Smule charms again with Magic Fiddle for iPad

Don't call it Guitar Hero with a violin, Magic Fiddle is about sophistication and music mastery

Musically minded app maker Smule launched late Tuesday its ninth creation for Apple’s iOS platform, Magic Fiddle (iTunes App Store link), an iPad app that emulates the sound and feel of a violin.

The $2.99 app, already available in the App Store, is something like Guitar Hero or Tap Tap Revenge for classical music.

Genres aside, it’s clear that Smule wants Magic Fiddle to be much more than just a pop music jam game.

Hello. I am your fiddle. I am programmed to make you a musical prodigy. No more screeching, endless practice and forced recitals for you. Your untrained fingers will play beautiful music in a matter of minutes. Seriously, in the amount of time it took you to read this you could have learned ‘Ave Maria’. I kid you not (fiddles never joke).

Every step of the way, from the App Store description (above) to the program’s dramatic opening sequence--where the fiddle addresses you, the future prodigy--to the actual gameplay, Smule has focused on developing an elegant, charming and (as silly as this sounds) almost professional musical experience.

At the end of the day, though, it’s still a game.

The user performs classic tunes by Bach or Pachelbel by holding one corner of the screen down with one hand and tapping/holding the colored “strings” as matching strands float down to the strings on beat. Piano accompaniment helps time the performance. Anyone who has played Guitar Hero could start belting out pretty tunes in seconds flat and even the inexperienced will find it easy to use. The app also features a storybook for perfecting one’s performance and a social sharing tool that lets users play for people around the world.

To prove just how serious Magic Fiddle can be, Smule has produced a video of the St. Lawrence Quartet, a premiere Canadian string quartet, in which the four virtuosos set aside their wooden instruments in favor of the ten-inch Apple tablet. (In case you’re wondering, they sound better when they use the former.)

We asked Smule how they thought Magic Fiddle differentiated itself from the similar-seeming competition, like Guitar Hero and Tap Tap Revenge, and the answer comes down to the most common denominator for Smule apps.

“Magic Fiddle is an expressive instrument with gaming elements, which both helps guide you while also giving you a degree of open creativity for you to be expressive,” said Ge Wang, co-founder, CTO, and Chief Creative Officer at Smule. “The storybook is designed to teach you how to play Magic Fiddle as a real instrument in a fun and engaging way.”

It started with Ocarina, a musical app demoed with a cute and absolutely fitting rendition of The Legend of Zelda theme but built for limitless creativity and social interaction. Apps like Leaf Trombone, I Am T-Pain, and Magic Fiddle carry on in that same company tradition.

Founded in 2008, Smule has raised $13.5 million in venture capital funding and serves millions of users with its popular music apps.