CD-ROM's teach everything from arithmetic to zoology, so why not guitar? The following titles address three very different types of students, and give an idea of what's available today for the aspiring guitarist. They are all designed for Windows, and were tested under Windows '95 running on a 100MHZ Pentium with 4X CD-ROM drive. All discs performed smoothly, never crashed, and installed without glitches.
For those who are already well into music but want to improve their theory skills, Jazz Tutor ($99.95) from MasterClass Productions ( P.O. Box 304 Ridgewood, NJ 07451; mail@masterclass.com) delivers the goods. It's loosely based around five new tunes by Phil Woods, playable on a standard CD player as well as through the computer, which not only makes for good listening but provides the basis for most of the exercises. The songs are also playable without the lead instruments for practice. As each song plays, the chart goes by on-screen in one of three user-settable keys (C, Bb, or Eb) so you can transpose to match your particular instruments.
When you need a break, there's a slide show of Phil's career highlights, and a complete discography. One of the more fun parts is a "jukebox" of 14 MIDI tunes written by Phil, which not only provide piano scores as a grist for further study, but also have written and spoken "liner notes". The reference section ( with music theory, a glossary of jazz terms, and a chord/scale glossary) is a goldmine of jazz theory; terms are also linked to the lesson texts, so help is just a click away. Several examples include a MIDI instrument played through your soundcard; along with narration and text. Editing and annotation options help personalize the course, as well as help instructors who use this disc in a class. finally, a jazz tutorial section ties all the above together into a structured learning experience.
Although all videos are slide shows, not animation, the production values and artwork are quite good (except for an occasional annoying breakup on the voice narrating the lessons). It's obvious that a lot of work went into this project; Jazz Tutor is the disc to beat if you seek a healthy dose of jazz theory.
- Craig Anderton