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Hyperscore Challenge 2025 Gallery

Thank you to everyone who participated in the 2025 Hyperscore Challenge! We loved hearing the pieces you created to accompany the video prompts as well as the compositions.

We’ve compiled this gallery of the pieces you offered to share for everyone to enjoy! Click each thumbnail to listen to a video of the piece or click the piece title to open it in Hyperscore.

Picture of Hyperscore piece Boogie Zero by ZS

Boogie Zero

by ZS
from New York
Picture of Hyperscore piece Underwater Sea by RM

Underwater Sea

by RM
from New York
Picture of Hyperscore piece The sad story by DE

The sad story

by DE
from New York
Picture of Hyperscore piece the beach by DS

the beach

by DS
from New York
Picture of Hyperscore piece Rhynlee's Fact Fairy by RB age 6

Rhynlee's Fact Fairy

by RB age 6
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece chicin wig  (Chicken Wing) by CS age 6

chicin wig (Chicken Wing)

by CS age 6
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece the jungle adventure by MM age 8

the jungle adventure

by MM age 8
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece John Cena by AB age 8

John Cena

by AB age 8
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece The Very CREEEEEEPY Carnival by PS age 9

The Very CREEEEEEPY Carnival

by PS age 9
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece Sunshine by EB age 7

Sunshine

by EB age 7
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece Mrs. Party by AC age 9

Mrs. Party

by AC age 9
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece Mrs. Party by AC age 9

Mrs. Party

by AC age 9
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece Rapper by GA age 8

Rapper

by GA age 8
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece The Cowgirl by MK age 6

The Cowgirl

by MK age 6
from Texas
Picture of Hyperscore piece Housemaid by AB age 15

Housemaid

by AB age 15
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Hey Sunrise by AB age 15

Hey Sunrise

by AB age 15
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Paranoia and Panic by AB age 15

Paranoia and Panic

by AB age 15
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Champs Back Home by N age 13

Champs Back Home

by N age 13
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Us by N age 13

Us

by N age 13
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Electronica Waves by N age 13

Electronica Waves

by N age 13
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Tuesday's Wreck at the Rec by N age 13

Tuesday's Wreck at the Rec

by N age 13
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Together by N age 13

Together

by N age 13
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece X's Beat by X age 13

X's Beat

by X age 13
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Dancin' Hip Hop by LJ age 9

Dancin' Hip Hop

by LJ age 9
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece DBZ Type Beat by AL age 12

DBZ Type Beat

by AL age 12
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece J's Maze by JG age 9

J's Maze

by JG age 9
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Outer Space by EK age 5

Outer Space

by EK age 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece MarioKart Super Run by EY age 11

MarioKart Super Run

by EY age 11
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Pop Chicks Pop by LY age 8

Pop Chicks Pop

by LY age 8
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Electric Fish by TB age 6

Electric Fish

by TB age 6
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Pecking Away by CB

Pecking Away

by CB
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Beautiful Eclipse by ME age 25

Beautiful Eclipse

by ME age 25
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece I Live on Planet Earth by GY age 4

I Live on Planet Earth

by GY age 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Minecraft by

Minecraft

by
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Growing by

Growing

by
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Jupiter's Song by JG age 7

Jupiter's Song

by JG age 7
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Berry Song by Michaela Goade  by 4C ages 9-10

Berry Song by Michaela Goade

by 4C ages 9-10
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Berry Song by Michaela Goade  by 4W ages 9-10

Berry Song by Michaela Goade

by 4W ages 9-10
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Berry Song by Michaela Goade  by 4M ages 9-10

Berry Song by Michaela Goade

by 4M ages 9-10
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Earth Lava by siblings J (age 4) and A (age 2)

Earth Lava

by siblings J (age 4) and A (age 2)
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece A Hungry Boy by ES

A Hungry Boy

by ES
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Brookhaven Day by JF

Brookhaven Day

by JF
from New York
Picture of Hyperscore piece Job 66 by JMG

Job 66

by JMG
from New York
Picture of Hyperscore piece Hello People by MM

Hello People

by MM
from New York
Picture of Hyperscore piece apzsko by LR

apzsko

by LR
from New York

We look forward to the 2026 Hyperscore Challenge!

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Hyperscore Challenge is the perfect end-of-school-year activity

As the school year winds down, keeping students engaged and motivated can be daunting. The Hyperscore Challenge offers an ideal solution – a creative, collaborative, and celebratory project that energizes students and teachers alike.

The Hyperscore Challenge invites students of all ages and abilities to compose original soundtracks for short videos using Hyperscore, a web-based application that lets users “draw” music by manipulating dots and lines on a screen. Participants can share their pieces at an end-of-year party. They can also share their compositions online on June 21, Make Music Day – a global celebration of music-making.

Teacher and students can sign up and get free access to the technology by visiting the 2025 Hyperscore Challenge page.

Keeps Students Engaged Through Creativity and Choice

  • Hyperscore’s intuitive, visual interface removes traditional barriers to music composition. No prior knowledge of notation or instruments required. This empowers every student, regardless of background or skill level, to participate and succeed.
  • Students can compose in any style, from simple melodies to complex arrangements, giving them ownership and creative freedom over their projects.
  • Weekly video prompts invite participants to create soundtracks and keeps the experience fresh and engaging, sparking imagination right up to the last day of school.

Builds Community and Celebrates Achievement

  • The Challenge culminates in a school or community concert, where students showcase their compositions for peers, families, and staff. These end-of-year performances create a festive, supportive atmosphere and give students a sense of accomplishment.
  • Because the Challenge is open to all ages and abilities, it fosters inclusion and teamwork. Clubs and classrooms have seen students collaborate on group pieces, support each other’s learning, and celebrate each other’s progress.

Supports STEAM and Cross-Curricular Learning

  • Hyperscore is a powerful STEAM tool, blending music, technology, and storytelling. Students explore rhythm, melody, harmony, and musical form while developing digital literacy and creative problem-solving skills.
  • The platform encourages cross-collaboration with other subjects-students can compose music to accompany stories, visual art, dance and theater, science projects, or historical events, making learning interdisciplinary and meaningful.

Removes Barriers and Boosts Motivation

  • Hyperscore’s design makes music composition accessible to all, including students who may not see themselves as “musical.” This boosts confidence and motivation, especially for those who might otherwise disengage as the year ends.
  • Teachers report that even the most hesitant students discover their creative voices through Hyperscore, leading to increased participation and a positive classroom climate.
  • Check out our modified slides for diverse learners.

Flexible and Easy to Implement

  • The Hyperscore Challenge provides free access to the Hyperscore Classroom platform for all participants, making it easy for teachers to manage student accounts and share work.
  • Clubs and classes can start at any time, and the Challenge is adaptable for in-school, after-school, or remote learning environments.
  • Comprehensive resources, including recruitment flyers, video prompts, and workshops, support educators every step of the way.

A Memorable, Joyful Finale

Ending the school year with the Hyperscore Challenge transforms the final weeks into a time of creativity, collaboration, and celebration. Students leave with a sense of pride in their achievements and a lasting appreciation for music and self-expression. For teachers, it’s a powerful way to keep students motivated, engaged and connected right up to the last bell.

Ready to make your end-of-year unforgettable? Join the Hyperscore Challenge and let your students’ imaginations soar!

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Hyperscore Challenge Prompts

Excited about this year’s Hyperscore Challenge? We are, too! Read about the 2025 Hyperscore Challenge and sign up here to get your free account.

Find prompts to get you started on this page. Prompts are short, silent video clips that need your music. Choose a prompt and create a Hyperscore soundtrack to accompany the video clip. Starting in March 2025, we’ll release new prompts each week. Be sure to create pieces in your Hyperscore Challenge group profile in order to access all Hyperscore features.

Week 1 March 10, 2025

Spring is just around the corner! We celebrate the season with our first Hyperscore Challenge prompt, full of adorable, fluffy newly-hatched birds. From the excitement of a chick breaking through its eggshell to the cacophony of cheeping, imagine the music these chatty, hungry, and sometimes-sleepy young avians make!

The vacuum of outer space may mean that there’s little to no sound out there. Yet some of the most memorable pieces of music, and especially movie and television scores, are inspired by the universe beyond Earth. Mysterious, dramatic, beautiful, or surprising? What does life among the stars sound like to you?

Next, let’s take as a prompt this video of a girl teaching her new robot friend how to dance! What music do you think they are dancing to?

Now we head back to nature with sunlit trees and a few grazing sheep, for good measure. How do different places and different times of day make you feel? How can you capture the feeling of warm sunlight in music?

To close out our first batch of prompts, here is a gameplay video of an abstract, geometric world that evokes action and emotion by the way the viewer navigates a matrix of white lines. This video is ambiguous and provides a wide-open playground for your musical imagination.

Week 2 — March 17, 2025

Traffic, people, and the blinking signs and lights of towering buildings create a bustling atmosphere of different rhythms and activity. Cities are alive with their own sort of music and sounds. What do you hear in the different parts of your city? What music do these city images suggest to you?

Week 3 — March 24, 2025

Our first Hyperscore Challenge prompt for this week features a clip of gameplay from the puzzle-platform game Fez. Hyperscore is a great tool for composing background music and audio sprites for games of all sorts, including ones you can make on your own.

Fez (2012) – Video game

The second prompt this week is an amusing romp from the classic film archives. Charlie Chaplain’s lovable character and quirky antics are just the thing to be accompanied by a playful soundtrack made by you!

The Circus (1928) – The Lion Cage, Charlie Chaplin

Week 4 — March 31, 2025

Computer animated films can tell stories that are both relatable and fantastic in a compelling and stylized way. Here’s an abridged excerpt of the computer animation short Watermelon: A Cautionary Tale by Kefei Li and Connie Qin He featured by CG Meetup. What is the soundtrack you’d create for this story?

What do computers dream about when we’re not using them? A very different kind of computer animation, this prompt features clips of evolving fractal flames generated by the algorithms developed by Scott Draves for his Electric Sheep distributed computing project that started in 1999. The project takes its name from the Philip K. Dick short story “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” which was later made into the iconic movie Bladerunner. Drave’s Electric Sheep project relied on users to install a screensaver that would generate and upload to the Internet the colorful and mesmerizing images that idle computers around the world created. That’s all well and good, but what do you think these fractal dreams sound like? Now its your turn to compose the soundtrack for these mathematical fantasies.

Week 5 — April 7, 2025

Our first prompt for Week 5 includes another sequence from a silent film. The classic tale of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland has been adapted from Lewis Carroll novel many times. The ever-changing landscape and curious companions Alice meets are sure to evoke all sorts of musical ideas.

Alice in Wonderland (1949) – Follow the White Rabbit

From urban rooftops to warehouses, this dance video has a gritty hip-hop vibe. What music do you imagine this fellow is dancing to?

Week 6 – April 14, 2025

So many things in life have a natural rhythm to them, as we’ve seen in the Hyperscore Challenge prompts thus far. The art of juggling is no exception. As balls cycle through the air and deft hands keep them afloat, the hypnotic ups and downs are simultaneously precarious—the carefully-timed system could fall apart at any moment—and whimsically amusing. It’s no wonder that this uniquely human talent has endured for millennia. The earliest known evidence of juggling dates back nearly 4000 years in Egypt and China, but likely was practiced well before that. Now it’s your turn to imagine a musical accompaniment to this mesmerizing pastime. Your score might even work well with the prompt video as an endless loop! (Note, you can enable and disable looping playback in Hyperscore by pressing the L key.)

Week 7 – April 21, 2025

We return to video games for this week’s first prompt with gameplay clips from the open-source racing game Supertux Kart. The high-speed, playful nature of racing games like this provide an opportunity to compose an accompanying soundtrack that gets the player’s adrenaline flowing. In addition to every twist and turn on the racecourse, the music can also provide sound effects for the obstacles, rewards, bumps, and spin-outs that competitors encounter.

We also have another classic film this week: the comedic antics of Snub Pollard. In this excerpt from the film Flip Flops, things go awry when fleas are surreptitiously added to a lovely bouquet of flowers.

Week 8 – April 28, 2025

Step dancing is a form of dance defined by a focus on rhythmic, percussive footwork. There are many forms of step dancing in cultures throughout the world. This weeks prompt includes clips of Irish step dance. Can you imagine what it sounds like? Can you feel the rhythm? Does your score feature percussion, or is in a lush texture that connects each step beat?

For something completely different, this computer animated short film brings drama, comedy, and redemption, as a group of adorable dust bunnies escape a housekeeper wielding a vacuum.

Week 9 – May 5, 2025

While there has been some hype around the recent remake of the classic vampire film Nosferatu: A symphony of horror, nothing can top the original 1922 film by the great F.W. Murnau. It’s a silent film, but it has “symphony” in it’s title, so it’s up to you to compose it!

Nosferatu (1922) – The classic vampire tale

Have you ever had that good feeling of completing something that you imagined and worked hard to make happen? Maybe it’s an idea for a musical piece that you were able to compose with Hyperscore. Maybe it’s a project for school that came out just the way you hoped it would. Imagine all of the hard work that goes into constructing a building from digging a hole in the ground to watching it reach into the sky! This week’s prompt is a time lapse video of just that. And not just any building, but the new MIT Media Lab building that was completed in 2010 right next door to the building in which Hyperscore was originally created.

Week 10 – May 12, 2025

This week’s first prompt combines a number of things we at New Harmony Line love: fantastic visuals, programming, and games. And music, of course… yours! This teaser video, courtesy of creator Bobby Lockhart, is for the new educational fantasy game Codemancer that explores the “magic” of programming. All this video is missing is your score. Stay tuned to meet Bobby on an upcoming episode of our Reimagining Music podcast. In the mean time, check out Codemancer, too.

Beyond the world of digital creation, the rhythmic musicality of machines has fascinated artists of all sorts. In the 1920s, a number of silent-era filmmakers were also inspired to capture the visual music of the mechanical and industrial world, from Ballet Mécanique (1924) by Fernand Léger and scored by George Antheil to “city symphony” films, such as Walter Ruttmann’s famous Berlin (1927). Silent films were never meant to be truly silent, with live musical accompaniment reflecting the on-screen action. This week, our prompt comes from Dziga Vertov’s innovative 1929 film, Man with a Movie Camera. Imagine the mechanical music and mood it sets in your Hyperscore piece.

Week 11 – May 19, 2025

A solar eclipse is an exciting event and can confound the senses. Here’s our version of a solar eclipse that needs your soundtrack. Does it calmly flow and ebb or build to a climactic hit as darkness suddenly descends? We can’t wait to hear.

Week 12 – May 26, 2025

As summer is upon us, baseball season is in full swing (pun intended)! The sights and sounds of the game have familiar tunes, distinctive rhythms, from the electric crack of the bat to the roar of the crowd. Can you capture the thrill of the sport in your own Hyperscore soundtrack?

While baseball is seasonal, there’s another pastime that we enjoy year-round with rhythms all its own. A conversation can have a story, tension, resolution, changes in mood, dynamics, and more. This week’s Hyperscore Challenge prompt is an excerpt from the classic screwball comedy His Girl Friday (1940) in which stars Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant have a rapid-fire exchange that is the signature of this film. Without hearing the dialog, from their movements and expressions, can you imagine the musical version of this conversation?

Week 13 – June 2, 2025

We’ve already explored beneath the ocean’s surface. However, the rhythm of waves crashing on the shore, the call of seagulls, the warm sun, and the feeling of sand squishing between your toes all elicit that particular feeling of being on the beach. Create the sounds of a stroll along the strand or the feeling of wonder gazing out on an endless horizon in your Hyperscore piece.

While we can explore beach sands barefoot on Earth, the sometimes-sandy landscapes of other worlds require a different approach. Recent NASA rovers Curiosity and Perseverance (and the flying scout Ingenuity) have continued our quest to gather information about our planetary neighbor Mars. The rovers are equipped with a variety of tools and scientific instruments to take photographs, samples, and run analyses. These data are then sent back to Earth. When we see what these able robots find on the Martian surface, we can’t help but imagine that moment when humanity steps foot on another world. But first, let’s imagine what it would sound like? Can you make a soundscape impression of another planet? Or maybe the triumphant theme of these rovers’ arrival and exploration?

Week 14 – June 9, 2025

Music can change our perception of time, letting us dwell in a moment or making us feel like we’re flying through a journey. Photography also has the ability to manipulate time, letting us see things we can’t perceive with our eyes alone. This week, we watch the magical growth of plants, leaves, flowers, and fruit. Time-lapse photography lets us see just how productive and amazing plants are and in the space of time that can be accompanied by music. What do you think a growing plant sounds like? Can you capture the metamorphosis in your Hyperscore piece?


And there we have it! Those are the prompts for the Hyperscore Challenge 2025. We hope that you enjoyed composing with them.

Each year, we prepare a showcase of Hyperscore Challenge compositions with their videos. If you would like to be featured, be sure to submit your Hyperscore piece through the online form by 16 June 2025. We can’t wait to hear them and share your submissions on 21 June for Make Music Day!


Our prompts are chosen to appeal to widely varied interests and tastes. We hope they will surprise and challenge you to take your music to new places.

If you haven’t yet joined the Hyperscore Challenge, be sure to sign up as an individual or a team and get free access to the full set of Hyperscore features to create your Challenge scores.

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The Hyperscore Challenge

Welcome! We invite you to write music using Hyperscore. This web application allows you to compose music by drawing dots and lines on the screen. With Hyperscore, you can create music in any style, as simple or complicated as you want. The challenge is to complete your piece and share it online or at an in-person performance on June 21, which is Make Music Day, a global celebration of music-making.

You can start at any time. Just be sure to plan well ahead if you want to involve others to help arrange and perform your piece on June 21.

Get started

Recruit students to join the Challenge team! Use these:

Everyone participating in the challenge will receive a Hyperscore account with all features available for the duration of the challenge. If you want to lead a team, fill out the form below. A team can be just you, or you plus others. Only the leader should submit the form. We will send you an email with instructions to set up your Hyperscore account and join the Hyperscore Composing challenge. Once you have your group leader account, you can invite your team members through the Hyperscore team dashboard. 

Children age 13 and younger will receive instructions to get their parent/guardian’s consent at the time they create their account.

Prompt reveal

Every week, we will release new video prompts here. They include classic silent movies, animations, and video game clips. Our Hyperscore Challenge system lets you synch your composition to the action in the video. Many people find a prompt to be helpful. But using the prompt is not required. We don’t want to get in the way of your creativity!

Get practice and advice

You can exercise your musical imagination at our Second Sundays composing workshops, a zero-pressure, safe and fun Zoom meeting where we collaborate on composing a new piece in just one hour. It meets on the second Sunday of each month at 10:00 a.m. ET. Sign up here for the link and monthly alerts.

Hear your piece performed live!

It’s amazing to hear musicians perform music you created. Here’s what you need to do:

  1. Music composed with Hyperscore can be downloaded as an audio (mp3) or MIDI file. 
  2. The MIDI file can be uploaded to software that takes MIDI input (such as GarageBand, Sibelius, SoundTrap, Soundation, NoteFlight, Ableton Live) and converts it into standard notation. 
  3. You will need to arrange the score for the ensemble that will be performing it. If you don’t know how to do this, you could ask a music teacher for help.
  4. OR, you can download an MP3 audio file and play it as a digital soundtrack.

We encourage you to find collaborators in your area. It could be a music teacher, a friend who plays in a band, college students majoring in music… If you can’t find a way to have your piece played by musicians, you can share the digital version. We will post your composition on the Hyperscore YouTube channel and share it in a gallery on our website. Check out our showcase of the pieces you submitted last year!

Support us!

We are a nonprofit organization. Your generosity makes the Hyperscore Challenge possible and enriches lives by enabling individuals of all ages and backgrounds to engage with music as active listeners, learners, creators, and connectors.

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Hyperscore Challenge 2!

The Hyperscore Challenge Gallery, both visually stunning and musically delightful, premiered on International Make Music Day, June 21, 2024. Fifty-two U.S. and international composers submitted an original composition and/or a soundtrack for a video short prompt that we provided. Participants ranged in age from 6 years old to adults. June Kinoshita, New Harmony Line’s Executive Director, is the visionary behind the many ways we share Hyperscore with the world. Our team could never have imagined the response to June’s 2023-2024 challenge! Enjoy their pieces while you consider participating in HYPERSCORE CHALLENGE 2!

This image shows eight clickable links to pieces created by 6 year olds to adults in the US and internationally for the Hyperscore Challenge. This first challenge, held during the 2023-2024 school year, showcases individuals writing soundtracks for short video prompts or expressing themselves with melody and rhythm.
Nine examples from the Hyperscore Challenge 2023-2024 Gallery posted on International Make Music Day, June 20, 2024.

Hyperscore Challenge 2023-2024

Our team had a lot of experience in the music room, and at festivals and workshops. It was clear to us that anyone of any age or ability could participate in exercising their musical imagination through the challenge. We posted the link on our website hoping to get a response from social media and word of mouth. 160 sign-ups later, the team was thrilled with the response to our challenge!

Student Hyperscore Challenge clubs–Secondary

We were able to have three school clubs. The first club met the last period of the day for students in a junior high special education program. One student participated independently while four others worked one-on-one with paraeducator support or Cece. In this club we made good use of the modified materials from our curriculum. This handbook worked especially well for our student who was non-verbal and made his choices from 2 variables only.

All five students were able to create a piece and title it. With great appreciation, the club ended the second to last week of school with an ice cream and “concert” slideshow or their pieces. Staff, the students and their peer buddies enjoyed their final compositions. Video copies were emailed home for Parents and Guardians to enjoy.

The second club was at the same school but met after the school day. A preview of Hyperscore was shared with students from the band, orchestra, choir and Music Tech classes. Fourteen composers chose to attend. Some of them were complete beginners. Other students had music in their head but not the notational skills to write it out. It was fascinating to have a student who was Suzuki trained. He wrote out parts for The Peer Gynt Suite then updated the piece using tone color and rhythmic/melodic variations.

The rival of any secondary after-school club is sports practice. Sadly, when track season started, 12 of our composers left us to excel in other ways. Two 8th grade students came every time and wrote multiple original pieces as beginners. One chose to have her piece included in the Hyperscore Challenge Gallery. We celebrated the end of our club with cookies and a “concert” as well. Video copies were sent to their Parents/Guardians and favorite teachers and friends.

L. R-S. Grade 8 Iowa

Student Hyperscore Challenge clubs–Elementary

Being the music teacher, or a long-term substitute, has its advantages when trying to engage youngsters in a club. During the 2021-2022 school year, Cece taught K-5 music in an elementary while their teacher took maternity leave. Every student got the chance to compose with the brand new demo version of Hyperscore 5. So, when the opportunity arose in 2022-2023 to do an after-school composition club, the response was wonderful!

17 students, ages 6 to 11 attended most, or all, of the sessions from September to May. Several of the students worked on the same piece, perfecting its sound. However, others wrote prodigiously with something new every week. All students made progress in the quality of their work.

M.S. Kindergarten Iowa

This club celebrated the end of the school year with a concert in the school library with Parents/Guardians, teachers and staff from the school, siblings and friends. Each piece was played to great applause. Because students had freedom to choose how to compose, we had a 5th grader choose to compose a piece that she wanted to play on the piano. Since Hyperscore can be readily transcribed into standard notation, Cece has been working with her to learn this duet. This club will meet again starting in March 2025 for Hyperscore Challenge 2!

How to participate in Hyperscore Challenge 2

Every group, team leader, teacher or individual who signs up for the Challenge will receive the Hyperscore Classroom at no cost through International Make Music Day, June 21, 2025. The Hyperscore Classroom will allow you to manage, and create accounts, for all of your students in the classroom, all your clients or employees at your place of work and the community and/or your friends and family. The Hyperscore Classroom includes ALL the bells and whistles (plus a taiko drum too!), unlimited scores and unlimited rhythm, melody and sketch windows. Participants under 13 are allowed to create an account with a Parent/Guardian consent form.

The website page for Hyperscore Challenge 2 went live on March 3, 2025. This page will include flyers for recruiting participants, video prompts and links to activities. If you want your imagination to soar, use the video prompts to “compose a soundtrack”–new video prompts are available each week. Also, the team does a monthly FUN Second Sunday Composition Workshop that everyone is invited to attend at 9 am ET. Sign up here.

We hope we have you convinced–let’s go Hyperscore Challenge 2!!

This image is the seal of Great NonProfits indicating that New Harmony line is a 2024 top-rated nonprofit.
Thank you to all of our composers who shared their Hyperscore joys with Great NonProfits!
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Hyperscore Challenge Gallery

Thank you to everyone who participated in the 2023-2024 Hyperscore Challenge! We loved hearing the pieces you created to accompany the video prompts.

We’ve compiled this gallery of the pieces you offered to share for everyone to enjoy! Click each thumbnail to listen to a video of the piece or click the piece title to open it in Hyperscore.

Picture of Hyperscore piece Construction by AB Grade 3

Construction

by AB Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece at the beach by EO Grade 4

at the beach

by EO Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Grazing by Hyperscore Challenge

Grazing

by Hyperscore Challenge
from Massachusetts
Picture of Hyperscore piece Spy Mission by QW Grade 3

Spy Mission

by QW Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Jackson Score by JD Grade 5

Jackson Score

by JD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Bob Ross 1 by LI Grade 3

Bob Ross 1

by LI Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece It Is Time by VK Grade 2

It Is Time

by VK Grade 2
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece exciting nature by FA Grade 4

exciting nature

by FA Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece traffic trumpet by VK Grade 2

traffic trumpet

by VK Grade 2
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece glass by MB Kindergarten

glass

by MB Kindergarten
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece gun powder by VK Grade 2

gun powder

by VK Grade 2
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Summery Friday by AS Grade 4

Summery Friday

by AS Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece flowing together!!! by CD Grade 5

flowing together!!!

by CD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Vin by VK Grade 2

Vin

by VK Grade 2
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Oh, my ? ? ? by CD Grade 5

Oh, my ? ? ?

by CD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Beach by OB Grade 4

Beach

by OB Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Darkening by Hyperscore Challenge

Darkening

by Hyperscore Challenge
from Massachusetts
Picture of Hyperscore piece the wild!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! by CD Grade 5

the wild!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

by CD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece HYPERSCORE 1 by Jawhara B. E.

HYPERSCORE 1

by Jawhara B. E.
from Lebanon
Picture of Hyperscore piece Underwater by Dylan A.

Underwater

by Dylan A.
Picture of Hyperscore piece hip hop by EO Grade 4

hip hop

by EO Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece 3D Man BC it's Fun by JD Grade 5

3D Man BC it's Fun

by JD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Dance Party by FA Grade 4

Dance Party

by FA Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Untitled Score 2 by CD Grade 5

Untitled Score 2

by CD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Nice, Nice Girl by CD Grade 5

Nice, Nice Girl

by CD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Awesome Plant!!! by AK Grade 4

Awesome Plant!!!

by AK Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Nosferatu by Peter T.

Nosferatu

by Peter T.
from Massachusetts
Picture of Hyperscore piece Untitled Score by Joanna G.

Untitled Score

by Joanna G.
Picture of Hyperscore piece what crazy is by VK Grade 2

what crazy is

by VK Grade 2
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece in space by EO Grade 4

in space

by EO Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Bob Ross 3 by LI Grade 3

Bob Ross 3

by LI Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Nature by LR-S Grade 8

Nature

by LR-S Grade 8
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Bob Ross 2 by LI Grade 3

Bob Ross 2

by LI Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Craft by AK Grade 4

Craft

by AK Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece the beach by AK Grade 4

the beach

by AK Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece The Sadness by CD Grade 5

The Sadness

by CD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece ah!!!!!!!! by CD Grade 5

ah!!!!!!!!

by CD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece water melon seed by DD Grade 3

water melon seed

by DD Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece eclipse adventure by FA Grade 4

eclipse adventure

by FA Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece storm by VK Grade 2

storm

by VK Grade 2
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece peace wish by VK Grade 2

peace wish

by VK Grade 2
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Jackson and Max Score by JD Grade 5

Jackson and Max Score

by JD Grade 5
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Outer Space 2 by AB Grade 3

Outer Space 2

by AB Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece rainbow by EO Grade 4

rainbow

by EO Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece juggling by EO Grade 4

juggling

by EO Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece ocean waves by FA Grade 4

ocean waves

by FA Grade 4
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece dance off by QW Grade 3

dance off

by QW Grade 3
from Iowa
Picture of Hyperscore piece Max and Jackson's by MW Grade 5

Max and Jackson's

by MW Grade 5
from Iowa
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News Projects Uncategorized

A space for creating music

By June Kinoshita, Executive Director

This past month, Tod Machover and I were invited to give a workshop to introduce Hyperscore and music composition at Projectory, in Seoul, Korea. Projectory is a center established by NC Cultural Foundation for the purpose of providing a space for children to give free play to their creativity without interference from adults. While South Korea’s public education system is regarded as among the best in the world, critics say it is too test-driven and brutally competitive. At Projectory, members are free to direct their own activities in any way they choose. They work with “crew members,” young adult mentors who are trained to support the children without prescribing what they should do.

In our workshop, Tod introduced the idea of composing as a form of personal expression and story-telling that could be about “anything you want.” Using a large projection screen, I then showed the basic features of Hyperscore.

The kids were then off to the races! They worked in groups of 2 or 3 brainstorming with paper and crayons to come up with topics ranging from baseball to fighting cats. They then shared laptops to compose their first-ever original tunes. We were all delighted by the results and later heard that the children are eager to keep composing. We’re excited to see if Hyperscore will take root and spread in Korea.

Here’s “RBR,” composed by Projectory members.

Categories
News Projects

BIENESTAR SÓNICO a través de HYPERSCORE

Imagina…Escucha…Compone…Sana

Invitamos a los jóvenes de Bilbao (cualquier persona menor de 18 años) a crear nueva música que inspire, a “escuchar un mundo” donde el bienestar se nutre, se comparte y está disponible para todos. Estas composiciones, creadas con el software Hyperscore desarrollado en el MIT Media Lab, utilizan gestos visuales para crear contribuciones musicales únicas. Los participantes pueden tener algo de experiencia musical, pero no se requieren habilidades musicales en absoluto: solo necesita poder seleccionar entre varias opciones de dibujo en la pantalla y pensar creativamente. ¡SOIS TODOS BIENVENIDOS!

La aplicación web Hyperscore se puede utilizar en el colegio o en casa, en cualquier momento y en cualquier lugar. El trabajo creativo se apoyará en línea a través de tutorías y comunicación con los diseñadores de Hyperscore en Boston, EE. UU., así como con mentores de proyectos locales en Bilbao.

Cualquier persona interesada en unirse a este proyecto está invitada a unirse a una llamada el 25 de abril a las 6:30 p.m. Esta será una oportunidad para escuchar más sobre el proyecto y aprender a usar Hyperscore. Para registrarse en esta sesión, debe enviar un correo electrónico a Guillermo Zavala o llamar al 606 27 57 45. Guillermo enviará un enlace de zoom antes de la llamada.

Las composiciones enviadas antes del 14 de mayo de 2022 serán consideradas para su presentación durante el Wellbeing Summit en Bilbao del 31 de mayo al 3 de junio de 2022. Todas las entregas formarán parte del punto de partida de BILBAO SYMPHONY, compuesta por Tod Machover, e interpretada en Bilbao en 2024.

Este programa es parte de THE WELLBEING PROJECT. ¡Únete a nosotros para explorar cómo podría sonar una “comunidad de bienestar” usando una de las mejores plataformas de software de música del mundo!


Sonic Wellbeing through Hyperscore

Imagine…Listen…Compose…Heal

We invite young people in Bilbao (anyone under 18) to create inspiring new music, to “hear a world” where wellbeing is nurtured, shared and available to all. These compositions – created using Hyperscore software developed at the MIT Media Lab – use digital visual gestures to create unique musical contributions. Participants could have some musical experience, but absolutely no musical skills are required – you just need to draw, to listen, and to think creatively. EVERYONE IS WELCOME!

The Hyperscore web application can be used in school or at home, anytime and anywhere. Creative work will be supported online through mentoring and communication with the Hyperscore designers in Boston, USA as well as local project mentors in Bilbao. 

We will be scheduling a Zoom meeting on April 25, 18:30 pm local time for anyone who is interested in participating. This will be a chance to hear more about the project and learn to use Hyperscore. To register for this session, send an email to Guillermo Zavala or call/text 606 27 57 45. Guillermo will send a zoom link before the call.

Compositions submitted by May 14, 2022, will be considered for presentation during the Wellbeing Summit in Bilbao from May 31-June 3, 2022. All submissions will form part of the starting point for a BILBAO SYMPHONY, composed by Tod Machover, and performed in Bilbao in 2024. 

This project is part of the WELLBEING PROJECT – please join us to explore what a “community of wellbeing” might sound like using one of the world’s coolest music software platforms! 

Categories
News Projects

From the Vaults: Hyperscore on Scientific American Frontiers 2003

We are so lucky to have Chief Technology Officer Peter Torpey on the hunt for archived videos, files and articles on the history of Hyperscore. Peter discovered a video of M.I.T. Media Lab student designers Egon Pasztor and Mary Farbood sharing an early version of Hyperscore on Scientific American Frontiers with host Alan Alda in 2003. Mr. Alda seems absolutely delighted with the presentation on the technology. We also hope you’ll be delighted by the joy in this video–thanks Peter!

Categories
News Projects Read Watch

Kids build a musical bridge with Hyperscore

From our archives. This story about the 2012 “A to A: A World in Harmony” concert in Yerevan, Armenia, is a testament to the power of Hyperscore to foster powerful collaborations.

The opulent Armenian Opera Theater in the heart of Armenia’s capital Yerevan will reverberate with some truly fresh sounds on the evening of February 25, 2012, as two of Armenia’s elite musical ensembles dig into new pieces composed entirely by children from Armenia and the United States. The concert features the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra and DOGMA, one of the country’s most popular rock bands. The event is co-sponsored by the LUYS Education Foundation and the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan to celebrate the embassy’s 20th anniversary.

Despite the composers’ youth – they range in age from 8 to 14 – their work is rich and rewarding to hear, thanks to the boost their musical imaginations received from Hyperscore, a music-creation software developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab by a team led by renowned composer Tod Machover. Hyperscore puts unprecedented composing power into the hands of people who long to express themselves musically, regardless of their formal training. More than that, Hyperscore turns out to be an exceptional tool for collaborative creativity. One of the pieces receiving its world premiere at the Yerevan event was jointly composed by children in Boston and Armenia.

Musical composition is usually imagined to spring from the minds of geniuses toiling in splendid isolation. But for the youngsters visiting the Media Lab earlier this month, the composing process was more like a cyber paintball game. Color-coded splashes of melodies and beats popped up on a large flat-screen monitor as a half-dozen students from the Armenian Sisters’ Academy in Lexington, MA, traded ideas over a Skype connection with their counterparts in a classroom 8,700 kilometers away in Yerevan.

Under Machover’s deft direction, the students launched into creating their new piece by humming melodies and tapping out rhythms, which were notated using Hyperscore. The screen quickly filled up with melodic ideas, or ‘motifs’, and a percussion sequence. The kids then started assembling their composition. “Do you want the piece to start with a big explosion, or something quieter?” Machover asked. Something quiet, the kids agreed. A motif was selected and “drawn” onto the digital canvas. A second pensive motif was introduced, and then it was time to bring in some livelier motifs to wake things up.

“How do you tell a story through music? How could we keep this moving, keep it building?” Machover urged. The kids started piling on layers, made a motif swing high and swoop low, tried out various harmonic configurations… and they were out of time. In one hour, they had put together the first minute of their piece. After a few more sessions, they completed a short but complex and fascinating work which they titled “Frenzy of Friendship”, ready to be orchestrated and sent to the Armenian Phil for its world premiere.

“We usually think of music as belonging to a special elite who have unique powers to create it and share it,” Machover says. “Hearing these exciting new pieces by young people renews my conviction that anyone can create original, valuable music given the right tools, environment and encouragement, and that through music we can build friendships, share individual visions, and enhance life’s meaning.”

To Jacqueline Karaaslanian, Executive Director of the LUYS Education Foundation, this is a perfect example of harnessing technology to spur creativity and collaboration. The foundation was established by Armenia’s President Serjh Sargsyan and Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan to transform the nation by raising the quality of education and infusing the country’s youth with a “can do” attitude.

“Hyperscore wakes up the genius within children and instills in them a desire to better understand a whole universe of worlds they had not previously imagined or considered,” Karaaslanian explains. “When children know that their elders and professionals will play their music, they are empowered. This process is beyond encouraging words; it validates children as thinkers and creators.” And that, she says, is vital for any nation that expects to thrive in our rapidly changing and interconnected world.