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App Share

The world of music apps is huge and knowing where to start to find new ones can be tricky – enter App Share! We love apps at soundLINCS and want to share some of what we’ve learnt with you to help your music making and teaching.

Keep checking back to this page and our blog for more apps. Please feel free to share any of your favourite apps with us on our Facebook or Twitter so that together we can make the most of our iPads.


Sound Drop AR – (available on IOS) – Free

Perfect for 4+

What is it? Sound Drop enables you to create your own beats in no time.   The power of AR and the possibilities interacting with the environment gives you great new ways to be creative.

Why we love it?  You can use the helping focus-square to place a reactor on the floor in front of you. It gives you an initial beat from which you can start creating your composition.  You can place more reactors by side to extend the randomly created beat. Change reactor positions, tempo and other properties.  Mix in beats and tonalisations, to refine your creation. There are more than 100 sound effects for the reactors, and dozens of additional loops to discover.


Song Maker:  Music Mixer Beats – Free (In-App Purchases)

Perfect for 4+

What is it? Song Maker is the free music maker app for fun and entertainment that all mixing enthusiasts should have. Start your own mixing and jam sessions like a DJ without a studio. Let your imagination run free and create your own music by combining different sounds and rhythms. Modify loops and sounds in the editor and add free beats. Record your voice and add it to the song. Find the perfect tune and make music!

Why we love it? Song Maker has thousands of free sounds, beats and loops ready to use in unlimited combinations. You can make your own melody or song by mixing music with the free beats and edit the sounds with effects like fade in, fade out, cut song from start, cut song from end, repeat sound etc.  Save your melody and let your friends listen to it!


Notysing – (available on IOS and Android) – Free (In-App Purchases)

Perfect for Everyone

What is it? Interactive music lessons, learning how to sing from sheet music!  You’ll learn notes, scales, keys, rhythm, music theory and much more in this fun, educational app.

Why we love it? The app uses proven researched methods to help you learn music effectively.  It can be used easily to learn how to sing alone, as part of a choir, or to be used as a teaching tool for helping to encourage others!


Music Battle – (available on IOS and Android) – Free

Perfect for 11+

What is it? A fun follow-the-beat game with lots of funky music tracks to get you jamming along!  Follow the arrows to the rhythm of the songs to defeat the enemies.  The better you follow, the more damage you do to your opponent.

Why we love it? The cool visuals and tracks make it appealing for anyone to jump into having fun with music.  It’s easy to use and the competitive element makes it an almost addictive way to improve your rhythm!


Christmas Piano With Songs – (available on IOS)Free (In-App Purchases)

Perfect for 4+

What is it? This App gets you in the Christmas Spirit.  Play along and sing along to Christmas carols on a real piano on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch!

Why we love it?  This piano includes some of the most popular Christmas carols. Every song includes sing-along lyrics that highlight in time with the music, making caroling easier than ever! You can also learn to play Christmas songs geared for all ages and skill levels!


Guitar – Chords, Tabs & Games – (available on IOS)Free (In-App Purchases)

Perfect for 4+

What is it? Playing the guitar has never been easier.  Learn chords and create music on your device!  Real Guitar is a realistic guitar simulator app featuring a user-friendly interface and an awesome sound quality.  All sounds have been recorded from live guitar.

Why we love it? You can easily strum, pluck and strike the strings to play chords, figure out your favourite tunes or make up your own.  There’s a Guitar Chords Charts Library with Chords Finder and a Songbook to help you learn to play guitar songs.


Sesame Street Makes Music (available on IOS) – £2.21

Perfect for 3+

What is it? A fun music making game for children featuring the iconic Sesame Street gang! Explore 10 different popular songs, with 10 different instruments to play along with. This game explores different genres and tempo in band mode, and lets your child get extra creative in free play mode!

Why we love it? This game uses popular characters to draw the child into the world of music, keeping it fun, entertaining and creative, whilst allowing them to learn the basic building blocks of music making.


Newzik (available on IOS) – Free (with in-app purchases)

Perfect for 11+

What is it? A powerful app to create and organise your digital sheet-music Library – to access from any device! You can practice your music playing with interactive accompaniments, record yourself as you play, and create custom annotations for your pieces, with auto + timed scrolling – so no need for paper!

Why we love it? It is simple and easy to use, and organise, so everything you need for your performance can be found all in one place. You can sort custom lists, track your progress, and play through sheet music seamlessly, whether practicing/performing alone or as part of a group!


Mazaam The Musical Genius (available on IOS and Android) – Free (with in-app purchases)

Perfect for 4+

What is it? Mazaam is a music education game, combining fun quests with learning about music in different ways. The game covers 5 musical concepts – Pitch, Tempo, Intensity, Timbre and Harmony, across 15 mini games within the app. It’s built to catch the attention of children with its cute characters and story book design, as well as being super easy to use!

Why we love it? The method for developing this game is backed by science to help children learn the basics of music easily. You can also follow the child’s progress in the parent/teacher zone, or use augmented reality in Duet Mode to share their experience!


Sago Mini Music Box (available on IOS and Android) – £3.99

Perfect for 2-4 Years

What is it? Sago Mini Music Box is an adorable touch-anywhere musical adventure game. Go on a journey and make music with 3 cute animal characters. Explore land, sea and sky as well as music tempo with the songs “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”, “Row Row Row Your Boat” and “Jingle Bells”. 

Why we love it? It’s cute colourful design and easy to follow story adventure makes it easy to use for children, and it’s the perfect way to introduce them to experimenting with music, with simple familiar songs. It’s also ad free with no more in app purchases, and no need for WIFI, for safe uninterrupted play wherever you are. 


Magic Fluids (available on IOS and Android) – Free (with in-app purchases)

Perfect for Everyone

What is it? Magic Fluids is a colourful, calming sensory tool. You can paint on the screen with your fingers to create magical flowing patterns mimicking glowing liquids and smoke, with many customisable settings for you to get creative.

Why we love it? It is a simple, creative, relaxing tool that would be perfect for SEND, with so many customisations making the patterns you can create endless. 


Cross DJ Free (Free on IOS and Android – with in app purchases)

Perfect for 4+

What is it? Cross DJ is a free digital music mixing app, simulating a real turntable set, down to realistic scratch effects. It syncs your audios automatically, so you’re free to play around easily whilst recording your own mixes. The ability to record and share to social media is included as an in-app purchase.

Why we love it? It’s an easy to learn, accessible and portable way to play with music! It would be perfect for teens to introduce them to DJ-ing, or even for professionals to use on the go!


Simply Piano (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for 4+

What is it? Simply Piano is a piano learning app, featuring songs and courses for many different music tastes and all levels, from sheet music to playing with both hands. You can play using a virtual touch screen keyboard, or by syncing it with a real keyboard using sound recognition software.

Why we love it? The wide range of music available makes it appealing to all, and with its bright and simple interface it’s easy to use – it would be great for any beginner, including children.


Dorico (Free on iOS, and an optional monthly subscription)

Perfect for: 10+

What is it? This app allows you to compose your own scores easily and on the go. Create notation for one or two instruments and input with on screen keyboards, drum pads and fret board. The app also allows you to play back your notation, share as PDF or audio, and print your sheets easily.

Why do we love it? You can make whole compositions for many different instruments using this app, and it is not too difficult to learn how. It is perfect for music writers on the go, with all the power of their original computer based software.  You can also purchase a subscription to unlock additional features.

 


Keezy (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years and SEN

What is it? Keezy is a musical instrument, where you can record your own sounds in each of the colourful squares. It works like Garage Band, but for children!

Why do we love it? The app is fun, simple to use and visually pleasing, making it perfect to use with early years and in SEN workshops, but it’s also diverse enough for professionals to use too! 


screen480x480 (1)Singing Fingers (£0.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years and SEN

What is it? Singing fingers will record your sounds as you draw.

Why do we love it? We love using this visually pleasing app in our Early Years and SEN workshops to explore making sounds, cause and effect, pitch and mixing artforms.

 


SongPop 2 (Free on IOS and Android

Perfect for: Ages 9+

What is it?  This app lets you guess songs from various genres with multiple choice answers, only by playing it through the App. You can play with people from the world or with friends and see who recognises more songs the quickest!

Why do we love it?  The diversity of genres is astonishing! You can compete for songs from the 60s, 70s, Hip-Hop, Rap, Latin, and so many more. The App also allows the user to play certain playlists. Ideal to compete against family and friends.


Piano Kids Game for Toddlers – Music & Song

(Free – full version £4.59 and offers available)

Perfect for: Under 4s

What is it?  Piano Kids let’s toddlers play different instruments such as piano, trumpet and drums. Toddlers can play these nursery rhymes on the piano: Wheels on the Bus, London Bridge, Row your Boat, Old McDonald, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. There are also some musical games and lullabies within the App.

Why do we love it?  It is such a diverse software full of varying instruments and songs which children can play. There are lots of sounds too which can be explored such as robot and animals. It is a fun app aiming to develop musical and motor skills.


Amped Studio (Free – add on features £4.99 pm)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it?  Amped studio is an online DAW made for producers to create quickly and to collaborate. The basic free set up includes enough features to get started and experience DAWs prior to moving on to more sophisticated systems.  The facilities available include the ability to export sounds, use of the free library, plus effect/processes including compression. limiter, equalizer, delay, reverb and BitCrusher.  You can also hum and turn your humming into midi data.  Amped Studio uses WAMs (Web Audio Modules), which are browser-based audio plugins. Several free WAMs are available on Amped Studio, but more WAMs are available for download at wam.fm

Why do we love it?   Amped studio is a great piece of software to get started with DAWs or (in the paid version) collaborate online.  The free version will keep you entertained and producing for quite some time.  You have to sign in and there are options to buy more sounds.


Typatone (Free)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Typatone plays any message you write as sounds. All the letters have a different pitch, and each pitch is consistent, ie each letter is the same pitch.  Useful for engaging eyes and ears when typing.  You can change the sounds and colours through various presses so that your words match the ambience.

Why do we love it?   You can embed the player in social media so it will play your post as sound as well as seeing the words.  You can also download your message as sound.  So clip your favourite poem in and see how it sounds. 


TC-Performer (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  TC-Performer presents a multi-touch performance environment unlike any other synthesizer. Simply touch the screen; there are no buttons, keys, or sliders to hit.  The sounds are generated entirely by your touch movements.

Why do we love it?  The App is provided with 6 sound packs called ‘Patches’. More can be added with  In-App purchases.  Each patch has a unique method of control. Pull, tap, drag, twist, and stretch your touches on the screen. Pads, leads, effects, and indescribable oddities await.

This App is a must have for sound designers who want to quickly create unique sound worlds and edit them into samples.


Seaquence (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Seaquence is a beautiful and playful multi-voice synthesizer that turns your screen into a colourful aquarium. And swimming around the screen are tiny creatures, whose musical phrases can only be heard when they swim into view, creating a spatialized mix of music. 

Why do we love it?  Each creature has a voice written from a musical sequencer and only the closest are heard as they swim around your view.  All musical elements that form the creature’s voice can be edited: pitch, rhythm, waveform, timbre, tempo. Or you can start with creatures that haven’t had their voices written yet. That’s where you come in! 

A limited number of creatures are included with the free version.  More can be added with in-App purchases.


Circular Bells (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Circular Bells is a music app that lets you sit back and relax while you play with its brightly-coloured, ever-changing interface, and uplifting sounds. Move the bells around, create your own layouts, and then hit the button that makes everything float around.

Why do we love it?  The sound quality is good, with the Tone Bells being particularly apPEALing! There are 15 coloured circles (providing a range of 2 Octaves) that can be placed anywhere on the play screen in the order you want them. The sequence can be played as a sequential melody (by tapping the circles) or as intervals to be sounded simultaneously.  8 different scales are available. So you can play your melody or intervals and hear how they sound when using the different scales.   Lovely!


Jingle+ (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Jingle+ is a shaker-instrument app that feels and sounds like a real instrument. Move and shake your phone and it feels just like holding a tambourine, maraca, egg shaker, or jingle/sleigh bells— expressively and in real time.

Why do we love it?  Jingle+ uses high-precision motion data from the accelerometer to produce the same behaviour and range of sounds found in a real instrument – making it ideal for use live on stage or in the studio.  6 different instrument sounds are available and the Sleigh Bells are perfect for jingling along with your favourite Christmas tunes! Where’s Rudolph?


Songbirds (£1.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Songbirds is a playful musical game for people of all ages and musical abilities to create music, compose melodies, and craft soundscapes.

Why do we love it? Musical soundscapes can be created after just a few moments of exploring Songbirds although there are sufficient musical variables to entertain the most curious player.

Three unique musical environments are provided: The Sky, The Lake, The Flock. Each environment provides ambient sounds that can be calming and meditative. Compositions can be saved to your device for future listening or sharing with friends.


Patterning (Free on iOS)

Perfect for:  Ages 4+

What is it?  Patterning for iPhone is a free version of the Award winning circular drum machine. With its elegant circular interface, Patterning transforms your phone into a seriously inspiring tool for making beats.

Why do we love it?  Wow! Just Wow! Create dynamic drum patterns with the swipe of a finger. Make evolving, poly-metric rhythms, four-on-the-floor dance party jams, or laid back R&B grooves. Use Patterning’s independent loop settings to explore untapped rhythmic possibilities. Choose from hundreds of free factory and user created drum kits. Amazing!


Polyphonic! (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Polyphonic! Is a fun and easy way to create Sound Worlds by triggering rhythmic and melodic sounds through tapping your selections. Each coloured tile holds 4 individual sounds and all sounds can play together….until you run out of fingers!

Why do we love it?  All the sounds are designed to work together which provides freedom to freely experiment. When a sound is tapped, it is ‘cued’ and will start to play back at the next sequence start. Which means all your sounds will always play back in time together. Perfect!

The Developer claims that each Sound World is uniquely created and features over 21 billion combinations. If you can count them all – let us know!


Conga Drums (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Conga Drums Free is the ultimate drumming app for the iPhone and iPad. You can play the Conga, Quinto, Tumba, Requinto, Super Tumba or Bongos in 2, 3, 4, or 5 drum configurations.

Why do we love it?  The drum sounds are excellent – all professionally recorded in high quality 16-bit stereo. 3 Unique Playing Zones on each drum create a realistic sounding drum.

Short percussion effects can be triggered by dragging finger across drum skin. The metronome offers a range of sounds and its tempo can be edited. 2 of the configurations offer a ‘Jam’ mode so that rhythms can be triggered to play along with. New Year, New Drums!


TweakyBeat (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  This a simple, single screen, drum machine that sounds like the circuits are alive! It has a ridiculously simple interface with a good range of tone shaping controls. Oh…and it’s fun!

Why do we love it?  TweakyBeat is quirky, monophonic and full of personality, and it produces electronic loops with tons of groove! You can record and email your sessions as high quality WAV files to your friends and fans. Or import into other audio programmes you are using. Did we say it was fun?


Monovista (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Monovista is a creative experience for your eyes and ears. It combines swipe and tap music composition with abstract visual effects.

Why do we love it? 

It’s simple to start up and begin making sounds, but sufficiently complex to invest time to learning more.

For your ears: Play four different instruments: 3 synthesizers and 1 drum machine.  Loop each of them, add to the loops over time, and erase a loop when it’s time for a change.

For your eyes:  Monovista produces a wide variety of colourful, entrancing, and surprising animations, which you control and interact with at the same time as you’re making music.


Take Creative Vocal Recorder (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Take is the creative vocal recorder. With a single tap you’ll be recording, beatboxing, overdubbing, riffing, writing and sketching out song ideas. You can Sing, Hum, Rap, and Strum. Capture your musical ideas—anytime, anywhere.

Why do we love it?  Take combines drop-dead simplicity with features that are custom-tailored for vocalists. Record harmonies along with your voice, blend in effects to sweeten the sound and sing along to an array of beats and rhythms. Take is the ultimate voice memo sketchpad for capturing your musical ideas.

Note: Take is optimized for the built-in microphone on your iOS device. To eliminate feedback and hollow-sounding tracks, wearing headphones is recommended while recording.


Korg Gadget 2 Le (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Korg Gadget Le is an all-in-one music production studio. It is the ultimate mobile instruments collection on your iPad, iPad Pro and iPhone. Experience KORG Gadget (RRP £38.99) with this free, lite version.

Why do we love it?  This free version provides a great introduction to Korg Gadget and is a fully functioning music studio. 3 different music making gadgets are available and individual recordings can be displayed in a track window before mixing down the finished song. Finished songs can be uploaded to Gadget Cloud – a music exchange for Gadget users worldwide.


Musical Paint For Kids (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Musical Paint for Kids is a creativity app that merges painting and music-making into one.  Children can explore different sections by tapping the screen to reveal music, sounds, and moving and talking characters.

Why do we love it?  It’s easy to use and encourages musical exploration combined with drawing.  Children can paint pictures using brushes that are adjusted with a sliding bar.  The musical tones adjust depending on the colour selected, speed and direction of the brush.


Skoove: Learn Piano (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it?  Skoove is a great piano learning app that engages you with video lessons on the app, helping you move from basic understanding of piano, into more advanced skills.

Why do we love it?  There’s a wide range of music, songs and exercises to study with and it introduces some simple theory through video and practice.  The app gives individual feedback, telling you if you’re performing well or what you have played incorrectly.


Roland Zenbeats (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Roland Zenbeats is an app that makes music creation easy.  The app is pre-loaded with on-screen controllers, instruments, and effects. Tap, swipe, modulate, and pitch bend sounds using gestures with on-screen instruments.

Why do we love it?  Zenbeats gives you access to beatmaking tools and is stocked with a collection of kits and pattern pre-sets allowing you to create beats and rhythms using classic Roland sounds.  Lessons in the app help build your skills and confidence.


Loopimal (£3.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5-10

What is it? Simply, Loopimal is a building kit of fantastic animations and sounds to be played with and explored. It’s a colourful, character-based sequencer for kids: drag coloured shapes into place on a timeline to trigger different sounds and animations for the cute animals on-screen.

Why do we love it? The app is just so engaging that it will get the undivided attention of children almost straight away. It’s great fun and quirky whilst helping to build an early understanding of sequences and loops.


Patatap (£1.99 for iOS or free at wwMarch App Sharew.patatap.com)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Patatap is a portable animation and sound kit. With the touch of a finger (or keyboard) you can create a range of melodies synchronised with moving shapes and animations to create a fantastic soundscape. You can switch between a variety of colour and sound combinations, to create an engaging and ever-evolving pallet.

Why do we love it? The variety and simplicity with which you can jump into it! With 7 different environments containing 26 different sounds each, you can have great fun exploring, whether it’s just typing your name or creating full blown compositions.


Drumbit.app  Free

Perfect for: Ages

What is it?  drumbit.app is a web based, easy to use drum machine.  It allows you to put together a drum beat quickly choosing from a variety of drum kits.

Why do we love it? You can make amazing drum patterns by applying filters and effects, changing volume and pitch.  You can record it as an audio file or save it for further editing.


Musyc (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  Musyc is a free app that lets you play with an interactive musical environment. By touching the screen you can manipulate how the sounds you are hearing change, whilst adding shapes and patterns to it.

Why do we love it? The app not only encourages musical exploration from a young age, but also serves as a meditative experience. It also has many customisable options for its graphics and sound.


Hokusai Audio Editor (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Hokusai is a free audio editing app that allows for an easy way to edit and record on the go.

Why do we love it? Hokusai has a clean, un-cluttered design that makes it convenient to edit audio quickly. It also has a ‘scrubbing’ tool that allows you to hear your audio as you press it.


Guitar Pro (£6.99 on iOS and £4.99 on Google Play)

What is it? Guitar pro is one of the best mobile notation apps for guitar and bass players. The app is designed to play and learn both sheet music and tablature for your instrument.

Why do we love it? Guitar Pro is an easy way to view sheet music, as well as use the in app features to help you play: such as tempo editing, direct playback and a visual metronome.


Koor (Download the App for Free for any smart device)

Perfect for: All choral singers

What is it? An  innovative app that lets choirs practice together,  even when they are physically apart!

Why do we love it?  It allows choral singers to practice with pitch-perfect professional singers.  In the settings, you can turn off certain voices or change the volume so that you can take anyone’s place, and practice any way you choose.


Shazam (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Shazam identifies music, retrieves song lyrics, and points you to where you can stream and/or purchase the song!

Why do we love it? Do you ever have those moments where you keep hearing a song on the radio, or on an advert and you keep missing the name of it or just can’t for the life of you remember what it is?

All you have to do is pull out your phone and hit the Shazam button.  Shazam’s music detection abilities will analyse the audio that you’re listening to and within seconds, you will be given the name of the artist and song and where you can find it. As if that wasn’t helpful enough, it even provides the song’s proper lyrics!


Bandimal (£3.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Bandimal is a music composition app that enables children to experiment with making their own music.

Why do we love it? Bandimal automatically saves each musical creation and users can save compositions to their collections.  Nine animals are instruments and animate in fun and exciting ways to keep young people engaged as they create catchy drum loops, compose melodies, change speeds and apply effects.


Flashnote Derby (£4.99 on iOS and £1.78 on Play Store)

Perfect For: Ages 6+

What is it? Flashnote Derby is a fun way to learn and practice reading music notes. Choose the notes that you need to practice and the race begins! With a horse race unfolding in front of you pick the correct notes using letter names, solfege or piano keys to boost your horse and win the race!

Why do we love it? We always find that the competitive game element is a fantastic way to engage children in learning, and to make them repeat exercises until they are mastered. Flashnote Derby does this perfectly and quickly, and can accompany learners of a wide range of abilities.


Sight Read 4Piano (£3.99,Android and ios)

Perfect for: Ages 9+

What is it? Sight read 4piano teaches piano students sight reading and playing. It particularly aids the learner with reading abilities and recognising rhythm.

Why do we love it? The app gives great musical examples and concisely guides the learner through various levels of difficulty.


iHeartRadio (Free, Android and iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 7+

What is it? iHeartRadio allows you to listen to over 1,500 live radio stations, stream new or past episodes of your favourite podcasts, and create custom stations based on your favourite songs and artists.

Why do we love it? This app encompasses artists from an eclectic range of genres, offering the user a customisable experience to generate playlists and choose live radio stations that best suit your personal taste in music. Plus with a comprehensive library of podcasts across a range of topics there will be plenty to listen to and keep you entertained for hours.


IDAGIO (Free, Optional Upgrade, Android and iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it?  IDAGIO is a streaming app for classical music, hosting over 2 million classical tracks, exclusive releases, and personalised recommendations. Browse with ease refining your search by composer, orchestra, soloist and more.

Why do we love it? We love to use the app to discover new classical music and the personalised suggestions mix generated through the app each week helps us do just that. Plus the listen offline feature means we can listen on the go without consuming our Data.


My First Classical Music App £3.99, Android and iOS

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? My First Classical Music is an app that teaches young children basic trivia on various aspects of classical music.

Why do we love it? Not only does the app discuss instruments, composers and musical history, but it presents the information in a colourful entertaining way for young learners.


Classic FM (Free, Android and iOS

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? The Classic FM app offers on the go live radio to some of the best classical music radio presenters.

Why do we love it? The app not only gives great access to the station, but recommends news and podcasts made for classical music.


BBC Music Magazine (Free, Android and iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 10+

What is it? The BBC music magazine is a long-running magazine dedicated to classical music.

Why do we love it? The app offers insight to upcoming performers and concerts, as well as reviews and discussion of everything classical music.


Pitch Perfect (Free, Android and IOS)

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? Pitch perfect is another great ear training app that also helps students read notes and identify key signatures.

Why do we love it?

The app gives insight to fun an interesting things, such as the scientific Hz of each frequency and many other educational tools to assist learners.


BBC Sounds (Free, Android and IOS)

What is it? The BBC Sounds app allows listeners to explore radio, articles and podcasts of the best popular music available.

Why do we love it? It’s easy to use interface allows for a seamless listening experience.


Oxford Dictionary of Music (Free, Android and IOS)

What is it? The oxford dictionary of music offers a concise library of musical terms and definitions.

Why do we love it? The app holds thousands of definitions, as well as biographies of musicians and composers and brilliantly written historical summaries.


Musicnotes (Free, Android and iOS) (In app purchases)

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? Musicnotes is a sheet music purchasing app that offers thousands of arrangements of both classical and popular music. From the app you can edit sheet music and listen to it using the playback tool.

Why do we love it? Musicnotes has some great additional features, like its built-in transpose tool (which modulates your piece into any key). Its many popular song arrangements also offers users the chance to learn the music from their favourite artists.


Voice Recorder (Free,iOS) (In app purchases)

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? Voice recorder is a simple app that allows you to record and manage memos. It is ideal for musicians who want to record quick things with their instrument and make short recordings of their performances.

Why do we love it? The app has a straightforward, easy to use interface and makes it easy to organise recordings and group them together.


Fender Play (Free,Android and ios) (In app purchases)

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? Fender play is an instructional app that teaches you guitar bass and ukulele. It offers thousands of songs to learn on your instrument of choice.

Why do we love it? The app gives progress updates and support with your learning, and gives several teaching videos to aid you on songs and technique.


GuitarTuna (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Guitar Tuna is a simple tuning app that offers tuning for most instruments in the bowed or plucked string family (including folk and classical instruments). An easy and quick alternative to manual tuners and contains the most popular alternative tunings for each instrument, allowing for quick changing between songs.

Why do we love it? Not only is it a tuner; it’s in app features include a customizable metronome, theory lessons and several hundred chord diagrams for guitar and ukulele. Its new interface gives it a simple, clean look and makes it much easier to navigate through the app.


Bloom: 10 Worlds (£7.99, Android and iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? A re-invention of the original app Bloom, Bloom: 10 Worlds is an ambient music creation app that only requires the user to touch the screen.

Why do we love it? With beautiful Artwork, Bloom’s innovative design allows for a seamless experience whilst giving you the opportunity to experiment with immersive music.


Noteflight (Free,Website link) (In app purchases)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Noteflight is a completely browser operated notation software that serves as a great introduction to writing and arranging sheet music.

Why do we love it? Noteflights’ online beginner tutorials guide the user in writing notation, as well as introducing them to various functions, terms and symbols. Its interface makes it simple to create your own sheet music.


Complete ear trainer (Free, Android and iOS) (£3.49 for full edition)

Perfect for: Ages 10+Cover art

What is it? Complete ear trainer is an in depth ear training app that teaches students how to identify chords, intervals and modes.

Why do we love it? This app has a noticeably welcoming and straightforward user interface, whilst offering well written theory lessons and several aural tests that become increasingly challenging.


IMSLP (Free, Android and iOS) (In app purchases)

Perfect For: Ages 12+

What is it? IMSLP is the world’s leading free online library of sheet music.  With hundreds of thousands of scores and recordings, its app form is a great companion to any classical musician or enthusiast.

Why do we love it? IMSLP’s library houses easily accessible music from every period of musical history, including orchestral and solo parts for larger works and notes and recordings to aid the player. It’s built in score reader also allows for personal annotation.


In C (Free)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? In C is a visual endeavour into Terry Riley’s genius and most famous minimalist work. The piece (which the app is named after) focuses on short, musical phrases that intertwine into one rhythmic polyphony that gradually changes over the course of forty minutes. In this app, the user controls each pattern and the general movement of the piece.

Why do we love it? The website’s simple design shows how music can beautifully unfold in both audible and visual settings. It is also a great introduction to minimalist music and modern ensemble works.


Xylophone, Glockenspiel and Marimba (Free, Android)

Perfect for: Ages 3+

What is it? Xylophone free is an app that allows children of all ages to play the five in built percussion instruments including a Xylophone, Toy Xylophone, Glockenspiel, Vibraphone and Marimba.

Why do we love it? We love this app because the recordings of the different instrument sounds are of a high quality and the app has an extremely easy to use interface and selections mode.


Baby Mozart – Children Music (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? The app provides baby friendly classical music for your baby’s brain development, soothing white noises to aid sleep, nursery rhymes to sing along to and educational flashcards to support learning and development.

Why do we love it? We love the variety of music and sounds, plus the easy to use setting of sounds, giving the user full control over sound duration and volume.


Fruit Punch – Kid’s Music (Free iOS) (In app purchases)

Perfect for: Ages 4+ 

What is it? Fruit Punch Music is a child friendly music streaming app. The app includes multiple themed stations with child friendly names, for example “Popcorn and Candy”, for movie soundtracks. Plus Top 40 stations filtered for age appropriate songs.

Why do we love it?  We love this app because it contains a variety of stations, allowing children the freedom to choose their own music, with the peace of mind that all the songs within the playlists are age appropriate. You can also set time limits on app usage and filter stations further.

 


EarMaster – Music Theory (Free, iOS) (In App Purchases)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? EarMaster is an efficient and fun tool for ear training, sight singing and rhythm. Designed for all skill levels, from beginners to advanced musicians, the app includes everything you need to increase your music theory skills.

Why do we love it? We love that this app is used within school settings with a comprehensive selection of lessons. You have access to 20+ lessons the free version, which you can choose to expand through in app purchases to over 200 lessons.


 Music Tutor (Sight Reading) (Free iOS & Android)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? The app is designed to teach the user to read sheet music and improve sight-reading skills. Improving speed and accuracy in reading sheet music by identifying music notes in timed and untimed sessions. Choose to practice and complete tests with notes in treble, bass and alto clefs. Plus review your results and progress with regular scores and feedback.

Why do we love it? We love that you can set your own practice range giving you control over the areas you would like to focus on and greater improve. We also love how easy it is to keep track of our progress through the use of the statistics page.


Musixmatch Lyrics (Free iOS & Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Musixmatch is “the world’s largest lyrics catalogue” providing synchronized lyrics for every song in your music library through connection with your existing music apps such as Spotify. The app recognises, identifies and provides lyrics to the songs playing around you and provides lyrics in multiple different languages.

Why do we love it?  We love this app because you can identify the songs playing around you so you can discover new music with ease. The app also allows you to search via name of artist, song title and lines of song lyrics. Plus you can sing along with your favourite songs through the apps ‘Party mode’ feature.


WI Orchestra (Free, iOS) (In App Purchases)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? This app is a full orchestral library and composition tool for iPhone and iPad devices. The app enables you to create your own orchestral composition using a range of orchestral strings, brass, woodwinds and percussion instruments.

Why do we love it? We love that you can easily record multiple projects and build compositions by smoothly layering instruments within the recording. The free version offers five instruments from the instrument categories which are all easily played through the interactive keyboard. This app is great for beginners starting to create their own orchestral compositions.


Finger Drums (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? This very simple and easy to use app encourages musical creativity. The app motivates children to play the drums through the simple user interface and interactive drum kit. All you need to start playing is at your fingertips.

Why do we love it? We love the simplicity of the app. There are no unnecessary menus or pages to navigate. Simply open the app and the drum kit is available. All you need to do is tap on the different drums and cymbals to generate sounds and patterns.


Note Quest: Learn Music Fast (Free preview iOS) (£4.99 for all levels & Intervals)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Note Quest is a Piano Interval Flash Cards Game, designed with beginners in mind, the app includes a series of games designed to help piano learners read notes. The app features interval drills, three piano modes and virtual piano to practice whilst you travel.

Why do we love it?  We love this app as it can be used at home between piano lessons to aid practice and as a tool within lessons. We also love that the app scores the user throughout the levels, motivating and guiding the user’s improvement of playing the piano.


Yousician (Free iOS & Android) (Upgrade Premium £13.99 monthly)

Perfect for: Ages 7+

What is it? This app is designed to be a fun, fast and motivating way of learning to play the piano, guitar, bass or ukulele through practical and theoretical lessons even if you’ve never touched an instrument before.

Why do we love it? The user interface is clear and easy to navigate. The lessons are set out as levels for motivating players to practice and achieve scores to unlock the next and in the moment feedback on technique as the app listens to you play. With an extensive library of songs to choose from this is an app that has a lot to offer, even if you are not ready to upgrade.


Phonic Score (Free Android)

Perfect for: Ages 13+

What is it? This app is designed to assist you in playing music. The app stores your digital sheet music, monitors your pitch and tempo, assists learning and automatically turns the pages for you.

Why do we love it? We love the search and organise options for the sheet music, the ability to add scores to the digital library and the audible metronome for keeping time whilst practising pieces.


Drop Dots (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Incorporating the physics of gravity, this app lets users create obstacles for the dots to bounce against causing different sounds and extensive musical possibilities.

Why do we love it? This is a fantastic app for teaching children about the effects of gravity and engaging children in creatively making music. We love the app for its ease of use and simple controls providing effective use by and for children.


Rhythm Training (Sight Reading) (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 7+

What is it? Rhythm Training helps those who are struggling with their sight reading of rhythm. There are lots of lesson built into the app and a metronome to clearly understand tempo.

Why do we love it? This is a great app for any level of musician. It is quick and easy to use and can help the most experienced player understand a tricky section of music. It also provides the beginner with an understanding of simple rhythm to help improve playing.


Groovepad- Music & Beat Maker (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? Groovepad is an app that is guaranteed to bring out one’s inner artist. The app allows users to create beats with added effects that can be shared with your family and friends.

Why do we love it? This is the must have app! There are many popular genres to pick from including House and Dubstep. The app is also easy to use allowing loops to be put together quickly. Overall, this is a great entrance for the budding DJ.


Piano- Play Unlimited Songs (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5+

What is it? This app helps introduce new players to the piano. The user hits the notes as they come down the chart to experience a simulated version of piano.

Why do we love it? This is a great app that allows the player to become familiar with the necessary hand movements required to play piano. It can be played with any ability and features popular songs which increase in difficulty.


Toddler Sing and Play 2 (Free, iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 3+

What is it? This app is designed to let children explore sounds and music. There are lots of different nursery rhymes and characters that can be interacted with.

Why do we love it? This is great for children to explore elements of music in a fun and inclusive way. Children can sing their favourite songs, such as Old MacDonald, and interact with their favourite characters and animals. The app is a great way to encourage music making and enhance enjoyment.

 


I Read Rhythm Lite (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 7+

What is it? This is an app which explores rhythm and how it is read on a traditional stave. Snippets of music can be played and there is a section where different styles and levels can be explored.

Why do we love it? This is a great way to explore how rhythm looks next to how it sounds. There are lots of opportunities to explore different genres which may be out of your comfort-zone. We think this app can really improve your overall music reading ability, and it’s free to begin with!

 


YouTube Kids (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 3-8

What is it? This is an app which is controlled by parents or guardians to make sure that their children are watching the correct content. It allows children to watch playlists that are fun and engaging.

Why do we love it? This is useful for all videos and not just music related ones. However, with this functionality, parents and guardians can guide their children to watch videos about music, such as nursery songs that are interactive. Overall, this is a great way to start a child on a musical journey.


Musical Me! (Free 30-day trial iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Musical Me! takes children on a magical, musical journey. Elements of music are explored with funny and quirky characters, as the app teaches children about rhythm, instruments, pitch, and musical notes.

Why do we love it? The app is a great way to encourage music making and enhance enjoyment as children explore elements of music in a fun and inclusive way. It is also a great way for the family to come together to dance, laugh, and create music.


Voice Training- Learn to Sing (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Voice Training- Learn to Sing is an app which allows your voice and pitch to be analysed. You simply sing into the device’s microphone and a chart displays which note you should be hitting. It also features exercises to improve your voice.

Why do we love it? This is a must-have app for singers! The pitch reader is vital in allowing you to hear how far out your singing note is. The exercises also help you to expand your vocal range and understand how your voice works with music harmony.



Music Theory Helper
(Free PlayStore)

Perfect for: Ages 6+

What is it? The Music Theory Helper is just that! There is information on Chords, Circle of Fifths, Note Values, Intervals, and more. There are also four different exercises to help improve your reading and listening.

Why do we love it? This is a handy app for any beginners wishing to quickly understand basic music theory. Simultaneously, it also lends itself to seasoned pros who may have forgotten why they are using certain chords in certain situations. Overall, it is quick, free, and easy to use and will develop essential theoretical skills.


MuseScore (Free 30-day trial iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? Musescore is a great app that allows classical players to quickly download and read sheet music. The app asks you what instrument you’d like to read for and what genres and styles are best suited to you.

Why do we love it? The app is simple to use and asks you to select your reading level. After time it will naturally give you more challenging pieces as your skill level increases. The free 30-day trial period gives you plenty of time to decide whether this way of reading suits you. Overall, the app is simple and effective for classically inclined musicians.


Baby Chords- ABC Music Learning (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 3+

What is it? Baby Chords is an app which allows you to experiment with different notes and chords. The user has to press down notes which are set up in 1-3-5 chord format.

Why do we love it? Baby Chords is great for youngsters who are first experiencing music. They can experiment with different notes and quickly understand which notes sound better placed together. Small balloons pop up with the chord name and are ‘pop’-able, keeping very young children highly entertained and amused. Overall, the app is a great introduction to chord shapes and sounds.


Tap Tap Beats (Free iOS and PlayStore)

Perfect for: Ages 6+

What is it? Tap Tap Beats is a fun rhythm game where you control a unicorn by tapping the screen at the correct moment- failing to do so results in the unicorn falling off a narrow pathway.

Why do we love it? We love anything ‘Tap Tap’ related. These games are great for people who want to get to grips with rhythm and how it is broken up into beats. The music varies throughout and starts with the iconic ‘In the Hall of the Mountain King’ to introduce players in a fun and vibrant way.


Auxy (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Auxy is fantastic for people who enjoy electronic music. The app is easy to use and provides a great platform to create simple or complex beats and melodies. The app is free, but there is downloadable content that can be purchased to enhance the experience.

Why do we love it? Auxy is a great way to start and experiment with electronic sounds in a way that is accessible. The sound is great and the layering of beats and melodies teaches the user how to arrange songs. It’s perfect for starters.


Musical U (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 14+

What is it? Musical U is an app developed for musicians and students. The app features articles, social impacts, and videos to develop and enhance music learning and development. It is available for free on the Apple App Store. The developers have also released training apps which can be viewed here: https://www.musical-u.com/apps/

Why do we love it? Musical U is a great way to tap into the insights of musicians, which can help develop how you create music. The app helps you to consider elements that you normally wouldn’t, such as unpacking the concept of “Talent”.  Check it out!


Piano Band Music Game (Free iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5 and under

What is it? Piano Band is a piano app which allows children to play Nursery rhymes. It has three unique game modes: one for playing the song, one for learning the song, and a game challenge. The app features adorable dancing characters which move with the pressed piano keys!

Why do we love it? Piano Band is perfect for young children’s music development. They can explore their favourite nursery rhymes and play along as musical notes travel towards an interactive piano. This gives children the chance to explore how rhythms and notes sound out as they begin their musical journey.


Mussila Music School (Free iOS & Android

Perfect for: Ages 5+

What is it? Mussila Music School is an app developed for children and teachers to teach about music creation. It is available for free and all the features are included however, in-app purchases enable further development through the app, but this is left to the user’s discretion.

Why do we love it? Mussila is a fun, engaging and educational app that caters for children aged 5+ that teaches fundamental music skills with rhythm, notes and a variety of instruments. We love it as an educational tool and how simple it is for anyone to use.


Poweramp (Includes Free Trial)
(£3.39 Full Unlock- Android Only) – Link to store

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Poweramp is a powerful music player and editing software for Android which supports:

  • The playing of mp3, mp4, ogg, and more file types
  • Play feature, for songs from folders and from your own library
  • Music Editing Tools
  • Free Trial for new Users

Poweramp overall is a fantastic app whether you just want to casually listen and stream music or whether you want to edit music and different file types.

Why do we love it? Poweramp is one of the best apps in the marketplace that allows for casual streaming and listening to your favourite artists, whilst also offering music production software for remixing and editing songs. The app has a comprehensive library of tools built into it. We love it for its multi-purpose nature for the casual user and how it can benefit users wishing to do more with the software.


Tap Tap Reborn 2 (Free iOS & Android)

Perfect for: Ages 8+

What is it? Tap Tap Reborn 2 is a rhythm game that has an extensive library of songs to play along to. Similar to games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero, Tap Tap Reborn 2 requires you to play along to set beats that scroll across the screen. Hitting the notes on time increases your score and when a song is completed you get gems to unlock more songs.

Why do we love it? Tap Tap Reborn 2 whilst challenging can also be a fun and rewarding game. The ability to unlock more songs and progress through levels makes it a fun experience for most ages. The multiplayer mode also gives the game a fresh lease of life by allowing users to play against each other to their favourite songs. We love the fun and casual aspects of playing the game, with the added bonus of multiplayer functionality.


Sound Rebound (Free iOS only)

Perfect for: Ages 6+

What is it? Sound Rebound is an offbeat experience of colour and sound that invites you to create ricochets, bounces, or bumps to investigate seeing and hearing. Sound Rebound is a creative space for you to build mesmerizing interactions, dynamic collages, or whatever comes to mind. Orchestrate bounces and bumps and explore the colour of sound. Requires headphones.

Why do we love it? This app is a delight for engineers and explorers alike!  The play screen becomes a musical pinball constructed from bars, curves, squares and diamonds. Each shape can be easily resized, rotated, deleted or caused to spin or rock by adding a pin through its centre.  Drop a ball (or many) to animate your construction and hear it play.  Easy to learn. Surprisingly difficult to put down.


Tongo Music for kids (£2.99 iOS and £2.59 Android)

Perfect for: Ages 5 and under

What is it? Tongo Music is a fun, engaging educational app about music for kids and the whole family.  It is produced by experienced music teachers and illustrators. Explore a colourful landscape with animals and a fun character (Tongo), and follow short animated stories about instruments, notes and audio samples. Voted Best of 2016 (AppStore) and received Parents’ Choice Gold Award 2017. No ads, and no in-app purchases. Limited interactivity.

Why do we love it? A relaxed music experience of simple colourful animations combined with good quality audio recordings of individual instruments (including violin, cello, trumpet, bass, guitar, flute) and extracts from pieces by Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Haydn and Tchaikovsky. Also includes an Interactive piano and percussion instruments.


SoundForest  (Free iOS only)

Perfect for: Ages 5+

What is it? SoundForest is a mini music maker that allows you to instantly compose a song using a collection of musical creatures. Compose a loop by tapping animal instruments and mix them into a hypnotic tune. Make a musical ecosystem with SoundForest.

Why do we love it? SoundForest is a refreshing alternative to the conventional look of pattern sequencing. Although a metronomic grid lurks in the undergrowth of the forest, it seems more organic than that when playing. 4 different musical environments with 160 musical elements are available but you will have to spend £1.99 to unlock everything. It’s worth investing if this is an App that you are enjoying spending time with. Headphones required.


Soundtrap (FREE on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it?  Plug in your own instrument, use the software instruments available in Soundtrap or just record a song directly with a mic— it’s super-easy!
You can record, edit and collaborate on your songs wherever you are on almost any device: everything is stored in the cloud!

Why do we love it? The app is a music production software in your pocket. Unleash your creativity and share your new music sounds with others all in one app!


BBC Sounds: Radio Podcasts(Available on Android and iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? BBC Sounds is the new way to listen to BBC audio – your favourite programmes, podcasts, radio stations and music all in one place. Explore a wide variety of new podcasts, music mixes and live sets. Listen live to BBC radio stations. Catch up or listen again to your favourite BBC radio shows. Get personalised recommendations for your next audio obsession, and browse carefully curated highlights and collections of audio content.

Why do we love it? Combining a variety of BBC streaming services this app has some music for everyone whilst on the go or sitting at home.


BandLab  (Free on Android and iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? This app is a music studio and social network in one. You can follow your favourite music and artists, mix your own tunes and collaborate with others to grow your audience. Users from around the world use this app to make and share music. You can listen to tracks from other creators, publish your own as well as create and collaborate with other musicians.

Why do we love it? We love creating and sharing music together and this app allows you to do just that. You can record and mix live audio and collaborate together to make music. The app also allows you to publish and share your music for others to see  which is great for finding inspiration too!


STINGRAY QELLO CONCERTS (Free on iOS and Android)
Perfect for: Ages 12+
What is it? The app allows you to watch the world’s largest collection of On-Demand full-length performances, concert films, and music documentaries. Stingray Qello transforms your connected devices into the ultimate live concert video experience. Give your favourite headliners a standing ovation from the best seat in the house anywhere, anytime!
Why do we love it? The app allows you to watch and listen to music performances allowing yourself to have a front row seat in the comfort of your own home. Watch shows such as Queen, Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, Aerosmith, Carlos Santana, Lady Gaga, Coldplay, Metallica, Eric Clapton, Nirvana,, The Rolling Stones, Heart, Beyoncé, Bob Marley, Linkin Park, Metallica, Bon Jovi, Imagine Dragons, Mumford & Sons, and so many more.


Musyc (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Musyc is a fun and innovative music application where touch turns into music.
No use of piano keyboard or partitions, draw shapes and listen to your piece of music while
viewing sounds bouncing on the screen. Enjoy the 88 instruments (organised into 22 groups) exclusively created and produced at Fingerlab music studio as well as all the exciting and new physical and music tools provided in Musyc.

Why do we love it? A fun and interactive music experience which encourages creativity with touch and movement. We feel inspired and energised by this app to create more music with a variety of instruments all at the ends of your fingertips on one screen.


Ultimate Guitar Tabs (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? With this app you don’t need to be able to read sheet music in order to play the guitar. Interactive lessons and more than 800,000 ukulele and guitar tabs makes learning the guitar a whole lot easier.

Why do we love it? We love picking up and learning a new instrument. With this app you can be immersed into learning the guitar with an easy to use interface. You can search for any song and quickly learn your favourite tunes with accompanying lyrics.


TIDAL (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? TIDAL is a global music and entertainment platform that brings artists and fans together through unique music and content experiences. Unlike any other mainstream music-streaming service, TIDAL allows you to listen and watch over 56 million tracks and over 225,000 videos. With high-quality audio, the ability to stream offline, personalised playlists and more, TIDAL has your back for ensuring you’ve got your favourite tunes to hand!

Why do we love it? TIDAL is a brilliant alternative to the mainstream streaming services with much better quality and interfaces. With fully provided albums and more, you’ll never find a song missing from one of your favourite albums or artists. With easy navigation, a beautiful slick interface and fantastic music on the go, we can’t get enough of streaming songs from TIDAL whilst in the office!


SoundCloud (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? SoundCloud is the world’s largest music and audio streaming platform – 150 million tracks and growing. With a buzzing community of artists and musicians constantly uploading new music, SoundCloud is where you can find the next big artists alongside chart-topping albums, live sets, and mixes for every occasion. Join the diverse community, connect with artists you love and start discovering new music.

Why do we love it? Here at soundLINCS, you’ll know that we love independent music and creations from all walks of life and all talents. SoundCloud is a platform that we have used for the past few years to share the music from our various projects and we love the opportunity SoundCloud provides to up and coming artists and more. With the app now readily available on your phone, you can have a diverse range of music right in your pocket and if you know soundLINCS, we love a diverse music taste! We couldn’t stop using it.



Triller (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+

What is it? Triller is the easiest way to create flawless music videos. Make celeb-quality music videos, shoot beautiful films, and collaborate with friends to make group videos in seconds. Triller enables users to create amazing videos for challenges such as Drake #InMyFeelings challenge and many more. Just shoot a few takes, tap the Triller button, and then quickly edit everything together into an impressive, shareable video.

Why do we love it? Triller is a great way to kill some time and have a fun time in the music video-making process. With a wide range of music to choose from, there is something for everybody to get dancing too. The easiest way to describe this is as follows; have you ever been driving in the car, with your headphones in, staring out the window as it rains and you imagine yourself in a cheesy music video? Well, look no further, because now YOU can be in the cheesy music video.


Piano – Play Magic Tiles Games (Free Trial then £7.99 Weekly on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? The fastest way to learn playing piano from a beginner to maestro. The Winner of Appy Awards as the Best Music App. Piano by Gismart is the electric keyboard simulator app with virtual music instruments to help you learn chords and music notes for free! Learn how to play the piano keys in many interesting ways!

Why do we love it? Overall, one word sums up this application – amazing! With the ability to learn the keys at the push of buttons, you will be able to transfer over to piano in no time! (and with a little practice!). Sure enough, the 7-day free trail will leave you wanting more and if you are determined and passionate about learning the piano, this app is a worthy investment! With thousands of songs on offer to play and learn you’ll fly through the ranks of piano learning and be a maestro before you know it!


Magic Tiles 3: Piano Music 2 (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 4+

What is it? Are you ready to have some real fun? Then you are looking at the right app! The rules of this game are simple, tap the black tiles and avoid the white ones. There are hundreds of songs to choose from all with different difficulties and levels which will test your ability at the Magic Tiles! This game is highly addictive and will have you playing for ages, especially when competing against your friends.

Why do we love it? We are loving this app as it is one that is quick and easy to install and get playing and perfect for when you are on the go and looking to pass some time! There are fantastic songs to choose from. In no time you will be playing Magic Tiles like a pro to the songs of chart music, old forgotten classics and many more. We are highly addicted to this game and it is slowly dividing the office with who is better at which song! We guarantee it is not an app to miss, in fact, the entire series of Magic Tiles is a worthwhile time investment. We hope you enjoy!


Lily – Playful Music Creation (£1.99 on iOS and Android)

Perfect For: Ages 4+

What is it? Create music with Lily, a playful musical experience for people of all ages and musical abilities. Compose a looping melody with each lily and build up interesting harmonies and melodic patterns. Explore polyrhythm by composing looping melodies of different lengths and tempo to create complex musical patterns. Save your compositions and switch seamlessly between them to chain multiple patterns together. Record and share your creations on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook with Everyplay.

Why do we love it? The app itself markets itself as a ‘peaceful’ music creation app and we love it because it does just that, as well as being beautiful. This application deserves a rightful place in our July App Share as you can make gorgeous sounds and melodies with a couple of taps!


Pacemaker – AI DJ App (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 4+

What is it? Pacemaker’s beautiful, minimalistic design shifts the focus away from knobs and faders while still providing all the controls and effects needed to create great mixes. With Autopilot, simply queue up your tunes and the app can mix for you. While you’re manning the tables, Pacemaker can provide you with song recommendations, which you can tweak with tons of effects available for purchase. Pick your tracks or playlist from Spotify or iTunes and let our AI DJ help you create a masterpiece. When done, share it with friends

Why do we love it? This app is an instant favourite for creative/entertainment/DJ go-to. It makes DJing fun and inviting for those who are not experts on the subject. At the same time, it’s a great, fun app that is easy to use with its smooth interface and ability to play around with songs and sounds for hours on end. Definitely, something to sink your teeth into whether you’re an amateur or professional DJ.


NOISE (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect For: Ages 4+

What is it? NOISE is a free app that makes music mobile, so you can sketch musical ideas anywhere you take your connected device. Using easy-to-learn gestures you’ll create beats, melodies, and songs with a diverse library of sounds — all on the touch screen of your phone or tablet. Extend the musical power of NOISE by pairing it with ROLI BLOCKS devices.

Why do we love it? This new fresh and modern app has got us playing around with it making potential songs at our desks! If you’re looking at sound design, look no further. Exploring the app has allowed us to bend notes, squeeze them louder, softer and create different sounds and much, much more.


Keezy Classic (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5+

What is it? Keezy is a musical instrument for toddlers, professional musicians, and everyone in between! You get 8 coloured tiles for each sound board and you can create many unique boards. Each coloured tile can record and store a sound. Sounds are recorded through the device microphone. After recording, tap the tile to play it back, or press & hold to loop. Tap several tiles in sequence (or at the same time) to make a composition. Once you’ve practiced your composition , record a jam to share!

Why do we love it? Keezy Classic is a brilliant ‘no fuss’ sampler!  A unique sound board of 8 samples can be quickly created and easily used to develop and perform original compositions for family and friends. It’s fun!


Playground – Organic Remix (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 10+

What is it? Whether you are a beginner or a pro, Playground allows you to create addictive music beats within seconds. Simply swipe & tap your finger(s) on musical shapes & our smart algorithm will do the rest. Play, remix, share and be proud of your groovy beats. Rhythm & tone are guaranteed!

Why do we love it? Playground is both intriguing and engaging.  Sounds and rhythms are created through gestures across the surface of your device. The App allows the curious explorer to tweak the song components (drum patterns, bass and melody) to customise the sound qualities and mix levels.  A small number of Songs are available for free with many more available to purchase and download. Get those fingers dancing


melody-jams-characters-preview-optMelody Jams (£2.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 3+.

What is it? Similar to Toca Band, Melody Jams allows you to mix and match from your favourites of an array of colourful monster musicians to create your own songs, choosing from a selection of different instruments and musical styles. It’s engaging and has a variety of locations and combinations to ensure it stays fresh and can hold a child’s attention for many hours of exploration. 

Why do we love it? What sets it apart from similar apps is that you can jump in and get involved with the music-making! With simple versions of instruments including piano and xylophone available, you can put yourself at the centre of the band that you create!


voxsyn-wet-dry-controls-1VoxSyn (£9.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 8+.

What is it? VoxSyn is a voice-controlled synthesizer that goes beyond the traditional parameters of similar apps. Talk or sing into the microphone and you can trigger various synth sounds following your voice pitch or the notes touched on the hexagonal keyboard / external MIDI Keyboard.

Why do we love it? The app is brilliantly flexible. As well as the variety of options you can apply to your creation within the app, it is also Audiobus compatible, allowing you to export your tracks and connect with other apps, to create the most polished and layered piece possible.


downloadKapu Bloom Tunes (£1.99 on iOS, £1.91 on Android)

Perfect For: Ages 0-5.

What is it? With Kapu you can paint the world with melodies! Bloom Tunes combines music and painting, teaching the users the basics of how melodies and tunes are crafted in a fun and engaging way. Watch the soil resonate as you play, sprouting new plants which flower and interact with you to play ever-changing music that you can join in with.

Why do we love it? It’s so accessible! The great things about Kapu is that there’s no wrong way to play with it, no matter what your child presses or how they poke, drag, wipe or play the screen, Kapu will respond, with engaging visuals and sounds to help them start their musical journey.


Meludia Melody (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect For: Ages 7+.

What is it? Meludia Melody is a fun and progressive music training tool, offering a programme that will allow you to learn how to replay any melody in all music styles, from classical to electronic music, from jazz to pop rock, from world music to film music. 

Why do we love it? Technically, Meludia has been honed and perfected by some top experts to give the best experience possible. Designed by experts in pedagogy and cognitive learning, Meludia uses scientific advances to develop pitch identification, musical focus, memory and reaction time.


yellofier-2Yellofier (£2.99 on iOS, £2.84 on Android)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? Yellofier, simply put, makes anything into music. You can record your voice, a musical instrument or everyday noises and quickly turn them into great sounding music. Edit every sound into 8 separate parts and have up to 16 sounds in every creation, then jumble them up by moving and twisting the easy coloured blocks to make a composition in minutes.

Why do we love it? The level of development you can take your track to opens the app up to all abilities. Either play with the simple sounds and have something great in seconds, or play for hours with the in-built sequencer, pitch changer and pre-loaded sounds to take your creation to the next level.


quincy-ab-ios8Quincy (£9.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: 

What is it? Quincy is a unique music composition tool based upon a Game of Life pattern generation. You ‘seed’ the screen with cells of which some will remain alive, some die and  new ones are born’. As the pattern changes on the screen so the music created also changes. You can change the rules that are applied and also draw new sets of cells on the screen as the composition unfolds.

Why do we love it? It looks stunning! It has a really different aesthetic feel to many other apps along similar lines, and it easy to be hypnotised watching the screen and listening to the changing music as you watch the ‘circle of life’ unfold in front of you.


643x0wQuantiloop Pro (£9.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 11+.

What is it? Whether you’re inspired by seeing Ed Sheeran in full flow or just want to add another level to your music, Quantiloop is a fantastic recreation of a hardware loop pedal all inside an app. Make it as complex or as simple as you need, creating up to 4 tracks with endless layers of overdubs to build your performance.

Why do we love it? What’s great about Quantiloop is its ability to accommodate musicians across a whole range of abilities and available resources. You can attach a MIDI foot controller and use it as a fully operational loop pedal, or if not just preset your loops, start recording and achieve great results hands free!


unnamedMusic Memos (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 7+. 

What is it? Created by Apple for their devices, Music Memos is a very clever little app that helps take your early compositions to the next level! You can record and save performances of any musical instrument or vocal on to the app, which then detects your tempo, rhythm and chords and lets you instantly hear your musical idea accompanied by realistic sounding drums and bass.

Why do we love it? A great little addition to the app is the auto-record feature, which detects through the device’s microphone the moment that music starts to be played in its vicinity. It then saves the recording for you to revisit later, meaning a momentary glimpse of creative inspiration should never be lost again!


2016-01-20-175929Chordbot (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 11+.

What is it? Chordbot is a songwriting tool that lets you create and play complex chord progressions in different arrangements easily. Just add some chords, select a style and hit play. It is easy to use and can cover the whole range of usage, from just some fun exploration to piecing together complex backing tracks.

Why do we love it? Chordbot offers a fantastic amount of depth in terms of the variety of tools available. With over 60 types of chord, over 70 composing styles and almost 500 instrument tracks, it should definitely have enough options to keep you busy!


impaktor-the-drum-synthesizerImpaktor (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 8+.

What is it? Impaktor is a drum synthesiser that interacts with your surroundings, turning the world into one large percussion instrument. You just slap your desk, legs, floor or friend like you would a real drum. The real acoustical impulses from the built-in microphone then relay to Impaktor which simulates  membranes, cymbals, metallophones or strings.

Why do we love it? Using your environment to create sounds brings a brilliant element to this app and makes it a joy to explore. The easy ability to record, re-record and layer means you can be turning your room into a great composition in no time.


notion3-scoreNotion (£14.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 11+.

What is it? Notion is a notation editor and playback tool. It contains an interactive piano keyboard, fretboard, and drum pad, as well as handwriting recognition, which make it a great place to get started composing your music.

Why do we love it? The opportunities to expand and build are great with Notion. There are dozens of different platforms and methods of exporting or uploading your tracks to different devices, whilst it can also easily be dropped across to PC based composition tools to take your creation to the next level!


thicket2Thicket (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages and SEND.

What is it? Thicket is a soundscape app, which offers a moodier and darker experience than many of its competitors. Interact and react with your audio and visual environment, controlling both simultaneously with touch and gesture.

Why do we love it? It is easy to navigate and use, and comes with a good range of parental locks and features that mean it is an app you can easily allow your children to get immersed in without having to peer over their shoulder!


guitarism-main-interface-ios8Guitarism (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? Guitarism is a recreation of an acoustic guitar, offering an extensive chord library and a simple interface for strumming the available chords. It offers a great guitar sound and has even put a lot of thought into the images shown, striving to give the closest expierience to playing the real thing that you can hope for.

Why do we love it? It sounds good, claiming to be the “most realistic sound” on offer from the world of guitar apps. The interface allows you to strum and finger-pick using the on-board chord library.


jammerJammer (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 8+.

What is it? Always fancied yourself as a DJ but never tried it? Jammer gives one of the easiest entry points into the DJ life we have seen, with great sounds just a tap away. Jammer turns songs into musical instruments, using shapes within their videos to help you mix, with circles for loops and squares for one-shots and repeats. Its great fun to explore!

Why do we love it? Whilst the lack of a recording or sharing function means that the legacy of this app isn’t fantastic, it is still one of the quickest to access and feel like you are making music quickly and effectively. With a lot of independent songs and record labels used on the app as well, it’s a great way to discover your favourite artist you’d never heard of!


552x414bbBongos (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Simply put – Bongos is a bongo app! There are four instrument sounds available, two bongos, a wooden stick and a cowbell, with 18 high quality bongo samples available.

Why do we love it? Depending whereabouts you hit the skin of the bongo, you create a different tone, similar to the real thing! Multi-timbral so you can have all four sounds playing at the same time if you want.


Photo-2015-03-26-12-24-04-AMMedly (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 11+.

What is it? Medly offers a systematic and comprehensive music-making experience. It breaks up your song into sections that you can easily pick up, move, delete, copy, and link together to make loops. You can then arrange your sections, using up to 8 instrument tracks, to make your own tracks, with an array of mixers and effects available.

Why do we love it? The level of choice on Medly is impressive, with a whopping 92 instruments at your fingertips as you begin to create your composition. A great array of support, sharing and accessibility options also mean it is always available to you and you can make music anywhere!


hqdefaultWeDrum (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? Following on from the success of numerous guitar based simulators, WeDrum allows you to play along to an array of popular songs and immerse yourself in the band experience. Achieve the best score that you can and earn the adoration of the crowd!

Why do we love it? Whilst we can’t pretend that it replicates the true drumming experience, it is a great entry point and the chance to join in on famous tracks really helps immerse you in the situation and make any new learners feel like a star. We also always love a chance to break a top score!


maxresdefaultNOIZ (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 8+.

What is it? NOIZ is a music-making production app using beats, fills and effects to create original tracks. It has a simple drag and drop method to build your masterpiece, which you can edit a variety of elements of including scales and tempos. This can then be recorded, uploaded and shared to your friends and the wider internet.

Why do we love it? Simply put, NOIZ looks great, the bright design and engaging interface really sets it apart from other similar apps and makes it a delight to interact with.


Samplebot-pads-screen-1Samplebot (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Samplebot uses a grid of coloured tiles to represent audio clips, which can be recorded live or imported from elsewhere. Clips can then be played back with a touch, or recorded and layered with other sounds using the app’s sequencer function.

Why do we love it? It’s so accessible and fun to use for all ages. Open to all abilities, more experienced producers can create some great tracks using the app, whilst it is also great for children to explore their environment, creating samples and songs using noises from toys and objects around them.


unnamedCrayola DJ (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? Every superstar DJ starts somewhere, and for the big names of the future Crayola DJ might be the answer. The app allows you to mix loops, add fun sound effects and the face the music as you perform in front of an audience and receive points for mixing and scratching.

Why do we love it? For a genre of music performance that can be made to feel technical and daunting, Crayola DJ does a great job of welcoming in the younger audience whilst not diluting the skillset. It uses tools such as crossfaders, sound effects and tempo sliders whilst maintaining a fun and engaging feel.


520x293bbSoundtrap (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect For: Ages 7+.

What is it? Soundtrap is something of a ‘one-stop shop’ for several great music app features. You can load in a samples provided to create a track, play out some melodies using the built-in instruments (similar to Garageband), or use the app to record your own vocals and instruments.

Why do we love it? It’s free! Soundtrap is a great entry point to people who are interested in apps like Garageband but dissuaded by the price. It’s easy to navigate and gives a good wealth of options that make it great to play with and begin to build your knowledge.


552x414bbTido (Free on iOS: £2.99 a month for Premium Subscription)

Perfect For: Ages 10+

What is it? Tido is one of the leading lights in piano sheet music apps, offering a really advanced and wide service which can benefit everyone from beginners to experts. With a massive range of sheet music available from the early composers through to modern musicals like La La Land, Tido intuitively interacts with your playing for the best possible experience.

Why do we love it? The listening technology of Tido is an invaluable tool. Tido will monitor where are you are in the sheet music by listening to your playing, and will automatically turn the page for you so that your focus can lie entirely with your performance.


e4567959dd2d7e55cd5522ab2694964fRhythm Cat (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 6+

What is it? Another ‘game’ style music teaching app. Rhythm Cat helps you easily learn common musical concepts such as syncopation, meter changes, ties and several more.  Rhythm Cat also allows you to tap along with the tunes until you get the rhythm correct, progressing through levels as you master each.

Why do we love it? Again, the engagement that comes with playing a game makes this a brilliant way to engage younger people. It offers a simple and straight forward layout (plus cute cat) to make it easy to get straight into the levels and start learning rhythms!


BeatMirror-set-tempo-1Beat Mirror (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Any practicing musicians.

What is it? Simply put, Beat Mirror uses your device’s built-in microphone to detect your tempo while you play. All you have to do is set your target and Beat Mirror will do the rest, laying out your bpm on a simple graph to monitor where you need to be speeding up or slowing down.

Why do we love it? The effortlessness of the app is its true beauty. You can be underway in a matter of seconds and then have the data immediately at your fingertips to evaluate. Beat Mirror should give you an invaluable form of feedback without impacting on your routine or approach at all!


duckiedeckhomemadeorchestraappss2Duckie Deck Homemade Orchestra (£2.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 3+.

What is it? Similar to Toca Band, Duckie Deck allows children to select and listen to sounds made from a variety of “instruments” and characters, all formed of household objects. Sounds can be played on their own, or placed together to explore how they interact and can be built.

Why do we love it? It encourages you to step away from the screen and explore the music of your house. As much as we love apps that has to be a good thing! The performers available include pencils, combs, glasses of water and pots and pans – with the app having a real emphasis on recreating it and making your own household soundscape!


screen480x480 (1)ABC Music (£2.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 3+.

What is it? Designed as an introduction to music alongside other academic elements, ABC teaches both about the alphabet and different kinds of musical instruments through an array of different media, including videos, pictures, sounds and games.

Why do we love it? It’s a great app to help a child explore their first steps into music at their own pace. It is easy to navigate and has over 50 different exercises and 100 different videos they can use, helping build up a wide ranging knowledge of both instruments and musical terms.


maxresdefaultIsle of Tune (£2.99 on iOS and free on your browser)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? Sim City meets music! Isle of Tune is a fantastic app where you are given an empty island to construct roads, houses, lampposts and trees – that form their own unique sequencer! Each item can be assigned its own note or sound, and you then send your car round the track to play the composition.

Why do we love it? It’s just so immersive and addictive across many age groups! With endless possibilities for composition of your own track, and over 200,000 other islands to look through (and compete with) online, it can pull you in for hours.


picture-37StaffWars (99p on iOS, 60p on Android)

Perfect For: Ages 8+.

What is it? StaffWars is a simple game designed to help beginner and intermediate musicians learn and practice the treble, alto and bass clefs. In the mould of classic games like Space Invaders, in StaffWars you are required to quickly identify a note flying across the stave, which your spaceship will then destroy. Three wrong answers and it’s game over!

Why do we love it? Learning without even realising has to be good. And with numerous levels and opportunities to post a high score, the competitive element of this game is enough to draw in many otherwise hesitant music students.


screenshot-pitch-1Sonoptic (£6.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 11+.

What is it? Sonoptic is designed to paint a unique picture of your musical performance to help you quickly improve and better reach your goals. As a practice tool it provides immediate feedback on your pitch and rhythmic accuracy, phrasing and dynamics and contains nearly 400 melodic exercises across a customisable range of difficulties and genres.

Why do we love it? For the range of help it provides, what is most impressive about Sonoptic is how simple it is! All you need is your device’s microphone function, and you can be getting feedback and improvements in a matter of minutes.


SingTrue (Free for iOS)SingTrue

Perfect For: Beginners to singing.

What is it? SingTrue claims to be able to teach anybody to sing in perfect tune, and features over 30 interactive exercises that not only help improve your skills but also aim to make you more confident in your singing. The App uses your device’s microphone to track your voice and provide personalised feedback on how you can improve.

Why do we love it? The great thing about SingTrue is its open approach to engaging everyone in singing, no matter how good or bad you think you are. It is encouraging throughout the development process and can still be useful if just used for a few minutes a day.


MonkeyMonkey Drum (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 3-11.

What is it? A simple app to help children engage in music-making, Monkey Drum lets you interact with jungle animals who will repeat back drum beats and rhythms that you create.

Why do we love it? The interactive elements are fantastic for engaging young people. You can tap the animal and their environment to garner different reactions from then, and can even feed them bananas to change their mood!


FugueFugue Machine (£9.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 12+.

What is it? Fugue Machine is the world’s first multi-playhead piano roll, taking inspiration from classical composers from Baroque. Create a musical sequence and play it back with up to four playheads at once — each at various speeds, directions, and pitches.

Why do we love it? It’s extremely intuitive and creative, if a little scary at first glance! The combination of different playheads allows for unexpectedly complex creations to be made relatively quickly, making it a fantastic resource for anyone looking for a sequencer.


songHum (£2.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Anyone who loves writing songs.

What is it? Hum is an app that brings together all your songwriting inspirations and musings to make sure nothing gets lost again! It combines note-taking and audio recording into one place and allows you to organise them by key, tuning and mood for a simple and easily accessible layout.

Why do we love it? The way Hum links with other apps makes it excellent as a single destination for songwriters. Everything can be backed up on dropbox, audio can be imported from other apps and with a built-in tuner and instant playback option it even serves as a very capable recording suite.


djay2-iphone-800x450djay2 (£1.99 on iOS and £2.99 on Android)

Perfect For: Ages 10+.

What is it? djay2 is one of the best-selling music apps out there, connecting with your device to create a playlist of your songs that you can mix, loop, sample, scratch and record to across one or several decks to start sounding like a master mixer in no time.

Why do we love it? djay2 has enough depth and options to offer something to people of all ability levels, however the fact that can interact with tracks from your Spotify and iTunes accounts makes it incredibly accessible to beginners, as they can experiment with the music that they know and love.


IMG_0030Tessitura Pro (£5.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 12+.

What is it? Tessitura Pro is a dense and powerful resource for learning and studying musical structures and scales. With really detailed tutorials and a series of videos included to help, it is an incredible learning tool for aspiring (and established) musicians and composers.

Why do we love it? The beauty of Tessitura is very much in its depth. There are a seemingly endless number of things to study and practice making it a great resource for improvisation and composition.


a1Magic Piano (Free for iOS and Android)

Perfect For: Ages 5+

What is it? One of the most popular Apps out there, Magic Piano is a pianist’s answer to Guitar Hero, tapping along with balls of light to recreate melodies and chords from popular songs. Freestyle mode also gives the opportunity to explore the 3 different pianos available within the app and hone your skills and create new sounds.

Why do we love it? The ‘game’ style format of Magic Piano is great for meaning there is always a fresh challenge and reason to revisit. Numerous challenges are available which can unlock new levels, achievements, and badges, so it always feels like there’s something new to do.


a2Cleartune (£3.99 on iOS and £2.39 on Android)

Perfect For: Anyone looking to tune!

What is it? Cleartune is a chromatic instrument tuner and pitch pipe that allows you to quickly and accurately tune your instrument. Using the built in microphone on most devices it can quickly and accurately find your pitch across a multitude of instruments and get fine tuned.

Why do we love it? Cleartune’s unique “note wheel” interface makes it a much quicker process than most competing tuning apps. With support for custom temperaments, transposition and notations and adjustable calibration and more, Cleartune offers a deep range of settings to ensure you are tuned to perfection!


a3Tempo (£2.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 10+

What is it? Tempo promises to be the most accurate metronome app available and as far as we can see seems to deliver upon it! With a simple interface and the option to select settings manually or have them automatically detected, it is a great tool for musicians of all abilities.

Why do we love it? Tempo has a fantastic range of options to suit your needs. With 35 different time signatures, as well as 6 rhythm patterns for simple meters and 3 for compound meters, it will always manage to keep you on track!


Patatap (£1.99 for iOS, £1.79 on Android or free at wwMarch App Sharew.patatap.com)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Patatap is a portable animation and sound kit. With the touch of a finger (or keyboard) you can create a range of melodies synchronised with moving shapes and animations to create a fantastic soundscape. You can switch between a variety of colour and sound combinations, to create an engaging and ever-evolving pallet.

Why do we love it? The variety and simplicity with which you can jump into it! With 7 different environments containing 26 different sounds each, you can have great fun exploring, whether it’s just typing your name or creating full blown compositions.


mzl.vethzvqr.1024x1024-65Little Fox Music Box (£2.99 on iOS or £2.49 on Android)

Perfect For: Early Years.

What is it? A sing-along songbook for young children, Little Fox Music Box contains 3 songs and nursery rhymes alongside interactive animations to enjoy. Also contains the ‘Fox Music Studio’ where children can explore and begin to create and record their own songs.

Why do we love it? As much as the music, Little Fox Music Box is visually stunning. Designed by Oscar-nominated artist Heidi Wittlinger there are more than 100 interactive elements and animations to explore within the songs.


us-ipad-2-music-sparkles-musical-instruments-collectionMusic Sparkles (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: All Ages

What is it? A collection of 14 different musical instruments, Music Sparkles lets you explore xylophones, electric guitars, harps and more, creating an engaging array of sparkles and animations in time with the music you create.

Why do we love it? It’s a fantastic musical introduction that allows you to explore the range of sounds and interactions you can have with an instrument. Instant engagement across all abilities and ages makes it a fantastic app to have at your fingertips.


screen480x480Scape (£11.99 for iOS)

Perfect For: Early Years and SEND.

What is it? Scape is an innovative app that makes ambient music by combining shapes, colors, textures, and backgrounds into a visual palette. Each shape contains musical elements designed to behave differently depending on where and when they’re used, interacting with each other to create unique audio/visual landscapes everytime.

Why do we love it? There’s a really good variety of landscapes and elements, and your creations can be saved and returned to at a later date. This is fantastic for if you find something particularly soothing or engaging for a participant.


unnamedBandBlast (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 6+.

What is it? BandBlast is an interactive, curriculum based learning tool for anyone who wants to learn how to play an instrument. It contains a variety of rhythm and pitch based games, alongside recording capabilities and a wealth of instructional videos from prolific musicians and teachers across the world.

Why do we love it? The variety of instruments BandBlast can help you learn is what makes it so useful, especially in a school or education setting. BandBlast will teach you how to play violin, flute, cello, tenor sax, alto sax, viola, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, guitar, and double bass.


gobeats-learning-1GoBeats (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 8+.

What is it? GoBeats contains artificial intelligence technology which listens to your guitar playing and recognises things such as your chord progression, BPM and time signature. It then provides generated matching jam tracks, including bass guitar and drums. It can match a range of abilities and complexities and let’s you create band jamming experience all on your own.

Why do we love it? GoBeats is about as simple as things can get. On launch, you simply tap the large circle icon in the centre of the screen and then just start playing your guitar! The apps detects what you are playing through your microphone and, when you tap the circle for a second time you can trigger playback of GoBeats’ accompanying suggestions.


imagesAirVox (£0.79 for iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Like a theremin you can carry round in your pocket. AirVox is an app controlled without touch, using the devices camera to allow you to make music with hand gestures and motions. Your movements are tracked and control note and pitch across 50 musical scales.

Why do we love it? The fact that no musical knowledge is needed! Anyone can be an instrument with just the slightest movement. However, there are options for very specific customisation and fine movement that mean more experienced users can create greatly honed sounds.


korgikaossilatorKORG iKaossilator (£7.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 10+.

What is it? The iKaossilator is a synthesiser app. It uses the X-Y interface, so you can play and create sounds just by moving your finger around your device’s screen. You can compose tracks, control loops for DJ-style performances, and even sync with other iPhone users so you can produce music together.

Why do we love it? With 50 loops and 150 sounds there is a great, diverse range of options in the app to shape your creations. The sharing functionality is also fantastic, as you can easily record or export your creations, and even loop them back into the app. Easy connection to soundcloud is also a big bonus.


18mm8oeq0uj2hjpgTrope (£2.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Early Years and SEND.

What is it? From the people behind the excellent Bloom, Trope allows you to create immersive soundscapes by drawing onto the screen, with varying tones playing to mirror your movements.

Why do we love it? Trope can be a really engrossing experience, allowing anyone to feel their influence over music with just the tap of a screen. There is also a listen mode which provides an ambient, relaxing experience without the need to engage.


google-maps-santa-trackerSanta Tracker (Free on your browser)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Santa Tracker is Google’s annual online phenomenon. Santa Tracker works as an online advent calendar counting down to Christmas, opening a new Christmas activity, game or page every day as Santa’s village grows.

Why do we love it? The range and variety of activities on offer make every day a fun surprise. Whether you’re shaving Santa’s beard or coding snowflakes, there’s always something original to explore and enjoy.


screen520x924Sing Along Christmas Carols (Free on iOS – £3.99 add on for 50 more songs)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Combining Karaoke and Christmas, this app gives you the lyrics to popular Christmas Carols to mean anyone can be wassailing this festive period. Also the option to unlock a further 50 songs to become a true caroling expert.

Why do we love it? It’s simplicity and easy layout is great. But also the option to skip to certain sections of songs or increase and decrease the tempo give extra customisation that makes it perfect for practicing!


screen480x480Christmas Piano (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Exactly what it sounds like! Christmas Piano is an app that allows you to learn some of your favourite Christmas tunes with increasing levels of difficulty as well as the options to learn along to both notation or lyrics.

Why do we love it? The increasing difficulties makes it a great app to access for people of all skill levels. You can start as a beginner with a slow, easy run-through, then learn the song on each hand before stepping up to expert and performing a double handed showpiece.


app11Beamz (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect For: Ages 3+.

What is it? Beamz includes 17 interactive songs (with plenty more available as add-ons) that each comprise of 12 different sounds and layers. Simply tap on as many lasers as you like to instantly start creating great sounding tracks and rhythms you can share with your friends.

Why do we love it? The brilliant thing about Beamz is that even as a musical beginner you can dive straight in and start creating. There are genres to please everyone, from Bluegrass to dubstep, and a plethora of instruments that makes it a good introduction to a new genre or sound.


app12Music Memos (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 11+ or anyone making music!

What is it? With Music Memos, musicians and songwriters can capture, organize and develop their musical ideas on their iPhone. Full of features for songwriting and developing musical ideas, the app lets you record any musical instrument through the iPhone’s built-in microphone in a high-quality, uncompressed format.

Why do we love it? It’s what the app does next though that makes it so popular. Once complete, you can name, tag and rate your recording. Memos will then analyse rhythm and chords of acoustic guitar and piano recordings, and instantly add drums and a bass line that matches the feel of your song. It provides basic notation that displays the chords that were played and is compatible with numerous other apps.


app13Loopy HD (£2.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 7+.

What is it? Loopy is a multitrack looper that can function both as a fun recreational app or a useful professional tool for creating tracks. Choose between 6, 9 or 12 easy to control loops and start recording, manipulating and creating!

Why do we love it? The slick ease of Loopy is what makes it great. As a beginner you can easily navigate straight in and begin playing with the app, or as a pro intelligent features like count-in allow you to focus on playing your instruments and letting the app do the work!


To view more of our favourite apps and start app-lying yourself to music technology visit our App Share page.


app3Baby’s Musical Hands (£0.79 on iOS, £0.63 on Android)

Perfect For: Early Years and SEND.

What is it? The app has 15 brightly-coloured squares that make different sounds such as drums, piano and guitar. It’s great for exploring sound and it’s really easy to use, making it accessible to everyone.

Why do we love it? Baby’s Musical Hands is so colourful and the stars that burst from your fingertips whenever you touch a square make it ideal for engaging young children. More than one square can be pressed at once so the possibilities for creating unique soundscapes are brilliant.


app2My Note Games (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? My Note Games has been designed to teach music theory and enable musical instrument development. It recognises the notes that you play along to the games and gives you instant feedback on how well you’re performing.

Why do we love it? The app can recognise instruments such as the piano, guitar, trumpet and recorder and has games to suit them all. You can unlock more levels as you progress which makes practicing your instrument a lot more fun and engaging.


app1Ratatap Drums Free (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Ratatap is a drumkit simulator that claims to provide the fastest response time of any drum app! With 10 different kits across a range of genres and the ability to customise your kits positioning and selection, its a great way to explore a range of combinations and sounds.

Why do we love it? It’s not just the array of kits and customisation potential we love, as the way you interact with the drums really sets the app apart. The harder you hit the drums, the louder they sound and swirling your finger around allows for creating slower or faster rolls. The drum sound will also vary slightly from hit to hit, with very fast response time providing an authentic drum experience.


screen320x480Note Perfect! (£0.79 on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Note Perfect is great music game that helps you polish your note-reading skills in a fun and interactive way. You can choose between four clefs and three difficulty levels, which you can keep it challenging as you get better.

Why do we love it? It’s really useful for those new to reading music and it looks great for an app so simple. The time limit adds an element of excitement to the game and the High Scores make you want to carry on improving your skills.


sc552x414Ear Trainer (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Ear Trainer focuses on recognising notes, chords and intervals by ear. It can be used by anyone regardless of their musical ability and you progress through exercises that get increasingly difficult.

Why do we love it? There are so many exercises which can all be accessed straight from the beginning, so there’s no need to unlock anything if you want to jump straight into the more advanced stuff. The app provides you with instant feedback on how many were correct so you can strive for that all-important 100% rating.


screen480x480Rhythm Lab (£3.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: All ages.

What is it? Rhythm Lab is a fantastic tool to use in music lesson to get students tapping out rhythms accurately. There are four types of exercises included: single and two-handed rhythm patters as well as single drum and full drum kit. You tap the rhythm on screen in time with the metronome and the app gives you feedback on how accurate you are.

Why do we love it? The app has plenty of presets included but also allows you to create and share your own custom rhythm exercises. For instrumental teachers, worksheets can be created using the app and you’re able to log in as individual users, meaning that each student can have their own profile tracking their high scores.


412380315_padscreen1360x480Symphony Pro (£7.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 10+.

What is it? Symphony Pro lets you compose and notate music on your iPad. It’s possible to write real sheet music for virtually any size ensemble which you can play back to hear your creations. It has a really impressive range of instruments, and features such as copy & paste make it an essential tool for composers on the go.

Why do we love it? The sheer detail on this app really makes it stand out. There are numerous ways to input notes from tapping through to playing your melody with the on-screen keyboard and watching the app notate it for you. The playback produces a high-quality, realistic sound no matter how many instruments you have.


dropophone-screen1-300x200Dropophone (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Early Years and SEND.

What is it? Dropophone is a simple yet effective app which uses multi-coloured droplets to produce a variety of sound. It recognises the sequence that you press the drops in and plays them back to you on a loop. The different colours represent different types of sound, giving you loads of possibilities.

Why do we love it? It’s a simple app that produces really great results. It’s immediately accessible, fun to explore and intuitive to use. All of the notes work with each other so there’s no chance of getting it wrong either!


IMG_0667Chord Detector (£2.29 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 8+.

What is it? Chord Detector does exactly what the name suggests – it can detect chords for the guitar, ukulele, banjo and mandolin using any song from an iPad’s music library, Dropbox folder, YouTube video or soundcloud sound. It’s a fantastic tool to use when learning new songs.

Why do we love it? It’s impressively accurate and detects more complex chords such as augmented and diminished, allowing you to perfect the song in no time. With guitar, ukulele, banjo and mandolin as the chosen instruments it really is an essential for the string instrument player wanting to increase their repertoire.


screen480x480OMGuitar (£2.29 on iOS)

Perfect For: All Ages.

What is it? OMGuitar is a playable digital guitar with some great customisation options. It includes 8 different guitars and 10 effects which can all be altered. The app responds to the speed of your guitar strumming and even lets you bend strings.

Why do we love it? The sound quality on this app is very high, so you can really tell the difference when you choose another guitar or effects setting. The chord bank can be made entirely custom to suit any song or feel, and the app includes chord progressions to several songs as standard which you can play along with.


Tabletopalgebrask9d-session-capture (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? Tabletop lets you arrange electronic modules and synthesisers on your very own virtual table. Each module and synthesiser could almost be an app in itself so there’s loads of room to get creative. Adding, removing and rearranging elements is a really intuitive process even if it all looks a bit complex at first.

Why do we love it? There are so many possibilities with this app. The number of settings to explore on each device you can add to your table is impressive to say the least, and when you get them all working together to create a song the results are outstanding.


screen480x480 (1)SightScribe (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? SightScribe is the latest sight-reading tool for the iPad. Users can endlessly generate sight-reading exercises to keep them fresh and challenging. Every aspect of the exercise can be customised including the key of the piece, the duration of the notes and the size of the intervals between them.

Why do we love it? There are a good number of instruments catered for on the app and progressive sight-reading lessons are available for all of them. This makes it an essential tool for any musician or multi-instrumentalist that wants to develop their all-important sight-reading skills. The best thing about SightScribe is that the app has finally solved the sight-reading problem: When you’ve played through it once, the exercise book is useless.


rm1Rockmate (£2.29 on iOS)

Perfect For: 5+

What is it? Rockmate is an app that lets you design your own virtual stage. With two guitars, a keyboard and a drum kit you can record and play your own songs. The ability to loop sections and record vocals through an in-built microphone makes it great for quick song-writing.

Why do we love it? The possibilities are endless with the impressive amount of effects and unique-sounding instruments. It includes plenty of styles that set your instruments to different sounds and even has effects pedals for the guitars.


tmTouch of Music (Free on iOS)

Perfect For: Early Years and SEND

What is it? Touch Music does exactly that – you touch the screen to make music. Each tap gets you further through a song, which can be done at your own speed. The multi-coloured drops that appear give it a really nice look, but be careful not to get in their way as they’re falling!

Why do we love it? There are loads of songs covering a range of styles from nursery rhymes to classical sonatas. The rating system lets you track your progress and accuracy, adding a challenging yet fun element to the app. New songs are added each month to keep you coming back for more.


maxresdefaultSeline Redux Pro (£14.99 on iOS)

Perfect For: Ages 5+.

What is it? Seline is a virtual synthesiser that’s truly unique. Rather than using the familiar keyboard layout, you are presented with a series of tiles designed to fit nicely underneath your fingers. This makes it really comfortable to play and a lot better for accuracy. All the controls are within easy reach, even when you’re playing a tune, so you can keep making music while you explore.

Why do we love it? There are so many sounds that come with the app. You can assign a different one to each hand which gives you an extensive number of combinations. The pre-set scales let you customise the feel of whatever you decide to play, but if none of those suit your mood there’s always the option to create your own custom scale. The app even comes complete with loops and backing tracks for you to play over and explore. One of the best things about Seline is the genius design and layout of the functions – having the room to play accurately means you can get creative quickly!


6a00d83452e46469e2019b014ad69f970d-400wiiReal Pro (£9.99 on iOS or £10.70 on Android)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Based on the famous jazz Realbooks, iRealPro is a brilliant tool for creating chord progressions in the form of lead sheets that you can listen to and play over. The app comes with plenty of songs ready to use as backing tracks straight away, but the ability to create and save your own makes it ideal for songwriters and solo instrumentalists alike. The online forum has thousands of tracks available to download for free making it a great value app.

Why do we love it? There are loads of features on iRealPro that make it a must-have for musicians of all abilities. The app shows you chords diagrams for Guitar, Piano and Ukelele as you play through a song to help you progress on your instrument. For those wanting a challenge, the automatic tempo increase and automatic transposition elements allow your practice sessions to get harder as you get better.


screen480x480 (3)forScore (£7.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? forScore is a music and pdf reader for the iPad with a difference. The features include an in-app metronome which can be set as a sound or as the brightness ‘blinking’ in time. Musicians are able to annotate any sheet music they download as they would for a performance on real sheet music. There’s even an option for hands-free page turning, meaning you never have to skip a page again!

Why do we love it? One of the most helpful things about forScore is its ability to organise all of your music for you instantly. No matter how much music you have in your collection, you can quickly search by composer, song title and how long you’ve had the piece in the app’s library. There’s an impressive amount of free music available on the marketplace, but users can also add any music that they own as a pdf and carry their sheet music collection around all in one place.


scr-01

SoundGrid (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? SoundGrid uses the all-too-familiar grid of squares that you can select to make sounds in the same way that ToneMatrix works. It also has the same ‘layers’ feature as Loopseque which lets you choose between drums, vibes, bells and simple tones to create a song which has everything you want. Up to 8 patterns can be created for each instrument which means that any songs created can have different sections.

Why do we love it? This versatile app is great for creating entire songs that have their own sections and instruments and you can record anything you make to play back later. Effects are included such as Delay which allows for some really interesting creations. It’s surprisingly simple to use considering there are so many options and ways of playing!


screen480x480 (3)Mugician (£0.79 on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Mugician is a simple app that’s great for exploring how sound waves work in a fun and interactive way. All of the notes are laid out like a grid in the app and each set of notes uses a different type of sound wave to show how it effects what you hear. Playing music on Mugician is also really easy and you can get started as soon as the app opens so it’s perfect for exploring notes and making up tunes.

Why do we love it? The simplicity of Mugician is what makes it so great considering it’s all about exploring complicated sound waves. There is a huge range of notes that you can play and each set can be assigned a sound wave to end up with something really unique by the time you’re finished. Dragging your fingers around the app lets you blend the notes together to make some very interesting sounds.


funkboxipad6FunkBox Drum Machine (£3.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Funk Box is an app that lets you make your own drum beats and also has pre-made drum beats to suit any style of music. It looks complicated at first because of the many different features, but it’s very easy to get started right away by pressing any of the 8 squares which match the parts of a drum kit. Each genre has a range of drum machines that you select to get loads of really different sounds out of the app!

Why do we love it? The sheer number of drum machines that you can play with is really impressive, ranging from vintage disco drum machines to modern break-beats. Saving drum patterns and beats is easy to do and the app has an Export function so they can be saved or shared anywhere.


mzl_dxnpujrx_480x480-75Loopseque (£4.49 on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? A similar app to Loopseque Kids, the slightly more advanced Loopseque app uses circles that can be filled in to create songs. With four circles each having a different set of sounds, from drum beats to melodies, it is really easy to start making music straight away.

Why do we love it? The app is really accessible from the moment it opens, allowing for instant creativity in a fun and simple way. One of the best things about Loopseque is that users can explore the app’s features by adding effects, layering the various loops and selecting the many different sounds that are included. This means that the music can be simple or advanced, enabling a load of possibilities.


screen480x480KORG iELECTRIBE (£14.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 8+.

What is it? Based on the Korg Electribe Sampler, the app version contains all of the effects and sounds that you can find in the real thing. Some of the more complicated features can take a bit of getting used to, but it is very easy to start making drum beats straight away.

Why do we love it? The iElectribe app is so versatile and includes a huge range of sounds to be explored. The record and playback functions allow entire songs to be recorded and the many different dials and effects mean the possibility for creating something unique is brilliant.


screen480x480 (1)Make Me Music (£1.49 on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years and SEND.

What is it? Make Me Music is an app designed to explore the different sounds that instruments make. Children are shown a variety of instruments and objects that you can tap on to play along with a backing track. Tracks can be changed to a range of styles such as Country and Latin and every sound works with it, meaning there are no mistakes.

Why do we love it? The number of instruments, objects and backing tracks to explore makes this simple app so much fun. The sounds are realistic and the app even has a record function so users can save the music they make once they’ve finished exploring.


IncrediboxIncredibox (Free)

Perfect for: Ages 5+.

What is it? Incredibox is a fun and incredibly simple online music making tool. By dragging and dropping certain outfits onto the ‘beatboxers’ on screen, users are able to layer up different elements of a song. There are 4 types of outfits, or sounds, that can be used in any combination across the seven beatboxers available. With so many possible combinations, a unique song can be put together in minutes.

Why do we love it? The app has a Record button so that users can save their tracks and even upload them to the Incredibox community for other people to hear. The Beatboxers can be changed, muted and soloed in real-time during recording to mix thing up. With four different versions of the game, each with their own unique sounds, it never gets boring!


hqdefaultToneMatrix (Free)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? ToneMatrix is a way to create looping musical patterns by simply clicking on a 16×16 grid and creating visual and auditory patterns. All the pitches are within the pentatonic scale so to help keep you in tune and there are eight different sounds to explore, including a drum machine.

Why do we love it? ToneMatrix is a great way to explore and create, as sound and visuals can be changed instantly with a click of a button. It links together visuals and sounds brilliantly as you can draw a desired shape and then experience the sound that it creates.


Screen Shot 2012-03-05 at 12.47.27 PMPatchwork Online Modular Synth (Free)

Perfect for: Ages 11+.

What is it? Patchwork is an advanced modular sound synthesis tool. Patchwork lets you link together various sound generators, effects, sequencers and utility modules to create sounds from across multiple genres, from eery electronica to deafening dubstep.

Why do we love it? You can save and share where you leave your modifications, really helping to create a communal feeling of play with the app. There is a huge amount of potential for creativity and originality within the app, as there are hundreds of options and tools to manipulate and change.


im-obsessed-with-this-fiendishly-difficult-app-that-separates-real-musicians-from-wannabesSteve Reich’s Clapping Music (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 7+.

What is it? Steve Reich’s Clapping Music is a game designed to help improve your rhythm by tapping along to Steve Reich’s 1972 clapping composition. Similar to video games such as Guitar Hero, you tap in time with the constantly shifting pattern, and progress through all of the compositions’ variations. If you are inaccurate to frequently or miss to many notes, it’s game over and you start again.

Why do we love it? Funded through the Arts Council and Nesta’s Digital R&D Fund, what we really love about this app is how simplistically addictive it is. The joys of success and infuriation of failure will leave you itching to launch into a new game every time that you get a game over.


maxresdefaultOcarina (£0.79 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5+.

What is it? Ocarina does exactly what you’d expect it to, turning your tablet or phone into one of the most popular instruments in schools today. Simply blow air into the microphone to start making music whilst touching the holes on the screen to achieve notes. You can also tilt the screen to change depth and explore a range of keys and modes.

Why do we love it? What’s really great about the Ocarina app is the blowing element. So many apps, musical and otherwise, just involve the rigorous tapping of the screen that the necessity of this other gesture introduces a new, fun element to playing. It can also create confused faces on people in the office not sure what you’re doing blowing an iPad!


screen480x480Small Fish (£0.79 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 3+ and especially Early Years and SEND.

What is it? Interact with 15 different engaging and attractive environments, moving elements like circles, points or lines within the graphics to change the musical score. Changing the environment has immediate effect with a huge variety of lucid, different sound patterns and compositions available.

Why do we love it? The best thing about Small Fish is the range of environments and imagery, which are varied and brilliant to interact with. These stunning graphics and sounds and the instant implementations make it a great app to engage young people and those with SEND.


caustic-modular-rear-panelCaustic (£7.99 on iOS or Free on Android)

Perfect for: 11+.

What is it? Caustic 3 is a music creation tool inspired by rack-mount synthesizers. You can build and customise your own rack from a choice of 14 machines; ranging from Organ to BeatBox Drum Machine. Then create and edit your own tracks and record them within the app to share with friends.

Why do we love it? Caustic takes a little bit of getting used to, but once you get the hang of it the attention-to-detail and options available is hugely impressive. The ability to connect with an external keyboard is also a great plus.


Windows8musicmaker_thumbMusic Maker Jam (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 7+.

What is it? Music Maker Jam sees you arranging loops and samples – as well as your own vocal recordings – into a variety of songs. There’s a great catalogue of existing samples to choose from and an 8 channel mixer to mean there’s plenty you can do with them!

Why do we love it? Aside from the great selection of samples, styles and customisation offers. Music Jam is really intuitive and simple to use, meaning people of all abilities can leap in and produce some great sounding, original tracks in no time!


dr_seuss_band2Dr. Seuss Band (79p on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years from Ages 3+.

What is it? With Seuss Band you can play along to the soundtracks to some of his most famous works, such as Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham or create your own tune with the range of weird and funny sounds on offer. You can play competitively to try for the High Score or in Free Mode to compose your own original horn tunes.

Why do we love it? The ability to immerse into the beautiful and crazy world of Dr Seuss is what makes this app great. With authentic songs and a range of 120 sound combinations, and great artwork that makes you feel part of a Seussian tale, you’ll be speaking in rhyme in absolutely no time! I meant what I said, and I said what I meant… this app’s great fun, one hundred per cent!


Dubstep Drumpads 24 (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 10+.

What is it? Dubstep Drum Pads is an easy beat-making instrument for creating dubstep beats and music! With 7 different types of sounds available including Kiks, Hats and Vocals and a series of effects such as Filter, Delay, Pitch and Distortion which can be manipulated, there is a great range of options to get your track sounding like a professional production in no time.

Why do we love it? The app has some fantastic built-in tutorials to help people of any ability and experience access it and start creating dubstep. The ability to record and share your creations with friends and the wider dubstep community on social media really helps the app to have a communal, together experience.


propellerhead_figureFigure – Propellerhead (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 8+.

What is it?  Figure allows you to create tracks through drums, bass and lead synth, controlled with easy to use touch interface. Once you have created a track you share it within the Figure community, which allows you to download other people’s songs and remix/manipulate them to provide your own unique spin!

Why do we love it? The fantastic thing about Figure is the speed and accessibility of the app, made for a really mobile experience offering great-sounding results that can be achieved in a matter of seconds. Despite this though the app maintains enough depth that you can also sit down and get your teeth into it an see some really great outputs.


5a800590-62d6-488c-95e5-dc42ee2e9bf8-620x372Auxy Music Creation (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 12+.

What is it? Auxy is a simple sequencer-type app to make modern electronic, music. The app allows you to create your own drum and synth loops from one to four bars. From there you can tweak and edit them to get the perfect sound before uploading to the internet and sharing your creations with friends and family.

Why do we love it? The minimalist look and feel of Auxy really sets it apart from similar apps. With stripped down graphics and an easy to manoeuvre interface, including a helpful tutorial – it really lacks the imposing look and over-complicated options of many other apps.


Vio (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Vio is a vocal modification app that allows you to easily alter the style and pitch of your voice. The app allows your singing to be in tune and harmonised easily and also has a range of advanced options, allowing you to explore looping, adjustable keys, scales, tempos and more.

Why do we love it? The brilliant range of things to play with is the stand out appeal of Vio, as the sheer number of ways to modify and manipulate your voice can keep you entertained for hours. There’s a whole range of sounds to use on your voice; from bumblebee to blues boogie and classical to 8-bit.


tc-performer-performance-screen-1-1024x768TC-Performer (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5+

What is it? TC-Performer is a software synthesiser with fantastic multi-touch performance options. You simply start touching the screen wherever you like and sounds are generated based on your movements.

Why do we love it? The many ways to manipulate the sounds within TC-Performer are really impressive, making it so much more than a tap-to-play virtual instrument. You can pull, tap, drag, twist, and stretch your touches on the screen to create a variety of sounds, with plenty of additional pads and effects to add as well.


ravebox2Ravebox (79p on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 8+ (Or anyone with a passion for 90s dance music).

What is it? Ravebox is a mini synth containing a variety of Beats, Breaks, Bass Loops and Tunes that you can mash together to create your very own dance, trance of electronica track. Sounds can be recorded and shared, so your friends and family can join in on the regression session!

Why do we love it? Simply put, Ravebox is a great bit of fun and a throwback to the “Old Skool” days of the 90s. Enough samples available to create a range of authentic sounding anthems that will take you straight back to the days of Faithless and Underworld.


maxresdefaultKeezy Dummer (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Keezy Drummer is a really simple to use and accessible programmable drum machine. With 12 different percussion sounds and the option to have 9 layers at a time, there are endless combinations and compositions to create.

Why do we love it? What’s great about this app is just how easy it is to use, you’ll be making drum beats in seconds! Accessible with numerous devices and with a bright, clear layout, people of all ages and ability can jump straight into music-making.


Polyfauna_01PolyFauna (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 11+.

What is it? Polyfauna is a truly immersive experience, where your screen brings you into a different world to explore and enjoy. Move your screen around to travel through a variety of abstract landscapes, with soothing and relaxing music that changes in relation to your movements.

Why do we love it? Best enjoyed through headphones, you really can get lost inside Polyfauna and it’s calming sights and sounds. A great app to wind down with, it also features some great original music by the band Radiohead.


screen568x568Music Learning Lab (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years.

What is it? Music Learning Lab is designed to start teaching music composition. The app offers two key functions: Learn, which provides interactive lessons in music that you participate in and Create, where you pick your instruments and can start making your own simplistic music on a basic grid.

Why do we love it? The app is incredibly accessible to start making music easily and enjoyably, with some fantastically designed animal characters and animations to help engage its early years audience.


3_smallReal Ukulele (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? A virtual instrument app to really get you in a summer mood, Real Ukulele provides you with a good range of chords you can play and a variety of ways to play it, allowing you to strum or pluck to create fantastically realistic sounds.

Why do we love it? The best thing about Real Ukulele is the strong and authentic sound that it produces and the simplistic layout, that allows you to start playing almost as soon as you open the app.


20121227_349714Glitch Breaks (£3.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 11+.

What is it? Glitch Breaks is a drum synth where you can manipulate the drum sounds and loops and twist them into original sounds. There is a great variety of loops you can upload, being able to manipulate up to 4 at any one time.

Why do we love it? Glitch Breaks is brilliant for creating original and innovative sounds, with a great bank of effects you can use to manipulate your creations. The record and sharing functions also means you can store your creations and show them off to friends and family.


screen480x480 (1)ChordBank (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 7+.

What is it? With ChordBank you can learn and look up thousands of guitar chords. The app shows full finger placements for all chords and has the brilliant Reverse ChordFinder option to play the in-app guitar to identify chords that you can play but don’t know the name of.

Why do we love it? ChordBank is really quick and easy to use and is a great resource for learning to play the guitar. Seeing the chords visually represented on the guitar really helps to make the app more accessible and lets you transfer the skills and techniques instantly.


screen480x480

Melodica (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Melodica mixes lights and sounds, allowing anyone to compose music and create amazing visual effects just with the tips of your fingers. Music is created through programming patterns on to the grid, with sounds altered to match your mood, which you give when you open the app.

Why do we love it? The great thing about Melodica is how simple it is to use and how this allows almost anyone to access it and create their own unique melodies. It’s truly suitable for all ages and is a great app for use with SEND groups and individuals.


suggester-f-jazz-progression-ipadChord Suggester (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 7+.

What is it? Chord Suggester is a tool to assist in the creation of songs and chord progressions. This app will help you find chords that work together – just type in a chord and it will tell you all of the options which naturally follow it.

Why do we love it? This is a great and really easy to use tool for songwriters, it has all the chords available and you can hear them all on a built-in piano to get an idea of how they will work in sequence.


mzl.vvoxdzwb_279128TonePad (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? TonePad has a simple 16×16 interface. Touch a circle and it’ll turn white and play a tone. The app reads these circles like sheet music – from left to right, with higher tones at the top, lower ones at the bottom.

Why do we love it? The best thing about TonePad is its simplicity, which makes it accessible to all ages and abilities. You can save and share your creations as well as downloading what your friends have made.


IMG_0375Sensory Sound Box (£1.49 on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years & SEN.

What is it? Sensory Sound Box is a developmental touch skills app. Pick from 18 different scenes which play a continuous sound that changes pitch or intensity as your finger moves around the screen.

Why do we love it? It’s fantastically engaging to use and plays with sounds and lights in a really interesting way. It is also a good learning app and can help to teach about “up & down” and “high & low”.


thumbjam-split-screenThumbJam (£6.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5+.

What is it? ThumbJam is a sample-based app with over 40 instruments to choose from. Simply run your fingers over the screen and start making a brilliant range of music based around your hand action.

Why do we love it? The great thing about ThumbJam is the multiple options for customisation and the great range of sounds that are available. You can change the length of the scale to suit the player which allows people of all abilities to get involved quickly and easily.


screen480x480Steel Drums (£0.79 on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Steel Drums does exactly what is says on the tin! A simulation of a fully functioning West-Indian Steel Drum with 12 different notes, allowing you to explore and compose freely.

Why do we love it? The best thing about Steel Drums is just how simple it is to use, as the second the app opens you can start making music. It’s also a more unusual and unique instrument than the synths and guitars you find in most iPad apps.


Moog Filtatron (£4.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 10+.

What is it? Filtatron is a sampler that allows you to manipulate the sounds to create a variety of effects. You can create basic recordings all set around sounds from a Moog synthesiser.

Why do we love it? The scope for manipulating the sounds with the built-in effects in Filtatron is really impressive, with a variety of envelopes and LFO’s that you can use to alter sound.


2011.07-fallingstarsscreenFalling Stars (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 3+.

What is it? Falling Stars is very similar to soundrop, drawing lines to create sounds and patterns. Based around stars falling from the sky and hitting leaves and vines placed by the user.

Why do we love it? As with soundrop, Falling Stars is great for exploring and teaching different sounds, tones and rhythms. It also has a lot more sounds to generate when drawing lines, giving it more feeling of originality.


SoundPrism-Electro-main-screen-1SoundPrism (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 8+.

What is it? SoundPrism enables you to start creating great music immediately without any previous knowledge. With stunning visuals to display pitches and great intuitive controls you can compose melodies, tones and chord patterns with ease.

Why do we love it? The best thing about SoundPrism are definitely its graphics, which look incredible, if a little daunting at first! Once you get the hang of it though you’ll be creating great melodies on the beautiful interface in no time.


autorapAutoRap (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Ages 12+.

What is it? AutoRap can turn anybody into a rapper, no matter what your ability. Choose a beat then say your lyrics and AutoRap will auto-tune your verse to match the tempo of the backing track you have chosen. You can rap to a range of popular songs as well as free backing tracks, and can enter into ‘rap battles’ with its multiplayer mode.

Why do we love it? More than anything AutoRap is just great fun. It allows anybody to feel like an accomplished rapper instantly and also has great multiplayer and sharing features so that you can get as many people as you like involved.


screen480x480Jelly Band (£1.49 on iOS, Free on Android)

Perfect for: Early Years.

What is it? Jelly Band is an app that lets you create your own interactive orchestra combining different melodies and instruments.

Why do we love it? It gives a great idea of how different instruments work together to construct a piece of music, the jelly characters give a really appealing visual element to the app that makes it fun for all ages.


dm1-drum-machine-appDM1 – The Drum Machine (£3.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 8+.

What is it? DM1 is an advanced vintage Drum Machine with 99 electronic drum kits and clear, easy to navigate graphics. The main feature is a Step Sequencer which allows you to create and manipulate a variety of rhythms and beats with just a tap of the finger. It also has simple drumpads, sound mixing and a basic song composer to explore.

Why do we love it? The great thing about DM1 is how easy and fast it is to use with its simple layout and step sequencer. The app allows you to dive in and start creating beats instantly, regardless of your ability levels.


screen520x924Virtuoso Piano Free 3 (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 6+.

What is it? Virtuoso maps various orchestral instruments across a piano interface. With 4 different pianos and 7 instruments there’s a great variety of customisation options, including a double piano feature on iPad.

Why do we love it? What you really notice when using Virtuoso is just how great the sound is and how authentic a playing experience it offers. The technology allows you to slide your finger to roll the keys and create louder and softer noises depending on how you tap, bringing you as close as possible to real piano playing.


screen480x480TF7 Synth (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 10+.

What is it? A Polyphonic synthesiser with loads of effects that you can use to sculpt your own sound. With 20 high-quality free sounds, TF7 allows you to play music by playing shapes across the pad interface! You can play across more than one key at the same time and morph your sounds whilst playing to create something entirely original!

Why do we love it? TF7 is a fantastically visual app and makes it so easy to create something really original, making it a great place for a budding musician to begin honing their skills.


screen480x480TuneTrain (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 3-8.

What is it? Tune Train is an app to help children to compose melodies. Melodies are written by drawing a path for the train and connecting people to learn about the pitch of musical notes.

Why do we love it? A fantastic app for encouraging original creations and a love of music at an early age. Tune Train teaches about the fundamental structure of music and melody creation in a beautiful and interactive environment.


alchemy-ipad-630-80Alchemy Synth (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 11+.

What is it? Alchemy is a synthesiser tool that you can use to create original sounds through manipulating the various buttons on offer. The app has a huge range of sounds and a brilliant Remix and Sketch Pad which offer endless possibilities.

Why do we love it? The best thing about Alchemy is the sheer number of features that it has. With some fantastic preset sounds and the ability to create up to 4 layers of recordings you can easily create complex and unique tracks.


screen480x480 (1)Beatwave (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years & SEN.

What is it? Beatwave lets you make amazing music simply by tapping. The app contains a grid of squares which you can light up to start making ethereal, relaxing melodies that can be easily changed or customised.

Why do we love it? Beatwave is a very visual app as you can create bright, dynamic pictures through the squares at the same time as composing your melody. This multi-sensory aspect allows you to draw interesting pictures and explore how they translate into a piece of music.


Audiobus (£2.99 on iOStraktordj_audiobus3)

Perfect for: Anyone who uses music apps!

What is it? Audiobus is a great tool for connecting music-making apps together. Load either sound-generating apps, processing or recording apps and connect them to play together and record performances that would normally be lost!

Why do we love it? An essential for iOS music-makers. The great range of apps that work with the programme means that Audiobus can revolutionise the way you make music on iPads.


Dubstep Makericon175x175 (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Teenagers or those with an interest in dubstep.

What is it? An easy to use app for creating dubstep tracks and exploring the tools and features used in production. Uses basic looping and samples to experiment with and start creating your own original layers.

Why do we love it? The simple layout and accessible nature allows anyone with a passion for dubstep to start making their own music. Also has a brilliant range of features, with 38 Editable Pads and over 120 Loops and FX.


screen480x480Loopseque Kids (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years.

What is it? In Loopseque everything is musical! Touch anything on the screen to make a sound and explore the calm and colourful environment. Over time children begin to explore rhythm and create their own musical patterns using basic loops and layers.

Why do we love it? An engaging place for a child to begin constructing their own music, Loopseque is a great place to create original sounds & increase musical knowledge.


Duck-Roll-1Duck & Roll (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 5+

What is it? Duck & Roll is an addictive rhythm game where the aim is to tap the stars as they pass over the star shaped holes onscreen, keeping time with the rock music that plays on each level.

Why do we love it? The app is fantastic for helping practice timing and gets progressively harder, giving plenty of room for development. The variety of challenging levels make it great fun and hard to put down!


gravitarium22-642x481Gravitarium2 (£1.49 on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years & SEN.

What is it? A very visual app with a relaxing, ethereal musical accompaniment. Run fingers across the screen to create a variety of different, unique patterns and colours with the option to share or save your creations.

Why do we love it? Gravitarium2 is a really engaging and visual app, with the ability to create and save original work whilst enjoying the relaxing atmosphere it creates.


screen480x480Percussive Free (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Early Years.

What is it? A xylophone application which is simple to use and gives a brilliant introduction to the instrument. With two octaves and the option to play hard or soft it puts a range of sounds at your fingertips.

Why do we love it? Percussive produces an impressively realistic sound and also has the musical notes written on it – making it a great tool for learning about musical notes and the way that they sound.


Blob Chorusmzl.pocwqkzy (Free on iOS or £1.99 on Android)

Perfect for: Early Years & SEN.

What is it? Blob Chorus is a fantastic tool to introduce children to pitch and help to improve their ability to identify notes. Each of the blobs in the chorus sing a note then king blob sings his note. The aim of the game is to identify which blob sang the same note as king blob.

Why do we love it? With a wide range of difficulties, from 2 blobs to 8, there is plenty of scope for progression and development helping to improve listening skills and identify pitch. 


musycMusyc (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: Ages 6+ & SEN.

What is it? Musyc is a fun and innovative music application where touch turns into music. Draw shapes and lines to create sounds by bouncing balls off of your creation to learn about rhythm whilst having fun. 

Why do we love it? The interactive and immediate nature of the app makes it very engaging for the user. There are also endless combinations and patterns to be created and experimented with, giving Musyc great longevity.


Music Ballmusicball (Free on iOS )

Perfect for: Early Years and SEN.

What is it? Create a range of relaxing sounds and visuals on your iPad just by moving your hands around the screen.  Different areas of the screen make up a basic musical scale, allowing you to experiment and create your own compositions.

Why do we love it? Easy to use and very relaxing, Music Ball’s main benefit is its endless potential for experimentation and creating original sounds.


Aquasonic (£1.aquasonic249 on iOS)

Perfect for: SEN.

What is it? Another great app for both audio and visual relaxation. With Aquasonic you can control the on-screen sounds, modes and water animation by touching, rotating, shaking, and panning the device and by using some easy to learn gestures.

Why do we love it? The range of different instruments, scales and settings gives this app endless possibility for customisation and invention. The addition of easy tools for sharing and recording compositions is also a brilliant feature.


change4-life-fun-generator-app-136380801832810401-130524085838Change4Life Fun Generator (Free on iOS and Android)

Perfect for: Parents and practitioners of children of all ages.

What is it? It’s packed with over 100 activities for children to enjoy both inside and out. Use the simple interface to request location and number of participants, then explore the suggestions and get active!

Why do we love it? The easy layout and menu means you can have a fantastic range of activities at your fingertips in seconds. The activities are brilliant for getting children moving and making keeping active fun for the whole family.


MadPad HD (£1.99 on iOSmzl.rupztjlm.175x175-75)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? With MadPad you can “Remix your Life”. Record up to 12 clips of unique sounds, store them and then play them back by tapping on each thumbnail. Its customisation functions allow you to change the pitch and volume of your clips and experiment with loops.

Why do we love it? MadPad’s ability to combine music production and your surroundings creates a really engaging and fun experience whilst still exploring things like pitch and loops. Recording your own clips creates a completely original and unique experience.


Bebot (£1.4screen568x5689 on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages, but we tend to use this more with Early Years groups.

What is it? Part robot, Part synth – Bebot is a versatile musical synthesizer with a unique control method. Featuring four different modes, Bebot offers a wide range of sounds and a high degree of control, making it a very effective tool for teaching pitch.

Why do we love it? Bebot’s main appeal is its accessibility. Early Years groups or those with no experience of playing a musical instrument can have great fun making sounds and watching Bebot sing along.


Novation Launchpad (Free on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages.

What is it? Launchpad provides a grid of samples which can be turned on and off to create layers of sound. A range of sessions and content means there are endless mixing possibilities whilst mixes can be recorded and shared through a variety of mediums. 

Why do we love it? Its use of modern musical genres like dubstep and house makes it very engaging for teenagers and young people. 


Bloom HDiPad Screenshot 2 (£2.49 on iOS)

Perfect for: All ages

What is it? Part instrument, part composition and part artwork, Bloom allows anyone to create elaborate patterns and unique melodies by simply tapping the screen.

Why do we love it? Unique and interesting, Bloom HD allows novices and experts alike to compose easily and freely and is also very visually stimulating, with a variable selection of shades and sounds at your fingertips.


Ultimate Ear Trainer (99p on iOS or 82p on Android)eartrainer

Perfect for: All ages

What is it? “A unique ear training program that will train your ear to recognize all notes in relation to a tonal center, or key.”

Why do we love it? It helps you train your ears and develop your listening abilities in a fun, game like way that’s suitable for all ages.


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Toca Band (£1.99 on iOS)

Perfect for: They recommend 2+

What is it? A colourful app full of musical characters to create your own band.

Why do we love it? It gives an idea of how different instruments work together to layer and build a piece of music, the characters bring a nice visual element to the sounds that is fun for all ages.


screen480x480

Soundrop (free on iOS but the £1.99 upgraded version includes additional features)

Perfect for: All ages

What is it? Draw simple lines for the dropping sounds to bounce off to create rhythms.

Why do we love it? We use this game-style app in many of our Early Years workshops for exploring and teaching different sounds, tones and rhythms.


TNR-i (costs £13.99 fo20110704-tenorioniOS, unofficial versions for android are also available)

Perfect for: All ages

What is it? Based on the Tenori-on, this app allows you to create 16 beat loops on a light up grid.

Why do we love it? The Tenori-on has been used by professional musicians including Little Boots and can be used with other instruments to create unique electronic music tracks. With younger players, you can use Tenor-ion to help teach pitch, layering, sequencing and rhythm.


D-jay (costs £13.99 for iOS)

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Perfect for: All ages, but we tend to use this more with around age 8 and older.

What is it? This app gives a ‘DJ’ experience with the music on your device.

Why do we love it? It allows you to experiment opportunities for creativity and music making with existing tracks, as well as raising awareness of components such as tempo and rhythm in the music as you try to sync songs and create new combinations.

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