Music from Zero to Composing

From “what is sound?” to “I finished a song.” Music from Zero to Composing turns a complete beginner’s music-theory book into an app you can play. Every note, chord, chord progression, tempo, time signature and melody in the text plays when you tap it, so you hear each idea the moment you read it. Eight parts, 36 chapters: sound and hearing, rhythm, notation and the keyboard, chords and harmony, melody and song, arranging and production, composing, and styles. Each chapter covers one core idea and ends with exercises, answers and a checkpoint. READ • Read in English, in Chinese, or both side by side; in a single-language mode, tap a paragraph to see the other language • More than 500 tap-to-play musical examples in the text: C–E–G, Am, I–V–vi–IV, 120 BPM, 6/8 and more • 25 figures, zoomable full screen, with a link straight to the matching lab • Bookmarks, notes, chapter contents and full-text search; adjustable text size and dark mode • Works on iPhone and iPad, with a contents sidebar on iPad PLAY: 29 interactive labs, each tied to a chapter • Sound: Tone Generator, Harmonics & Timbre, Octave Ladder, Ears & Decibels • Rhythm: Metronome (with a steady-beat challenge), Note Value Blocks, a 16-step Drum Machine • Notation: Keyboard Map, Staff & Jianpu, Scales & Modes, Intervals • Harmony: Chord Builder, Diatonic Chords & Function, Circle of Fifths, Chord Progressions, Inversions & Voice Leading • Melody and song: Draw a Melody, Motif Transformations, Phrases & Cadences, Song Form Planner, Lyrics & Melody • Arranging and production: Instruments & Frequencies, Arrangement Layers, Piano Roll & Quantize, Mixer • Composing: Write Your First Melody, Harmonize a Melody, One Song, Many Styles — plus a Tuner PRACTICE • 13 ear-training and rhythm games: Name That Interval, Chord, Cadence and Scale, Note Reading, Find the Note, Spell the Chord, Key Signature Flash, Rhythm Tap, Steady Beat, Melody Echo, Sing in Tune and Theory Math, with levels and best scores • 357 chapter-quiz questions (single choice, multiple choice, true/false and listening), with a retry mode for the ones you missed • The book’s 146 exercises: write your answer, check it, rate yourself; anything you’re unsure of comes back for review • Three spaced-repetition flashcard decks: terms, key signatures and chords by ear • A 12-week practice plan, a progress heat map and study streaks WRITE: the songwriting studio • Start from a template: a one-minute loop, your first melody, or a full song • Write chords, melody, countermelody, bass, drums and pads on separate tracks, with a piano roll and jianpu (numbered notation) input • Arrange verse, pre-chorus, chorus and bridge; mix with volume, pan and reverb • Check your song against the book’s checklists • Export audio (M4A / WAV) and MIDI to keep working in GarageBand or Logic. The songs you write are yours. GOOD TO KNOW • Completely free: no ads, no in-app purchases, no subscriptions • All sounds are synthesized on your device. Works offline, no account needed • We collect no data. Your progress and songs stay on your device, and you can export a backup