Discover 8 essential music apps for Christmas behind the 23rd window of our interactive advent calendar:
Imagine the scene…
It’s Christmas morning, snow is falling and you’ve just unwrapped a brand new, shiny iPad or iPhone – now you need some musical apps to play and fill its memory with.
Alternatively, maybe you’re looking for the perfect digital present for the musician or music lover in your life?
Whether you’re browsing for yourself or seeking an ideal download to gift to a friend, we’ve put together 8 must-have apps that musicians of all levels and interests can enjoy!
Check out our selection below:
Best for downloading sheet music and tab: Sheet Music Direct – Free
This free cloud-based app gives you instant access to a library of over 100,000 songs ready to download – more sheet music than either you or Santa’s sleigh could ever hope to carry. By hosting your sheet music playlists in the cloud, all the songs you want to play are instantly available wherever you are.
Sheet Music Direct is available now on iTunes.
Best for classical music: The Orchestra – £9.99
A truly innovate, immersive and interactive app that re-imagines how we learn about, explore and enjoy classical music and the orchestra. The Orchestra app allows user to delve into some of the most important and influential pieces of music ever written from a number of perspectives, from the sheet music scores, beat maps, interviews, performance notes and commentaries from composer Esa Pekka Salonen and the Philharmonia Orchestra. Both digital download reviewers and classical music critics are raving about The Orchestra app for iPad and iPad Mini. Why not purchase it now and see it for yourself in action>
The Orchestra is available now on iTunes.
Best for trivia and quizzes: This Day In Music – £1.99
The official This Day in Music app brings you musical facts and happenings 365 days of the year! Whether you’re stuck with Uncle Colin on Boxing Day as he reminisces about the time he saw Pink Floyd, or you and your friends need some fast trivia at your next pub quiz music round, the app has all the knowledge and history you need. Featuring a built-in music quiz with hundreds of questions, amazing factoids on your favourite artists and a record of who was number one on Auntie Barbara’s day of birth, the This Day In Music app is an essential download for anyone interested in rock, pop, hip-hop and beyond.
The This Day In Music app is available now on iTunes.
Best for songwriters: Blues Writer – £1.49
Are you a songwriter looking for the perfect app to sketch out, demo and save your latest ideas on the move? Then look no further than the Blues Writer app for iPad and iPhone. Featuring an notepad for lyrics, backing track loops, rhyming dictionary and the ability to record multiple tracks and takes, this is a powerful and purpose-built app for musicians looking to pen their own songs and tracks wherever they are. Blues Writer has also been featured on The Guardian, All About Jazz and Stuff TV.
The Blues Writer app is available now on iTunes.
Best for fun learning: Music Theory for Beginners – £1.99
Ideal for musical novices or anyone looking to buy for little ones and new starters, the Music Theory for Beginners app makes learning music theory fun. With an interactive quiz featuring over 2,000 questions included, it’s a great download for anyone keen to get on with learning or to help kids get to grips with theory.
Music Theory for Beginners is available now on iTunes.
Best for Christmas Classics: Christmas: The Little Black Songbook – £1.49
This handy little App has 25 classic Christmas Songs, complete with full lyrics and chords, to help you and your friends get into the festive spirit through music. The perfect app for a yuletide sing-a-long!
Christmas: The Little Black Songbook is available now on iTunes.
Best for great guitar leads: Killer Riffs – £2.99
If you’re a guitarist with an iPad who’s craving the greatest riffs ever on Christmas day, then this is the app for you! Killer Riffs shows you how to play 40 of the best guitar riffs known to man, from AC/DC and The Clash to Oasis and The Kinks. Killer Riffs includes tabs and video tutorials to show you exactly what to play and how to play it!
Killer Rifs is available now on iTunes.
Best for aspiring rappers: Freestyle – £1.49
Freestyle is the definitive app for writing, recording and sharing the latest pieces and jams by songwriters, MC’s and poets on the go. With Freestyle downloaded to your device, you’re always prepared whenever and wherever inspiration strikes. Features include a rhyming dictionary, beat and loop library and high-quality recording so ideas can be put down fast, clean and effortlessly.
The Freestyle app is available now on iTunes.