Appropriate Use: Generative AI
Be aware that these Generative AI tools contain functionality which allows the upload of pictures and files. It is the responsibility of the user not to upload content or enter prompts which may generate inappropriate or concerning text or imagery, or which contains any personal, sensitive or confidential information.
Please also refer to the Scottish Government’s AI Guidance for Schools when using any kind of AI tool within education.
Overview
Using text-based or image prompting, you can now generate custom 30 second soundtracks in Gemini. This new capability is powered by Lyria 3, Google’s most advanced music generation model yet.
The Gemini app facilitates new forms of musical expression by transforming prompts and images into custom soundtracks. A user might, for instance, turn a “welcome to the team” email into a track. Or, a student or educator could generate custom instrumentals for class presentations or projects.
Where do I find this feature?
The create music feature can be found via any of the methods below,
Create music shortcut
Create music from the Tools drop down menu
Examples
Music Theory & Appreciation
Use these to help students identify specific musical elements or the “personality” of different eras.
- Baroque Counterpoint: “Create a 30-second Baroque-style piece featuring a harpsichord and cello. Use a fast, driving tempo with overlapping melodic lines to demonstrate counterpoint.”
- Rhythmic Exploration: “Compose a West African Afrobeat track at 110 BPM. Focus on complex, layered percussion and polyrhythms, featuring a talking drum and bells.”
- The Blues Structure: “Write a slow, melancholic 12-bar blues track. Include a soulful electric guitar lead and lyrics about the feeling of being far from home.”
Literature & Creative Writing
Help students set the tone for a scene or explore a character’s internal state.
- Spooky Story Setting: “Generate a 30-second eerie, atmospheric track for a gothic novel. Include a haunting solo violin, distant thunder sound effects, and a slow, tense build-up.”
- Science Fiction World-Building: “Create a futuristic, synthwave track for a story set on a neon-lit alien planet. Use ‘shimmering’ electronic textures and a steady, pulsing bassline.”
- Hero’s Journey: “Write a triumphant, orchestral anthem that sounds like the climax of an adventure. Use booming brass, soaring strings, and a fast, energetic tempo.”
Physical Education
Support students to keep motivated during physical education.
- The Sprint Finisher (High Intensity): “Create a 30-second high-intensity cinematic orchestral track. Start at 120 BPM and steadily increase the tempo to 160 BPM. Feature driving taiko drums and a triumphant horn section to build extreme urgency and energy.”
- The Cool Down and Focus (Mindfulness): “Create a 30-second ambient soundscape for a yoga cool-down. Use soft nature sounds like a flowing stream, gentle wind chimes, and a slow, ethereal synthesizer pad. No drums or sharp noises.”
- The Defence Slide (Rhythmic Skill Work): “Create a 30-second Hip Hop beat with a very heavy, consistent 90 BPM kick drum. Make the beat simple and “boxy” so students can easily time their lateral steps to the 1 and 3 counts.”
History & Social Studies
Transform historical periods into “soundscapes” to help students immerse themselves in the past.
- Industrial Revolution: “Create a cinematic soundscape representing a 19th-century factory. Incorporate rhythmic mechanical clanking, steam whistles, and a dark, heavy orchestral undertone.”
- The Roaring Twenties: “Write an upbeat 1920s Jazz Age track. Use a ‘hot jazz’ style with a prominent trumpet solo, banjo, and a fast, danceable tempo.”
- The Silk Road: “Compose a tranquil, mid-tempo track using traditional instruments like the Oud and Pipa. It should sound like a caravan travelling through a vast desert at sunset.”
STEM & Environmental Science
Music can even represent scientific processes or habitats.
- Deep Sea Exploration: “Compose a slow, ambient soundscape representing the deep ocean. Use deep, echoing bass tones, ‘bubbling’ synth effects, and a sense of vast, quiet space.”
- The Water Cycle: “Create a three-part musical transition: starts with soft, trickling piano (rain), builds into a fast, rushing orchestral swell (river), and ends with a calm, wide synth pad (ocean).”
- Space & The Cosmos: “Generate a ‘space-age’ track using ethereal synthesizers and a slow, floating tempo. It should feel weightless and mysterious, like drifting through a nebula.”
Classroom Utility
Help students to keep focused on every day classroom tasks.
- Concentration/Study Mode: “Create a 30-second lo-fi hip-hop beat. Keep it chill and melancholic with a gentle Rhodes piano melody and soft vinyl crackle—no vocals.”
- Transition Timer: “Write a 30-second ‘clean up’ song for a primary classroom. Make it upbeat, sunny, and pop-inspired with lyrics encouraging students to put things away.”
- The Nature Trail (Outdoor Education Intro): “Create a 30-second folk-inspired acoustic track. Use a bright acoustic guitar melody, a light tambourine, and a whistling tune that feels like walking through a sunny forest.”
- The “Zen Zone” (Mindfulness/Yoga Intro): “Create a 30-second tranquil meditation track. Use soft singing bowls, a gentle harp melody, and long, airy synth pads to create a sense of immediate calm and focus.”
Top-tips for Educational Prompting
Benefits
Using music generation in education transforms learning into a more engaging, efficient, and accessible experience: