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Tech Tuesday's - Five of the best music-making apps for beginners
Interested in making music but don't have the equipment, guess what you can access equipment to make your own music right in your pocket for free or below $5. Here comes a list of five apps that lets you create your own tunes quick and easy.
Figure (Free) iOS
Figure is the work of one of the most respected music/tech companies, Propellerhead Software, whose tools are used by a host of pro musicians. Figure is for everyone though: a tactile treat of an app to create electronic loops using drums, bass and lead melodies, with no prior knowledge required. You can also check out and remix other peoples’ loops, and share your own
DM1 – The Drum Machine (£4.99) iOS
If you’re interested in touchscreen music-making, any of developer Fingerlab’s music apps are worth buying: the company is one of the most inventive in this area. DM1 is a good introduction: a drum machine that combines faithful sounds with intuitive controls: fun to mess around with, but also a good app for working on early ideas if you’re a more experienced musician.
Sing! Karaoke (Free + IAP) Android / iOS
American developer Smule is at the forefront of the drive to get more people sharing the music-making process with one another. This is its app for home-karaoke singers: you can wail along to a big catalogue of tracks, and even duet with other users. A monthly £2.29 subscription gets you access to everything, while the chance to virtually sing with top stars can be a springboard to success.
Ninja Jamm (Free + IAP) Android / iOS
Ninja Jamm was launched by pioneering label Ninja Tune as a way for fans to start making music with samples from artists including Amon Tobin, Mr Scruff and label founders Coldcut. You can buy “packs” of sounds from individual artists, then remix or create new tunes as you like. It’s easy to start using, but with plenty of depth to explore as you get more confident.
GarageBand (£3.99) iOS
In its desktop incarnation, GarageBand is a tool for all levels of working musician, but its iOS version is also a marvellous musical play-toy for novices. Stringing together drums, bass, guitar and piano to make your own tracks is easy – especially with its “smart” instruments – but the difficulty curve into doing more interesting and unique stuff is well judged too.
Music Maker Jam (Free + IAP) Android / iOS
The Magic Music Maker series has a long history before the smartphone and tablets era, but it has made the leap well. This app sees you arranging loops and samples – as well as your own vocal recordings – into songs. There’s a catalogue of samples to choose from, with more available a sin-app purchases from chiptune to metal.