United StatesQuality Tones train brass musicians to learn how to play any note, in any range, in any dynamic, beautifully and consistently. This method has been proven to dramatically help brass musicians of all levels develop a more beautiful sound, and a more consistent and accurate level of playing. Accuracy exercises are a must for brass musicians. There are hundreds of effective teaching methods designed to help brass musicians play more accurately, but there are two things that make the Quality Tone App unique and superior: 1. Randomization – In order to obtain maximum effectiveness, all quality tones in each session will appear in a random order. This method allows you to work on a variety of quality tones in your full range in a much more efficient manner. You will find this method more difficult than practicing attacks in a non-random order, but you will also find it supremely more effective. No longer will you have to worry about playing contrasting excerpts or passages right after the other, because you’ll be confident and trained to play any note beautifully, in any order, and in your entire range - on demand! 2. Customization – This app surpasses standard method books because it gives you the ability to work on exactly what you need to practice, and then constantly tweak it in a matter of seconds. You can customize the lowest and highest note that will be asked for in each session, and turn on or off 13 different variations of dynamics and articulations. This allows you to isolate and focus on specific areas you would like to improve. You could devote an entire session to soft high note attacks, improve your stopped horn technique if you’re a horn player, extend your extreme high range if you’re a lead trumpet player, or slow things down with a series of long tone variations - there are endless possibilities. This Quality Tone App will tailor to YOUR needs.
A valuable training tool
I use this app daily in my practicing sessions, and I have noticed a real improvement in my accuracy. It gives me everything I need and does exactly what it claims. I do, however, have a couple of wishes, that I list here in decreasing priority order: 1. The app only seems to take input from the main mic, and I sometimes (often) have to practice on a Silent Brass that I have hooked up to my iPhone or iPad by a USB audio device. Would it be possible to support taking input from that kind of mic, configurably? I know it's possible because other apps on my devices do take this input. 2. I like having the ability to pause the session, so I can repeat a note that I missed and play with it some more before moving on. However, I have to touch the screen to do so, and both my hands are already on my horn. That's why I use a foot pedal to turn pages in music apps on my iPad. Would you be able to support pausing and resuming from a foot pedal? 3. The visual red/green pitch correctness indicator is valuable, but I sometimes want a more precise view of how close I was to the note. I can use a separate tuner for this, but maybe you could support some other kind of display that gives more information about the number of cents off.
United StatesVery simple, yet very effective!
I love this app! I’ve used it daily for the past month or so after not using it for a few years and I have seen so much benefit out of it, and it’s also shown a spotlight on areas that I can improve upon as well. I have some suggestions for the app that could be implemented in the future: mp, p, and f dynamics to really make you conscious of what your dynamic output is. Maybe even adding a decibel meter? A metronome, or maybe a timer to help gauge how long I need to play, especially on < > and > < figures. The ability to change the amount of time that the long tone notes can be held out for. Changing what dynamic shifts are available such as: p < mf > mp; f < ff > pp; etc. Playing two notes or a beat or two (two quarter notes, or a beat of 8th notes, 16th notes, 8th/2-16th and 2-16th/8th note rhythms, and triplets. And then, even changing what notes are played with those varied rhythms (i.e. a beat of triplets playing A, D-flat, G-flat) Instruments to include in the future: piccolo trumpet, E-flat trumpet, alto trombone, Eb/C tuba, etc.) To challenge players that need to transpose throw in an option such as trumpet in D, horn in E-flat, treble clef trombone/tuba/euphonium, bass clef horns, etc.)
United StatesSuch a great app
I practice with this app only for a week; however, the benefits are already audible. I push less and play more relaxed. My sound is more free now. I love the fact that the app has a tuner that shows you if you are (or not) in pitch.
United StatesGreat app, needs a facelift!
TLDR: Buy the app! It’s only $4 and has a lot of customizable settings (dynamics, articulation, etc.) that you won’t get from a regular random generator. The app is pretty bare bones in regards to the design/interface but gets the job done and is an effective tool for a variety of practice goals. Pros: Very customizable Includes a tuner/pitch checker Counts the # of notes you play Includes stopped notes (@ horn players 😉 ) Very affordable price Cons: App design is very bare bones and not formatted for iPad (still works fine just looks awkward) Not compatible with Bluetooth pedals (cumbersome page turns) Can’t change the timer length between notes No control over enharmonics (which notes you see as sharps or flats) Based off of recomendations I started using the Quality Tones app around 4 weeks ago and, for the sake of transparency, I've been using the app to play 100 notes, 5 days a week, for 4 weeks. The app is based off of the teaching philosiphy of Bill VerMeulen and, when used according to the instructions, requires you to play through a set number of notes, stopping for each note that does not meet your standards in order to repeat until you have played it 3 times consecutively in the correct manner. The overall premise of the app is fairly simple: it functions as a random note generator that presents notes to you on the musical staff across various octaves and clefs. The app is quite customizable; you can adjust the range, dynamics, articulation, and any combination therof. Horn players can also choose to include stopped notes. The app includes a built in tuner/note-checker to tell you if you've hit the correct note, an auto advance feature that makes the user experience hands-free, and a note counter to keep track of how many notes you've gone through. On its own I think the app is a very effective practice tool. Though it has an intended purpose it can also be used to work on just about anything and is a very customizable note randomizer. All my complaints, unfortunatly, stem from the user-experience itself... In summary: this app needs a face-lift! The app interface is very bare bones/outdated and reminiscent of the html-era of homemade apps in the early 2010's. The app is formatted well on mobile but has not been customized for tablet use, resulting in the same experience just bigger and slightly streatched out... Again, the app WORKS fine on tablets it just looks a little woogity 🥴. The app is also not compatible with blutooth pedals/page-turners, and the auto-turn timer is not customizable meaning that if your pace is quicker/slower than the pre-determined timer length you're stuck manually swiping through pages, which gets pretty cumbersome after 25, 50, 75, 100+ notes! My last complaint is that there is no control over enharmonic notes: the app resorts to flats so if you're a fan of C# (or just sharps in general) or want to work on confusing enharmonics such as E#, Cb, A#, etc. you're out of luck. ☹️ In conclusion: I think the app is well worth the $4 you'll pay for it! Though I'm not a huge fan of the visual interface the app offers a myriad of useful practice tools that will keep you engaged and accountable with your practice goals. Happy Practicing! Original review posted on @katewarrenmusic on Instagram
United StatesAn Absolute Must-Have!
For any brass player, but particularly horn players, this is a must-have in every players toolbox! It lays out “target practice” in a simple layout for either a random, or tailored fashion. When I use this app a little bit every day, my playing is transformed for the better. Get it, and happy practicing! Arty Robinson Horn, Navy Fleet Bands
United StatesThank you!
This app helped me so much! As a younger French horn player, I struggled a lot with note precision and dynamics. It only did those improve but so did my musicality and confidence when playing pieces in ensembles. It’s a very well designed app that should be a necessity for all brass players when practicing.
United StatesAwesome Update!!
As a high school student, sometimes I don't know if I am on the correct pitch or not. Problem solved!! I'm LOVIN it!! New drone feature is awesome for a high school kid like me!
United States
Introducing "The Bullseye". Now The Quality Tone App will listen to you and let you know if you are playing the right note or not!
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