About PianoKite

PianoKite is an app for learning to play the piano with the instrument you already have. It started from a simple frustration: a digital piano on one side, a phone on the other, and no good way to make them work together without a subscription to someone else's song catalogue.

What it does

The app connects to a digital piano over Bluetooth MIDI or USB, or listens to any piano through the microphone. It shows a flowing score and an 88-key keyboard, waits for you on every note in Wait mode, plays along with you at 50, 75 or 100% speed, and scores every bar so you can see what's learned and what isn't. For complete beginners there is a guided course in the Lessons tab: 53 short lessons in 10 units, from the first notes to reading music, chords and real pieces, with a band playing along and every step checking what you play. See the lessons.

The music

The library has 2,153 pieces in 2,804 versions, all public-domain compositions in openly licensed files, from the Mutopia Project and public-domain scores on MuseScore. Every piece was checked by hand for its copyright status, and every file is credited. Each piece has a page on this site with a 20-second play-along preview; the full pieces are in the app. Read more in what public domain means for sheet music and on the licenses page.

Who makes it

PianoKite is built by one independent developer, and tested every day on a Roland FP-10. It's an Android app first; an iPhone version is planned. There are no ads and no investors, and the app is paid for by optional subscriptions.

Status

The app is in final testing and not yet on Google Play. If you'd like to try it when it launches, join the early-access list below; you'll get one email when it's available.