Fortamento lets you create 4-bar musical loops on your iPhone and export them to your DAW

By Ben Rogerson
published

Choose your chords then program a melody

For many people, the iPhone’s best use in a muscial context is as a track-starter - something to come up with ideas on when you’re out and about. So, we get apps like Fortamento.

Unlike some musical sketch pads, the focus here isn’t on beats. Instead, you can create 4-bar chord progressions and add melodies over the top of them. Obviously, you can choose your chords, and there are various instrument sounds.

There’s no suggestion that this is an app to create full songs with: once you’ve got something you like, you can export it as a MIDI file and load it into a DAW so that it can be developed.

Fortamento is available now from the Apple App Store. It costs $4.99/£4.99.

Ben Rogerson
Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it.