Over the last year a number of intriguing online and iPad based music practice apps have come on the market.  I first became aware of Tonara back in 2011 and at the time it was useful but not overly impressive.  Fast forward three years and in walks Tonara Wolfie for all of you pianists out there.  What exactly is Tonara Wolfie and why is it important?  Read on to find out!

In terms of comparing the new Wolfie For Piano to the old Tonara I looked at so long ago the difference is incredible.  I remember a plain, kind of boring app that listened as you played but it was nothing to cheer about, hence why I didn't get too worked up back then.  Today though they have cleaned up the interface and made it FAR more intuitive and attractive to use.  The features have expanded greatly as well.  Not only does the app "magically" track you, it does so much more accurately and it actually scrolls through the music as you play, turning pages as needed.  You can also make recordings of your practice to send off to your music teacher or for yourself to listen to at a later time.  Also improved on is the markup ability and the ability to leave typed notes attached to the pieces.

From the teacher perspective Wolfie provides some interesting positive reinforcements to help push your students to practice more.  They can earn merit badges for their practice time and completing certain goals. Plus, as mentioned previously the layout and appearance of the app is much more kid friendly and conducive to making a student want to practice more.  In other words, it isn't a bland, black and white practice app.

Downloading Wolfie for Piano is free, and comes with two free downloads, but if you want to use the app long term in the classroom or for personal use there is a $14.99 per month fee which opens up access to any of the 750+ pieces of music in the entire Wolfie for Piano catalog.