As more Skoog's fly the nest to find homes out there in the big wide world, we have been hearing all about the cool things people get up to with the Skoog.Music therapists, Musicians, Schools, Teachers, Families, Parents and tutors, have been getting in touch with their stories, pics and flicks of what they have been doing with their Skoogs.
If you have anything fun, crazy, imaginative or musical to share, or maybe you have lesson plans, ideas, best practice tips to give, lets tell the world!
Call or email us with your news and we will make your story a special feature on this page...
January 2012
The Mearns Heritage Project
Forest View Centre, Stonehaven
The Mearns Heritage Project, introduced in the last edition of the newsletter, is a two-year initiative bieng led by Claire Will, Manager of the Forest View Centre, Stonehaven.
The project, which will culminate in a major fashion, music and dance show in 2013, involves adults with learning disabilities in a range of activities looking at the history of the local area. This is the third time a project of this kind has been undertaken and this time th group has been given the benefit of a new piece of technology which will open opportunities for participants to create thier own music.
The SKOOG, as it's called, has been designed by Edinburgh University students especially for adults with learning disabilities, and the centre is helping to pilot it.
Claire explained: "This is a tremendous breakview for the Forest View centre as we will be able to overcome physical barriers b using this new invention. It will enable us to push the boundaries of involvement with adults with learning diablities who cannot hold convential intruments or perform with them.
The SKOOG operates on a synthesiser principle, and is able to replicate a range of musical instruments by a single touch. Sounds can then be stored and arranged into complete musical pieces.
(From an article in the Housing and Social Work Newsletter of Aberdeenshre council.)
August 2011
Autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder that has become increasingly
common. In London, the prevalence is approximately ten percent of school pupil population.
Children with ASD exhibit impairments in social behaviour and relationships that can severely
affect the quality of their lives and their functioning in society. Yet, there is no known cure for autism, although there is increasing evidence that children with ASD are particularly responsive to music activities (www.umsic.org). However, the most effective ways of engaging in music with such children have not been researched.
In relation to this, a new musical instrument called Skoog has been developed with user accessibility issues at its core (www.skoogmusic.com). Skoog functions as a soft, squeezable musical instrument that can be used by children with a variety of special needs. It enables children to effortlessly engage in musical activities via the pressing of different coloured buttons that produce unique musical sounds. The instrument can be played with any body part and it can be adjusted to sound like different musical instruments (such as the piano and the flute). Empirical evidence is needed on the use of Skoog with children who have autism in order to research whether such children can benefit from Skoog-based activities.
The current study carried out by the Institute of Education and University of Oulu aims to test and develop music intervention activities using the Skoog-instrument with children who have ASD. The instrument can effectively be used at home and in professional settings by parents, carers, health practitioners and education professionals. The intention is not to develop a structured music therapy method, but rather a group of musical activities that can be used more informally at home, as well as care and educational settings. The specific aims of the study are to develop intervention methods that aim at improving autistic children’s: feelings of well-being; inter-personal behaviour; and social skills.
Children with autism, their parents, carers and teachers will benefit from the outcomes of the project. The outcomes will give pointers to how music can be used at home and in professional practice with children who have autism. The project will also function as a pilot study for a larger project. On the basis of the findings from the project, a bid for funding for a larger-scale study will be developed. A small pilot study conducted in London with 4 children exhibiting ASD symptoms have provided some initial indication as to how Skoog could be used beneficially with such children. A larger-scale study based on the initial findings will be carried out during the academic year of 2011-2012. For further information, please contact Dr Tiija Rinta (Institute of Education, University of London) at T.Rinta@ioe.ac.uk.
July 2011
2011 Balkan Summer Camp, Croatia! We were there! - Joy Vamvakari and Tasos Mavrolampados
The 2011 Balkan summer camp, under the supervision of Prof Nigel Osborne, Reid Professor of music in the University of Edinburgh and composer, took place between the 6th and 12th of July, in Pula, Croatia. Of course, we were there! We participated in the project, alongside 40 children from the Pula Centre for Children with Special Needs, 32 volunteers from the UK, 10 young volunteers from Srebrenica, 10 local students from regional universities and an amazing folk ethnic dance music band, The Blasting Company.
The objective of the summer camp was to support one of the main centers for special education in Istria, doing creative work with people with disability ranging from CP to ASD and PTSD. Specifically, through a process of original musical creation, we aimed to help build towards social cohesion, communication, trust, empathy, self-expression, self-confidence, motivation, cognitive development, development of language and motor skills and, modestly, towards dealing with physiological symptoms of trauma, such as dysregulation of the heart, respiration and movement repertoires. Additionally, there was also intention to raise consciousness of work in the field of special needs education in the region as a whole.
Our work with the children took place in the Centre for children with Special Needs in Pula. With the essential help of local students and young volunteers from Srebrenica, and, of course, using the great power of music, we were to overcome difficulties due to disability and the boundaries of language and origin, creating an original piece of music with the children; this piece of music was to be performed during our performance dedicated to James Joyce.
All participants were divided into groups. Our group consisted of us two, our volunteer from Srebrenica, an early-education student from the University of Pula and four children from the center. The children’s ages were wide-ranging, from pre-teens to early adulthood. Additionally, the group was also varied regarding disability; concerning motor abilities, three of our children were immobile, whether in wheelchairs or supportive chairs, and only one child had no motor disability, while their cognitive ability was also diverse. This meant that we had to find a creative and fun way to include everyone in this process of creation and final performance. That is where the Skoog comes in!
Having been designed for exactly this kind of situation, the Skoog enabled us to include everyone in the creative process. All children were able to have a go at the Skoog, something they thoroughly enjoyed. After their first encounter with the Skoog, we were ready to work towards creating our song.
We systematically used the Skoog as a means towards including in this process the most severely disabled child. This child was not able to participate vocally, nor could play any traditional instrument, due to great motor disability. However, he was very willing to participate, and this was expressed through the use of the Skoog, which he very eagerly played during the whole process.
Having been chosen to compose a song about Circe, a witch out of James Joyce’s Ulysses who lives on a beautiful island alongside many animals and falls in love with Odysseus, we listened to a backing track of subtle natural environment sounds (birdsong and riverside sounds), and talked about Circe and her island, creating a story that would later become the lyrics to our song. The main characters of our story, apart from Circe that is, were her animal friends, so we proceeded to use the Skoog as means to produce the corresponding animal sounds. We initially used this function during the process of choosing what animals we wanted to have in our story, and then we integrated the animal sounds in our song. The child playing the Skoog, with his hands and chin, was very excited and happy during this, as he felt fully included, very actively participating and contributing to the group.
After creating our story and adapting it into the form of lyrics, with help from the children, we worked on the melody and form of the song, resulting in the creation of a cheerful song in rondo form, with a significant Balkan touch and a narrative character, which was also accompanied by a recitation of the story.
The Skoog was similarly used in rehearsals and, of course, in the performance of our song during the final presentation dedicated to James Joyce, which took place in a clearing beside the sea, on the beautiful island of Veliki Brijuni. Throughout the event each group performed their own original song, and actors read out passages from James Joyce’s Ulysses. During our group’s performance the severely disabled child played the animal sounds using the Skoog; alongside the backing track playing through the Skoog software, that harmoniously enhanced and brought out a more rhythmical feature in the existing natural sounds of the island, the animal sounds helped in forming a complete soundscape and brought to life our story placed on Circe’s island.
Using the Skoog during the Balkan summer camp was a pleasure. We were greatly congratulated on our fully incorporating all members of our group in the creation and performance of our song, which resulted in a greatly expressive and creative atmosphere and a cheerful, original, high-quality music piece. Additionally, there was much interest in the Skoog, as the participants of the camp, but also spectators, recognized its ability to enable everyone to play music.
July 2011
After the success of his Justin Timberlake medley our friends at Trabasack gave us a bell and asked if we had heard or seen the genius of Brett. We watched and were hooked immediately. The Trabasack laptop bag and tray table featured in the Timberlake video and the rumor was that Brett had expressed an interest in trying out the Skoog. Well we wasted no time in sending Brett a Skoog to see what he made of it and we were thrilled when he said he would be up for making a video that showed off the Skoog...
From his previous videos we knew that Brett would produce something amazing so we left him to it, and the result speaks for it’s self. Although only using the Midi triggering option this version of Outkasts smash hit Hey YA is absolute genius. The video itself is a clever reworking of the original video that featured Andre 3000 playing all the characters and instruments in the band ‘the love below’. In Brett’s video this is turned on it’s head slightly with all the instruments being played on Skoog... We really love this and can’t wait to see what’s next....
July 2011
Athletes at this years Special Olympics are being offered the opportunity to try the Skoog as a way of providing a fun and stimulating activity to help relaxation, support team building and engage with the wider cultural aspects of the Olympics. Music can help deal with stress and actively lowering cortisol levels which is ideal for all sports stars.
The team at Skoogmusic hope that these activities will help athletes prepare for and get the most from their Olympic experience.
Skoogmusic donated 2 of these unique inventions to the Special Olympic movement. Supported by local community musicians trained in the art of Skoog, delegates will be able to try this revolutionary new piece of technology for themselves as part of the entertainments on offer in the wider cultural programme surrounding the event.
The Skoog will provide a fun and stimulating activity to help athletes relax, support team building and engage with the wider cultural aspects of the Olympics. Music can also help deal with stress, actively lowering cortisol levels. The team at Skoogmusic hope that these activities will help athletes prepare for and get the most from their Olympic experience.
With the support of Scottish Enterprise and Special Olympics Hellas, the team at Skoogmusic will be setting up a Skoog Zone for delegates to spend some time getting to grips with this entirely new musical instrument. Soft, spongy, bright and bouncy, the Skoog is a musical instrument quite unlike any other. And not just one instrument; it’s lots of instruments all squeezed into a multi-coloured box of technology.
“We are really excited about being part of the Special Olympics this year. Inclusion, Integration and Education are at the heart of the Special Olympic movement and these core principles are central to what we strive for at Skoogmusic.” (Ben Schögler)
The Skoog makes music accessible to everyone; from established experimental musicians to children with disabilities who struggle to cope with conventional instruments. “A new instrument for established musicians, and new ways for all to play” Professor Nigel Osborne MBE, Reid Professor of Music and advisor to the Warchild charity.
“This is an opportunity to introduce the world to the Skoog and we are looking forward to taking part,” says Ben at Skoog.
