Steven Reich’s ClappingMusic App is a very hands-on, fun app to be available on the App Store! Not only is the game fun, but it is also very addictive! I can’t wait for more from this amazing app! Through all the hardships, consequences, and obstacles I’ve gotten through this game, I still love that this application is a very challenging obstacle for any individual to play! You just have to have the *ears* for it, of course! :). Otherwise, this game is one of my *favorite* applications that are downloaded onto my iPhone! Sincerely, Me (Anonymous)! :)
Its a great concept for an app and i want it to work so much! but for whatever reason, there's intolerable tapping latency on my iphone xr that makes it basically useless. I hope the developer can fix that. ill check back and change my review if it does. after some more play im increasing my review to 3 stars. the latency seems to be related to using blue tooth head phones. if i play on the iPhone xr speaker, its better. there's still a little too much lag in the sound for my taste, but at least the timing records accurately and doesn't boot you from the game for errors. so its not useless, but dont plan to play with wireless headphones until the developer updates.
I’ve love this app for a really long time. I’ve recently come back to it after a year or two away, and I’ve noticed that the patterns are out of order from what the original piece is. The pattern no longer just moves forward by a beat, the order seems arbitrary. You’re not supposed to sync back up with the original clapping until after the 12th pattern, but for some reason pattern seven is exactly synced up with the ostinato clap. Still super fun, but maybe an update along the way made the patterns got out of order.
The visual cues on screen don’t match what I hear, which makes it pretty difficult to play. It would be awesome if there was an option to view the patterns written out in notation while playing the game. It would also make the rhythm practice done in the game more practically applicable for musicians (seeing rhythms you play in the game written in notation will make it easy to recognize them immediately in a piece you’re sight reading or whatever). Just my two cents I hope a dev sees this. :)
I love this idea and the app works super well - but the pattern changes are not correct. You’re supposed to move back an eighth note with each change but on the app the first change is a quarter note and the patterns seem generally out of order, which defeats the whole purpose of the piece. And if you clap the piece as the composer wrote it, you fail the game :(
My late, brilliant music theory teacher Seán Diebler introduced us to Clapping Music in 1995. He would be delighted with this app, and probably have a few suggestions.
This app is so frustrating. The authors developed a made-up form of music notation instead of just using standard music notation. I assume it’s to get around copyright law, which is also lame—just pay the publisher. Also, I’m pretty sure it’s incorrect in places—it’s hard to tell, for sure.
But it’s just unpleasant to play. Missing one beat will send you back so fast and it’s just not fun when you miss one beat and have to start over because of how fast the game will kill your run.
The app is fun but doesn’t work with Bluetooth. There is enough latency to throw off the timing using Bluetooth headphones. Once I plug in hardwired headphones the timing is fine. Given that most new Apple devices don’t have headphone jacks, it poses a problem.
This app used to work and was fun, but now it lags, making it impossible to play. I’m on a brand new iPhone. It should work better than with my 2020 phone. Is there a setting I need to change to prevent the lag?
This game is a fantastic tool to train your finger accuracy for rhythm especially if you play piano/keyboard or electronic drums with finger drum pads.
This is one of the best things I come across. As a drummer I could always use methods to improve rhythm and this app is SO fun. Plus I'm a fan of Reich. Music for 18 Musicians? Come on. So good. BUT. It started crashing today. And not even a crash that I can recover from. Once it crashes I can't open the app again, because it'll crash almost immediately. I deleted it and re-downloaded, and it worked for a bit, but the same thing happened again. I'm intensely bummed out because I have so much fun with this. I read a similar complaint in a review...from one year ago. So my hopes about ever being improved are not high. That being said, this app idea HAS to be expanded upon somehow. It's too good a method to teach rhythm and more needs to be done with it.
I don't remember how I stumbled upon this app but I'm so glad I did. As someone who prides themselves on being able to stay on beat I thought this game was going to be simple and I'd lose interest but as soon as I started playing...let me tell you it's so much fun. I find myself getting annoyed and closing the app only to reopen it and play again because I have to get this right. I think it's the perfectionist in me. Anyway, if you've made it this far with reading reviews about it then you might as well just download and try it out...I promise you won't be disappointed.
As a former percussionist, it is my duty and pleasure to love this app. I even developed a technique so that I can use larger muscles for more accurate tapping. I hold my phone in my left hand and rest the right side of the phone on the second knuckle of my right index finger. I then rotate from the elbow to tap the screen with my right thumb (similar to Stevens grip). Anyway, this “game” is beautifully designed and a joy to play.
A great way to understand this music from the inside out. I've had no crashing issues. Really love it! Try the practice mode first to get the hang of it. I saw Reich & co do Drumming at BAM last year and was blown away by watching/ hearing the performance live after years of having only the recordings. Learning to play Clapping with a friend makes me appreciate it even more!
I love the concept of the app, to promote the piece facilitating other people to learn it and improve their rhythm skills, having fun at the same time (whoever had the idea of showing the patterns with dots is a genius, I can't imagine how much harder it would be to have to keep track of everything in our heads!!). However it stopped working after a few days and now I can't even open it!!! Please fix it, it's an app I plan to have for a while :)
This is a wonderful app. Just wanted to give a crash report: On my iPad Air and iPhone 5c I am experiencing crashes upon exiting practice mode going back to the pattern selection screen. Once it crashes there isn't anything I can do to get the app to run except delete it and download again.
This app is quite fun in the nerdiest way possible and I love competing with my musician friends. My one fault with the program is that sometimes I will be spot on with my rhythm, but the app seems to stop registering that I'm tapping the screen. This happens most frequently in hard mode, and it will happen for seconds at a time, leaving me no room to recover. Otherwise I thoroughly enjoy the app!
Don't be turned off by the music needs reviewing this app. It's fun for everyone. Essentially guitar hero for this one piece of music. My only complaint is sometimes there's a hiccup or some lag so my tap registers a bit late. I'm on an iPhone 6 so it could be better on a 6s. Dunno. Fun app for free tho. Can't complain too much!
Sometimes the game doesn't register that I tap on the downbeat of a transition, primarily when there's an upbeat leading directly into a downbeat (ex. Phase 2 into Phase 3, 4 to 5, etc). It will also go on and score me, even if I don't do anything. Otherwise, I love the app. It's a lot of fun to play.
Read about this app on Wired and it looked great. Downloaded to my iPhone 5s and it crashes after starting a clapping pattern, then going to a load and very annoying buzzing sound. It actually freezes up my phone. I think when the bugs are worked out it will be interesting. I’ll wait to give it a try for the next version.
I have tried this app and have not had success with it. The app does not register when the finger touches the aiming point even when it is correct. It is frustrating and I am waiting for a new version to come out so this problem can be fixed and I can actually use the app for learning purposes. In addition, there are no instructions that actually inform you where to tap when playing.
The game that improves your rhythm by challenging you to play Steve Reich’s groundbreaking work Clapping Music – a piece of music performed entirely by clapping. Tap in time with the constantly shifting pattern, and progress through all of the variations. If you slip up or your accuracy falls too low, it’s game over. “Maddeningly addictive” – The New York Times “Might be the toughest rhythm action game since Rock Band” – FACT “Brilliant – and infuriatingly addictive” – The Guardian “Clapping Music is Rock Band with better music (yeah, I said it)” – Kill Screen Features: • Improve your sense of rhythm by playing Clapping Music • Play through three levels of difficulty – can you become good enough to perform? • Hone your skills in Practice Mode • Find out more about Steve Reich and his work with interviews and performance footage • A stunning design and interface that changes colour as you progress through the piece • Completely free with no in-app purchases If you enjoy the app, don’t forget to rate it and leave a review.
The new era of mobile app marketing starts with SplitMetrics AI
