Strum Machine - Backing Tracks

Minor improvements, plus an experimental (opt-in) metronome feature. Learn more by going to the top-left menu, then tapping About / Version History.

We've redesigned the editing interface from the ground up to be smoother and easier to use, with new features like number-chords in the editor and a whole slew of new extended/jazz chords you can use in your charts!

A small update that makes links to the Strum Machine website open in the app.

A huge update to the band settings and guitar capabilities, eight months in the making! (Plus iOS 17 improvements.) Band settings menu updates: • Redesigned menu that is easier to read and navigate • More prominent Presets button for quick access to band presets • Improved rhythm pattern visualizations that mirror what you hear as you customize the settings • Volume/pan sliders now affect the current song immediately – for global settings, continue using the Audio/Mix panel Guitar - All boom-chuck–based strums updates: • Choose between hearing alternating bass notes or the root note only • Add automatic leading notes: transitional notes before chord changes (guitar only for now, bass coming soon) • Add automatic guitar bass runs, picked based on the chord progression and your preferences • Change the strum to be more boom-heavy or chuck-heavy • Specify the "voicing" to use (chord shape, capo position, drop-D or standard tuning, etc.) Guitar - Boom chuck with upstrokes updates: • Make the pattern more strum-heavy (think Jimmy Martin) or pick-heavy (think cross-picking) • Change the feel of the strum with a new "2D slider" control – see and hear your changes immediately as you drag the slider around Guitar - Syncopated boom-chuck strum updates: • Revamped syncopated (D DU UDU) strumming pattern that is more configurable and works better in more situations Guitar - Dampened strumming patterns updates: • A new "in-between" option for onbeats: a "short strum" that only plays 2 or 3 strings • Adjustable sustain duration for dampened strums, anywhere from full sustain (no dampening) to almost no sustain (dampened immediately) – moderate sustain sounds great with slower ballads, for example • Adjustable backbeat emphasis (softer onbeats and louder offbeats) Standup bass instrument updates: • Choose which octaves you'd like to hear the bass use: low, middle, or high (plus a "mix" option that currently needs work) • Disable root-fifth alternation and hear the bass "pedal" the root note instead • Fine-tune the amount of sustain you want to hear from the bass On my to-do list for the future: - Add many more built-in presets and styles to reduce the need for fine-tuned customization in common genres - Add more mandolin strumming patterns to match the guitar offerings - Add leading notes and chord walk-ins to the bass - Add walking bass (four notes per measure) for jazz/swing genres - Continue adding more strumming patterns to the guitar, such as a syncopated waltz strum, a simpler DUDDUD jig strum, and many more - Add more jazz/swing chords - ...and more, depending on what folks want to see! As always, please let us know about any issues you encounter, or if you have any feedback or suggestions for improvement. Thanks!

A huge update to the band settings and guitar capabilities, eight months in the making! Band settings menu updates: • Redesigned menu that is easier to read and navigate • More prominent Presets button for quick access to band presets • Improved rhythm pattern visualizations that mirror what you hear as you customize the settings • Volume/pan sliders now affect the current song immediately – for global settings, continue using the Audio/Mix panel Guitar - All boom-chuck–based strums updates: • Choose between hearing alternating bass notes or the root note only • Add automatic leading notes: transitional notes before chord changes (guitar only for now, bass coming soon) • Add automatic guitar bass runs, picked based on the chord progression and your preferences • Change the strum to be more boom-heavy or chuck-heavy • Specify the "voicing" to use (chord shape, capo position, drop-D or standard tuning, etc.) Guitar - Boom chuck with upstrokes updates: • Make the pattern more strum-heavy (think Jimmy Martin) or pick-heavy (think cross-picking) • Change the feel of the strum with a new "2D slider" control – see and hear your changes immediately as you drag the slider around Guitar - Syncopated boom-chuck strum updates: • Revamped syncopated (D DU UDU) strumming pattern that is more configurable and works better in more situations Guitar - Dampened strumming patterns updates: • A new "in-between" option for onbeats: a "short strum" that only plays 2 or 3 strings • Adjustable sustain duration for dampened strums, anywhere from full sustain (no dampening) to almost no sustain (dampened immediately) – moderate sustain sounds great with slower ballads, for example • Adjustable backbeat emphasis (softer onbeats and louder offbeats) Standup bass instrument updates: • Choose which octaves you'd like to hear the bass use: low, middle, or high (plus a "mix" option that currently needs work) • Disable root-fifth alternation and hear the bass "pedal" the root note instead • Fine-tune the amount of sustain you want to hear from the bass On my to-do list for the future: - Add many more built-in presets and styles to reduce the need for fine-tuned customization in common genres - Add more mandolin strumming patterns to match the guitar offerings - Add leading notes and chord walk-ins to the bass - Add walking bass (four notes per measure) for jazz/swing genres - Continue adding more strumming patterns to the guitar, such as a syncopated waltz strum, a simpler DUDDUD jig strum, and many more - Add more jazz/swing chords - ...and more, depending on what folks want to see! As always, please let us know about any issues you encounter, or if you have any feedback or suggestions for improvement. Thanks!

Fixes an issue in the audio system that would occasionally cause the app to crash.

Lots of under-the-hood changes to pave the way for future features coming this year, including more strumming patterns and instrument abilities.

Lots of under-the-hood changes to pave the way for future features coming this year, including more strumming patterns and instrument abilities.

Lots of under-the-hood changes to pave the way for future features coming this year, including more strumming patterns and instrument abilities.