I have been thinking lately of the capabilities that Smart Phones have for music- particularly my iPhone. As "millennials", we have grown up amidst the rise of technology. We became reliant on computers and the internet since we were in school, using it for research and document production. As we got older, we became reliant on our phones for communication, and now, we are reliant on our phones as connections to the world around us. I am a child of the 21st century, and my phone is my lifeline. Being that music is a huge part of my life, it is only fitting that I connect that with my Smart Phone as well!
The iPhone comes with a Voice Memo tool that allows you to record audio clips and save them to your computer. They can easily be uploaded onto iTunes as mp3 files, which is incredibly convenient when you are recording music or taking lessons and documenting your progress. The iPhone also has a video capability, which allows you to take videos that can easily be uploaded onto iPhoto or iMovie and can be linked to YouTube and other social media sites.
The iPhone also has many downloadable and free applications that are incredibly beneficial for musicians. On my iPhone, I have several of these apps. My favorite of these is my keyboard application. This app is a virtual interactive keyboard for your phone- you can scroll through registers on the piano and hear pitches, as well as record simple melodies on your phone or noodle around while you are writing music. I use this app most often when I am practicing on the go and need a starting pitch.
Another app that I use quite often is my tuner. It is very easy to navigate- all you have to do is open the app and play your instrument. The app tells you what pitch you are playing, which makes tuning easy! It works for all instruments, transposing or non-transposing. I use mine most often for my guitar, but have used it to tune a violin and a trumpet.
The Apple Store even has an iPhone version of Garage Band- the standard Macintosh recording program- that is extremely easy to use if you are familiar with the Garage Band software, and is very useful when you need to record on the go, or if you need to work on a previously recorded project.
I like how you noticed that both your love for music and the convenience of your iPhone connect with one another. It is cool how you use your iPhone to tune your instruments. How accurate is the tuner on your iPhone compared to an actual tuner?
ReplyDeleteI too have an iPhone and express the same enthusiasm. There are countless Apps that will help students with mathematics. Smartphones in general are great tools that are becoming more prominent amongst students. Learning how to use the Apps to our benefit is a great instructional tool. Teachers could use to mitigate the distraction found by using phones in the classroom.
The iphone is definitely is a powerful tool for musicians. I personally use it for tuning my guitar, picking pitches from the piano app, I have spotify , iTunes and the YouTube app. These apps help me have access to essentially any song whenever I want. It is interesting that you mentioned the garage band app because I was recently looking at some USB mics that any musician can get a decent recording out. All they need is just to have an iphone/ipad or any mac product with garage band that connect to a USB and one of these mics. The most popular brands for these are Blue and Apogee.
ReplyDeleteBlue: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Blue-Spark-Digital-Condenser-Mic-with-USB-iPad-Connectivity-108129065-i2618889.gc
Apogee: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Apogee-MiC-USB-Microphone-for-iPad--iPhone-and-Mac-107576928-i2375285.gc