written by Sara Longwell, M.M. Ed, LPMT, MT-BC
Metro Music Makers is introducing an exciting new service that is now available to each and every student in our studio and even clients who aren’t currently enrolled in camps, lessons, or therapy with us. It’s called Interactive Metronome®, and we’ll be sharing a series of blogs here on our site about what it is, who it’s for, and how it works.
Metro Music Makers is now a certified provider of Interactive Metronome. IM is an assessment and training tool that improves synchronization in the brain.We’re passionate about IM because it allows us to set and achieve specific, personalized, measurable goals for each client, and it can provide an enormous variety of benefits. IM uses real-time training and feedback with millisecond accuracy to help improve the timing and attention functions of the brain. In later articles, we’ll talk more specifically about how that works, but first, we’d like to share with you some of the skills and abilities that research has already shown can be improved with IM training.
Musicianship: Interactive Metronome was originally developed specifically to improve the performance of musicians and athletes. We’re thrilled about the ways that IM can improve the musicianship of our students, including:
- Better rhythm and timing
- The ability to focus on practice for longer periods
- Playing and hearing with more subtlety and accuracy
- Improved ability to tune out distractions
- Becoming better ensemble players
For example, one of our students who completed the training informed his teacher in a lesson that his metronome was slowing down and inaccurate. She could not detect the change, but when she tested it against a digital metronome, she found he was completely correct.
Athletic Performance: As I mentioned above, athletes were one of the first groups IM was created for. We know that in addition to being young musicians, many of our students are also involved in athletics. Interactive Metronome can improve:
- Coordination
- Mental processing speed and decision-making
- Real-time monitoring of physical and cognitive functions
- Ability to apply intense focus for extended periods of time
- Ability to filter out internal and external distractions
- Mental and physical endurance
Academic Performance: Interactive Metronome can help performers in their school work as well. IM training improves the speed and accuracy of cognitive processing and improves focus and coordination. This can provide a number of academic benefits, including improvement in the areas of:
- Reading rate, fluency and comprehension
- Mathematics
- Attention to relevant information, to class work, and to the teacher during instruction
- Comprehension of verbal instructions and class lectures
- Thought organization and attention to spelling and punctuation for writing
- Thought organization for oral presentations
- Timely completion of assignments and tests
- Sequencing and organizational skills
Special Needs Diagnoses: Clients with a variety of diagnoses and special needs can also benefit greatly from IM training, and our certified IM providers are also music therapists who have the additional training needed to set appropriate goals and adapt to each client’s individual strengths and needs. Some of the diagnoses that IM training is appropriate for are:
- ADHD
- Auditory processing disorders
- Autism spectrum disorders
- Pervasive developmental disorder
- Sensory processing disorder
- Developmental delay/disorders
- Learning disabilities
- Down syndrome
- Cerebral palsy
- Traumatic brain injury/concussion
We know your interest is probable piqued and you’re ready to learn more about exactly what IM training is and how it works. Look for the upcoming parts of this blog series where you’ll learn much more about IM. In the meantime, if you can’t wait to learn more, or you’d like to talk to us about how your child can benefit from IM, please call us at 678-637-7293. You can also check out the Interactive Metronome website at www.interactivemetronome.com.