations, games, and more, the game is just a super tool for use in helping children learn music. Playing Music visually and aurally presents the components of music, so kids can bring all their senses to bear, and it is suitable for children of any age. Playing Music is intended to let children experience understand musical expression and how to use music as a communication tool.

As a pioneer in electronic music and interactive computer music systems, composer Morton Subotnick built the program from the ground up, so that it would be completely interactive and TOTALLY FUN! Playing Music is a great introduction to music.

Playing Music involves listening to musical performances and finding two of the same. In the process, children will become aware of the subtleties of musical expression.

Children will also watch visual kinetics and compare what they see to what they hear. They will also listen to a performance and choose the correct musical notation, and listen to music while reading its score, thus learning musical literacy. They will also listen to music and choose which musical marks are missing, and play a fun game that reinforces the concepts set forth in the glossary of musical expressions and symbols.

Viva Media's software can always be counted on for high quality software geared for the special interests and learning levels of children. With Playing Music, Viva Media now provides a wonderful software addition that will exactly meet their needs for a music program that is directly made for children.

As many readers likely know, in the children's software business, programs that are supposedly created to simulate reality, or offer experiential, interactive learning, many times fail to make the grade. However, as any computer owner familiar with the award winning lineup of children's software from Viva-Media know, you can always depend on Viva-Media for top quality programs, regardless the targeted age group.

In the special case of music tutor programs, most readers are probably familiar with various of these programs that target adults, but finding such a program created at the level of children has, till now, been a problem. With Playing Music you now have exactly what you want if you are interested in helping children learn music.

What always stymies any computer software creator with a desire to create a program on learning music is of course the inherent variety of music and musical instruments, something that just naturally makes for an added challenge if you want to help children learn music by working with a computer program.  Playing Music scores a bulls-eye in its marvelously playful approach that will appeal to all children, as well as adults new to the world of music.

Despite the fun you will have, the game is of course built on serious matters, namely creating music, and the subtle, powerful aspects that accompany this important skill. In addition to basic music theory, kids can also listen to samples of famous music from around the world and hear what different instruments sound like. Aural skills are stressed in the games section, as the children are challenged to identify same or different melodies.

Features

Create your own musical editions, enjoy them from the audience or go on stage and play them yourself!

Play fun games and experience how real musicians make music expressive. Including over 20 musical scores by 11 of the worlds most famous composers, 9 videos, interactive animal, games, glossary and much, much more!

3 performing characters interpret your editions!

Use 15 Tools to edit and even copyright your masterpiece in the Expression Room

Join Concert pianist Frederic Chu as he performs

Game Play

You move the characters and interact with the screen by using the mouse.

Age Group

Playing Music is a wonderful game for children of all ages, as well as adults interested in having fun learning music. Kids around 8 years of age should be old enough to quickly master the game's unique, fun interface and in no time begin to create their own music compositions.

Targeted Customers

Viva-Media's marvelous game Playing Music is targeted to the age group 8 to 102. While the youngest 8-year olds may indeed have fun with this game, because they are learning music, it will be a more likely success the more serious is the player. Older children should also find this game one the best tools to use in their initial learning steps.

Again, Viva-Media presents a title that provides super value to public libraries as a wonderful title to be added to their collection. The game could be made available on workstations for children and their parents to play, or it could represent a super tool for use in Little Bookwork programs designed around the topic of learning music.

Price

$29.99 (super bargain!)

Minimum System Configuration Requirements

Windows

233MHz Intel Pentium processor or better
Windows 98, ME, 2000, XP
128MB RAM
Soundcard with speakers or headphones

MAC Machines

400MHz PowerPC G3 or faster processor
Mac OS X or OS 9
128MB RAM

Installation and Setup

The game should install and set up with no problems.

About Viva Media, LLC

Viva Media, LLC is a privately owned New York company dedicated to publishing a wide array of interactive content of the highest standards. The company's collection of more than 40 multimedia titles tout more than 30 awards for excellence in publishing. Viva Media features the award winning line of Tivola Publishing CD-ROM games and the Viva range of titles including:

Viva Chess
Viva Astronomy
Viva Kids
Viva Adventure
Viva Music

Contact Information

John W. De Feo
Media Coordinator
Viva-Media
580 Broadway, Suite 604
New York, New York 10012
212-431-4420
FAX 212-431-4537
john@viva-media.com
www.viva-media.com

You can also order from other retailers or online vendors.