Fudge: Guitar Education App
Components: UX/UI, Interaction Design, Branding, Education Technology, Instructional Design
To view the lesson, go to Chords, then select Chord Diagrams.
Overview
Fudge is a music education app focused on skill building for beginner to intermediate guitar students. It is meant to be used as a teaching tool for music teachers with younger students, or for independent learning by adult students. This prototype shows an interactive lesson on reading chord diagrams.
For the full experience, please watch this video with sound on.
App Design & Features
The lesson shown here explains how to read chord diagrams for guitar, covering each component of the diagram step by step. It culminates with an interaction inviting the user to build their own chord diagram.
Design Thinking
My design thinking for this project started with insights I gained during my years as a guitar and piano teacher. Many guitar students struggle to understand how to read notation for guitar, and options for making these concepts more concrete through interactive design are limited. I set out to create an app that would make guitar skills accessible, inviting students to apply what they learn at each step of the lesson.
The name and tagline for Fudge come from a mashup of two mnemonic devices music students use to remember the notes on the staff: “Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge,” and “Every Guitar Beginner Does Fine.”
One of my goals was to dispel the idea that guitar is always complicated and difficult. I wanted the app to feel simple and inviting to beginners of all ages. I chose a soft color palette with a few brighter tones to communicate that guitar is fun and approachable, and doesn’t have to be hard or intimidating.
