Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 26, 1990 TAG: 9004260539
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: TRACY VAN MOORLEHEM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Last fall, Richard King, Stephen's teacher at Mountain View Elementary School in Roanoke County, learned of Stephen's desire and started using his own imagination to connect Stephen's dreams with computer technology.
The result, a rock song called "That's the Way We Are," was performed for the first time Saturday at the Very Special Arts Festival at Radford University.
The district festival showcases aspiring artists from special education programs, according to Kay Smith, the state executive director of the festival. Very Special Arts Festivals are held in several regions of the state and nationwide to provide arts opportunities for people of all ages who have special physical, mental or emotional needs.
"In the arts, there is only ability, there is no disability," Smith said.
Stephen, a third-grader, wrote the lyrics first, using an adaptive computer keyboard called the "Unicorn Board." The Unicorn Board is similar to a keyboard, but instead of being activated by keys, the board reacts to pressure on specific areas that represent letters of the alphabet. The "Touchtalker" produced by Prentke-Romich Co., translated his typed words into synthesized language.
Translating the music in his head to a playable score was a more complex problem. Stephen has had no musical training, so he could not identify the notes he wanted by name. King, his teacher, enlisted the help of a fellow staff member, who brought in a portable keyboard and painstakingly played hundreds of notes so Stephen could identify the tune he wanted, one note at a time.
The result was a computerized tune with recurring themes. But it was not yet a song. King then sought the aid of Bonnie Nelson, a technology specialist at the Severely and Profoundly Handicapped Technical Assistance Center in the education department at Virginia Tech.
Nelson arranged to loan Stephen an electronic drum machine and introduced him to her brother, Mickey Nelson, a musician and songwriter. After listening to the tape of what Stephen thought the tune should be, Mickey made suggestions for change. As it was, the tune spanned three octaves, making it nearly nearly impossible to sing.
Stephen was adamant that his tune stay as he originally wrote it. That prompted Mickey Nelson to good-naturedly explain that he was the same way with the words to his first song.
"I'm much more flexible as a songwriter now than I used to be," he said.
Several hours later, Stephen approved Nelson's guitar version and adjustments. They taped the song with Nelson singing and playing. Stephen played both the computer-synthesized version of his song and Nelson's tape at the festival.
After the performance, King said, a second-year music student at Radford University commented to Stephen that she didn't think she could write the score that Stephen had. "How did you do that?" she said.
"I just did it," he answered.
Stephen's song is a love song. "He's a real romantic kid," King said. "Everyone who sees him falls in love with him because he's always been very bright and because he's so cute. I tease him that he wants to write music so he can have songs to sing to his girlfriends.
Stephen is an A student.
"Very often we tend to prejudice ourselves . . . that every child with cerebral palsy is the same," King said. The Very Special Arts Festival gave Stephen a chance to demonstrate that he is much more than a boy with cerebral palsy.
by CNB