Make school spirit accessible to all! Learn how to create audio description for college fight song and gameday cheers for low vision and blind students

While many people associate assistive technology with specialized devices that are expensive or hard to find, many mainstream technology devices have started supporting accessibility features and built-in assistive technology that can make specialty tools more financially and publicly accessible for all. Peripheral accessories like headphones…

I’ve received a few emails from readers asking about nonvisual entertainment and ideas for listening to different types of content that goes beyond the typical listening to music or listening to an audiobook. There are a ton of different types of audio content for blind…

I love listening to live music and watching concert videos and music videos from my favorite bands, but it’s difficult for me to attend events in person since I have a medical condition that causes photosensitivity, or a sensitivity to strobe and flashing lights. Since…

Many school band programs have a uniform requirement for specific ensembles, which can consist of a mix of school-owned pieces (such as a marching band jacket) and items purchased by the musician like shoes or pants in a specific color. Musicians that experience sensitivity to…

I received a reader question today asking about tips for reading music on an iPad with low vision, and if there was anything that they would need to do to make music easier to read. I’ve used my iPad to read music for many years,…

When I was first learning to play clarinet and saxophone, my instructors would often tell me to look at the fingering chart printed in the back of the music book to figure out the proper hand positions for a note I was learning. This wasn’t…

Recently, I received a question from the parent of a middle school-aged musician with low vision asking about options for watching the conductor with low vision. The student said that they have trouble seeing the conductor from where their section is located, and it often…

When I wrote the first version of this post on why I chose the clarinet as a musician with low vision, I highlighted how the clarinet was a versatile instrument that can be fairly straightforward to learn. However, I didn’t mention any of the techniques…

A while ago, a clarinet player with low vision asked me if I had any tips for how to read marching band drill sheets and talking to their director about marching with low vision. The conversation made me think of my time in marching band…

When it comes to receiving physical copies of materials and text-based content, paper size plays a significant role in how I both read and write on a page. Since my vision fluctuates often due to environmental factors, I typically prefer digital materials that I can…

If I’m attending a visual impairment or assistive technology conference that has a karaoke event, there’s a very strong chance I will take the mic and perform “Livin’ on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi, my favorite song of all time and one of my favorites…