Technology and apps nowadays, can make musicians lives a lot easier. From tuners, backing tracks, loops, metronomes, virtual sheet music, and virtual instruments. We narrowed down to what we think are the 3 most essential apps for musicians.
Tuner
Metronome
Drum loops
1: The Tuner
Android: gStrings Free
It is definitely (according to me) the best chromatic tuner hands down. It measures sound pitch and intensity. The best part about it is that it can tune multiple different instruments and remarkably has many different temperaments.
It will let you tune any musical instrument (violin, viola, violoncello, bass, guitar, piano, wind instruments, your own voice/singing).
Features include: 1. multiple built-in instruments and tunings, 2. support for user-defined custom tunings, 3. a long list of built-in temperaments (just, pythagorean, meantone, comma, etc.), 4. support for user-defined custom temperaments, 5. orchestra tuning (shifting/redefining tone frequencies), 6. pitch pipe, and many more.
IOS: Cleartune $3.99
Cleartune is a chromatic instrument tuner and pitch pipe that allows you to quickly and accurately tune your instrument using the built-in mic in your device.
Cleartune features a unique "note wheel" interface allowing you to quickly find your pitch, paired with a highly responsive fine-tuning meter for the perfect tune.
With support for custom temperaments, transposition, notations such as solfège, and adjustable calibration, Cleartune packs more power than most pro tuners, yet is simple enough for everyone to use.
Cleartune can tune acoustic or electric guitar, bass, bowed strings, woodwinds, brass, piano, tympani and any other instrument that can sustain a tone.
Features:
- Note Wheel Display
- Ultra responsive 25 cent range fine tuning display
- Needle Damping option
- Accuracy ±0.01 semitone (±1 cent)
- Selectable Temperaments
- Selectable Notations (such as Solfège)
- User-defined temperament and notations
- Support for transposing instruments
- Automatic reference note calibration
- Adjustable A4 calibration in 0.1 Hz increment
- Pitch Pipe/Tone generator
- Selectable tone waveform
- Automatic or manual note selection
2: Metronome
Android: 7Metronome Free
7Metronome is probably the most versatile free metronome app for android devices. The intuitive multi-touch user interface makes the metronome amazingly easy and fun to use. Build complex rhythms by touching, dragging, pinching or zooming. Got some tricky rhythms or would like to improve your timing? This metronome will support you in every situation.
Features:
- 20-240 BPM (beats per minute) - Change the tempo reference note - Tap your desired tempo to get the BPM - Fast tempo setting function (slide your finger up or down on the screen) - More than 100 possible time signatures - Create complex rhythms by touching, dragging, and pinch-zooming main notes - Subdividision up to 15 notes - 5 different high-quality sounds - Unique beat visualisation - Runs in background - Start/Stop directly from the notification bar, when app runs in background
IOS: The Metronome by Soundbrenner Free
An intuitive interface, jam-packed with features, powerful customisation and flawless accuracy. The Metronome is a must-have for every musician.
We didn’t like existing metronome apps very much. So we made a better one. The Metronome by Soundbrenner is designed to be a professional tool to help all musicians to play with rock-solid precision. It's a powerful companion for everyone, regardless of instrument choice or skill level. The Metronome by Soundbrenner works great for daily practice, live performances or in the recording studio.
Highlights:
- Precise metronome packed into an intuitive, beautiful interface.
- Change your time signature, choose a subdivision and set accents.
- Powerful customization. Choose from different click sounds, enable Camera LED/Screen flash.
- World class setlist management. Save your own rhythms and load them in the Metronome.
- Dark and light theme designed to be functional. You have the power of choice.
3: Drum Loops
Android: Loopz Free
Loopz is a powerful and easy to use drum machine and metronome. It plays drum loops and you can jam along!
An intelligently designed drum engine let's you change the speed / BPM of each groove. This makes practicing even more fun.
Play along and improve your timing. No boring metronome, but real drums with a human feel! Loopz can also help you write your own song: who has ever written a hit without a nice rhythm behind it?
You can filter beats in your desired style of music, BPM and time signature. From a heavy rock song, to a raw blues rhythm and old school hip-hop to smooth jazz: everything is possible.
IOS: Drum Loops HD $9.99
Drum Loops HD lets you (besides play along for as long as you like) copy to any DAW in IOS (a.o. Garageband, Auria, Cubasis) and features full Audiobus and Inter App Audio support. A perfect partner for GB, loops and fills follow GB tempo! Performed live by Hans Eijkenaar, Holland's first call session drummer and recorded with state of the art modern and vintage mics.
- Best drum loops in store! FANTASTIC DRUMS!
- Singer/Songwriters rejoice!
- Best rehearsal app ever!
Perfect for songwriters, producers, teachers......more than a 1000 loops, fills and samples in 12 styles and in fact a real drummer in your iPad or iPhone. Copy any loop to any paste equipped DAW for songwriting or play loops within the app as a metronome for practicing.
If you use GB as your DAW of choice you get an incredible advantage, you can paste a loop or fill into GB and from there on change the tempo and maintaining the feel of the drummer! Great for song writing, making demos and more!
As with any purchased library, the loops and fills can be used royalty free in your own productions!
MAIN FEATURES:
- Full drum loop library for anyone making music on an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch!
- Copy/paste to your favorite multi tracker!
- Ability to change loops and fills in tempo in Garageband!
- Audiobus compatible
- Inter App Audio compatible
- Perfect drummer to play along with when practicing your timing on any instrument (all grooves loop perfectly in app itself)
- Performed, recorded and built only for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch.
- Many styles in many bpms (check content list) including unique Jazz loop library, Tom loops (for intros and bridges) and Brushes loops, not found in any other library.
- Two sounds for all loops, fills and samples in every style and tempo (modern and vintage).
- 4/4, 6/8 loops and shuffles, loops in straight time and shuffled time.
- Uncut, not time stretched, not chopped but actual high end recordings
- Audio quality: 44.1 kHz, 16 bit (cd). For copying to any multi tracker including GB.
- All loops and fills actually played in all bpms, by a living and breathing drummer!
All 12 styles are cut into either 2 or 4 bar loops and recorded with two different mic settings, a 'Modern' with 14 mics and a unique 'Vintage' setting with 5 old school mics placed around the sets.