Using technology in music is totally will.i.am’s jam. Computers have made it much easier for musicians to perform and produce music, even in really simple ways.
When working with singers, sometimes will.i.am will make the performance interesting by using a faster or slower tempo than normal. In cases like that, making sure everyone is keeping time is definitely important – we can use the BBC micro:bit as a metronome and make sure everyone can keep the beat.
For this make, you will need:
A micro:bit and USB cable (like, obviously)
A battery pack
A piezo buzzer
Connecting wires or crocodile clips
Fancy mechanical metronomes have a large swinging arm so you can see and hear when the beat is, as well as make the tempo faster or slower.
Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, or even use Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for MakeCode, CircuitPython, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell with Google Hangouts On-Air is every Wednesday at 7:30pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat – we’ll post the link there.
