The iPad would quickly turn into the way musicians work. Church musicians can also benefit. Although iPads can be expensive, especially for small church budgets, the system’s computing power and portability make it a convenient and useful tool for worship service. Greater efficiency with service planning and administrative work means more time to connect with people and connect with God. Here are some of my favorite iPad apps for music.
Worship band in hand. This powerful app provides professional tracks for worship. Set up a list, tab between songs, and choose or drop in and out of only the tools you need to supply your team. The interface is easy to use and the tracks are reasonably priced. Visit worshpibandinhand.com or the app store for more info.
iSing Adorate. This is another great app for a small or large worship congregation. Culture iSing, for iPad or iPhone, offers flexibility and ease of use. This app offers chord charts, lyric projection, music, vocals and disappearing guitars. The library of songs is still growing, but the prices are very affordable. A license is needed to extract the lyrics. Isingworship.com.
Virtual Organist. This is a great app for traditionally-inclined congregations in need of an organist. The app is free, but you must create an account with the company to perform worship services. The app can play solo music/a> or it can control most organs. These are not just midi files, but live recordings by professional organists. For demos, visit http://www.churchmusicsolutions.com/VO.htm.
Baptiste Hymnal. Awesome app that you don’t want to type around the whole hymnal! Baptist hymnal, through life worship, is a complete hymnal in app form, for you have to pay the price for the book. hymnal You can search by title or hymn number and create set lists. I recently used this hymn for a funeral. Pages take turns taking a bit of getting used to, as they would in any sheet music app.
Musicnotes. This app integrates seamlessly with the musicnotes.com account, allowing you to buy or sync your previously purchased music. All the great services you’ve come to expect from musicnotes.com come in portable form. It includes in the music viewer, page sound or tap changes and the ability to add notes. Visit airturn.com for information on the turn-by-turn page for the iPad.
Music Readers. There are a plethora of music readers to choose from. The best way to find one that suits you is to try until you find the one you want. piaScore can import PDF through iTunes. The best feature is the page turning gesture – turn the page back and forth with a nod of the head or a wave of the hand. Gig Easy Reader can also import PDF scores via iTunes, but boasts compatibility with the AirTurn foot conversion system. I also like the SheetRack Suit and for the price (free!) and ease of use.
Don’t forget the great functionality of applications on the iPad such as the calendar, the free Reader, iTunes, and the free YouVersion Bible. And when you take a break, take a few minutes to browse through the Cult Leader Magazine reader app. For all these and more apps to enhance your music/a> ministry, just visit the app store.
