It's no secret that the development of technology can greatly simplify the life of a modern musician. This applies to both professionals and amateurs. At the same time, for the latter, good software is the key to successful and quick training. What kind of programs for guitar on computer and smartphone exist, what are they for?
Programs for tuning the guitar
First of all, all musicians care about tuning the instrument. It doesn’t matter where the performance will be now, at home in front of relatives or at a serious competition - the instrument needs to be set up quickly and accurately. Before important performances, the performer is often worried, so you can tune the instrument using the tuner.
At the same time, tuners are different. Some simply offer the musician to listen to the tone of how the string should sound and to tune it on their own. Of all the possible options, this is almost the most difficult (it’s harder only to tune, relying on your own musical memory, and this is given to a few), but the most useful. Indeed, it is thanks to the comparison of the sound of the string and how it should sound that you develop your hearing, and it is very important for any musician. If such an opportunity exists, it is better to tune the instrument in this way. You can find the sound of guitar strings on request on the Internet. Any tuner also provides the opportunity to listen to the sound of the string.
Also, many tuners allow you to see how the string is tuned. This method is simpler, faster, but less useful. Such a tuner can be found both on the Internet and download a special program. An example of a site is tuneonline.ru, and an example of a free program is PitchPerfect Guitar Tuner.
Nevertheless, tuners for a guitar to a computer are not the most convenient programs. Setting up the instrument near a PC is inconvenient, and sound recognition requires a microphone or a linear connection of the guitar to a computer. If a laptop acts as a computer, or an electric guitar (or an electro-acoustic guitar) is directly connected to a PC, then there should be no problems. But without a microphone or line output it will be much more difficult.
The best option for tuners are programs for smartphones, which are also many. They are suitable for both described tuning methods, unless connecting a guitar through a line input is hardly possible. Also, the smartphone is guaranteed to have a microphone that will allow the program to recognize the frequency of the string. Among such software, the best is the GuitarTuner app.
The program is not entirely free. The free version includes one string, the additional ones cost about 130 rubles: these are various string options for guitars, violin family and many other stringed instruments. In this case, the full functionality of the application is within 1000 rubles. The program is definitely worth the money and lives up to its slogan - the No. 1 tuner in the world. It is a really powerful tool, suitable for both amateurs and professionals.
Chord Programs
Another variety of programs for guitar on a computer, smartphone are the base chords. Of course, any song can at least be played on three chords. But sometimes in the compositions there are chords and more complicated than "A-minor, D-minor and E-major". You can, of course, sit down, thoroughly study the harmony, learn the specifics of the jazz chord notation system (Am, Dm, and so on), figure out where which notes are on the fretboard, and start building chords. This process, as well as the development of hearing, is certainly useful, but it takes time and effort.
If you need to quickly understand where to clamp which string, you can simply open the program and select an unknown chord. To do this, there are the following programs to configure the guitar on your computer: Tabakk v5.5, Chord Hunter, Guitar chords help system, "Chord Generator". All of them are intuitive, and also allow you to see all the options for chords.
The Guitar Tuna mobile app also has a chord base. It is quite convenient, as it shows which fingers to clamp which strings.
Programs for the study of tabs
A special kind of guitar program is a program that allows you to view and edit tabs. Interestingly, this type of recording - tablature - is quite ancient and existed in the Middle Ages for the lute. Gradually, professional musicians switched to musical notation, but for those who don’t know it, it’s much easier to use “tabs”. This facilitates the task, not only in terms of determining which note to play, but also on which string it will be more convenient to play. This kind of program definitely works better on a computer than on a smartphone. Also, programs allow you to play recorded tunes. The most famous option is Guitar Pro.
Programs for converting the sound of an electric guitar
Finally, virtual guitar processors are a special kind of computer guitar program. This option is most relevant for electric guitars. Usually, the instrument is connected to an amplifier - often a large speaker with some built-in sound effects. If you have a powerful computer, a high-quality sound card and good speakers, you can connect the instrument to a computer. And if it comes to sound recording, then this option is most preferable. With such software, it will be possible to record the guitar on a computer. The program will directly read the vibrations of the strings, apply effects to them, which are much larger than on the usual "combo", and write them to an audio file. It is also possible to directly play the sound of a guitar through a computer, the program will output sound to speakers with effects superimposed on it. An example of such a program is Guitar Rig.