Keyboard/piano Learning Apps

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There are a host of Apps out there to help you learn from absolute rookie up to advanced level.

Flowkey, comes with three months free when you buy a new Yamaha Digital Piano

Chordana, comes with a free period with a new Casio Digital Piano.

There is also:-

Synthesia

Skoove

Simply Piano

Yousician

Playground Sessions.

plus quite a lot more.

I tried Flowkey for three months when I bought a P121 and found it OK but limited in content as once the exercises were completed all the material was exhausted and what was left was learning the included songs.

Following a thread where a member asked about apps I downloaded Playground Sessions onto my iPad but once I looked at the promo videos I could not do anything without subscribing. I have received a mass of lower cost subscription offers from the company and done nothing until today. Yesterday I received a try it for one month for $1 so I have taken a punt today and subscribed.

Try it yourself if you are interested, the promo code is ….1dollar2022….. and you register and select the Monthly option, enter the promo code where the payable sum should reduce to one buck. Complete the payment, download the app to PC, Mac or iPad, connect up your keyboard and off you go. Not sure how long the promo code will be valid for so if you are interested then do not leave it too long.


I have tried the first three tutorials and so far the results are OK, must remember to turn off Auto Renew before the end of the Month.
 
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I recently subscribed to Playground Sessions and am enjoying it so far. I started at the very beginning, just to check it out, and I really like that they have you playing along with real songs right away, even when you're just playing one note. On the other hand, they should've mentioned rhythm before springing a 3/4 example in the third lesson. :) The system reminds me a bit of Rocksmith, which I've had a lot of fun with. (Not the new subscription-based version.)

I haven't had much time to mess with it, so I can't comment on the advanced material just yet. A number of online review sites list it as the best online piano program, so I'm hopeful. Their lifetime subscriptions seem like a nice deal for someone who thinks they'll stick with it.

It sucks that they don't have an Android app, though. I'm stuck balancing my laptop on a music stand!
 
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I'm hoping to find something myself when the keyboard arrives.

I've limited myself a bit more in some ways though, I have an android tablet (so Playground is ruled out and I don't want tethering to the PC to learn) and I prefer rock\anime\old pop music so not being able to see the song library in advance is a big turn off.

So far Yousician at least lets me see the library - but was missing a few songs I searched for.
Flowkey may have some from what I've seen on youtube, but with the library open only to subscribers, who knows whats in there.
 
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Update to the above, after a bit of research (and finding it was on sale) I plumped for Yousician, fingers crossed it works for me.
 
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Update to the above, after a bit of research (and finding it was on sale) I plumped for Yousician, fingers crossed it works for me.

You usually get 30 days to try it and to cancel if it turns out not for you so make a note of the date and give the App plenty of use.

Same applies to other Apps which reminds me, time to have a noodle around with my $1 monthly try out of PS.
 
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Aye, could have done, just wanted to make sure I got the sale price, still at £75 or so for the year (used US $) its not too bad.
 
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Thanks for all the info. In my case I've been watching various youtube instructional videos and it's working well for me at the moment. I've been concentrating on exercises for hand position, coordination and independence as well as learning chords, inversions, etc. I'm not even thinking about songs or reading a piano chart yet but once I get farther along I might need to follow a course.
 
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If anyone wants to learn a keyboard style based i itially on chords then tthere is also quite a few websites related to offline video tutorials..

When I transitted from guitar to keyboard I signed up yto this website on a month by month basis and found it very helpful, it is certainly worthwhile trying out the 10 free tutorials.

 
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Thanks for all the info. In my case I've been watching various youtube instructional videos and it's working well for me at the moment. I've been concentrating on exercises for hand position, coordination and independence as well as learning chords, inversions, etc. I'm not even thinking about songs or reading a piano chart yet but once I get farther along I might need to follow a course.
Hi - do you have any specific ones you could recommend?
I've been working through Yousician and it was all going great until I got to shifting positions and I'm struggling - probably me to be fair but it'd be interesting to see another approach.

Apologies in advance if I don't reply after you post - the joys of work mean I'm away for a week :(
 
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Hi - do you have any specific ones you could recommend?
I've been working through Yousician and it was all going great until I got to shifting positions and I'm struggling - probably me to be fair but it'd be interesting to see another approach.

Apologies in advance if I don't reply after you post - the joys of work mean I'm away for a week :(
I've been jumping around but some of the Youtube videos I use are by Creative Piano Academy, Piano with Jonny and Pianote.
 
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Thanks both, when I'm back I'll take a proper look at pianobooster.
I'll look at the videos tonight, I'd seen pianote before I think, very cool
 
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It is the 31st Jan and my $1 US trial run using Playground Sessions for a month is at an end.

So how does it compare To the other Apps?

I would say very well. There is vastly more useful lessons than Flowkey with the number of lessons in the Bootcamp section is:-
Rookie 94
Intermediate 62
Advanced 21

Each of the lessons is in turn either an explanatory video or sub divided into numerous parts.

As you work your way through each lesson and sub-lesson the App scores you and gives a percentage for accuracy. As your scores are added together until at a preset amount further courses are unlocked. Hence the above figures may increase as you work through the exercises consecutively.

In addition to the Bootcamp there is a separate Courses section where a reasonable number of songs and pieces are available to be learned.

Each exercise displays a regular staff with numbers above corresponding to the standard finger numbering and after a countdown the cursor moves across and the backing commences and a metronome beat sounds. Play the right notes in the right order for the right duration and on completion the score and accuracy is shown. You can then decide to continue or to repeat.

At Rookie level most are single handed exercises and it is quite a way into the Rookie course before it gets to actually teaching reading the stave.

Unlike Flowkey, if you hit a wrong note the cursor does not stop so in a fast advanced piece it can be a case of playing catch up.

One thing that bugged me is that the cursor does not necessarily move at a constant rate, in linked notes it accelerates then slows back down.

The screen capture images should be self explanatory.

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COMMENTS.
Monthly, annual and lifetime subscriptions are available (18, 120 & 290 per m/y/life) but in all honesty I would suggest that you take advantage of any low cost offer that you may receive after you visit the website and register. This is what I did with the month subscription of $1, I remembered to turn off auto renew a couple of days ago.

An initial Monthly Subscription is imo probably the best access arrangement. Subscribe for the month and give the App plenty of use then decide, even at $18 for a month if you use the App for a one hour practice session it is not bad value.

Now the Monthly and Annual subs offers 5 free songs per month but the Lifetime list 40 free songs but that does not quote a duration.

Comparing to Flowkey which I tried for three months free when I bought a Yamaha DP Playground Sessions has much more lesson content but as far as I could see not as good a content for song or classical piece learning.

As a repeat it is worth a punt for a month’s subscription if nothing else to get you disciplined in a Practice Routine.
 
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For five days I have been tinkering with Skoove on its 7 day free trial.

Started off at the beginning, and if you are a kid then it will be OK as an adult, its patronising bs audio with very very basic five finger usage introduced after what seemed an age.

Knock it up to Intermediate and the patronising voice stops. It is a typical scrolling cursor over a stave and playing both hands, in the exercise I selected it was kearning the James Bond theme.

If you do not play the notes correctly then it goes into repeat mode until you do.

OK so far, but when I tried to shut it down I got a warningvsaying progress would be lost if I exited.

Then it froze so I shut Skoove down and restarted it and faffed around until I got to the section I was at. Then it started saying Inwas playing an F when I was playing a D which was the right note.

Next day I tried again and more problems so I dumped the App.

Its worth a try to see if it works for you but don‘t subscribe, make use of the trial period but cancel subscription on day five if you are not going to continue.
 

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