Research Notes Reflection

3 Things I Understand Well:
- I understand how to answer the questions that I had made which are about how songs affect people or make people relax, how will I make the songs, what kind of song should I make, and who will be my audience.
- I know how should I start making the songs, which are preparing the equipment and writing the songs since I already knew what kind of song I should make.
- I also understand what sources I can use to answer any other questions that I will probably have later

2 Things I'm Not Sure I Understand:
- Are the equipment for recording my music available in the music store I usually went to, and which music stores sell the equipment that I might need
- Will I have enough ideas about what chords should I use for the songs

1 Thing I Don't Understand:
- How much should my budget be for spending on the equipment

My Equipment

My Current Equipment:

 Electric Guitar

 Guitar Amplifier

Audio Jack













I'm planning to get the Mini Jack that could connect to my Laptop from my Amplifier, so I'm actually using the method of directly recording from Amplifier to Computer. It's the cheapest method and doesn't require much money, and I think after I heard this YouTube Video about recording directly from an Amplifier the sound quality wasn't bad at all (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shv7FOTbgk0).

I'm planning to use this method, but if I went to the music store and found some USB Devices for recording from the Electric Guitar that's quite cheap, I will probably change my mind.

Appendix 9. Research Note for Criterion A and C

Investigation Form

INTRODUCTION

Follow these steps to help you research information for your project. You must do the activity one step at the time.

STEP 1      TASK DEFINITION

1. Defined Problem/Background

Some students could stress out especially because of school works. They need something to make them feel calmer

2. Goal : 

The goal is to make a CD with at least 6 songs that I will make by my own. Each song must have a duration of at least 3 minutes, and the genre is an instrumental and slow music.

1. What are your inquiry questions?  What kinds of information are you looking for?

1. What genre of songs that I’m going to make?
• What kinds of songs are relaxing?
• What kinds of songs are not difficult and possible to make?
• What genre of songs that most people prefer for relaxing?
2. Who will be my audience?
• How old should the audience be?
• Where and when can I meet them?
• Do they enjoy music?         
3. How I will make the songs?
• What equipment and materials are needed to make them?
• How to compose the songs?
• What’s the chosen genre of the song?  

         4.   How music help or make people feel relax?

o    What are the genres that are possible to make people feel relax?

o    How songs affect our mind?

IDENTIFY THE INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS. (What information do I need? i.e facts, examples, diagrams, table, graphs, experts.)

Step 2.  INFORMATION SEEKING STRATEGIES Consider: accuracy- (complete); related (on the topic); availability (ease of use); appealing, etc.

Consider possible sources. e.g. BOOKS, REFERENCE BOOKS (Encyclopedias, dictionaries,  almanacs, other reference materials); AUDIO VISUAL (CD roms, Videos / VCD’S & DVD’S, cassettes, others), PERSONAL INTERVIEWS; INTERNET (record websites used).  Indicate which maybe the best sources and why.

Primary Sources: 1.       Experienced musicians or people with music like my music teacher, and also people who often listen to music. 2.       Friends or other people that I know who listen to music 3.       People who knew about recording and composing like musicians, and my music teacher. 4.       People who are experienced with music or doctors Secondary Sources: 1.    Internet and Books 2.    Chatting websites or programs such as Skype and Facebook where we can see people’s hobbies and music-related information. 3.    Internet 4.    Internet and Books

STEP 4. USE OF INFORMATION            NOTE-TAKING SHEET( show  references in a bibliography (MLA)

Criterion A.  Process Journal Students should demonstrate information literacy, thinking and reflection. Research Topic 1/What inquiry question do you try to answer? What genre of songs that I’m going to make?
Sources (MLA)   What's your relaxing music genre? -VBForums. December 22, 2008. http://www.vbforums.com/showthread.php?t=551288 (accessed June 12, 2012). Gerges, David. Most relaxing song made by UK band Boffins | Mail Online. 18 October 2011. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2049948/Most-relaxing-song-UK-band-Boffins.html (accessed June 29, 2012).	-       People mostly preferred slow music for relaxing -       There are many genres that people choose for relaxing such as Classical, Post-Rock, Classic Rock, Easy Listening, Ambient, Instrumental, and Country, but most of them are slow music. Most people said that electronica/techno genre that is made by software is the easiest to make, but it’s not always relaxing. Instrumental and classical is maybe the easiest because it only needs the sounds from music instruments. Slow music is the most relaxing music, and it has been proven. Therapists and scientists have found out after letting some people listening to slow music, that their blood pressure and heart rate were decreased.
Evaluate your sources!  (The Evaluation should be done per-topic research, not per-resource and draft should be posted on the journal) a.    How the information suited to the project? (Coverage)      Does the information help me respond to the inquiry question? Yes, the information answered the questions about what kind of music that most people chose to help them get more relaxed      Does the information belong to my topic? Yes, it relates to the topic which is about music and its benefits like being able to make people relax      Will the information help me to develop my project product? Yes, the information will help me by letting me know what kind of genre that most people choose, and what genre is the suitable one for relaxations      Does the information connect clearly with the area of interaction or aspects of it? The information only connects to the topic because it’s about Music B.      Is the information source reliable (Authority)?  Where does the information come from? The information is from several websites on the internet and is reliable C.      Is the information accurate? Can the information be verified in another source? The information is accurate, some other websites also showed the same information D.      Is the information up-to-date? (Currency)  Is the information current or still valuable if it is older? The information is not very old ones, and these are quite new. E.       Is the information objective/not biased? (Objectivity) Yes F.       What information do I still need? Find out the answers for the next questions, which are deciding who will be my audience G.     What new questions does my research bring? How will I make the song according to the genre that people mostly chose for relaxations

Criterion A.  Process Journal Students should demonstrate information literacy, thinking and reflection.                 Research Topic 2/What inquiry question do you try to answer? Who will be my audience?
Sources (MLA) Causes of Stress. t.thn. 24 July 2012. <http://changingminds.org/explanations/stress/stress_causes.htm>. Webber, Christine. Why do we get stressed? 15 July 2010. 23 July 2012.   <http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/stresswhydowegetit.htm>. What Causes Stress. t.thn. 24 July 2012. <http://whatcausesstress.org/>. How to Deal with Stress. n.d. http://www.studygs.net/stress.htm (accessed July 26, 2012). Frederick, Sue. 5 Easy Ways to Reduce Stress. n.d. http://www.holistic.com/holistic/learning.nsf/b00588db461b551d87256906005eb56f/ ed65208f17fd62a5872569f8005d3b8d!OpenDocument (accessed July 26, 2012). PaulFromStokeUK. YouTube - The Most Relaxing Music Ever! Slow down - by Paul Collier (11). September 26, 2008.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSgPDKG6bB0 (accessed July 26, 2012). ScenicVideos. YouTube - Relaxing Music Therapy : Hypnotizing Drive Through The Canyons. November 5, 2011.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdmH6qkTcd0 (accessed July 26, 2012). tigernov6. YouTube - Relaxation Music. December 16, 2007.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEulyxBCA6c (accessed July 26, 2012). Christianto, Hansen, interview by Christopher Geralno. Relaxing Song Genre (July 26, 2012). Ferdinand, Kevin, interview by Christopher Geralno. Relaxing Song Genre (July 26, 2012). Gultom, Raymond Budiman, interview by Christopher Geralno. Relaxing Song Genre (July 26, 2012).	Stress can happen because of situations like problems, experiencing difficult times, and worrying too much such as financial problems, problems in workplaces or with jobs, death of family members, relationships, arguments, less received support, bullying, poor communication, change of environment, and also health problems and diseases like hypertension, eyesight, and heart diseases. The main cause of stress is any mental pressures which come from any events, small issues that became bigger issues, which add pressure to people. Stress because of working too long or too hard could cause some health problems. Stress also could cause frustration and depression. All people have an instinctive stress response. Stress hormones are released into our bloodstream in potentially dangerous situations. They cause changes mentally and physically, and also giving more strength, enabling us to run much faster, and will make us feel ready for a fight. The response is called “fight or flight syndrome”. Stress hormones could increase our heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing rate. There are different ways to relieve and handle stress, such as meditating, doing exercises, using herbs and teas to get calmer, take vitamins, praying, get more rest, and also music. Many people used those ways to relieve stress and be more relaxed, but I found out that many young people like teenagers liked listening to calm music to relieve stress, and also help them doing their works, so teenagers like   myself would be the perfect audiences for the type of music that I will make since most of them enjoyed music. I found this out when I was searching for relaxing music on YouTube.com, and I read the comments where people said that the music had helped them to be relaxed while doing their work and also for relaxing. I also interviewed 3 of my friends through Facebook.com to make sure that the style of music that I’m going to make will be suitable for people like my friends. A video from YouTube has the first 50 seconds which is similar to the style of music that I’m going to make later, but of course with different chords. (Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-H36BpCe3zs) I interviewed Kevin F, Raymond, and Hansen. After watching to the video, they all said that the first 50 seconds are relaxing, and also good to be listened to. Raymond said that the other parts are not that relaxing so he advised me to only follow the beginning/first part of the song. Because Raymond is also a guitarist, he also told me some styles that will sound good on guitars which is Jazz chords.
Evaluate your sources!  (The Evaluation should be done per-topic research, not per-resource and draft should be posted on the journal) a.    How the information suited to the project? (Coverage)      Does the information help me respond to the inquiry question? The information helped me to respond because it answers the questions that I had made      Does the information belong to my topic? The information belong to the topic, because it decides which should be the audience for the music that I will make      Will the information help me to develop my project product? The information will help me, it tells me who should be the audience the songs that I will make and to make myself being sure that the genre will suit them well      Does the information connect clearly with the area of interaction or aspects of it? Yes B.      Is the information source reliable (Authority)?  Where does the information come from? The information is reliable, it came from the Internet, and also my friends who are experienced with music C.      Is the information accurate? Can the information be verified in another source? The information is accurate, same information had been found in other websites and have been proven to be correct D.      Is the information up-to-date? (Currency)  Is the information current or still valuable if it is older? Yes, because the information is not an old one. E.       Is the information objective/not biased? (Objectivity) Yes F.       What information do I still need? What things are needed to make the songs G.     What new questions does my research bring? How will I make the songs that I have already decided to make

Criterion A.  Process Journal Students should demonstrate information literacy, thinking and reflection. Research Topic 3/What inquiry question do you try to answer? How I will make the songs?
Sources (MLA) Music On My PC - How To Record a Guitar on a PC Computer/Recording Guitar. t.thn. http://www.musiconmypc.co.uk/art_record_guitar_on_pc.php (accessed July 26, 2012). Frederick, Robin. How to Write a Song. 2006. http://www.robinfrederick.com/write.html (accessed July 26, 2012).	Ways to record from Amplifier to Computer:      - Record directly from the Amplifier by connecting an audio jack/cable from the Line Out to the Computer. It will record using the computer’s microphone. This way is cheap and easy      - Use an USB Device that could record the audio from the amplifier also by a jack/cable to the computer, which could be bought in several stores. It’s easy to use and creates good sound, but could be pretty expensive      - Buy a microphone and record it by putting it near the amplifier to record. Could produce good sound, but still may not be always clean. Microphones are expensive.      - Recording software to be able to record the sound and save the audio file. To start writing a song that has the genre that I have chosen which is instrumental, I must have the structures in the song which are the verse, chorus, pre-chorus, and bridge. I don’t need to write any lyrics, and since I decided to only record songs I won’t need to make the title of the songs and album. I will also need to decide what chords that I’m going to use on the songs.
Evaluate your sources!  (The Evaluation should be done per-topic research, not per-resource and draft should be posted on the journal) a.    How the information suited to the project? (Coverage)      Does the information help me respond to the inquiry question? Yes, it helped me by answering the questions      Does the information belong to my topic? The information belong to my topic, because it still relates to the music topic      Will the information help me to develop my project product? Yes, because it answered my questions and now I know how to continue making the songs      Does the information connect clearly with the area of interaction or aspects of it? B.      Is the information source reliable (Authority)?  Where does the information come from? The information is reliable, it’s from the internet and is from a trusted website where it has taught many people and showed correct information, and also many information C.      Is the information accurate? Can the information be verified in another source? It’s accurate and can be also found in many other websites D.      Is the information up-to-date? (Currency)  Is the information current or still valuable if it is older? The information is still up-to-date because it’s still new E.       Is the information objective/not biased? (Objectivity) Yes F.       What information do I still need? How music really affects people G.     What new questions does my research bring? How can songs make people relaxed, relieved from stress, and what are the other benefits
Criterion A.  Process Journal Students should demonstrate information literacy, thinking and reflection. Research Topic 4/What inquiry question do you try to answer? How music help or make people feel relax?
Sources (MLA) How does Relaxing Music Help us. December 23, 2011. http://www.rxadvices.com/relaxation-techniques/how-does-relaxing-music-help-us/ (accessed June 29, 2012).		Slow music is relaxing, because it has soothing and calming effect. It makes people enjoy the music, and the slow flowing rhythm sooths our mind. Slow relaxing music can also helped people to control their temper and reduce their anger. Slow music also loses and reduces the tension of human’s muscles, and it made people do their work easier. Relaxing slow music also can be used for meditation and therapy, and also can reduce the negative effects of flight or fight syndrome and helps people who are suffering from insomnia. Slow music can also reduce high heart rate and breathing by slowing the heart beat and allow the heart to rest.
Evaluate your sources!  (The Evaluation should be done per-topic research, not per-resource and draft should be posted on the journal) b.    How the information suited to the project? (Coverage)      Does the information help me respond to the inquiry question? Yes, it answered the question that I have made      Does the information belong to my topic? The question belong to my topic because it’s still about music      Will the information help me to develop my project product? This information will help me because it had told me how music could affect people and what are the benefits of listening to music      Does the information connect clearly with the area of interaction or aspects of it? Yes B.      Is the information source reliable (Authority)?  Where does the information come from? The information is reliable, it comes from the Internet C.      Is the information accurate? Can the information be verified in another source? The information is accurate because the website’s information is received from Doctors nd Professors who did some experiments and observations D.      Is the information up-to-date? (Currency)  Is the information current or still valuable if it is older? The information is still up-to-date E.       Is the information objective/not biased? (Objectivity) Yes F.       What information do I still need? How will I start the whole recording things G.     What new questions does my research bring? What things should I prepare next to continue the project

Some Info About Stress

Stress can happen to people when they’re dealing with situations like problems, experiencing difficult times, and worrying too much such as financial problems, problems in workplaces or with jobs, death of family members, relationships, arguments, less received support, bullying, poor communication, change of environment, and also health problems and diseases like hypertension, eyesight, and heart diseases. The main cause of stress is any mental pressures which come from any events, small issues that became bigger issues, which add pressure to people. Stress because of working too long or too hard could cause some health problems. Stress also could cause frustration and depression.

All people have an instinctive stress response. Stress hormones are released into our bloodstream in potentially dangerous situations. They cause changes mentally and physically, and also giving more strength, enabling us to run much faster, and will make us feel ready for a fight. The response is called “fight or flight syndrome”. Stress hormones could increase our heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing rate.

Bibliography:

Causes of Stress. t.thn. 24 July 2012. <http://changingminds.org/explanations/stress/stress_causes.htm>.

Webber, Christine. Why do we get stressed? 15 July 2010. 23 July 2012.<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/stresswhydowegetit.htm>.

What Causes Stress. t.thn. 24 July 2012. <http://whatcausesstress.org/>.

Reflection

3 Things that I have understood well
- There are different ways to record the songs from my Guitar Amplifier to my computer. The first way I found out is to buy a microphone, connect it to my computer to record and putting it near the speaker of the Guitar Amplifier. The second way is to record directly from the Guitar Amplifier, which needs an Audio Jack and a Mini Jack Adapter to be able to connect to the computer. The other way is to buy a soundcard and connect it with my guitar and computer.
- Microphones and soundcards can be expesnsive, they usually cost above Rp. 2,000,000 while the best ones can cost more.
- Microphones can record good quality sounds but may not be always clean. Soundcards can record the best quality, most professional musicians used the recording method with soundcards. Recording directly from the amplifier with the Audio Jack will not produce the best sound quality, but it's good enough for people like me who are not professionals.

2 Things that I'm not sure that I have understood them well
- How to use the recording equipments
- Which recording method should I use

1 Thing that I don't understand
- Where to get the recording equipments