Loopy Pro: Create music, your way.
What is Loopy Pro? — Loopy Pro is a powerful, flexible, and intuitive live looper, sampler, clip launcher and DAW for iPhone and iPad. At its core, it allows you to record and layer sounds in real-time to create complex musical arrangements. But it doesn’t stop there—Loopy Pro offers advanced tools to customize your workflow, build dynamic performance setups, and create a seamless connection between instruments, effects, and external gear.
Use it for live looping, sequencing, arranging, mixing, and much more. Whether you're a live performer, a producer, or just experimenting with sound, Loopy Pro helps you take control of your creative process.
Download on the App StoreLoopy Pro is your all-in-one musical toolkit. Try it for free today.
Comments
Thank you! I am not planning to stop, having too much fun ! Btw, I didn't forget the project you sent me !
Thanks !
Hey, Tim! If you're reading this !
You would be surprised how fast those kind of skills come back! But I understand the laziness. There are a series of function added after the latest update that can make your life easier to import MIDI, or even directly input notes from a MIDI keyboard (please don't ask for MPE support, Gavin, or I will ask you to leave this thread 😁). So if you have a nice section created with a generative MIDI app, you can easily import this in Staffpad and use this as a starting point. I believe it is possible to route the MIDI of a generative app directly into Staffpad (haven't tried yet), I am sure @McD can confirm this.
That said, I still believe that people shouldn't be mistaken. This app is not an auv3 orchestral sound rompler and probably never will be. If you're looking for that, there are interesting sounding patches in Beathawk, Korg Module, and I would probably recommend even more the latest rompler from Virsyn (the librairies work inside Audiolayer which is awesome!).
What makes Staffpad incredibly great, is that if you want to change the articulation for one instrument, let's say legato to pizzicato for violins, just write it on top of the staff, boom, done. No key switch, no CC, no need to have another instance of a sampler with your pizzicato articulation loaded. That's the real beauty of this thing.
Staffpad is a full DAW where you interact with the software with a pencil using score sheet as a UI. There is definitely a bit of effort to put into, new vocab and symbols to learn,no pain no gain. But it is a minimal effort compared to the reward.
I am definitely glad I jumped in, cause I made incredible progress not only in orchestration but in my general understanding of composition and arrangement. It is definitely a very rewarding journey for whoever wants to invest some time into it.
And no, I am not working for Staffpad, just a very enthusiastic user !
Wut, no mpe?! 😂 😂 (I'll get my coat) - no, but that's a good point about being able to change the articulation for short sessions so easily.
Thank you Paul! Glad you enjoyed it!
I would say that the most obvious influences are Elfman and John Williams.
For the less obvious ones, Dvořák and Gershwin.
As for Debussy, I am not sure. It seems it is always there in a way, in the background, but it is never premeditated.
I am not extremely familiar with Stravinsky or Holst. is it the rhythmical passages that reminds you of Stravinsky ?
Thank you Colin ! Very hard to pick a favourite on the album all the tracks are great !
But I did. Memory is the second thing to go. I forget the first.
On another call back. I have routed MIDI out of apps and into StaffPad to record tracks. The trickery part is hitting play on the generating source to align with Bar 1 in Staffpad. Using 1 or 2 bars of count in help and of course using the same BPM. There’s no Ableton link option. Staffpad records 1staff at a time but it seems to catch complex MIDI from MIDI FX apps in AUM. I imported Hip Hop Drummer to generate wild piano or harp or pizz string parts that might take days to notate with a pencil. The MIDI converter is pretty solid after the update. My pencil gets less work.
pencil? I just remembered what #1 is… sad.
At about 2:44 there's a short Debussian build-up into that rhythmical passage. Great piece, once again.
I listened to this song at least four times, I need more free and quiet time to listen to the entire album. I barely have time to interact with the forum these days. 😅
Definitely deserving of all the accolades here!
One thing I’m wondering about is your process: This sounds like you had worked out a pretty solid composition before your orchestration. Is that what happens? For example, I like to begin usually with just piano and then, later separate parts into different instruments. Or do you just start entering notes and see what happens next?
Thanks again Paul. I remember you saying you studied orchestration. You should consider Staffpad on the next sale, with recent updates it became a great tool !
Life can get pretty busy sometimes ! Check the whole album whenever you can. There are really great tracks !
For this piece I first wanted to have a theme, which is what your first hear. Then I developed the first part around it.
Then the ideas of tempo, tonality and time signature changes came one after another for each subsequent parts. And before building the orchestration for each part, I first had to clearly define their structures.
So I didn't have a clear idea of what the track would be in its entirety from the beginning, but as new ideas and parts came, I first had to structured them before orchestrating. The final goal was to come back to the original theme in the same tonality tempo and time signature for closure
Orchestrating becomes a lot more easier (especially with Staffpad) if you have a clear structure / roadmap and know where you want to go.
Hmm - So is this all done completely in Staffpad from the beginning and if so, what instrument did you begin with? Or do you record midi some other way and import it into Staffpad? Just curious because I like using the iPad to sketch out ideas in midi but then I take that to my desktop for orchestration or other editing.
This was done completely in Staffpad using only the pencil. No MIDI import whatsoever. I just keep my main instrument (guitar) next to me during the whole process and use it as a guide when needed for exemple to find chord progressions or chord voicings etc... I keep memos of the ideas and then write down those ideas in Staffpad with the apple pencil.
Since I purchased Staffpad, I have never recorded MIDI performances and import those inside the app. It might sound like a daunting task to only use a pen to enter notes, but there are many tools (selection tools, copy paste) that make the process smooth, with a bit of practice you can build a whole orchestration in no time.
I might try new workflows though. the latest update brought the ability to record a MIDI part directly in the app. It seems there is also audio transcription if you play a piano through your iPad microphone. I am also interested to try to import MIDI sequences generated by apps like piano motif for exemple. But I kind of like the workflow of only working with a pen because it forces me to think of the structure first.
What I write first depends on the thing I am working on. If it is rhythm based, I might start with percussions or the cello section. If it is a more aethereal thing I might start with the main section, be it the strings or choirs or flutes and usually start with the higher voicing (soprano) and add the rest from there. It really feels like sound painting actually.
But there is nothing set in stone in terms of workflow. That's what makes working with Staffpad so fun. Each project brings new things, so I cannot say that I have a clear routine with it.
What is your usual workflow for orchestration? Do you record or generate MIDI on your iPad and move to desktop? What are you using for orchestral work on desktop? Never considered getting Staffpad?
It’s very interesting to me that you have a background with the classical guitar. That is also something that has played a big roll for me as well. I have a guitar but I really can only just play chords and noodle around on it. Never studied playing because I was a keyboard player mostly.
But I had a very good friend who was a classical guitarist and he had a significant impact on my musical understanding and was a kind of beacon to me for classical music in general. Plus, through him I found appreciation for the classical guitar repertoire, early to modern. He would say that the guitar was a kind of orchestra in miniature with the variations of sounds it can make.
So Staffpad does seem pretty amazing. I watched some of the videos on it and also hearing your and @McD’s examples. It definitely has the best sounding instruments on the iPad to my ears.
But although I can read notation, over decades of using midi on my desktop DAW,
Digital Performer, I think I’d need more years in my life to take on a different workflow. And also, I just have a standard iPad and no apple pencil.
But the ipad has become a valuable musical sketch tool for me. All of the various chord tools and midi tools just give me continual supply of ideas to build on. I like using chords to build tonal structures and then go from there. I’ll record the midi but then must do a lot of weeding and refining.
Then I take it to my desktop and use Performer for my “real” composing and arranging. I have the EastWest Symphonic Orch which is now considered kind of aged compared to more modern libraries but it’s what I got and seems good enough for my purposes.
Performer has a pretty good built in notation program but I mostly stick to just midi timeline editing.
Anyway, I always enjoy hearing what you come up with! As much as I like sounds in the abstract, synths, sampling, I just really love the sound of the orchestral instruments and their expressiveness.
This is really quite amazing. I’m hearing Ravel, Scriabin, Ives, and so many more. I would love to see the score for this. I have StaffPad, and I am looking for some new directions. May I ask… how long did this take to produce?
Thank you for the detailed answer. I remember EastWest symphonic used to be the must go to library ! I am sure it still sounds great!
If you found a workflow that works for you, there is no reason to change.
On the other hand, you could easily import MIDI chords and sequences directly into Staffpad instead of sending those to a desktop.
If one day you purchase a new iPad that supports apple pencil, you could consider Staffpad, it really sounds great.
And since you already know notation it wouldn't take much time to adapt. Instead of using a MIDI piano roll, you edit on a staff. Eventually, Staffpad works the same as a timeline based DAW.
Thanks for the kind words! Glad you like those orchestral creations!
Sorry for the late reply! Thank you for listening. I can send you the score but first I'd like to register it with my publisher if you don't mind waiting a bit.
The suggestion to make a charity album for Halloween was on October 15th, I started to work on the track from the 16th. The original deadline was on October 25th but I was among the few who requested a bit more time to complete, so the final deadline became 27th of October. I worked at least 3 hours everyday (a lot more on my days off) until the deadline. So I put a bit of work in the making 😉
Excellent!
Not necessary. Don't go to any extra work on my behalf. I was just curious to see what it looked like! All good things are full of labor. I really enjoyed your composition.
Once the track is registered, I can definitely send it to you, it can be done in 2 minutes !
Thank you for listening !
Nothing to add to what has been said already… amazing work 🙏
Thank you for for listening Tony. Remarkable how consistently you are listening to creations, weeks after their release !
Haha... I never seem to be able to catch up but the upside is a second chance in the limelight for people's creations 🙂
Thanks to you, I have been able to hear great pieces that felt under the radar !