Tablets or other tech for practice

I use iRealB as a back up for jazz charts.
I prefer printed charts but don't want to carry six books with me.
I have thousands of charts already saved in it so in a pinch it's great but the lack of written melody lines makes it limited. I bring the iPad as a back up if I'm asked to play something that's not already on paper. I also use it for practicing on my own.

The apps by Peter Erskine are also really nice for jazz practice - they're pricey as far as apps go but have helped me significantly. The repertoire is limited but it covers many common jazz tunes.

 

I've been messing with Mobile sheets pro, it's pretty cool. I need a Bluetooth page turner though, thinking about this AirTurn PED - AirTurn I really like iRealb too.

 

I use Mobile Sheets Pro and iRealPro on my Android tablets. On my Android phone, I use iRealPro and Orpheus for pdfs of charts. I use Samsung's discontinued 12 inch tablet with the pen. I like those because the charts are about the size of a piece of paper, so easy to read, and the pen allows me to make notes and save them as part of the charts. I use Band in a Box and Finale on my laptop. I recommend all of them with a few caveats. iRealPro isn't perfect - sometimes it hiccups the rhythm when it's trying to think and make noise at the same time and doesn't play or display the melody and that's an issue if you want to practice bass lines that take the melody into account. Of course, you can always get around that by singing the melody yourself while you play bass and iRealPro accompanies you. Band in a Box can play the melody too and has better sequencing, of course, it's much more expensive. MobileSheetsPro is kind of a pain because to set it up the best, you have to print every chart into its own document and that's a very tedious few hours work, but worth it in the end. I always bring two tablets, one as backup in case one dies at the gig. Last, you can also hook up tablets to an external speaker to play along to recordings or YouTube vids. I find a physical cable into a PA much more reliable than a bluetooth speaker. Hope that helps.

 

I stay away from anything connected to the internet for practice at home. On the road an "all in one" is better than lugging a bunch of paper and gadgets. At home, even one email or FB check during practice time is not worth ANY perceived benefits.

 

For that reason, I set up my iPad to not have social media. No messaging, FB, email, etc. it has an internet connection but few of the distractions.

 

As far as hardware goes -

at home I run the iPad and electric bass into my Felix and wear headphones or I play upright with either headphones or through the iPad speaker. The setup is flexible and sounds great for practice.

I occasionally go camping with my family. For that, I stick to electric bass. It limits what I can work on but is a great compromise. I run it through an apogee jam into the iPad (using an amp modeler) and into headphones. I can practice till the cows come home without bothering others.

 

For iRealB (...iRealPro) it's pretty easy to get started. the forum has lots of playlists of standards. There are one or two master playlists with around 1000 jazz standards already in them. There's also master lists for Latin and other genres. You'll also want to get comfortable editing charts. It's quick and easy. I've found it essential because often the band leader wants a different set of changes than what's in the iReal chart. All of that searching and loading can be done from within the app.

 

I use an iPad and forscore for charts. I love it. Only problem I've ever had was playing outdoors in the sun, the iPad can overheat and shut down mid song. If you're just using it for practice then not a concern.

 

I use my phone with a metronome, tuner, iReal Pro, a workout timer (for when I warmup), stopwatch, video camera (most of the time I don't need anything super high quality), etc. I think it's certainly easier than having to carry around a bunch of different devices when I could just use one that's small and is always on me.

I only have messages go through while I practice, but I don't check anything until the stopwatch goes off and I'm on a 5-10 minute break.

 

I'd really argue for a stand alone metronome at home. The PDFs of charts and books are undeniable, even still, I've never met anyone who "exhausted" basic practice tools (metronome and music stand). I think this stuff more often falls under what I would call "playing" as opposed to "practice".

 

I've been using an iPad pro (the screen is basically the size of a standard sheet of paper), although I don't have a page-turner yet. I import PDF orchestra parts from IMSLP and use an app called GoodNotes to mark bowings, fingerings, etc. with the Apple pencil. It's been pretty slick being able to mark notes in color, highlight key changes, etc.

Because of its size, the iPad pro has a battery that will last for days. I recommend using a spring clamp to secure it to the stand to avoid an accidental nose-dive onto the floor. There are a number of iPad holders designed specifically for mic stands and gooseneck fittings, however.

Here's a screenshot of a part marked up with GoodNotes (you can make your own rubber-stamp icons, like the eyeglasses.):

 

After this thread started, I thought of trying out one of the PDF music organizers. But they require you to import your own sheet music.

Is there a public repository online of jazz standards from the various jazz books?

 

I've done a project with one LA studio arranger who never used paper unless requested by the client. I'd get a chart from Dropbox, put it on the tablet, and get to work. My metronome is a Linux or Android app. I also use iRealPro and Songbook for other projects since that's their agreed medium of exchange. @Maple, the lack of melodies in the iRealPro charts (and their general unavailability online) is due to copyright issues. Every project seems to resort to buying the odd chart PDF from musicnotes.com or other publisher, or the composer (Dave Holland, for example, sells charts for many of his tunes/bands).

 

Thanks. I have plenty of ireal pro content but was wondering about PDFs.
Buying from the publishers might be a good option

 

I think at least one real books in paper comes (maybe optionally) with a CD-ROM or DVD with PDFs.
The iOS app "Calypso Score" (there is "Calypso Jam" for tryout with some limits) can read complete fake books in PDF because there exist a lot of indexes (that can be changed if pages are missing or if there are additional ones) for well known fake books. If you canmot find an index you can make your own and publish it so others don't have to do it again for themselves.
You even can add MP3s and with a little work sync them to the sheet music. There is also a visual and/or acoustical metronome in that part.
Also writing and some predefined symbols like dynamics can be added to the sheet music. I'm not sure if the construction of your own symbols is possible, but I think it is on the programmers to-do-list.
Has some inconveniences on iOS 7, but runs fine on iOS 8 and 9. An older version even runs on iOS 5 and 6.

Together with iReal Pro that's all I need.

But Android users have to look for something else. Maybe "The Fake Book".

 

I subscribe to this idea too. I have a tablet just for practice. The only apps other than the pre-installed ones are music related, and google drive to access my tunes, charts, etc. All of my social media stuff is on my phone.

 

Plus one for Drum Genius. Much better than a metronome. I also use Tampura Droid to play drones for intonation practice. I think technology is great for ear training, both Amazing Slow Downer and dedicated ear training apps. Music Practice Box is one that's very flexible and can be adjusted from stupid easy to stupid hard and is especially aimed at the improviser.