I don't use this blog for reviews very much anymore. Having a Ustream webcast has provided me a forum for exressing my views in a more direct way and in less time than it takes to write a blog post. But I just had to take some time to give a short, written review of Apple's GarageBand for iPad, which debuted earlier this week, and works with both iPad2 as well as the original iPad.
Four years ago, GarageBand was the application that turned me from a PC into a Mac.
At the time, I was looking to get back into music, having been in a few bands in high school and dabbled in four track recording for a bit while in one of them (a real four track, with audio tape and everything, kiddos). I hadn't been involved in music at all during the intervening years and was amazed at how much computers had been integrated into the process and how home recording and composing was made so much easier with the aid of PCs.
I tried out a number of PC-based music recording/composing apps, but when I saw GarageBand for the first time via my (then) wife's Mac, I knew that I was seeing something special. GarageBand was (and is) an amazing tool for desktop music creation. It can be used by professionals and hobbyists alike and it was the program that turned me into a Mac user. After Photoshop, it was my favorite computer progrm to use.
Flash foward a few years and I've become completely Mac'd out. And many of you know that I was an early proponent and adopter of the iPad. I've had one since they came out last year, have used it every day since for multiple purposes and have never regretted getting one. And yes, I stood in line yesterday to upgrade to iPad2.
And I'm already loving iPad2 (it's slimmer, faster and being able to shoot and edit video on a tablet device is wonderful). But truth be told, the best thing that Apple put out this week was not their second generation tablet, but their first generation of GarageBand for that tablet.
Simply put, GarageBand is the most amazing iPad app I've ever used. The combination of music recoding/editing, the touch capabilities and the new "smart" instruments makes the GarageBand/iPad combo something very special. I've bought and used a number of non-Apple music creation and recording apps over the last year and marvelled at the news ways that musicians and hobbyists have to create their music. But GaragBand beats them all. It's not even a close contest.
I spent 2 or 3 hours last night with GarageBand creating some songs and it was the most pleasurable time I've ever spent using the iPad. If I had this when I was in high school, I never would have stopped making music over the years. The simplicity and accessibilty of the app's tools make music creation an amazingly satisfying experience, one that I never had dealing with cords, amps and audiotape.
GarageBand almost makes music-making too simple. One could argue that it allows amateurs and non-musicians the ability to do what only trained musicians could do before. That's a valid point. But it also allows people with experience to quickly "sketch" musical ideas that can later be expanded upon with real world instruments. It allows for musical experimentation on the go. Sketchbook Pro for iPad allowed for me to always have a digital sketchbook with me for drawing, and now I have a portable music studio for doing the same with music.
Well done, Apple.
Go HERE to watch the video guided tour of GarageBand for iPAd (as well as other apps).
-Otis
