ARTS & CULTURE
Creations / Occasions / Programs
ARTS & CULTURE
LET THE BEAT DROP Ball State fuels young musical talent. BY MELISSA KRAMAN
B
all State senior Malik Brown predicts a bright musical future for two middle schoolers who participated in a new immersive learning course called The Junior Producers Club. “I expect to hear Allie rapping on the radio, and Jayden’s beats enlivening famous pop songs. They harness this natural musical talent,” said Malik, who was among nine music media production (MMP) students leading the course, designed to give Muncie kids the chance to make and produce their own music in a professional music recording studio. For the course, MMP students partnered with the Boys & Girls Club of Muncie at the Buley Community Center in the Whitely Neighborhood. Christoph Nils Thompson, assistant professor of Music Media Production & Industry, created and advised the class. “It appeared to me that there was a real need for this project in the Whitely community,” said Thompson. “There are talented kids out there who deserve opportunity, and we were in the perfect position to provide that opportunity through sharing our equipment and providing educational support.” This past summer, Thompson worked with Audio/Digital Systems Engineer Jeff Seitz, ’95 MA ’97, and two MMP students to install a recording studio and control room at Buley, complete with professional headsets, instruments, microphones, and desktop computers. Every weekday throughout the Fall semester, rotating groups of MMP students provided middle schoolers hourly, one-on-one training on song structure, building melody and harmony, and recording techniques. The children worked toward a final product that showcased all they’d learned, in whatever creative form they chose. Some of them wrote lyrics and recorded rap, while others played instruments to create innovative beats. Sixth-grader Allie came into the project with zero experience but learned quickly to
New Addition An American Indian artist — probably Cheyenne, Plains, or Sioux — crafted this chest plate using bone, rawhide, ermine, shells, and bear claws. It was among about 100 new pieces shown at David Owsley Museum of Art this Fall that included ceramics, masks, photos, prints, sculpture, and ritual objects from around the globe.
30
Ball State University Alumni Magazine
Photo by Don Rogers
MMP student Chase Carter mentors X’zavier as he learns recording software.
seamlessly navigate a complex recording platform, write his own lyrics, and structure a rap song that he recorded in the studio. “I could see myself going into music production as a career,” said Allie. “I want to change rap and make it better through meaningful lyrics about life and family. “I could also see myself in the future doing what these Ball State students are doing: mentoring kids who are going through a lot of stuff and showing them that they can do more in life.” Thompson, who has 20 years of music engineering experience in jazz and pop, explained the symbiotic essence of the course: Just as the middle schoolers practiced and mastered new skills, so, too, did the Ball State students as they learned how to bring the wildly creative ideas of a slightly younger generation to life. Malik Brown agreed. “Seeing the middle schoolers’ eyes light up when they learn something new or enthusiastically come to class wanting to try out something they saw in a YouTube video reminds me of where my love of music started.”
Photo by Lucinda Stipp
Fall/Winter 2019–20
31
