How to play piano keyboard software

I received an email from a blog reader who had recently bought a MIDI keyboard so they could start practicing a bit of piano at home.

What if you just want some free software for practicing piano or messing around? This article summarises what I found. If you, like me, came from playing a traditional acoustic instrument such as a piano or guitar, the world of MIDI and digital music production may be a little confusing.

If you already know how it works feel free to skip this section! MIDI is a digital signal, basically a series of 1s and 0s that allows different electronic devices to communicate with one another I know, it sounds very dystopian! This code communicates all manner of things from the note pressed, to how hard it is pressed and when it is released. This is different to traditional instruments that produce an audio signal you can hear either straight away for acoustic instruments or through an amplifier for electric ones.

With a MIDI keyboard or other MIDI device not producing an audio signal, it needs to be plugged into another device which can convert the code into something we can hear. In the modern era this is usually a laptop or computer.

The computer will receive the code but to produce a sound it will need software of some sort. Windows is changing to become more similar to Apple in the way they present software creating less of a disconnect between computers, tablets and phones.

This means if you have Windows 10, you can now head to the Microsoft store and download apps to your computer. Piano time is really easy to plug in and get going. I plugged in my Novation Impulse MIDI keyboard and it instantly recognized it without me having to go into the settings. Piano time is meant to be simple and for mimicking the sound of a piano.

But this might be a good thing if all you want to do is play the piano. You can record and save clips of what you are playing which is a nice feature, and this allows you to record one part, play it back and then play something else over the top. Handy if you are doing a bit of songwriting. However, be warned, on the free version these clips will only remain in place whilst the program is open, to save or export the tracks you record as MP3 files you will have to pay a small fee to upgrade.

It comes pre-loaded with a few very basic tracks for you to play along with, think Amazing Grace or Mary Had a Little Lamb. The keys will light up and show you how to play along and you can slow it down or speed it up to suit. Perhaps this is most suitable for the absolute beginner or for a child learning the piano.

Also useful for anyone using this to learn the piano are a few basic scale exercises you can play along with. Other features include a metronome that can be adjusted. I did find the clicking a bit annoying but it does the job. I found the sound to be ok. A nice bit of sustain and reverb make it sound quite realistic. This is annoying if you are trying to play notes with the left and right hand, as the right hand notes tend to drown out those of the left. For me, the app had virtually no latency time between pressing a key and hearing the sound.

This is partly due to the app, but will also be due to your computer. If you are experiencing MIDI delay check out this article. Other people have noted that when adverts load it can cause the app to crash. This did happen to me once which was a pain.

You can get rid of the ads by paying just a small fee so this might be worth doing if you are having this issue. Piano 10 is very similar in many ways to Piano Time. It is available for download from the Windows app store on any windows device. The menus in the app are also not the easiest to find with a series of symbol buttons to press, so I had to do a bit of random clicking to find out how to do it.

Different to Piano Time, Piano 10 has a few different effects and amazingly different sounds for you to chose from. Including reverb, sustain and echo but unfortunately only one of these can be turned on at once.

An auto-chords function is pretty cool and is a great way to help learn different chords and chord types as the keys of the chords light up whilst you play. As with piano time you can record short clips of yourself playing. You can save these clips but only as. When testing the default piano sound it was ok, but pressing the keys too lightly meant no sound was played. So if you are trying to practice playing softly you may find this frustrating. However, when the sustain effect is turned on I thought it sounded much more realistic and it felt nice to play.

Although it is cool having different sounds to choose from, be warned, most of them sound pretty terrible. Choose your song from the 2, songs in the catalog. Frequently Asked Questions. How does the MIDI keyboard connection work? What do I need to use it? For your keyboard to be recognized by the software, you must have: — a digital piano with a MIDI connection; — a MIDI-USB cable to connect your piano to your device; — a device connected to the internet computer, tablet or smartphone.

Is this feature free? Yes, the MIDI connection to your keyboard is absolutely free! Play in the best conditions. Try the MIDI connection of my keyboard. Personalized follow-up. Verdict: Piano Time will allow you to play along with piano music and even compose your own songs. It will give you a virtual keyboard so you can see how chords and keys are supposed to be mashed together.

It also has a digital audio interface that lets you hear what you are playing. This free MIDI software also has an arpeggiator which will really help you when practicing. It uses a series of arpeggios to help you play very fast and melodic notes without having to use the notes on the keyboard. You can import any kind of file or music and play it back in Piano Time. With this software, you can play on a digital keyboard and make your own music.

Also, you can download free plug-ins, if you want to enhance tracks. One of the coolest features of GarageBand is the fact that you can import MP3s and other music files directly into the software. With this free music recording software , you can import directly from the computer or your laptop. GarageBand is very easy to use and is a great tool for all types of music. Verdict: Synthesia comes bundled with a huge database of sounds and instruments that you can access and mix. For example, if you want to make a techno tune, try using the samples from the kick drum sample pack.

This pack contains sounds from different top break producers including DJs, techno music artists, and more. The sounds are totally original, with no added vocals. You can click on the tabs to load up a module or assign a patch. If you want to load up more than one patch, just drag and drop them in any order and then select "Open" or "Save" to store them for use later.

Verdict: Piano 10 allows you to have access to thousands of musical instruments and keyboard sounds created by professional musicians. It also comes with video tutorials and virtual tours. The features in this program include a digital keyboard that comes with a touch-sensitive button and a light sensor so you can easily learn how to play any of the keys without having to actually touch the actual keyboard.