178: Useful Music Apps

Jason demonstrates the MIDI Fighter at the 2015 Illinois ASTA Teacher Enrichment Workshop
Jason demonstrates the MIDI Fighter at the 2015 Illinois ASTA Teacher Enrichment Workshop

Today’s episode is a bit of a departure from the norm for us. This is a recording of a talk I did for the Illinois American String Teachers Association’s Fall Teacher Enrichment Workshop in October of 2015.  I have been involved with this organization for many years and am their current state chapter president.  I have done presentations like this many times in the past (you can find them in the archives of Contrabass Conversations).  I cover all sorts of music apps for iOS and Android that I use in my own practicing and teaching, and I think that listeners will discover some useful tools by listening to this presentation.

I recorded this talk on my iPad, and I actually use the iPad for a few parts of the talk, so you will hear some audio strangeness from time to time as I pick up and manipulate the iPad. I also demo a device called the MIDI Fighter using a piece of software called Ableton Live, and again, you’ll hear me kind of banging away at this device as I talk, so that’s what’s going on at the end of the talk.

Here’s a link to a video of the MIDI Fighter in action–it’s an interesting device!

By Jason

An active double bass performer and teacher, Jason teaches double bass at DePaul University and served on the Board of Directors of the International Society of Bassists for many years. Jason is the current President of the Illinois chapter of the American String Teachers Association. Jason has been a member of the Elgin Symphony since 2000 and has played with the Midsummer’s Music Festival in Door County for the past decade. He is a past member of the Milwaukee Ballet and IRIS Orchestra, and has performed with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Grant Park Symphony, and numerous other professional ensembles.