Best Apps for Learning to Play a New Instrument
Learning a new musical instrument can seem like an impossible feat. Luckily, with the right tools, you can have a blast learning and playing like a pro before you know it.
Your interest has piqued and now you're thinking about picking up a new musical instrument to enjoy a new hobby. Perhaps you have never played an instrument before and want to learn some practical skills. The first thing you're going to need is lessons that fit your age, level, and learning style. For instance, lessons for a 7 year old picking up their first instrument will be a little different from lessons for someone learning to play an instrument late in life. You'll need something you can follow along with that's easy to learn so you don't get frustrated and give up. It's a good idea to find step by step courses, especially with video, audio, or visual aids. Then you can get help with every part of the journey from choosing the best instrument to learning to master your first concerto.
However, if you're just wanting to learn a few quick chords on the ukulele or just want to pass the time, you probably don't need an entire 35-hour lesson series. There are plenty of follow-along crash courses you can do that will help you learn an instrument fast and without a teacher. From a short article on how to play an instrument to a simple finger chart, there are plenty of options to choose from. In fact, one of the easiest instruments to learn on your own is a piano, and there are plenty of games with light-up piano keys that will teach you in no time.
Meanwhile, if you've already done a crash course or two or even finished a few robust lesson series but want to be creative with your playing, you're going to need some good practice hours to master your instrument. Practicing an instrument requires a structured practice plan, so you'll need to keep organized and diligent while focusing on the fundamentals to improve your music skills. You can even join an online music community to get tips for learning to play, and meet people who you can lean on for encouragement as you learn to play an instrument for the first time.
App Recommendations
Top recommendations by the AppGrooves community.
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GuitarTuna - Tuner for Guitar Ukulele Bass & more!
Yousician Ltd.
Tools
#1 Guitar Tuner worldwide. Over 10 million users. Fast, easy & highly accurate!
50M+ DownloadsFree In-App Purchases![Google Play]()
Free In-App Purchases![App Store]()
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Whether you already know how to play the piano, Kalimba or drums, you can still learn to play a new music instrument. With access to different tuning modes, you can learn 4 musical instruments such as Ukulele, violin, Bass and the Guitar despite your experience level in playing other instruments.
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Functional Ear Trainer — Ear training made easy
Kaizen9 Apps
Education
Ear training is easy and fun with Functional Ear Trainer. Play music by ear.
500K+ DownloadsFree In-App Purchases![Google Play]()
Free![App Store]()
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When learning an instrument, you obviously need to learn the ins and outs of the instrument. But you also need to "hear" the music. This app is a great way to train your ear so you don't have to google song chords.
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Yousician - Guitar, Ukulele, Bass and Singing
Yousician Ltd.
Education
Learn Guitar, Ukulele, Bass or Singing with 1000s of songs, lessons & exercises
10M+ Downloads-
If you're a stickler for music but just can't get around playing any instrument or are too busy to learn, this can help you tune up your talent. You can learn up to 5 instruments including the piano and guitar.
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Simply Piano by JoyTunes
JoyTunes
Education
A fast and fun way to learn piano - works with any piano or keyboard.
10M+ DownloadsFree In-App Purchases![Google Play]()
Free In-App Purchases![App Store]()
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With 22 full courses included with a membership, this can help you learn to play piano quickly and easily. Receive instant feedback as you learn to play dozens of traditional songs. A free version is also available.
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Stefan
The 88 keys of the concert piano can seem intimidating, to say the least. If you still feel intrigued and wish to master such a fascinating instrument, try this well structured virtual course. It will teach you the basics, as well as more advanced techniques, using the tunes you love.