Once upon a time, in a magical land of music, there lived a little band called the "Melody Makers". They were made up of a singer named Lulu, a guitarist named Gio, a bassist named Bassie and a drummer named Drummy.

One day, they decided to put on a big concert in front of a huge audience. They gathered in their studio to practice, but things were not going well. The singer, Lulu, was off-key and the guitarist, Gio, kept missing his chords. The bassist, Bassie, was playing too fast, and the drummer, Drummy, was making too much noise.

Suddenly, a wise and old music wizard appeared. "I can help you," he said. "But you must follow my instructions exactly." The Melody Makers were excited and agreed to do as the wizard asked.

The wizard gave them a midi controller, a loop pedal, a metronome, a limiter, a microphone and a bunch of lyrics to practice with. He also marked certain sections of the lyrics with markers and told them to pay attention to the modulation.

Lulu, the singer, was worried because she always lost her place and forgot the lyrics, so the wizard added a special layer to the midi controller. It would light up every time she was supposed to sing, so she would never forget the lyrics again.

Gio, the guitarist, was having trouble with the timing, so the wizard gave him the metronome. It would keep the perfect beat, so Gio could play in time.

Bassie, the bassist, was playing too fast, so the wizard gave him the limiter. It would slow him down, so he would play at the right speed.

Drummy, the drummer, was making too much noise, so the wizard gave him the loop pedal. He could record a simple beat and then play it over and over again, so he wouldn't have to make so much noise.

The Melody Makers practiced for hours and finally got everything perfect. The night of the concert arrived and they took the stage. Lulu sang with perfect pitch, Gio played the guitar in time, Bassie played the bass at the right speed, and Drummy made just the right amount of noise.

The audience was amazed! They had never heard such a perfect performance. The wizard appeared one last time and told the Melody Makers that the secret to their success was the latency. "Latency," he said, "is the delay between the time you make a sound and the time it is heard. And by paying attention to it, you made sure your sounds were heard perfectly, in perfect harmony."

And from that day forward, the Melody Makers became known as the best band in all the land, and their concerts were always a hit! The end.

Reflections

1. Who are the Melody Makers and what are their instruments?
2. Who helped the Melody Makers become the best band in the land?
3. What did the wizard give each member of the band to help them practice?
4. What is latency and why is it important in music?
5. How did the Melody Makers use the markers, modulation, and metronome to make their performance perfect?
6. What was the audience's reaction to the Melody Makers' concert?
7. Can you think of any other musical tools or devices that could help a band like the Melody Makers improve their performance?