iReal Pro

I've had this app since it was available. It's amazing that it only cost what it does. I not only use it for having jazz charts on gigs, I can create the whole night's set list for my band and text it to all the players minutes, before the show so everyone has all the charts in the right order and in the right keys. There are too many amazing features to discuss here, but what I will discuss is the phenomenal customer service. I usually get a petsonal reeply back within an hour or two with answers, suggestions, and links providing additional material. This has proved to be invaluable in being able to unlock some nifty features. Just make sure you email yourself your stuff to back it up because apple's iCloud back up system can be unreliable with any software. The file storage system that they use is great. It helps to understand fully how it works. Once you master the more subtle features of this software you will be amazed by how powerful it is.

Otherwise good

This app is life-saving and generally just really fun to play along to. Probably my favorite app in general. However… I really wish they could bring back the option to change the background and font to any color, because it makes me feel like even more of an artist. Thanks iRealpro!

Best app period!

Not at all what I was looking for. Songs I imported sound pathetically amateurish. Wanted something to play along with and every sample I’ve listened too. $20 wasted.

What is it now, 2005? Imagine an app that requires you to have a username and password. You have to come up with an original username so you are forced to try a bunch of things til you get one that nobody else has. Now a few years go by and you want to find more charts so you try to log in so you can access the forums. What was that username you made up on the fly when you first bought the app? Donn’t know it? You are out of luck. There’s a “forgot password” option, but no “forgot username” option. You spent 20-something dollars for the app, and it’s pegged to your Apple ID. You are using the same device, same Apple ID you had when you bought the app. But no, you are locked out. You won’t be getting in. Period. So many things about this old, clunky app are just like this. Want to name a chart you just created? If a chart already exists for that song on any of the playlists you have previously downloaded, you will not be able to use that title. You’ll have to call your chart All Of Me 2, or something like that. You’ll find the whole app is riddled with nutty appendices on the names of common songs. It’s so freaking cumbersome amd clunky. It’s from a bygone era, but it’s what everyone uses for the time being, so it’s what you are stuck with.

I wish I could tell what I think about what this app does. It might just be amazing. Certainly some people seem to think it is. However the needlessly complicated registration process had me fuming from the moment I started to register and after 45 minutes I never did get registered. I don't know whether I hate this app or not, but I certainly hate its registration process.

I’m just sad that be already bought this app, and I want to get it on my Chromebook. I have to pay for it again. Otherwise the app is great.

This is a revised review. Overall, the app is great - see all the other glowing reviews. I’m docking a star because I initially struggled with this app and Apple Family Sharing. The gist is, I thought it wasn’t working, contacted iReal Pro support, who couldn’t help and said try Apple support. After a number of chat sessions, it still didn’t work. So I requested a refund though Apple and wrote and unflattering review regarding the inability to get family sharing to work. Only after all that did a new iReal Pro support person reach out and explain how to do family sharing with the app. I’ve since re-purchased the app and now have it working on multiple devices. Ultimately this is essentially user error on my part. My understanding is that the iReal Pro developers have no control over this functionality (other than to enable it). That said, I do think it’s fair to expect them to have some more familiarity with the user-facing side of what is presumably their biggest platform. The problem I had is that Apple’s interface for family sharing is inconsistent. I have another (unrelated) purchased app. For that one, on any of my other iOS devices, I can go into the App Store and download/install it for free (because it’s already been paid for). However, if I try to do that with iReal Pro, it can’t be downloaded without paying (even though I already paid for it on another device). For iReal Pro, you have to go into the App Store, then into your account, then select apps, and then into the family section. So this is really a ding against Apple, as the family sharing mechanics are demonstrably inconsistent - and in my opinion, not intuitive. When I select the app from the App Store directly, why doesn’t it automatically “know” that I’ve already purchased this app? But I maintain that iReal Pro support should generally have a better understanding of the Apple App Store platform.

Saved me on a few gigs

It’s the app that I use more than anything else. It has so much to offer. Only thing I wish was that the practice transposition would go up/down by interval and not by half steps.

I retired and started playing jazz cello three years ago. I installed iReal maybe two months in to that project. I use iReal every day I practice. When I have run into technical problems, email support has been very prompt, with consistently careful answers to the questions I pose.

I do not understand why everybody raves about this. I have no idea how to decipher these gobbledygook charts. No lyrics no nothing. Just a bunch of slashes and triangles and stuff. Get guitar tapp, it at least has the lyrics and where the changes are. This is terrible. I guess they just assume you magically already know "chart-ese" Update - there's no way like in the app it doesn't even show you what your username and password is. This is the most complicated load of garbage I ever saw in my life..

Does everything I need to from charts in any key practice audio in any key!

I love this app

I’ve been using iReal for years for teaching, gigging, and practicing, and it’s simply the best of the breed. And it keeps getting better. Customer service is great and they’re always looking for ways to improve the app. A must have app for working musicians.

Ten years ago, I was playing gigs with a young jazz singer and his friends, a drummer, bassist, and a trumpeter. They attended a school where there were no heavy players, nor a culture of such. I would play the gig from the singers iPad. This was my introduction to iReal Pro. No complaints, I like iReal Pro! I even run it via WiFi to my board from my iPhone. Back to this group - One day the trumpeter told me that the iReal Pro is the new Aebersold. I said no, because iReal Pro doesn’t show the head. Can you add the melody? Cheers, Andy

Thank you!

I use iRealPro to try out chord progressions for songs I’m writing. It lets me try the song in different styles and tempos which can unlock some cool ideas. Also if the song hold up well in different genres then I know it’s gonna be good.

Perfect for trading and playing ever 🎶