Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Humor, Software, Developer, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch
Make a video with Cat Piano, win a DS
It's probably time for me to lay off of Smule -- I've said that their Ocarina app might be the silliest musical app in the App Store, but we have a new winner: Cat Piano is just plain loony: a piano made up of cats meowing, like those old Christmas recordings, but playable. There are a few different cat sounds to play (from "Furball" to "Housecat"), and even a regular piano if you just want to tickle the ivories a little bit. Most of the reviews on the App Store say people are using it to mess with their cats, but there's definitely a musical instrument here -- if Ocarina can be used as an instrument, the Cat Piano can, too.And in fact, the developers are challenging you to prove it -- they're giving away a Nintendo DS (interesting choice of prizes -- an iPod touch might be more apt) to the person who makes the best video using Cat Piano. I don't know if you could beat that Jingle Cats video, but you can certainly try. The contest starts on Thursday, and goes until March 20th, so you've got a little over a month to get the cat sounds down.
Ocarina, you'll remember, also turned out some watchable videos, so we're interested to see what comes out of this contest.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Galley said 9:37AM on 2-04-2009
I am so using this to mess with my cat, Widget. That'll show her who's boss!
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Ian said 9:55AM on 2-04-2009
I'm waiting for the Muppaphone.
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kent said 10:42AM on 2-04-2009
I have developed software for over 45 years. Many if not most apps are either really dumb or don't work well. I feel that Ocarina is one of the best apps for the iphone. The sound is one of the best on any sync instrument I have used and own. I own several instruments including guitars (acoustic, electric, bass, banjo, ukes), harp, harmonica, cello, keyboards (piano, yamaha, moog, kruzweil ). I am accomplished on each to a certain extent. Ocarina is written very, very well and it really works. The sound is pleasant and soothing. Facemelter is another very well written app. By the way, I have over $10,000 invested in photo equipment and $20,000 in musical equipment - and I use it.
Almost all other apps either don't work or severely disappoint me. All for the soapbox for now, thanks, kent.
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Doctor said 11:05AM on 2-04-2009
I, too, get tired of the author's continual rant on Ocarina. I am a music educator (with a Ph.D. in Music), and I teach choral and instrumental music at the high school level. Ocarina is a very special application because it allows for expression in musical playback (dynamics, phrasing, and vibrato), unlike the other music applications available for the iPhone. If they ever put a microphone on the iPod touch (built-in), schools could buy a set of iPod touches (more likely, write a grant), use Ocarina's fantastic chart generators, and substitute Ocarinas for traditional recorders. That may seem excessive, but I can tell you that the elementary kids would be thrilled to use the technology, and they would learn everything they do with the recorders.
I love the chart generators at Smule's website, as well as the library of charts they've amassed.
Personally, I found myself going to Smule's website and saving Christmas Carols in PDF format. Then I would spend the end of a couple of evenings playing Ocarina while everyone else in the house was asleep. And I'll vouch for Kent in that it was soothing, but even more so, enjoyable to do.
As a brass player, I'm also waiting for (and have encouraged Smule to make) Ocarina "Brass," where you would be able to play a simulated brass instrument (including fingering) based on the same principles. I haven't quite figured out how to control shifts of the "partial," but I'm sure it can be done.
At any rate, to the author, please understand that some apps, regardless of their popularity, have real world applications and usefulness that you obviously haven't considered. I'd be happy to go further into this discussion if necessary...but as for now...enough said.
In closing, I'm not going to write a defense for "Cat Piano." Other than the gag value, if I'm going to have a piano on my iPhone (and I do) it will be MooCow Music's Pianist.
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Kimo-Jim said 2:27PM on 2-04-2009
OK, so here's a suggestion for a variation of the Cat Piano iPhone app.. how about a next-to-useless, musical (?) app that implements Monty Python's legendary Mouse Organ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9nGyPz9uT0
Thanks!
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Simon said 12:57PM on 2-05-2009
Dang I wish I had known about this contest earlier! I love Cat Piano and I already uploaded 2 cat piano videos to youtube! I played the meox mix theme song on it and my cats came to investigate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFSh9tr0n58
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