Do You Use a Tablet, Rather than Books?

I use a regular ipad with onsong. I don’t feel that it really needs to be bigger as you can adjust the font to pretty large for most songs and still keep it to one page; more than that and you can set a scroll. The large ipad pro is exponentially more expensive and doesn’t seem necessary, even for my old eyes. The only time I really wish I had it would be for the e-versions of the daily ukulele books, which have a small light font that can be difficult to read even in the standard full sized paper version.
 
No one has mentioned the use of a page turner. This is what I use:

iPad
ForScore
PageFlip

This combination works well for me, easy to upload PDF's into my iPad, easy to use software, and simple to use foot pedal. And I am not tech savvy.
 
I've been using a Nook+v8 for several years after accumulating a stack of song sheets about 3 feet high + a full drop file in my desk. I didn't count the published song books. I now upload directly PDF songs in 15 files with still memory to spare for more.
Some song sheets have too much information on them so they either take up so much of the page that the print is small or it expands to 2 or more pages.
The multi page is workable, the small print has to be edited or resourced.
 
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I use both paper and a 10 inch kindle.
The kindle is handy at a ukulele jam because you never know when a more complicated song is going to be played. When I go to a Bluegrass jam (playing mandolin & guitar), I find the tunes to be more predictable, and just bring sheets with lyrics for the tunes I'm singing....
 
Directly related to my teaching (secondary choral), technology in music education and ukulele have become my vocational passions. I blog on both topics, and just as with "school-based" American music education, one of the easiest ways to integrate technology into music education is though the use of a tablet as music reader.

I'm 46, so I'm in the middle of my career--but in my 23 years of teaching, I have seen interesting solutions, including the Music Pad Pro, the iPad, Android tablets, and even the relatively new Gvido (pronounced "Guido" as in Guido d'Arrezo, one of the early contributors to music literacy and notation). The Gvido is a double giant e-ink tablet that sells for $1600. I don't have one, and following the Music Pad Pro (which I did have access to in 2009-2010), I'll never buy a single use music tablet again. The tablet has be useable for more than that, and my iPad Pro (12.9", 2nd generation--not the newest) is.

I do all of my play along videos on the iPad Pro, along with a huge percent of all my work in the classroom and otherwise.

My reader of choice is forScore, although I'd give equal support to unrealBook and Newzik. forScore and unrealBook are PDF music readers that have musician-specific tools that other programs don't have. The creator of unrealBook, incidentally, is Hawaiian and plays in a band with Chris Kamaka.

Newzik is growing by leaps and bounds, and can do PDFs and MusicXML. MusicXML really is the future, as it shares musical data between programs, yet allows you flexibility to change keys and so on, whereas PDFs are static. (You can scan a PDF, but that's a discussion for another time).

My set-up of choice is an AirTurn GoStand with Manos mount for the tablet, an Ortega instrument holder on the stand, and a PageFlip Dragonfly pedal.

I also understand that some of you run OnSong, PiaScore, Deep Dish Gigbook, or other apps. OnSong has some very specific tools, such as displaying lyrics to a projector while you see a different view on your iPad--and could be awesome for a ukulele jam.

To those of you finding cheaper ways into music reading on a tablet, you have my support 100%. For Android (and some hybrid Chromebooks that can run Android apps) the answers are MobileSheets Pro and Orpheus.

There are other PDF readers, but you need to make sure that they can turn left/right instead of scrolling up/down. I also think there is something special about programs that you can easily write on, as well as to make "hotspots" so you can quickly jump to another place in a score. If you have a large enough iPad, being able to see 2 pages can be important--the yellow book has a frustrating habit of putting additional verses on a second page when there seems to have been enough space to put them under the existing verses on the first page.

Have a lot of music you want to digitize? I utilize 1 Dollar Scan for my books, where you send the company your books (or pages) and they scan 100 pages for $1. They send you a PDF, and destroy the original--and since it is your copy, for your use, you have the right to do it.
 
Directly related to my teaching (secondary choral), technology in music education and ukulele have become my vocational passions. I blog on both topics, and just as with "school-based" American music education, one of the easiest ways to integrate technology into music education is though the use of a tablet as music reader.

I'm 46, so I'm in the middle of my career--but in my 23 years of teaching, I have seen interesting solutions, including the Music Pad Pro, the iPad, Android tablets, and even the relatively new Gvido (pronounced "Guido" as in Guido d'Arrezo, one of the early contributors to music literacy and notation). The Gvido is a double giant e-ink tablet that sells for $1600. I don't have one, and following the Music Pad Pro (which I did have access to in 2009-2010), I'll never buy a single use music tablet again. The tablet has be useable for more than that, and my iPad Pro (12.9", 2nd generation--not the newest) is.

I do all of my play along videos on the iPad Pro, along with a huge percent of all my work in the classroom and otherwise.

My reader of choice is forScore, although I'd give equal support to unrealBook and Newzik. forScore and unrealBook are PDF music readers that have musician-specific tools that other programs don't have. The creator of unrealBook, incidentally, is Hawaiian and plays in a band with Chris Kamaka.

Newzik is growing by leaps and bounds, and can do PDFs and MusicXML. MusicXML really is the future, as it shares musical data between programs, yet allows you flexibility to change keys and so on, whereas PDFs are static. (You can scan a PDF, but that's a discussion for another time).

My set-up of choice is an AirTurn GoStand with Manos mount for the tablet, an Ortega instrument holder on the stand, and a PageFlip Dragonfly pedal.

I also understand that some of you run OnSong, PiaScore, Deep Dish Gigbook, or other apps. OnSong has some very specific tools, such as displaying lyrics to a projector while you see a different view on your iPad--and could be awesome for a ukulele jam.

To those of you finding cheaper ways into music reading on a tablet, you have my support 100%. For Android (and some hybrid Chromebooks that can run Android apps) the answers are MobileSheets Pro and Orpheus.

There are other PDF readers, but you need to make sure that they can turn left/right instead of scrolling up/down. I also think there is something special about programs that you can easily write on, as well as to make "hotspots" so you can quickly jump to another place in a score. If you have a large enough iPad, being able to see 2 pages can be important--the yellow book has a frustrating habit of putting additional verses on a second page when there seems to have been enough space to put them under the existing verses on the first page.

Have a lot of music you want to digitize? I utilize 1 Dollar Scan for my books, where you send the company your books (or pages) and they scan 100 pages for $1. They send you a PDF, and destroy the original--and since it is your copy, for your use, you have the right to do it.

Nice summary, Choirguy. I agree left/right turn is better than scrolling up/down. Regarding 1 Dollar Scan, if you have them scan a book of 100 songs, would you get back 100 individual PDF files so that you can upload selected ones into ForScore?

I too have PageFlip but haven't yet figured out how to make it show bottom half of current page and top half of the following page. Do you happen to know how?

Luke
 
As for the scan, if you send single sheets in a stack of 100, you'll get a large document. If you are a Mac user, it is incredibly easy to use Preview to extract a single page, or if you create an index of the scans, you could also import a searchable index.

The half page format of forScore is turned on with the half page turn button (one of the buttons in the middle of the screen), in portrait mode only.
 
As for the scan, if you send single sheets in a stack of 100, you'll get a large document. If you are a Mac user, it is incredibly easy to use Preview to extract a single page, or if you create an index of the scans, you could also import a searchable index.

The half page format of forScore is turned on with the half page turn button (one of the buttons in the middle of the screen), in portrait mode only.

Got it. Thanks!
 
Great info, Chris, thanks. It's also easy to extract single page(s) from a PDF directly on an iPad in PDF Expert, and, I assume, numerous other apps for iOS, Android, and Windows. I often do this from the various songbooks, then shoot the renamed song to forScore so I can find it faster. I'm going to look at the other apps you mention.
 
Wow, it sounds pretty expensive to have a readable, usable non-paper set up. Am I misunderstanding that?
Pageflip looks like it's about $90, then you need a tablet large enough to read the music, a stand it works on, app(s) for the music.
It certainly sounds handy to be able to bring a large stack of music with you on a single device, but you also have to bring all the associated gear, and spend a good chunk of money.
Makes me feel like I'm misunderstanding something here?
 
I run MobileSheets on a 15.3" Lenova Yoga laptop - it is a 2-in-1, so it goes into tablet mode and is huge.
I have a pageturner pedal - can't remember but it's not that expensive and a 1 time purchase.
Any music stand that would have held the books that I've put into my laptop will hold my laptop - no need for a fancy specialized holder.
I have ~ 3000 songs in the laptop - I am definitely not carrying hardcopies of those around!!!

YMMV
Sopher
 
Yes, iPad with OnSongs. Our whole trio uses this.
 
Wow, it sounds pretty expensive to have a readable, usable non-paper set up. Am I misunderstanding that?
Pageflip looks like it's about $90, then you need a tablet large enough to read the music, a stand it works on, app(s) for the music.
It certainly sounds handy to be able to bring a large stack of music with you on a single device, but you also have to bring all the associated gear, and spend a good chunk of money.
Makes me feel like I'm misunderstanding something here?

It's as expensive as you want it to be (a familiar concept to those of us with UAS). I got a 10" Fire tablet for $100 on Black Friday. Plus a $30 case that works as a tabletop stand. MobileSheets Pro costs $13. The built-in Kindle software reads PDFs and I've added a variety of apps like GuitarTapp, none of which cost more than a take-out order of pad thai.

That's $143 and change. I could get by without the case and I used the free version of MobileSheets for years, so really it's 100 bucks. How much do you spend on paper and ink to print things out?

The Fire fits in the pocket of my concert uke case. I can set it on a table or balance it on my lap so I don't need a music stand. I don't need a clip-on light, either. The Fire weighs a bit more than the 2-sided printout of the local uke club's weekly 28-page song packet. And I have all the song packets. :cool:

YMMV. I'm happy with a cheap tablet because I use it for reading and email and web browsing. If I wanted to edit photos or run real-time performance software like GarageBand then I would need better hardware. If I played from tab or standard notation (mostly I use chord/lyrics sheets) then I would prefer a bigger screen. My son plays piano and uses a 10" Lenovo tablet for sheet music and fakebooks. His eyes are young.

I've never felt the need for a page turner. Most songsheets fit on one page if you do it right. When I do need to turn a page, at worst I'll miss one strum to tap the screen, which is no problem at uke club. If I performed solo, and didn't work from memory, and used music that requires page turns, and couldn't reformat that music to put the page turns in a more convenient spot in the music, then I would consider getting a pedal.

Like so many other things, using a tablet requires an up-front investment of money and time, so you can save money and time later. If you've ever grumbled about lugging around a 3-ring binder full of music, I think a tablet is likely to be a good investment for you.
 
It's as expensive as you want it to be (a familiar concept to those of us with UAS).

I didn't know that Kindles could read PDFs. I'm definitely not high tech. :)

I don't spend a lot of $ printing things out, but with that too, I suppose there is a lot of variation in money spent. Maybe part of the difference is that I don't play outside my house, vs. those of you who go to uke groups and/or perform. Some of you, I'm sure, need to carry around large amounts of music.
 
Wow, it sounds pretty expensive to have a readable, usable non-paper set up. Am I misunderstanding that? Pageflip looks like it's about $90, then you need a tablet large enough to read the music, a stand it works on, app(s) for the music. It certainly sounds handy to be able to bring a large stack of music with you on a single device, but you also have to bring all the associated gear, and spend a good chunk of money.
Makes me feel like I'm misunderstanding something here?

In my case, I use the device all the time in profession and then my professional pursuits; and I used to be able to deduct the purchase of technology as a teacher (not sure about the new tax laws; I might do our taxes tomorrow and find out). Ultimately, it is partly a tool, and partly a hobby, and we all spend money different ways. Some people buy $5000 bicycles. Some people have very expensive cars. I have a substantial but not that expensive collection of ukuleles and Apple technology—and I use my “toys.”

It isn’t just about the portability of the set-up, either...there are other tools as well that enhance my teaching or my own playing. For example, Ken Middleton has a lovely cello/ukulele duet of Dona Nobie Pacem on his website. On my iPad, I “scanned” the PDF with an app (see Sheet Music Scanner or PlayScore 2), opened it in Notion, edited it a bit, and exported a cello part to forScore. Now I can play along with the cello part (Notion has excellent sounds). I can also do arrangements and other tasks.

It’s not so easy to do those other things on other tablets—but again, I certainly understand the desire to go into the process as inexpensively as you can!
 
It's as expensive as you want it to be (a familiar concept to those of us with UAS). I got a 10" Fire tablet for $100 on Black Friday. Plus a $30 case that works as a tabletop stand. MobileSheets Pro costs $13. The built-in Kindle software reads PDFs and I've added a variety of apps like GuitarTapp, none of which cost more than a take-out order of pad thai.

That's $143 and change. I could get by without the case and I used the free version of MobileSheets for years, so really it's 100 bucks. How much do you spend on paper and ink to print things out?

The Fire fits in the pocket of my concert uke case. I can set it on a table or balance it on my lap so I don't need a music stand. I don't need a clip-on light, either. The Fire weighs a bit more than the 2-sided printout of the local uke club's weekly 28-page song packet. And I have all the song packets. :cool:

YMMV. I'm happy with a cheap tablet because I use it for reading and email and web browsing. If I wanted to edit photos or run real-time performance software like GarageBand then I would need better hardware. If I played from tab or standard notation (mostly I use chord/lyrics sheets) then I would prefer a bigger screen. My son plays piano and uses a 10" Lenovo tablet for sheet music and fakebooks. His eyes are young.

I've never felt the need for a page turner. Most songsheets fit on one page if you do it right. When I do need to turn a page, at worst I'll miss one strum to tap the screen, which is no problem at uke club. If I performed solo, and didn't work from memory, and used music that requires page turns, and couldn't reformat that music to put the page turns in a more convenient spot in the music, then I would consider getting a pedal.

Like so many other things, using a tablet requires an up-front investment of money and time, so you can save money and time later. If you've ever grumbled about lugging around a 3-ring binder full of music, I think a tablet is likely to be a good investment for you.

Definitely! Now I have to learn the intricacies Of MobileSheetsPro.

An alternative to the 10" Kindle for me was the $1,000 iPad, but that doesn't accept micro SD cards. That's a huge plus for the Kindle. I can move them from computer to Kindle to a different Kindle.
 
In my case, I use the device all the time in profession and then my professional pursuits

Totally makes sense that when used professionally, or for people who perform, (which might or might not be more for fun than professionally), or for those who are active in groups that you would need something more than stacks of paper.

I'll have to check out the Ken Middleton cello/ukulele duet. I have a friend who plays cello, and and I love Ken Middleton's playing. Maybe that will lead to something fun. :)
 
Wow, it sounds pretty expensive to have a readable, usable non-paper set up. Am I misunderstanding that?
Pageflip looks like it's about $90, then you need a tablet large enough to read the music, a stand it works on, app(s) for the music.
It certainly sounds handy to be able to bring a large stack of music with you on a single device, but you also have to bring all the associated gear, and spend a good chunk of money.
Makes me feel like I'm misunderstanding something here?

yes and no. It really depends on your requirements. If you use mainly one page chord sheets in your prefered key and alphabetized, you can just put them on most any cheap tablet or older inexpensive ipad. No pedals or expensive apps required. Since they are so light, Ive even seen folks just secure them (under a rubberband or two) onto an cheap wire music stand. For many folks, this is all they really need.

Then there’s the middle ground (that’s me). I have a reg.sized ipad (but it’s also my only computer) and just attach it to an inexpensive mic stand via an equally inexpensive tablet holder that just screws on to the top of a standard mic stand. I want to be able to transpose on the fly, so I have onsong which was I think a $14 one time charge, now it $29.99. Not a big investment. Also I can scroll the few songs that are two pagers.

Then there are they folks with higher requirements and this is where it can start to add up. These are the folks who play pieces from sheet music in standard notation. They need the BIG screen and page turners, but that’s not most people.
 
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yes and no. It really depends on your requirements. If you use mainly one page chord sheets in your prefered key and alphabetized, you can just put them on most any cheap tablet or older inexpensive ipad. No pedals or expensive apps required. Since they are so light, Ive even seen folks just secure them (under a rubberband or two) onto an cheap wire music stand. For many folks, this is all they really need.

Then there’s the middle ground (that’s me). I have a reg.sized ipad (but it’s also my only computer) and just attach it to an inexpensive mic stand via an equally inexpensive tablet holder that just screws on to the top of a standard mic stand. I want to be able to transpose on the fly, so I have onsong which was I think a $14 one time charge, now it $29.99. Not a big investment. Also I can scroll the few songs that are two pagers.

Then there are they folks with higher requirements and this is where it can start to add up. These are the folks who play pieces from sheet music in standard notation. They need the BIG screen and page turners, but that’s not most people.
Good advise. I think that sometimes people hear about all of these features that are being utilized with the different apps and tablets that they were not even aware of, and they feel that perhaps they are missing out on something. We should remind ourselves that one is not required to spend a lot of money or to make it complicated. It really does depend on your own circumstances.
 
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As long as I'm here this morning, I use MobileSheets pro on my Kindle, but I also have the ultimate guitar app installed. I realized that from the beginning I was going there for song lyrics and chords, and then that I was going through a process to put them on Mobile Sheets. I started storing them in the app and I have since been using it as much a MobileSheets to access songs when I'm out doing my thing. It is a cheap app and as I said, you can store the songs in the app and access them without a connection. It does not have near the features of a lot of apps that are mentioned, but it has all the features that I need. One thing is that my music is also stored in my account on the site itself, so even though the app is only installed on my Kindle, I can access my music through any computer and on my phone if I go to the site. I thought that I would throw that out if anyone is interested in looking at it.
 
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