Back in the day, if you wanted to be a professional guitarist you needed a ton of extra equipment such as cassette four-track recorders, tuners, metronomes, cables, effects pedals, metronomes, chord guides, a book of scales—and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Thankfully with the advent of technology such as the iPhone it’s never been easier to be an accomplished musician. Here we highlight five of our favorite iPhone applications (which are also compatible with the iPod Touch) for musicians, all of which are not only space and money saving but also streamline the entire process in order to give you more time to develop your own sound as opposed to unpacking your duffle bag full of cords and books. [Click here for Part 2 of this series.]
Sonoma Wire Works FourTrack: This amazing application does exactly what the title implies by turning your iPhone into a functioning four-track recorder. Using either your phone’s microphone or an external recording source, the program allows your to record four separate tracks of audio, plus it gives you the ability to pan, fade and bounce tracks all on your phone. Once you have that all set, you can import the session into your computer to further experiment with and fine-tune your future hit song. In other words it’s probably time to toss that cassette four-track that’s been gathering dust in your basement and drop ten bucks on this digital recorder that fits in your pocket. Price: $9.99 [iTunes]
Shazam: We don't believe in magic, but Shazam is definitely the closest thing we’ve come to evidence of it in the music world. If you’re not familiar with the program, it’s essentially a database that looks for the sonic fingerprint of a specific song and then identifies it. For example, if you’re in a record store and don’t feel like asking the pretentious clerk which Belle & Sebastian import you’re listening to without getting a disapproving glance, just hold your phone toward the speaker for a few seconds and Shazam will seek the sound sample out of its database of over six million songs, let you know who sang it, what album it came out on and show you how to purchase it. While there is a technically an algorithm behind this technology, we’re still pretty sure it’s supernatural. Price: FREE [iTunes]
Agile Partners Guitar Toolkit: If you’re a guitarist who regularly gigs out and you’re also obsessed with your iPhone then GuitarToolkit is a must-have application. Featuring a chromatic tuner, list of scales, chord library, metronome and support for everything from 12-string guitar to 5-string bass, it’s the only program you need to practice everything from your metal shredding to jazz-guitar voicings without having to lug around tons of extra equipment or worry about being weighed down by 9-volt batteries for all of your various gadgets. Oh and if you’re a lefty, don’t worry because Guitar Toolkit also readjusts everything if you’re using a different hand position. In fact all it’s missing is the ability to transform into a Marshall stack, but here’s hoping that might be included with the next software update. Price: $9.99 [iTunes]
PocketGuitar: PocketGuitar is exactly what it sounds like it is: an application that turns your iPhone into a virtual guitar. However unlike toy guitars of yesteryear, with PocketGuitar you can strum strings and press down frets using different instruments including electric guitar, classical guitar, electric bass and ukulele. Oh and if those aren’t enough options for you, you can also implement effects such as distortion, chorus and delay to help fill out the sound and give you different sonic textures to work with during your quest to write the perfect riff. The best part is that the program only costs .99 cents, which is only about the cost of one guitar string for your non-virtual axe. On second thought, the best part of it might be the fact that you never need to tune your iPhone. Price: $0.99 [iTunes]
7 Chords: If you’ve always wanted to improve your knowledge of guitar chords or music theory, look no further than 7 Chords. Despite the deceptive nature of the program’s title, 7 Chords is essentially a database with over 10,000 guitar chords laid out in both standard notation and chord shapes. Oh and if you’re trying to figure out if a certain chord would sound in a song, 7 Chords can also play each note in a chord without going through the trouble of hunting around your fretboard. Additionally the program utilizes the iPhone’s impressive display and polyphonic sound, while the program itself has a breathtaking and intuitive interface. If you ever wanted a composing tool that you could keep in your pocket, 7 Chords is the ultimate program for you. Price: $1.99 [iTunes]