Needs a Little More Work
This app basically just plays a recording of the each opera synched with a piano score and libretto, and indicates generally when various leitmotifs happen. I do appreciate the option of choosing between different recordings. It also has links to some Wikipedia and YouTube stuff you could look up on your own. Considering the high cost of the app, there should be an index of each leitmotif which shows each one in notation form and also plays it individually so you can hear it outside the texture of the full opera, either on piano or synthesizer. The icing on the cake would be to also have each leitmotif highlighted and/or color-coded in the synched piano score so you can actually see it as you hear it. I was hoping this app ($60 with tax PLUS a $12 monthly Apple Music membership) would put the leitmotifs together in a more accessible, informative, and efficient way. The developer got in touch after my initial review, and said they would consider my suggestions about fleshing out the leifmotif aspect in future updates. I hope they do, because that’s what would make this app worth the money.
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Response from developer
Just checking if you saw the view that gathers the motif instances and lets you hear each instance’s fragment of the recording (within whatever recording you chose). Thar was in response to your comment wishing to “play it individually”. The main feature of the app is the syncing of audio with the libretto text. This was always what kept me from understanding what was going on. I also hear your desire to have notation for each motif; if I converted the score to a MIDI format and played motifs that way it would add a nice abstract way of hearing then (since it’s a piano reduction). I’ll look into that. I appreciate the feedback.
