First Five Notes by Virtunity
Five notes this week. The whole range when you are ready.
Built by a band director and private lesson teacher, First Five Notes walks a beginner through their instrument a few notes at a time: name it, finger it, play it, then play a song.
16 learning paths across 12 instrument families. The first five notes are free, with no account.
How it works
The path, one module at a time
Every module works the same way. Finish its steps, and the next notes, keys, songs and games open.
01
FreeThe first five notes
Name each note on the staff. Pick its fingering, and a correct answer sounds the note so you can play along and match it. Then play it into the mic until you land it, and use the new notes in a short song.
Charts from the app, for clarinet, trumpet and trombone. 02
Fingerings you can see
The written note stays on screen while you choose a fingering, even on a phone. French horn players choose Single F or Double. Trombone shows each slide position, and its tuner shows a green zone when the note is in tune.
Alto sax, French horn and trombone, the way the app draws them. 03
NewIn the browserRhythm, one level at a time
21 rhythm levels in five units, from a steady beat to compound sixteenths. 26 short explainers teach each new idea before you tap it.
In every level you tap the beat, tap the rhythm, then play it on your instrument. The app checks that each tap starts on time; you check the playing by ear. Levels 1 to 4 are free.
- Beat and long notes
- Eighths and syncopation
- Cut time
- Sixteenths and 4/8
- Compound meter and triplets
04
Full rangeKeys, four notes at a time
Four notes of a key at a time, starting with the notes you already know. Each key uses the same three steps, and its games open when you finish them.
- Key 1: C major lower, F major upperAll notes you know
- Key 2: G major lower, C major upperThree new notes
- Key 3: F major lower, B-flat major upperTwo new notes
The first three keys on the clarinet path.
05
Songs from your notes and from around the world
Short familiar songs, like Ode to Joy and When the Saints Go Marching In, use the notes you have learned. The World Music Library adds 28 folk songs from four regions of the world.
Listen to any of them free, played on your instrument. With the full range, learn each one once you have finished its notes, keys and rhythm levels.
Doiya
Sri Lanka · 4/4 time
Mchedelo (The Blacksmith)
Georgia · 2/4 time
Rocking the Little Dove
Latvia · 3/8 time
Song of the Adendoa
Eritrea · 3/4 time
Four of the 28 songs in the World Music Library.
06
The arcade
Five games with every note you know. The arcade opens after you finish Play in the first module.
Note Rush
The notes fall. Play them before they hit the staff.
Call and Response
Listen, then repeat the line.
Fingering Flash
See the note, tap the fingering.
Long Tones
Hold each note steady for as long as you can.
Dynamics
Play each note soft or loud, inside the target band.
New in the browser app
Not sure what to practice? Pick 5, 10 or 15 minutes.
Practice today builds a short plan from where the student is: the next note step, a rhythm, and usually a song to finish, with a game or a key when there is time. The five-minute plan keeps to a few activities. Longer plans give more time to playing and songs.
Times are a guide, and nothing cuts off a note or a song. The plan stays on the device, and nothing is recorded.
Try it in the browserPractice today
Practice at your pace. New steps open as you learn.
About 5 minutes · 3 activities
Review · Step 3: Play · about 1 min 30 sec
Play the notes in First 5 Notes on your instrument.
Rhythm: Quarter note and quarter rest · about 1 min 30 sec
Learn the rhythm, then practice it at your own pace.
Learn a song · about 2 min
Use the notes you have learned in First 5 Notes to practice a song.
Prices
Free to start. One-time prices after that.
Website purchases are not subscriptions.
Free
The first five notes on each learning path, and rhythm levels 1 to 4. No account.
$4.99
One instrument's full beginning range, once: the rest of its notes, its keys, rhythm levels 5 to 21 and World Music song practice.
$99
First 5 Notes Classroom is $99 once for 12 months: one band program at one school, with unlimited enrolled students and co-teachers.
See Classroom accessAfter a website purchase, we email the parent or guardian a link to set a password, so it can be restored on another browser or in the First 5 Notes iPhone app.
On iPhone
First 5 Notes: Beginning Band
The iPhone app has the same four steps, the keys, the songs and the arcade, and free practice works offline once it is installed. Rhythm levels and Practice today are in the browser app.
No account for the free five. No practice analytics or recordings.
Microphone audio is analyzed on the device while the student plays, and nothing is recorded or saved. First Five Notes checks notes and taps, not whole performances, so tone, phrasing and musicianship stay with the teacher.
Built by a band director and private lesson teacher for beginning band students in grades 5 to 8.