Music Related iPhone and iPad Apps

The Importance of Using a Tuner: Finding Your Perfect Pitch

Music is a beautiful language, but like any language, it relies on clear communication. Just like people speaking the same language can do so with different accents to their voice so too can musicians play the same note but with slight changes in the way it sounds. The pitch may be a bit high or a bit low, and over the centuries musicians have come up with ways to analyze these differences so that multiple musicians can better "play in tune." Just as proper grammar and pronunciation are essential for understanding spoken words, playing in tune is paramount for creating harmonious music. This is where the tuner comes in. For the beginner (or even the more advanced musician) it can be a vital tool for developing accuracy of pitch.

Low Cost MusicTechnology Options For The Music Education Classroom

Finding ways to stretch your budget in a music classroom is always important and even more so when trying to purchase high tech electronics, software, and other materials. This article provides an updated list of dozens of different low cost or free alternatives to expensive music education products. It includes such categories as music notation software, drill design software, special needs hardware, and many more.

The Star Spangled Banner- Free Sheet Music For Band Inst.

This document contains sheet music for all common instruments to play The Star Spangled Banner, also known as the sheet music to the National Anthem of the United States of America. You can view the sheet music online or download the individual parts arranged for all common concert band instruments. If you do not see your instrument listed please scroll to the bottom of the page and try one of the the other instruments. Most musicians will be able to find at least one instrumental part that matches their range and preferred key signature. If you are seeking a simple piano version of the song please select from the voice, trumpet, or alto saxophone versions.

Using Plickers as an Assessment Tool in the Music Education Classroom

Music, band, choir, and orchestra classrooms can be huge and assessing the knowledge and retention of individual students in such a large class can be daunting. Plickers are one of several solutions that can be adapted to work in large groups, making the act of assessing a student’s understanding a little easier and a whole lot faster.

Is Marching Band A Sport? Pros, Cons, and a Reality Check

In recent years the question of whether or not marching band is a sport has been brought up time and time again for various reasons and by various groups. On one side you have the YES crowd who says that marching band is competitive, physically demanding, and every bit as much a team event as any traditional sporting event. On the other side of the coin are those who say no, that marching band is NOT a sport and it is a musical pursuit that happens to involve coordinated movements. Both sides are right, but to make a final decision we need to look deeper into the facts. Read on to find out what they are!

Portable Digital Audio Recorder Buying Guide With Reviews

Scroll down to view the comparison chart of over a dozen different portable digital audio recorders.

Buying a portable digital audio recorder is a major decision. The balance between price, features, and quality is a fine line that has many different options to choose from. There are dozens of different models of portable digital audio recorders, some of which have drastically different sets of features yet sell for roughly the same price. This easy to read head to head comparison chart and guide to many of the more popular portable digital audio recorders is intended to help potential buyers more easily see these differences and make an educated buying decision.

Apps and More for the Choral Classroom

The number of apps, software, and gadgets available for use in the music classroom continues to grow each year but finding things that can actually be beneficial to your classes grows more and more difficult as well. We spoke with Dr. Christopher Russell, Director of Choirs at Oltman Middle School in St. Paul Park, Minnesota to get his must-have list of apps.

Sound Production For Saxophone Saxophone master Walter Beasley has released a pair of iPhone apps dedicated to his chosen instrument. These instructional video apps contain over 80 minutes of video instruction on the saxophone taught by Beasley and feature short clips of him demonstrating the various concepts and techniques. The first of the two apps titled Sound Production For Saxophone deals with concepts ranging from basic embouchure to diaphragmatic breathing and basic practice tips.

The second app, titled Circular Breathing, deals with exactly that, and is described in detail in about thirty minutes worth of videos. All aspects of learning and developing circular breathing are presented and are done with the help of visual demonstrations showing how the process really works.

As an educational tool the videos are quite informative and present their points well. Any novice saxophone student would most likely benefit from viewing the Sound Production videos while more advanced students or those interested in playing around with circular breathing would benefit from the latter.

Runs On:

Scorio is an iPad app that works together with the Scorio online music notation site allowing you to create and edit sheet music using the iPad's touch screen interface.

Creating sheet music made easy! The scorio Music Notator lets you write your own music on the iPad. Edit play and print your music whenever you want. Enter and edit music the iPad way: Use touch gestures to insert notes and touchmove gestures to move notes around and change pitches. Alternatively you may also use the virtual piano keyboard.

Read more: Scorio for iPad

Musicopolous is an iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad app that is intended to help the user practice music theory skills, mostly related to building scales, intervals, and chords as well as sight reading skills such as identifying the names of key signatures and note names when shown on the grand staff. For this review the app was tested on an iPhone 4. How did it measure up to the competition? Read on to find out.

Guitarists rejoice! Thanks to the Amplitube app for iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch you can now take all of your favorite effects pedals, amps, and cabinets with you without the need to lug around a suitcase full of equipment. The Amplitube app works together with a $40 accessory called the iRig that when plugged between your iPad and your guitar will add any desired effects to the sound before sending it out to your amplifier.

The idea of being able to have all of your sheet music with you at all times, instantly accessible and indexed is a wonderful thought for many musicians. In past years commercial products have been produced to provide us with that capability but for the most part they have remained out of reach of most individuals either for financial or logistical reasons. With the explosive growth of the iPad though musicians are getting a second shot at going totally digital with their sheet music in the form of a $5 app called forScore.

Music education related iPhone apps that are actually useful seem to be rather few and far between. Â When I was informed of the Trumpet Pro apps now available for both iPhone and iPad I was a little skeptical, having seen other fingering training apps that failed to live up to my expectations. Â When I saw the pricing associated with these two apps I became a bit more skeptical but decided to give them a try anyway and see if they were truly worth the investment.

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Sound Production and Circular Breathing Apps for iPhone

Scorio for iPad

Musicopolous Music Theory iPhone App Review

Amplitube For iPad and iPhone- Just Plain Cool!

Take Your Music On The Go With forScore for iPad

Trumpet Pro iPhone App Review