Today's app is the My First Orchestra app:

​My First Orchestra (http://www.playtalesbooks.com/en/home) Learn about the different families of musical instruments with an animal band; practice playing the drum, flute, and violin; create own songs; introduce children to music and instruments; (Android 2.2 and up).

Today's app is The Orchestra app:

​The Orchestra (http://www.touchpress.com/titles/orchestra/) Esa-Pekka Salonen conducts the world-renowned Philharmonia performing extended extracts from eight works representing three centuries of symphonic music; app allows real-time selection of multiple video and audio tracks, along with an automatically synchronized score and dynamic graphical note-by-note visualization of each piece as it is played; an immersive environment for exploring the music and all the instruments of the orchestra; includes Haydn: Symphony No. 6, Beethoven: Symphony No. 5, Berlioz: Symphony Fantastique, Debussy: Prélude à l’après MIDI d’un faune, Mahler: Symphony No. 6, Stravinsky: The Firebird, Lutosławski: Concerto for Orchestra, and Salonen: Violin Concerto; features multi-camera, multi-track performances of eight pieces with automatically synchronized full score, curated score, or simplified representation; synchronized BeatMap highlights every note played on a graphical representation of the orchestra; optional audio and/or subtitle commentaries on every piece from both the conductor and the players; discover how each instrument works; read, watch, and hear the musicians themselves explain their role in the orchestra; text on the pieces, composers, and instruments specially written by Mark Swed, music critic of the LA Times; interactive video playback allows complete real-time control of the iPad screen in both landscape and portrait orientation; designed for iPad and iPad mini; languages include English, Japanese, Deutsch, and Français; (iOS 6.0 or later).

Today's app is the Symphonica app:

​Symphonica (http://www.jp.square-enix.com/symphonica/en/index.html) Music game app; learn what it’s like to be an up-and-coming conductor via a unique gaming experience; the story is about
Einsatz, the city of music, founded by the legendary conductor Carlos and his companions and brought to where it is today by its citizens, the Audience; talented musicians from around the world flock here with dreams of performing in King Hall at the top of Concerto Tower, which stands tall over the city; Takt has come to Einsatz to pursue his own dream of becoming the world’s best conductor; he did not know that he would be in charge of the ramshackle Fayharmonic, an orchestra on the verge of collapse; leaning on Takt as their last hope, the Fayharmonic and their new conductor set their sights on King Hall; thus begins the tale of Takt and his companions in song; lack of specially designated tapping “hot spots” gives user more freedom, allowing them to feel more of what it’s like to be a conductor; tempo shifts and real-time, control-linked volume changes; tightly integrated gameplay and story; puts user in the role of a conductor honing the skills of his or her musicians; music game portion is organically integrated with the story; perform at higher score levels to increase orchestra’s fame and add new pieces to repertoire; once user clears a given song with a certain number of points, can test skill with a more challenging version of the song; includes many classical masterpieces; features nearly fifty recognizable songs including twenty full performances and approximately thirty rehearsal pieces, including Dvorak’s New World Symphony and Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony; (iOS 5.0 or later).

Today's app is the Sounds of the Orchestra app:

​Sounds of the Orchestra (http://www.smappsoft.com/sounds-of-the-orchestra.html) Learn about the classical musical instruments that comprise the orchestra; wide variety of playing, learning, and listening activities; card matching game to test memory and listening skills by pairing instruments by picture and sound; tap on the soundboard to learn the sounds of each instrument; quiz ear to recognize; explore the four sections of the orchestra; learn about the individual instruments within each section while listening to classical music favorites; for use in any musical education environment; recommended for ages one-seven; (iOS 4.3 or later).

Today's app is the My First Orchestra App HD:

​My First Orchestra App HD (http://www.naxos.com/catalogue/apps/app.asp?ID=NAPP0102B) Introduction to the orchestra for children aged four and above; the orchestra is a musical team; explore all the instruments in the sequel to Naxos’s My First Classical Music App; guide to the orchestra is a little green creature called Tormod, a troll who has come from the top of a mountain in Norway to find out about music; help him find his way home while he shows listeners around the orchestra; every instrument has its own page, with a young performer playing a solo; Tormod shows all of these and sometimes tries the instruments himself; tap any words or pictures and hear the text narrated, extracts of music, animations, and sound effects; many different pieces of music in excellent audio quality; full album of music includes:
John Williams: Superman, Sarasate: Carmen Fantasy, Mozart: Horn Concerto No. 4, Mendelssohn: The Hebrides (Fingal’s Cave), Wagner: Overture to Tannhäuser, Grieg: In the Hall of the Mountain King, and over thirty more; every instrument in the orchestra is featured with an animated performer; includes beautiful illustrations created specially for the app; friendly, engaging narration; tap on any piece of text to hear it; activities include a quiz on naming the instruments and a go at conducting; full album of music with over forty different pieces featured throughout the app in excellent recordings; (iOS 4.3 or later).

Today's app is the Melody Street HD app:

​Melody Street HD (http://www.melodystreet.com/apps) The House On Melody Street interactive e-book tells the story of the instruments of the orchestra learning to live in harmony; the storyline, written in rhymes and set to a symphonic score, includes lessons about friendship, tolerance, and mutual understanding; musical score represents different dialogues between the various characters, portraying each one with its own unique sound; children are introduced to the musical families of the orchestra including Strings, Woodwinds, Percussion, Brass, and Pluck, and learn to recognize them by look, sound, character, and family orientation; first chapter introduces the five story house in which the musical instrument families live; children get to interact and form personal relationships with each of the characters through fun and imagination filled touchscreen activities; as the story unfolds in the following chapters, users discover that living together is no easy task, when one isn’t willing to accept the other’s uniqueness; Timpani Tim is too loud, Old Lady Harp’s cat goes through the trash, Sammy Snare is rowdy, and Terry Trombone’s cooking smells; on one sunny morning, a new neighbor arrives and comes up with a plan to help them live in harmony; listen to the sound of each instrument and follow along with the story; interactive features; fun activities and entertaining musical education; beneficial to the mental, social, and musical development of children; connects children with music and teaches them about the importance of living in harmony; introduction to eighteen musical instruments; child friendly interactive interface on each page; narrated by Ethan Bortnick; auto play version plays like a movie; animation; (iOS 3.2 or later).

This week's apps will focus on the orchestra:

​Meet the Orchestra (http://www.meettheorchestra.com) App opens the world of classical music to kids; entertainment and fun interactive experience; app will teach children about the names, appearance, and sounds of the popular orchestra instruments; learn the sections the orchestra is composed of and the musical instruments in each section; differentiate between the instruments both visually and audibly; help develop child’s ear as well as his or her musical and general memory; music is one of the main disciplines for finding out the child’s potential; it has always been known intuitively, and recently proven scientifically, that early exposure to music is extremely useful for any child’s development; along with the instrument learning, children are exposed to some of the best examples of classical music fine-recorded in a professional studio by musicians of a national symphonic orchestra; app is organized into two parts: learning and quizzes; learning part is designed to introduce children to the orchestra and instruments; quiz section develops skills in recognizing instruments by sight and by sound; quiz’s difficulty increases with type and level, offering engaging and varying experiences as the learning process progresses; useful for adults in refreshing own knowledge; interesting and educational, simple and effective; includes Strings: Viola, Violin, Cello, Double Bass, and Harp; Woodwinds: Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, and Saxophone;
Brass: French Horn, Trumpet, Trombone, and Tuba;
Percussion: Snare Drum, Bass Drum, Timpani, Cymbals, and Piano; (iOS 4.3 or later).

Today's app is the Ear Training app:

​Ear Training (http://tonalapps.com/eartraining/) Improve relative pitch; learn major and minor modes, intervals, triads, inversions, and seventh chords; practice recognizing chords and scales by ear with notation; test ability to recognize chords and scales by ear alone; test results are broken down by category to focus on the categories that need improvement; designed to be used with earphones or headphones; (iOS 7.0 or later).

Today's app is the Do Re Mi Ear Training app:

​Do Re Mi Ear Training (http://www.axe-monkey.com) Solfège practice partner; helps develop pitch recognition, memory, and transcription ability by playing musical phrases for the student to repeat back; options for beginners and experts; (iOS 4.3 or later).

Today's app is the EarMan app:

​EarMan (http://ipad.rogame.com/pages/EarMan.html) App helps improve skills with a structured ear training curriculum and fully customizable practice sessions; (iOS 6.0 or later).