Dr. Edward Schaefer, professor of music and former associate dean at the University of Florida College of the Arts, gave a presentation entitled "Teaching Carolingian Chant Online: the Power of Collaboration" at the 2017 Accelerate Conference of the Online Learning Consortium in Orlando, Florida, on November 15. The presentation shared Schaefer's experience working with a computer scientist and a graphic designer from the Digital Worlds Institute in an attempt to produce online teaching and learning tools for the oldest musical notations in the Western world.
Schaefer described the process as "a bit like an arranged marriage in which the partners don't speak the same language."
"We didn't speak each other's technical language, but we still had to learn how to communicate with each other in ways that would help each other understand and be able to contribute what was needed for the project to be successful," Schaefer said.
The effort was worthwhile. The project is completed with the exception of instructional videos, which Schaefer is producing this year.
Schaefer's completed work can be viewed at www.gregoriansemiology.com.
