App Review: Bebot
Mozart As A Child
I’m also willing to venture that someday very soon a latter day musical wunderkid will create breathtakingly fresh iPhone-powered music that we will all treasure. Experimentation has already begun, as evidenced by The Mentalist’s cover of MGMT’s song “Kids”. This video, which was first released earlier this year, is worth taking a look at as an example of some of the musical creation that the iPhone is enabling:
It may be tempting to dismiss something like this as a PR stunt — which it surely was — but that would be to miss the greater possibilities that a performance like this demonstrates. Put simply, the iPhone has not only enabled us to carry around the tools of an entire orchestra in our pocket, but it has facilitated the creation of completely new ways of musical expression. It is here where Bebot succeeds.
The app’s interface is simple — you’re presented with a robot butler character that you can make “sing” in different ways depending upon where you touch on the screen.
Bebot - Robot Synth
The simplicity of Bebot’s interface should not be confused with a lack of possibility. Within the settings sections of the app, you can assign and customize various synthesized voices and effects. You can change the scale, make different notes available, and allow loop creation. Truly the possibilities are limited only by your imagination. Obviously some of the younger kids may need help customizing the app, but even the littlest ones will be able to explore the soundscapes this app can create simply by touching and dragging their fingers across the screen.
Words always fail me a bit when attempting to describe music, which makes it hard to discuss some of the sonic possibilities that Bebot brings alive. The magic of this app is definitely best experienced first-hand — if you’re interested in seeing what your child can create with a new tool like this, you can get Bebot here. Highly recommended.
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