Using Accompaniment Software

Accompaniment software provides the teacher with an interface to enter a harmonic progression, select a tempo, style, and length. The software then generates a background. The most well-known accompaniment software is called Band-in-a-Box (BIAB), produced by PG Music. The software can playback using your computer's internal software synth (e.g., Quicktime Musical Instruments) or by sending MIDI data to an external hardware synthesizer. The advantage over CDs of using accompaniment software is greater teaching flexibility with tempo, key, and rhythmic style. The advantage over using a synthesizer is the ability to save your accompaniments as computer files. BIAB also has many songs and styles that come with the program.

The disadvantage is the amount of equipment required - computer, speakers, MIDI synth or sound module, and all the necessary cables. It can take 10-15 minutes for an experienced user to set all this equipment up, so it may not be the best choice for a traveling teacher.

In a beginning level string class, I turn on Band-in-a-Box (BIAB). Suddenly I have students' attention. I play a one or two bar pattern to them and they play it back to me in time over the BIAB background. I start easy and progress to more difficult patterns. For example, I will play D-D-D-D (quarter notes) first, then change the rhythm to D-DD-D-D (quarter, two eights, quarter, quarter), etc.I will do this on different strings, with different rhythmic backgrounds, and then over the course of several classes progress to patterns on two adjacent strings, then three strings, and then patterns on non-adjacent strings.

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