Wow, this might be valid for live...

[CogCode]

I do a "one man band" show, where I take a computer rig with me, and I've sequenced up a couple hundred cover songs from various genres of music, everything from Sinatra to Sabbath.

I do all the vocals and guitars live, with everything else handled by the sequencer and virtual instruments.

Statistically, the material where I get the best reaction is jazz standards, and my originals that are written in that old "jazz standard" style.

So while some people seem to like the eclectic mix, the vast majority keep asking for "more Sinatra", etc.

I've been thinking of "steering into that curve" and taking gigs where I do ONLY jazz standards and my similarly arranged originals.


Long story short, after plugging my iPad into my PA and running the iReal Book player, I liked what I was hearing. I think this might be a reasonable replacement for my computer rig on some gigs in the future.

I also was really getting a Tony Bennett vibe from the more ballad-type songs, which I really liked.


I can't wait for per-song bpm support... :blush:

 

[dflat]

I do a "one man band" show ....

Hello CogCode, thank you for letting us know how you might use iRealbook player and your feedback. It helps us understand how it is being used so we can develop in the right direction. Happy gigging.

 

[CogCode]

I have a few songs worked up now in iReal Book form, various styles and tempos, so I'm going to give this a go at my gig tonight.

If it sound as good as I think it's going to sound in a real venue setting, I'll actively start "moving" my current standards repertoire from the computer to iReal Book for live stuff.

Of course, for now I have to have a cheat-sheet for tempos, etc.

 

[dflat]

...so I'm going to give this a go at my gig tonight...
Of course, for now I have to have a cheat-sheet for tempos...

Will be good to hear how it works out for you. Let us know.
If you need to, you could append the tempo to its title.

 

[CogCode]

Will be good to hear how it works out for you. Let us know.
If you need to, you could append the tempo to its title.

Yeah, that little trick crossed my mind at the gig tonight.


Which went really well, by the way.

Once the levels were set, the iReal Book player output fit right in with my other jazz standards coming from my computer sequencer.

Yeah, I would have loved some Bill Evans style improv once in a while on piano, but I was able to cover the soloing/fills territory with guitar anyway, so the basic chord comping on piano from the player was fine for my purposes.

A real standout tonight at the gig was the player's walking bass stuff. This had a very natural sound, with that little swingin' "push" that drove the energy level up.

So the verdict is in. The sound quality is good enough that, for pure jazz gigs, I can safely start subbing my iPad and iReal Book's player for my computer rig. As a gigging singer/guitarist, this app is turning out to be a real gem for me. :y:

 

[gigdiary]

Re Live Gigs

I've been wondering about this since installing iRealBook and the player component. That's great news. I'm using it at home, alongside sequencers and mp3s, and find it compares more than favourably, but have yet to take it to a gig. Next Tuesday's the first one!

So once your track has an intro, and ending, you still need to input tempo and number of choruses? Is that right? Also I've just installed AmpKit+ and would love the two to work together.

Any chance?

 

[dflat]

...As a gigging singer/guitarist, this app is turning out to be a real gem for me.

Thanks for the feedback. Great news. We spent a lot of time making it sound as good as we could (with all the variables and complexities involved.) Of course Massimo is a bass player so he wanted it sounding reasonably convincing.

 

[dflat]

...So once your track has an intro, and ending, you still need to input tempo and number of choruses? Is that right? Also I've just installed AmpKit+ and would love the two to work together.

Any chance?

Yes you need to set tempo or tap to get it (assuming the one it has is not what you want) and number of choruses. Can be done quite quickly though.

As far as I know AmpKit+ does not work with audio from another app as input. We have had another thread here:
https://forums.irealpro.com/threads/830/
relating to this. We will look into this in the future and see if it is possible to sum the audio. Multitasking has just been introduced for iOS (and not yet iPad.) Obviously we also need to make sure the CPU can handle the demands of both.
Meanwhile you could record the audio of iReal book tunes at the correct tempo, key etc. and add it back via iTunes into your music/ipod library, then use guitar amp apps that can play them while adding your guitar effects. Not as spontaneous, but should work.

update Sept 2011
Ampkit v1.2 includes multitasking support so audio is processed the background
http://agilepartners.com/

 

[gigdiary]

Live performance

Thanks, dflat. That is all I really need. As I said I'm new to this and didn't know I could do that. I'll look further.

 

[gigdiary]

On the gig

I played my first iRealBook gig the other day. It works! Really well! And it's real easy to operate on the stand.

I'm a guitarist, and had a gig with a singer who had her own tracks and
rig. I played a few jazz standards before her set. Instead of using my sequenced tracks, it was nice to be able to compile a set from the iRealBook list and choose tempi and number of choruses on the spot. The factory settings sounded fine, although I can see how a quick sound check, and adjustment on the app could be good. Also I have to think about intros and endings. But even without them for jazz standard gigs where you need tracks, the iRealBook player is awesome.

And for once I'm not dreading the Xmas song thing this year. No matter what a singer may choose, and what key etc, this is the easiest way to do it.

Brilliant software, guys!

 

[dflat]

Hi GigDiary, thanks for your information and feedback. Glad it went well!
Which iOS device do you use?

 

[gigdiary]

AmpKit and iRealBook

My previous question about using AmpKit and iRealBook together is now a moot point thanks to another reply on this forum. I wouldn't want them on the same device. I now have a reason to get an iPhone or another iPod. As someone, CogCode I think, said, 'minimalization'.

What a magnificent word for the one man band.

 

[gigdiary]

I'm using the iPod, but will, see my next message, now upgrade my phone to an iPhone to complete my 'device rig'.

 

[dflat]

I'm using the iPod, but will, see my next message, now upgrade my phone to an iPhone to complete my 'device rig'.

The reason why I ask is that another guitarist said that he thought the ipod too small at the distance he puts his music stand and likes the iPad size better. You obviously cope with the small screen size. Thanks.

 

[gigdiary]

iPod vs iPad

The reason why I ask is that another guitarist said that he thought the ipod too small at the distance he puts his music stand and likes the iPad size better. You obviously cope with the small screen size. Thanks.

I only used the iPod as a player not a chord or sheet music reader. Of course it's too small for that. So now, yes, my new device rig needs all three, iPod, iPhone, as a backup and an iPad for the space to load lead sheets etc.

On the gig the other day, there was no music stand, just a table with the PA amp and mixer, which left little room for anything other than my beer, a Boss Delay and the iPod. I chose tunes I knew. Of course if I were a one man outfit it would be different.

 

[dflat]

I only used the iPod as a player not a chord or sheet music reader...

I play guitar also, so will see if I can see my ipod touch iReal book chords rather than the iPad size.
I have been looking at some of the music PDF apps for the iPad to have notation charts, have not made up my mind between forscore, Gigbook, iBooks and unrealbook. Have you decided on one yet?

 

[gigdiary]

I play guitar also, so will see if I can see my ipod touch iReal book chords rather than the iPad size.
I have been looking at some of the music PDF apps for the iPad to have notation charts, have not made up my mind between forscore, Gigbook, iBooks and unrealbook. Have you decided on one yet?

I wouldn't try to use the iPod for chords, other than a quick skim or refresher before playing the tune. I don't have an iPad yet, but the iRealBook app is giving me good reason to shell out the bucks. As I said before, I'd be happy using the Touch as a player and use the iPad as a pdf reader if needed, for tunes I don't know.

It's still quite a small price considering we've paid out for laptops, and other hardware to do gigs in the past. Of course the iPod or phone will play all your other tracks too.

I've looked at pdf readers on IOS, but until I get an iPad, I can't offer an opinion.

 

[CogCode]

Yeah, the iPad/iPod Touch combo is hitting my "sweet spot" for my gigging rig.

iPad for iReal Book charts and the player, and iPod Touch for my virtual guitar rig.

I've even stripped down the vocal processing. My little Mackie mixer doesn't have an on-board fx section, so I'm using my little TC-Helicon Harmony-G pedal, which has a decent built-in fx section for reverb, etc.

So my whole rig (excluding guitar, mic/stand, powered speakers) now takes up about 2 sq feet of space total. lol


What a wonderful time to be a musician.

 

[CogCode]

I play guitar also, so will see if I can see my ipod touch iReal book chords rather than the iPad size.
I have been looking at some of the music PDF apps for the iPad to have notation charts, have not made up my mind between forscore, Gigbook, iBooks and unrealbook. Have you decided on one yet?

There are a couple of interesting options, if you haven't already seen them.

http://www.jimdunlop.com/index.php?page=products/pip&id=388&pmh=products/accessories

http://www.primacoustic.com/telepad.htm


Personally, I'm thinking of getting the IK Multimedia iKlip for my iPad, and the Primacoustic TelePad for my iPod Touch, and mounting them both on my mic stand.

 

[dflat]

Personally, I'm thinking of getting the IK Multimedia iKlip for my iPad,

I looked at the iKlip and Xclip but I have the Apple iPad cover and both seem to accommodate just the ipad and do not allow any covers. I like the Apple cover as it closes to protect the surface and I use it on café tables in Landscape on an angle. It is a tight fit to get it in and out, so would rather have a 'clip' which has a little more room and can secure with levers or something to close up on the size....or maybe just buy another iPad!


http://www.ikmultimedia.com/iklip/features/
http://criskenna.com/xclip.html