Songwriting Software Mac Free

 

  1. Songwriting App For Pc
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Contest winners get the opportunity to record an EP for free with a notable producer. Entrants are given a free unlimited-access trial to SongU.com plus a free songwriting software program (compatible with either Mac or Windows). A comprehensive assortment of top-shelf songwriting software and more. The competition is open to amateurs. What's new in TuneSmith. Version 6.1: Note: 17.0.3 is the version number reported in Finder; it is a reflection of the app's runtime version. The developer refers to this version of the app as 6.1. TuneSmith now comes with a plug‑in version of Rhyme Genie 9.5 which features a refined look with selectable dark mode.

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Automated Music Accompaniment

Select downloadable or boxed versions from the drop-down menu above.

Mac users get a free upgrade to version 2021 from PG Music.*
* Contact PG Music within 30 days of purchase.

Auto accompaniment software for musicians, songwriters, and educators

Perfect for musicians, songwriters, and educators – award-winning Band-in-a-Box is the world’s premiere auto accompaniment and style-based music creation software. Use it to easily create music backing tracks for your songwriting, vocal performances, or create jam tracks for practicing solos and improvisation. You can also use it as a powerful songwriting tool. Band-in-a-Box automatically creates professional-quality backing tracks in a wide variety of popular styles including Rock, Pop, Country, Folk, Celtic, Blues, Jazz, Latin, and Bluegrass styles. You can also create your own Hybrid Styles.

New Band-in-a-Box 2021 for Windows features:

  • Over 202 new RealTracks (Sets 353-375)!
  • 24-bit audio playback, recording, mixing, and rendering is supported.
  • 7,000 more song titles added to the Song Titles Browser.
  • Faster audio DSP processing (up to 4X faster using SIMD).
  • 16 new editable Utility tracks, which can be used for audio and/or MIDI.
  • Audio harmonies can be generated to separate tracks.
  • View audio on any track, not just the Audio track.
  • Improved mixer with many customizable display options.
  • Improved plugin control and MIDI routing.
  • RealTracks can be pitch-corrected to match chord tones.
  • All RealDrums have RealCharts (with accurate Drum Notation and MIDI to trigger drum sounds).
  • 2/2 cut time and 2/4 notation display.
  • Time signature button with a better menu.
  • A new visual transpose button.
  • Waves® plugins support.
  • ... and much more!

Band-in-a-Box 2020 for Mac features:

  • Band-in-a-Box is now 64-bit for use with the latest operating systems.
    Windows users: A 32-bit version is included for older operating systems.
  • 64-bit VST plugin version so you can run Band-in-a-Box in your DAW.
  • Over 202 new RealTracks (Sets 329-352)!
  • Find best Sub feature lets you easily try similar RealTracks.
  • MultiRiffs let you generate different performances from a single RealTrack.
  • RealTracks thickening and panning added.
  • Most RealDrums include drum charts with accurate notation.
  • Artist Browser offers information on the RealTracks artists.
  • Features Browser makes it easy to find features and hot keys.
  • Audio Chord Wizard multi-window display.
  • Equalize the tempo of audio that wasn’t recorded to a click.
  • Enhanced time-stretching.
  • Windows users: Improved VST SynthFont 64.
  • ... and much more!

Band-in-a-Box is available a in a variety of configurations to suit your needs and budget.

What is Band-in-a-Box?

Use Band-in-a-Box to write songs or to practice improvisation and soloing. Band-in-a-Box easily delivers great sounding backing tracks in a multitude of styles. Band-in-a-Box Pro includes over 350 RealTracks Sets featuring over 100 bands playing real instruments. You get over 340 hours of recordings by top studio musicians to use on your own songs.

Top Features of Band-in-a-Box:
  • Create your own backing tracks and jam tracks in all popular music styles including: Jazz, Blues, Funk, Rock, Pop, Country, Folk, Latin, Caribbean/Calypso, Celtic, Bluegrass, Reggae, and many more!
  • RealTracks and RealDrums give you access to recordings by top studio musicians for use in your songs.
  • Video RealTracks, which work like RealTracks with videos of the performing musician.
  • Audio Chord Wizard can detect the chords in any AIFF, MP4, M4A, or other audio files and display them for you.
  • Audio Wizard can determine the tempo, bar lines, and song’s key.
  • Audio Harmonies with transcription, which converts a monophonic audio track to notation.
  • Fix Tuning feature to correct an out-of-tune audio recording.
  • Automatically generated melodies and solos that you can study.
  • Instrumental Studies for guitar with performances to help you learn to play backing or lead guitar in different styles.
  • Print song arrangements as a lead sheets including music notation.
  • Support for compound time signatures such as 12/8, 6/8, and 9/8.
  • Toolbar skins and other customization features.
  • Export your song as a high-resolution MP3.
  • Export the Notation Window to video synchronized with the audio track playback.
  • Open or Save As ABC notation files, which as common song files on the Internet with chords and melody.
  • Audio Edit Window with new features.
  • Import an audio file, record audio, or render your song to an Audio track or export as a YouTube video.
  • Includes 1,000 modern electronic dance and Top 40/pop style loops, or import your own.
  • Ultra-low latency audio driver (Windows Audio Session).
  • and more!

VST Plug-in

Band-in-a-Box includes a 64-bit VST plug-in format that works with any Windows DAW that accepts VST plug-ins. The Mac version includes 64-bit VST, AU, and AAX plug-ins. Easily add Band-in-a-Box tracks to your audio production!

Automatic Music Accompaniment

Award-winning Band-in-a-Box is easy-to-use, intelligent music accompaniment software. Just type in the chords for any song using standard chord symbols (i.e., C, Fm7, C13b9), choose the style you would like played by the band, and Band-in-a-Box does the rest!

You can import a simple acoustic guitar demo and then use the Audio Chord Wizard to detect the chords, and the Audio Wizard to determine the tempo, bar lines, and song key. Use Band-in-a-Box to flesh out your arrangement with a full band.

Studio Musicians Are Always on Call For You

Your backing tracks will sound even better with RealTracks. These sound best because they are actual recordings of the performances by top studio musicians. It’s like having live studio musicians available to play anytime!

Artist Performances by great players such as Downbeat jazz winners Eric Alexander (tenor sax), Ron Carter (bass), Kenny Barron (piano), Lewis Nash (drums), Gary Smulyan (baritone sax), Mike Moreno (guitar), and Phil Woods (alto sax). Plus, you get tracks by gypsy jazz guitarist Quinn Bachand and noted Nashville session players Brent Mason (guitar) and Kevin McKendree (piano).

RealTracks are available in a wide range of musical styles, keys, and tempos. There are over 2,900 RealTracks (2,700 for Mac 2019) included in the UltraPAK or UltraPAK+ which equates to over 3,100 hours (2,900 for Mac 2019) of recorded performances! You get RealTracks for guitar, bass, piano, banjo, saxophone, and much more!

RealStyle automatically selects RealTracks for you when generating an arrangement. RealCharts even lets you view the music notation and guitar tab/fretboard display. RealCombos that make it easy to assign all song tracks to the same style using a RealTracks band.

RealDrums (a types of RealTrack) give you the perfect drum groove complete with fills and brushes for jazz arrangements. You even get “Woodshedding” RealTracks from Brent Mason played in 12 keys. They are displayed with Hi-Q Tab/Notation, which is ideal for studying and learning!

Bands in a Wide Variety of Styles

RealCombos are preset arrangements of RealTracks in specific styles. They make it easy to select RealTracks for your song. For example, the “Jazz Swing 140” RealCombo includes RealCombo includes bass, piano, guitar, sax, and drums that were recorded at a medium swing tempo of 140 bpm. (Note that RealTracks can be used at any tempo; however, they sound most natural when played close to the original recorded tempo.)

Import/Export AppleLoops (Mac) and Acid files (Windows) or other loops or your favorite MIDI track in any style to any track in your arrangement. Band-in-a-Box includes MIDI styles and MIDI SuperTracks that allow you to customize MIDI sounds and edit notes.

Create Your Own Style

Hybrid Styles allow you to mix-and-match instruments from up to five RealCombos so you can create your custom sound. For example, your custom arrangement could have a Reggae bass, Rock drums, and Salsa piano. Create a name for your Hybrid Style, save it, and use it anytime.

Amazing Vocal Harmonies

Simply record your vocal part, choose a harmony, and Band-in-a-Box will generate up to four part vocal harmonies for you using the world-leading TC-Helicon Vocal Technologies engine. If your singing is not in perfect tune, Band-in-a-Box can “fix” vocals to the correct pitch using the Melody track.

Save, Print, Render, and Share Your Music

Want people to perform your song live? Just print out your complete song arrangement as sheet music. Easily generate lead sheets for your band.

Want an audio recording? Use the built-in mixer to control volume, panning, tone, and reverb for each instrument in your ultra-realistic Band-in-a-Box arrangement. The “Combo” slider lets you make changes to all tracks at once. Export directly as audio files (AIFF, M4A, or WAV) for use in other programs (GarageBand, Cubase, etc.) or to share on the Internet.

Time-saving features include automatic track labels, video tutorial-help buttons, and a Piano Window to display piano notes. The Audio Edit Window displays a digital waveform for the Audio track for selecting, playing, and editing audio.

VST Support

VST plugin support allows Band-in-a-Box to access a huge library of 3rd party software instruments that play through your computer without requiring external sound sources. Each Band-in-a-Box track lets you use multiple instruments for distinctive layered sounds. You can also use VST audio plug-ins (reverb, delay etc.) to enhance your tracks.

Customize over 150 of the guitar-based RealTracks with the Guitar Amp Simulator (AmpliTube CS). Band-in-a-Box includes the Sforzando VST synthesizer with support for the popular .SFZ sound format as well as Hi-Q sounds.

Band-in-a-Box is developed by PG Music.

From survey responses, our customers rate this product:

From our partner PG Music.

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“Man is a tool-using animal. Without tools he is nothing, with tools he is all.” – Thomas Carlyle (Scottish writer and philosopher)

In a previous article, we looked at why you should always be ready to record your songwriting ideas.

This article goes through the best songwriting tools you can use to record those ideas.

Just to be clear, these audio tools are for recording your rough songwriting ideas, not your final recordings.

You’re the only one who will hear these recordings, so audio quality isn’t important at this stage. The goal is to get your ideas down quickly.

OK, on to the tools!

1. Voice recorders (my songwriting tool of choice)

A voice recorder is a small handheld audio recorder with a built-in microphone and speaker.

Voice recorders cost around $20 to $150 depending on the features.

Why I love voice recorders

My voice recorder is my favorite songwriting tool. It’s fast, easy, inexpensive, portable, and always ready to go.

I use an Olympus VN-5200PC digital voice recorder. It’s a few years old and nothing fancy. You can get something like it for less than $40.

To record I just turn it on and hit the record button. I don’t have to sort through menus or wait for it to load. It just works.

It also has a USB port and lets me drag and drop audio files on to my computer or MP3 player. It doesn’t need any special software.

It’s so easy!

If you’re shopping for a voice recorder, check out this list of popular brands.

Popular brands of voice recorders

  • Olympus
  • RCA
  • Sony
  • Yamaha

2. Smartphones

Smartphones are a good recording option. They have decent sound quality, and they are almost always with you.

Recording apps

Most smartphones come with a free recording app.

However, if you don’t like the recording app on your phone there are tons of free and paid apps to choose from.

“Audio Memos” is popular on the iPhone.

“Smart Voice Recorder” and “Easy Voice Recorder” are popular for Android phones.

Feel free to post your favorite recording apps in the comments below.

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Note-taking apps

Many note-taking apps let you make recordings in addition to text notes and photos.

I especially like the free note-taking app Evernote. Evernote is available for iPhone, Android, Windows, and Blackberry phones. It also works on the iPad, Android tablet, Mac desktop, Windows desktop, and other devices. I use it on an Apple iPod Touch and a Dell Windows laptop.

You can get Evernote for free here.

Why I rarely record on a smartphone

The downside of recording on a smartphone is that you have to navigate through icons and options every time you record.

To make a recording you have to turn on your phone, swipe to unlock it, find the recording app, launch the recording app, wait for it to load, then start the recording.

This isn’t a big deal if you’re just making one recording. But when I’m working on a song I might make 30 short recordings in one hour.

Sorting through menus every time I make a quick recording can become a hassle. It’s much easier to just hit the record button on a voice recorder.

Songwriting is hard enough without technology getting in the way.

3. Tablets (like the Apple iPad, Amazon Kindle, or Google Android tablet)

Mac

Most tablets have built-in microphones and use the same or similar recording apps as smartphones.

If your tablet has a built-in microphone it probably also comes with a free recording app.

I don’t currently use a tablet, so feel free to add your favorite recording apps in the comments.

4. Computers

To record audio on your computer you’ll need a microphone and audio recording software.

Microphones

Most laptops come with a built-in microphone. I use the built-in microphone on my Dell laptop. The sound quality is terrible, but it’s good enough for recording rough ideas.

Most webcams have built in microphones, so if you have a webcam you probably already have a microphone.

If your computer doesn’t have a microphone you can get a cheap one for less than $20.

Audacity

For quick recordings I use the free open source music recording software “Audacity“. Audacity is available for Windows PCs, Mac, and Linux.

You can download Audacity for free here.

With Audacity I can start recording in 3 mouse clicks and 3 seconds. I launch Audacity, wait 3 seconds for it to load, then hit record. That’s it!

Audacity is fairly easy to use and there are lots of free tutorial videos on YouTube if you get stuck. This “Audacity Educast Series” is a good place to start learning.

GarageBand

If you have a Mac you can use the audio program GarageBand by Apple. I have never used GarageBand, but I’ve heard it’s good.

At the time this article was written GarageBand was included free on all new Macs. If you’re thinking of buying a new Mac be sure to ask if it’s still free.

Why I don’t use Pro Tools to record my rough songwriting ideas

For making quick recordings, free software like Audacity works better than the fancy professional software like Pro Tools.

Pro Tools is a powerful program, but it takes a long time to load and is complicated to set up.

I use Pro Tools for making final recordings, but I never use it for recording quick song ideas.

Computers can be frustrating, skip it if it’s too hard

Getting a recording to work on your computer can be frustrating. You might have problems with the microphone, recording software, operating system, or something else.

Unless you love your computer or have no other options, I recommend skipping the computer and using a voice recorder or another songwriting tool.

Even though my computer is always set up to record, I almost never use it. My voice recorder is easier and it sounds better.

However, I feel good knowing my computer is always ready in case my voice recorder isn’t around.

5. MP3 players

Mac

Many MP3 players have built-in microphones that let you record audio.

Songwriting Software Mac Free

I have a SanDisk Sansa Clip MP3 player with a built-in microphone.

Unfortunately, in order to make a recording on the Sansa Clip you have to navigate through a few menus. It’s not as easy as just pressing record on a voice recorder. Because of this I rarely use it to record my ideas.

Recording from the radio

Many MP3 players let you record from the radio.

This is useful when you hear a cool chord progression or some other inspiring idea. You can easily capture that idea and save it for later.

6. Voice-mail

If you don’t have a Smartphone, you can call your own voice-mail and sing yourself a message.

How to record your ideas – even when you don’t have a recorder with you!

Remember, you can use any phone in the world to call your own voice mail. You don’t have to use your own phone.

How to record your ideas if you don’t have voice-mail

If you don’t have voice-mail, you can leave a message on your friend’s voice-mail.

Julio Sanchez, a songwriter I know, used to leave his song ideas on my voice-mail. It was cool to check my messages and occasionally find a brand new song. He’d say “Huey, this is Julio. Save this song for me.”

7. Digital audio recorders

Digital audio recorders are like hi-end voice recorders. Prices start around $100 and go up to $500 and higher.

Some units have built-in microphones, others require you to plug in external microphones.

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Digital audio recorders are called many different names, such as:

  • handheld recorders
  • handheld digital audio recorders
  • portable digital recorders

You don’t need a professional-quality digital audio recorder to make quick recordings of your rough song ideas. However, if you’re interested in finding out more, check out this list of popular brands.

Popular Brands of Digital Audio Recorders

  • Alesis
  • Line 6
  • Marantz
  • Olympus
  • Roland
  • Sony
  • Tascam
  • Teac
  • Yamaha
  • Zoom

Final thoughts

There are tons of songwriting tools out there. Use whatever works best for you.

I love voice recorders. However, I also like knowing that I always have other options.

In a future article we’ll go over the best ways to record your songwriting ideas for maximum awesomeness.

Until then, feel free to check out our Facebook page and click the like button. We send out regular updates of songwriting tips and inspiration.

All the best!

Free Songwriting Software Downloads

PS – If you use a tool we didn’t mention or have thoughts or questions be sure to let us know in the comments section below.