GuidesInstruments

Play instruments on your iPhone, on screen or with a MIDI keyboard

Musaic has nine instrument families with 49 sounds: piano, bass, drums, synth, strings, guitar, harmonica, brass and mallets. You play them on the screen or on a USB or Bluetooth MIDI keyboard, and every recording lands on a new layer while the song plays back. The keyboard can show only the notes of your song's key, so every note fits. The instruments are free.

The instrument picker with the built-in instruments
Download on theApp Store

Musaic - Recording Studio is free for iPhone and iPad. Where a step needs Musaic Pro, the guide says so.

You need: Nothing extra. A MIDI keyboard is optional; USB and Bluetooth MIDI both work.

Steps

  1. Open Instruments

    Tap Add layer and choose Instruments ("Played with your fingers, on screen or on a MIDI keyboard"), then a family.

  2. Pick a sound

    Choose one of the sounds of that family, for example Electric Rhodes, Fretless Bass or the 808 Kit.

  3. Set the notes

    The Notes chip decides which keys you see: Only tones in your key, All notes (chromatic), Root + Fifth only, or your own selection. Key sets the song key, Transpose moves everything by up to 12 semitones.

  4. Record

    Tap record. A count from 4 to 1 runs, the song plays back, and your part lands on a new layer.

  5. Or plug in a MIDI keyboard

    Connect a keyboard over USB or Bluetooth. Musaic finds it by itself and shows a panel with the notes you hold, plus Sustain and Soft. On-screen keys brings the touch keyboard back.

The instrument families

  • Piano

    Acoustic Grand, Felt Piano, Piano & Strings, Bright Acoustic, Electric Rhodes, Chorused Tine, Bell Piano, Honky-Tonk.

  • Bass

    Fingered, Picked, Fretless and Slap Bass, two synth basses, Analog Bass, 808 Sub.

  • Drums

    Trap, Acoustic, Rock, Electronic, 808 and Dance kits.

  • Synth

    Saw, Square and Pluck Lead, Fifths Arp, Polysynth, Warm, Halo and Sweep Pad, Crystal.

  • Strings and guitar

    Warm and Bright Strings, Solo Cello; Nylon, Steel, Electric Clean and Electric Crunch guitar.

  • Harmonica, brass, mallets

    Three harmonicas; trumpet, trombone, tuba, French horn; steel drums, kalimba, marimba, vibraphone.

  • Your own SoundFont

    Import SoundFont… loads an SF2 or DLS file into a family. It stays on your device.

Good to know

  • Is there a click while I play?

    The instrument recorder counts 4 to 1 on screen before it starts, and the song plays back while you record. The audible metronome is in the camera and audio recorder.

  • Can I fix wrong notes?

    Pick Only tones in your key, and wrong notes stop being possible.

Try it

Musaic - Recording Studio is free on the App Store for iPhone and iPad, with weekly challenges and Ideas. Musaic Pro adds lyrics, animations, chord detection and Audio Lab, and removes the watermark.

Download on theApp Store

Related guides

Written for Musaic 1.4.0.