Why teachers recommend True Metronome
- ✓ No awkward money conversation. The free version includes the full metronome with tap tempo, BPM slider, pendulum animation, and accent bell. You never have to explain to parents why their child needs a subscription for a metronome.
- ✓ No ads interrupting practice. Students stay focused. There are no banner ads covering the screen, no video ads between uses, and no pop-ups asking to rate the app every session.
- ✓ Italian tempo markings displayed automatically. As the student changes tempo, the marking updates from Grave through Prestissimo. Students absorb the terminology naturally, without flashcards.
- ✓ Physics-based pendulum, not a blinking dot. The animation follows real nonlinear pendulum physics — the same motion students see on a mechanical Wittner metronome in your studio. Visual rhythm training transfers directly to the instrument.
- ✓ Works on everything. iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, and any web browser. Students with different devices all use the same app, so your instructions are consistent across the studio.
- ✓ Practice tracking built in. Students can see how many minutes they practiced each day. You can discuss their practice log at the next lesson without asking them to keep a paper diary.
Features that matter for lessons
Accent Bell
The first beat of each measure plays a distinct bell sound. Students hear the downbeat clearly in any time signature from 1/4 to 12/4.
Subdivisions
Quarter, eighth, triplet, and sixteenth note subdivisions. Essential for teaching rhythmic accuracy at slow tempos where students tend to drift.
Tempo Trainer
Automatically increases BPM by a set amount every N bars. Assign a passage at 60 BPM with +5 every 4 bars and the student works up to tempo without stopping.
Beat Detection
Listens through the microphone and detects the student's tempo. Useful for checking if a student is actually playing at the metronome speed or just ignoring it.
What your students get for free
The free version covers everything a beginning or intermediate student needs:
- ✓ Full BPM range (40-208) with +/- controls and slider
- ✓ Pendulum animation with Italian tempo markings
- ✓ Accent bell for downbeat emphasis
- ✓ Time signatures from 1/4 to 12/4
- ✓ Practice time tracking
- ✓ No account required, no personal data collected
The optional premium upgrade ($4.99, one-time) adds subdivisions, tempo trainer, beat detection, Apple Watch control, custom skins, and unlimited presets. No subscription, no recurring charges.
How to add it to your studio supply list
Copy and paste any of these into your studio policy, syllabus, or welcome email:
Download True Metronome (free) for your phone or tablet. Available on the App Store, Google Play, or use it in your browser at truemetronome.app/online/
The app is called True Metronome on both the App Store and Google Play. There is no "lite" version or confusing naming — one app, all platforms.
