Fantastico
I’ve used this app for a number of years now. It’s so useful. I find Fake Book storage and index, as well as my own song books, indispensable. Top job! In early days help was always available on request. The new Bob Book is so useful, thank you.
Beats lugging books around
I’ve been using Calypso for over ten years, I think. As an amateur musician who plays flute, soprano, alto, and tenor, Calypso has enabled me to easily choose different fake book pages from various books and form a singular customized volume. Each of the titled tunes is color coded to represent the instrument to be used for that song. Like all great software, there are features that I don’t take advantage of, but the quality of the design keeps me happy with the functions I rely upon. Clearly designed by musicians for musicians, not by some investment group with disinterested developers.
Love the new scanning functionality! Thanks, Ziggy.
Love the new scanning functionality! Thanks, Ziggy.
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If you use fakebooks look no further
Calypso Score is a good all round score reader, comparable in most ways to the better known ForScore. But Calypso Score surpasses other apps for anyone who uses jazz or pop fakebooks, with an extensive set of pre-built indexes for popular fakebooks so you can quickly find a tune you don't know at a gig or jam session. Added to that is the ability to create and manage your own collections in custom "songbooks", so you're not tied to the tyranny of a big monolithic PDF file for which you have to set up multiple bookmarks. Calypso Score also uniquely features powerful automated page turning along with a innovative way of optimizing the layout of a multi-page song to simplify navigation through repeats and jumps. If you're a jazz/pop musician who is used to lugging around fakebooks, look no further. This app has everything you need in a tool that makes full use of the resources of your iPad.
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Beats lugging books around
I’ve been using Calypso for over eight years. As an amateur musician who plays flute, soprano, alto, and tenor, Calypso has enabled me to easily choose different fake book pages from various books and form a singular customized volume. Each of the titled tunes is color coded to represent the instrument to be used for that song. Like all great software, there are features that I don’t take advantage of, but the quality of the design keeps me happy with the functions I rely upon.
Clearly designed by musicians for musicians, not by some investment group with disinterested developers.
Clearly designed by musicians for musicians, not by some investment group with disinterested developers.
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Play chords
Very good system. Would like to be able play chords when running score.
Response from developer
Thank you very much for your feedback, which we really appreciate. Both of your concerns can be easily resolved. - in the Calypso settings you can switch off the option ‚Start listener at bar #1‘. - by long tapping on the edit bars button, you can delete all bar markers. Please do not hesitate and contact support@calypso-score.com to find out more about your concerns and any further questions. Thank you.
No other digital sheet music app like it
OK, I’ll get it right out there: I love this app. I’ve been using over a number of years and it just gets better and better. Whilst a lot of people love the Fakebooks, for me it is the automatic/semi-automatic page turning that is just so brilliant. The other week I did a whole gig accompanying a choir using it. Unlike rock music which has a very strict speed, choral music can be all over the place. The developer was super-helpful giving me advice on how best to set up the app. The sound-level based automatic start is amazing. Tap the screen and Calypso waits for you to start playing before automatically tracking the score. If the conductor speeds up or slows down, you can use a Bluetooth pedal to ‘adjust’ the speed. It worked a treat!
It’s a sophisticated app, that is for sure. One of the main challenges I face is using the ‘repeat’ functionality, i.e. jumping back to a previous point in the score. If you jump back to a different point on the screen, it works well. Going back to a measure on the same place on the screen doesn’t work so well. However, the developer is so responsive that I know he is working on a solution. In the meantime, just double up the pages and get rid of the need to jump back.
Give it a go; make the effort to get your head around how it works. You will be rewarded by no longer faffing around turning pages or asking someone to help your and you will end up loving it like me.
As others have said, I have hunted high and low for similar apps. Nothing comes close.
It’s a sophisticated app, that is for sure. One of the main challenges I face is using the ‘repeat’ functionality, i.e. jumping back to a previous point in the score. If you jump back to a different point on the screen, it works well. Going back to a measure on the same place on the screen doesn’t work so well. However, the developer is so responsive that I know he is working on a solution. In the meantime, just double up the pages and get rid of the need to jump back.
Give it a go; make the effort to get your head around how it works. You will be rewarded by no longer faffing around turning pages or asking someone to help your and you will end up loving it like me.
As others have said, I have hunted high and low for similar apps. Nothing comes close.
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Unbelievably frustrating and unintuitive
After using for several years I can safely say this software is excruciating to use, it feels like it has a kind of its own. It has cost me time and sooo much frustration to the point I’ve gone back to just using books.
Calypso is great!
I use this program all the time. I have books for all the bands I play with, Fakebooks (some of my own creation), and exercise books. With a 12.0” iPad I can read two pages in horizontal orientation very clearly. Sometimes I use Calypso’s built-in page turn feature, and sometimes I use a Bluetooth page turner.
The songbook and setlist features are perfect for how I organize my music, and they ability to search all the fakebooks for the songs I need is valuable. Wonderful program!
The songbook and setlist features are perfect for how I organize my music, and they ability to search all the fakebooks for the songs I need is valuable. Wonderful program!
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Exactly what I needed to combine and index my fake books and other music sources.
If you will spend some time reading the manual and are diligent about finding supported fake book pdf files you will be thoroughly rewarded.
You can access your fake books as one book with a live master index which updates each time you add another book.
If you have a pdf which is not pre-indexed you may create an index of your own for any pdf. So not only will Calypso Score let you add fake books you can also add your smaller song books and sheet music and add them to your master index.
If this weren’t enough you can also organize any song from any png image or pdf source into multiple songbooks and set lists.
You can even have it guide you through your score as you play with or without your own accompaniment or your favorite commercial version of each song.
Or you can also choose to use your favorite Bluetooth or midi foot switch to turn your pages.
Definitely the best music score app I own. It does the job of several others I have purchased and does them better.
This is the app to get!
You can access your fake books as one book with a live master index which updates each time you add another book.
If you have a pdf which is not pre-indexed you may create an index of your own for any pdf. So not only will Calypso Score let you add fake books you can also add your smaller song books and sheet music and add them to your master index.
If this weren’t enough you can also organize any song from any png image or pdf source into multiple songbooks and set lists.
You can even have it guide you through your score as you play with or without your own accompaniment or your favorite commercial version of each song.
Or you can also choose to use your favorite Bluetooth or midi foot switch to turn your pages.
Definitely the best music score app I own. It does the job of several others I have purchased and does them better.
This is the app to get!
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Wonderful app.
I read about Calypso on the 'Scoring Notes' newsletter. Already having ForScore and Newzik, I was reluctant to spend £12 on yet another music reading app just to try it out - but I am very glad I did, because the page turning mechanism in this app is really remarkable, and a godsend for anyone wishing to play solo piano music on an iPad in portrait mode - thus seeing the music full size. It would also be a boon for organists, who play with their feet, and would be unable to use a Bluetooth pedal (although they might be limited by the fact that a lot of organ music is published in landscape format). I've not yet tried the app in collaborative music-making, but I am sure it would work well for music printed on three staves.
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Very hard to use
I bought the app to organize my charts in set lists for my gigs. I spent the good part of a day trying to figure out how to use it, but got nowhere. It’s infuriating that we can’t get our money back when buying these kinds of apps. Don’t waste your money.
I am now using forScore, that is easier to use and gives me more options.
I am now using forScore, that is easier to use and gives me more options.
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DO NOT UPDATE TO LATEST VERSION!!!
DO NOT UPDATE TO THE LATEST VERSION. The latest version is slow, clunky and hopeless. Its interface is not intuitive and very very slow. The indexing is terrible. Eg. you can’t turn the page beyond the last page of the song by just swiping. You have to tap the name of the song at the bottom of the screen. What are you supposed to do when you haven’t fully indexed the book?!!! I hate this app now. I wish there was a way to downgrade back to the pervious version.
No longer recommended by me!!!
No longer recommended by me!!!
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Getting better at getting better.
This is a great app which I love using, some years back I updated iOS and found to my horror Calypso didn't work. Sadly a new update was very slow in coming so I started looking for other apps with similar features and couldn't find any. For me, the ability to sync backing tracks to the sheet music and not have to worry about page turns is an absolute joy.
So when iOS updates my first concern is- will Calypso still run?This time the update was bang on time so I'm really pleased.
This is a complex app and does require time and effort to understand and use, but the within app help, and the website videos, it's far less daunting than it was. It's well worth the effort. There is nothing as good and believe me I've looked.
I should add that the developer is more than helpful and does reply to concerns, he is to be congratulated for all his efforts- it's much appreciated, I love it!
So when iOS updates my first concern is- will Calypso still run?This time the update was bang on time so I'm really pleased.
This is a complex app and does require time and effort to understand and use, but the within app help, and the website videos, it's far less daunting than it was. It's well worth the effort. There is nothing as good and believe me I've looked.
I should add that the developer is more than helpful and does reply to concerns, he is to be congratulated for all his efforts- it's much appreciated, I love it!
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Excellent!!
For the past year I've tried various music organizers and readers. This one's the WINNER!
I have a lot of music in pdf form. I want indexes but without the tedious creating of bookmarks in the pdf. With CS I can easily import a CSV file index for any pdf I have. That's my #1 need.
Ease of use is important. I can easily search one or all pdfs for all versions of a song. Nobody wants to watch a musician on-stage tapping on an iPad. That's my #2 need.
You can create custom songbooks and setlists from any of your pdfs. You can synch music with audio. You can share indexes. There's a lot here and I'm eager to use it.
I have a lot of music in pdf form. I want indexes but without the tedious creating of bookmarks in the pdf. With CS I can easily import a CSV file index for any pdf I have. That's my #1 need.
Ease of use is important. I can easily search one or all pdfs for all versions of a song. Nobody wants to watch a musician on-stage tapping on an iPad. That's my #2 need.
You can create custom songbooks and setlists from any of your pdfs. You can synch music with audio. You can share indexes. There's a lot here and I'm eager to use it.
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Wrong impression
The photos showing what the App looks like gives you the impression that you get all the fake books and songs when you download the App; Not true at all. It apparently is like iiGigbook and UnSong in that you have to find the downloadable Fakebooks yourself. In looking on youTube to see how to get the program up and running, there are 2 very poorly done videos. Misleading from the get-go. Now I’ve got an App i can’t use until I laid all the Fakebooks. From where? and exactly how do I get them into my pad. Someone would be very helpful;l if they made a video starting with Step 1, etc. You’d think that the App builder would do so. I see the potential, but it’s like knowing there’s gold in them thar hills — - how do you get to it? I’ll bet it’s a 5 when working, but until then , a 2.
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Best sheet music app ever!
I am a full time professional gigging musician. I used to use multiple binders filled with charts to go to gigs with. After trying every other sheet music app I could find, and not being happy, I almost gave up. I then found Calypso Score and I couldn't be happier! From syncing music with backing tracks for soloist to eliminate page turns, to sharing music with band members, this app does everything! Getting this app has helped me improve my performances and, in turn, allowed me to raise my prices. If you are a serious gigging musician, you owe it to yourself to get this app. Finally, the customer service is second to none. I can't even say the last time I received such great customer service, this is amazing top to bottom!
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Great App.
Calypso-Score is absolutely fantastic and does everything it claims. I have read several of the bad reviews and assume it is a problem of the user not following directions. I was confused at first and the support I received always resolved my issue and questions were answered in less than 24 hours. The problems I encounterd were only the result of being anxious to use the program and now I use it for all my fake books and it works perfect. Now I don't understand why I had any problems. Any problems I had were by my own making. Thank you for a great app.
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The best Fakebook app in the App Store!
If you have scanned fakebooks and need to quickly access them on the iPad, look no more. This app has many amazing unique and useful features that iGigbook and forScore are missing: quick fixing of indexes within app (no annoying login to iGigbook website to fix an index...), multiple songs\playbacks can be associated with one sheet music, on-the-fly change pitch or speed and the very powerful auto layout feature that make the pages magically turn for you! Only thing missing is bulk sync and backup to cloud (currently one file at a time), but you can still import bulk over iTunes, so it is no big deal.
There are so many useful features that makes this app is a must have for any musician.
There are so many useful features that makes this app is a must have for any musician.
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Doesn't work
It keeps restore audio file and never worked..
Mine is air 2 and this is junk!! Omg,,,
Mine is air 2 and this is junk!! Omg,,,
Not so great
Probably due to my 1st gen. Pad. Thing can't take imports and does not open locked PDF.
