Interactive Multimedia Design for Musicians

Spring 2015


"A computer terminal is not some clunky old television with a typewriter in front of it. It is an interface where the mind and body can connect with the universe and move bits of it about."
Douglas Adams, Mostly Harmless (1992)

"Technology is the campfire around which we tell our stories."
Laurie Anderson, Wired magazine (1998)
Instructor: Dr. Timothy A. Nord
Office: 2202 JJWCM
Phone: 274-3389
E-mail: nord@ithaca.edu
Office Hours: M 2, R 2, F 9 or by appointment

Course Information
Course: MUMC 40400/50400
Room: 2102 JJWCM
Times: Section 01 - 11:00 MW
   


Required/Recommended Reading

Readings will vary depending on the direction the course takes, but may include various tutorials and articles related to design issues and content creation.

Course Description

This course has been developed as an advanced course for musicians interested in learning how to design and create interactive multimedia. The goal is to help students learn to create different types of multimedia materials specifically designed to focus on their area of musical interest and expertise. These materials may take may different forms, but they will all be content rich and stress the musicianship and interests of each individual student.

Objectives

The objective of this course is to create an environment where students will learn various different concepts involved in the design and creation of interactive multimedia as related to their own area of musical interest and expertise. Students will learn how to create and manipulate different types of audio and visual data. Students will learn how to synchronize visual objects to audio data. Students will learn how to create an interactive environment where the user controls and manipulates the presentation of content (linear vs. non-linear design). Students will learn concepts of effective multimedia design. Students will learn differences in design concepts for web-based versus application-based presentation.

Grading

Grading will be based on attendance and the completion of assignments and projects. Each unit will have assignments that focus on particular techniques and design issues. The final portion of the course will involve the creation of a substantial project utilizing the approaches studied earlier in the semester. The final project will be worth 50% of the final grade while all other assignments will make up the other 50%.

Attendance

Due to the nature of this course, attendance is required at all class meetings. Unexcused absences will result in a lowering of your grade by three percentage points per absence. See the Attendance Policy section of the Ithaca College Undergraduate Catalog, 2014-2015, for a complete statement of the College Attendance Policy.

Course Overview
I. Content Materials
  The first part of the course focuses on the creation of content materials. Working with programs such as Audacity, Peak, Cubase, Reason, iMovie and various online resources, students learn how to create and manipulate different types of audio and visual resources that can then be used as building blocks for larger musical projects.
II. Project Design and Creation  
  In this part of the course, students focus on putting all these building blocks together into projects relevant to their particular area of musical expertise. We use programs such as Director, Flash, iWeb and Dreamweaver, as well as HTML and some online resources as platforms for structuring these projects. Each student is required to design and create a substantial project that illustrates their functional knowledge of component design as well as the development of a sense of unity of material and purpose for the project.
  Please see the course schedule page for a more detailed outline.