Become a slave to the rhythm

Record your next Billboard chart hit wherever you are

AmpliTube $19.99 ikmultimedia.com

This is essential for guitar players – it enables you to combine digital recreations of real amps, stomp boxes, cabs, and even mic placement to create just about any sound you want for your electric guitar. It’s not cheap (the iPhone and iPad versions are sold separately, and many new sounds require an in-app purchase), but it sounds amazing.

KORG Gadget $39.99 korg.com

This is a synth-specialist production app that’s fantastic for live electronic music performances, but also great for anyone who wants to play with a range of cool sounds. Some synths are played on a keyboard, while things like drum machines have pad arrangements. You can record and mix within the app, or export your recordings. For a wide range of electronic sounds, there’s nothing better.

Music Memos Free apple.com

An amazing way to capture song ideas quickly. Hit record in this app and play or sing your song idea. The app captures your tempo and chords, and you can add a rhythm section from virtual instruments (much like GarageBand’s) to flesh it out. Then share it with others, or just refer to it while playing or recording with a more comprehensive setup. Songs can be organized and tagged efficiently too, so it’s a great way to store those seeds of ideas you want to grow sometime in future.

DM1 – The Drum Machine $4.99 fingerlab.net

For advanced electronic percussion, this is the app you need. Featuring over 200 drum kit sounds, from electronic to classic, it’s designed to make creating complex rhythms easy by using a sequencer, as well as enabling you to play with just your fingers. It’s easy to mix within the app, so you can get the sound just right when combining multiple elements – and you can add a multitude of effects too, of course. Plus, there are no sneaky in-app purchases.

Notion $14.99 presonus.com

At its core, this is a musical notation editor for writing music… but it’s really much more powerful than that. You can record MIDI input to a score, enter notes with a tap, play them on virtual instruments, and even – on iPad – handwrite them. The best part is that you can then play back your score using sound samples from the London Symphony Orchestra. The app comes with piano playback built-in, and more instruments are available with in-app purchases. There’s even a mixer, so you can test different audio balances.

GarageBand $4.99, apple.com

GarageBand is an astoundingly useful tool for both music pros and total novices alike, and is free with new iOS devices. If you’re a musical beginner, its autoplaying virtual instruments and pre-made loops mean you can instantly have fun. If you know what you’re doing, it’s a totally portable and truly professional recording studio.