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Originally Posted by kraku  This is a serious question, so I'd appreciate serious answers.
I'm trying to find a suitable software or hardware for my sister's son to learn how to write his own music. He's 9 years old and seems to be more technically interested in the music writing process / gadgets than learning how to actually play an instrument.
So I've been trying to come up with an idea of what HW gadget or software host / etc. would be best for him to learn all this stuff with. I don't want to overwhelm this kid by buying him Logic Pro 8 and some monster software synth, since there would be a too steep learning curve.
He seemed to be really interested in my Korg EMX-1 while building his own simple drum patterns, but since it's a pretty complex machine with complex UI, he wasn't able to do much with it. This proves that if the SW/HW was simple enough, he'd have the energy and interest to learn it.
I've been eyeing the Korg ER-1 groovebox, which would enable him to create his own fun patterns and tweak the sounds a bit, but that's the only thing I've managed to come up with so far. ER-1 is also quite limited since it can only do drums.
I would really like to hear your suggestions what HW or SW might work for this kid. |
I really think you should buy him a "real" instrument. If he don't want to learn how to play, a guitar is easy enough, and yet very good to compose songs. It's better than any electronic device, in my opinion. And, serioulsy, it will get him girls later, a groovebox won't.
Just show him 3 or 5 easy chords, and he's ready to have fun for hours long.
And if he's really a geek, a simple drum machine or nice effects pedals are a nice plus.
(Just to be totally honest, I began music on a software called Dance eJay, which is very similar to Garage Band... I only learned guitar when I was 22! So maybe yes... I might be wrong... But I didn't get the girls!
)