Play freely
Play freely, with nothing to get wrong
KeyFu is a piano practice app for iPhone and iPad. In Play freely, the app holds the harmony under you, and every key you play sounds.
Jam over the chords, try a line over a held note, or just play. There is no plan and no clock.
Practice with purpose. Play with freedom.
What adapts, and what you choose
KeyFu adapts to you
- It opens on the furthest-along free-playing exercise you have reached, in today’s key.
- Each run gets one goal, picked on your device from how your earlier runs went.
- The next run gets a different goal.
- When you stop, the coach puts what you played into words.
You choose
- The key: it opens in today’s key, the coach’s pick or one you set.
- When to start, pause and stop. No clock runs out.
- How much is on screen: Less on screen is one tap.
- Where you play: on the dashboard and most other screens too.
The screen
A screen with nothing to get wrong
no roll · no target · no score
Every key you play sounds, and the app holds a chord or a low note under you.
A card names what the app plays, such as 1 · C. The number is the chord’s place in the key, and the 1 is home.
The keys of the exercise are lit. A gold outline marks a note of the chord playing right now, a good place to land.
A key outside the lit ones is never wrong. It sounds like any other, turns a soft gray for a moment, and nothing stops.
One goal
One goal per run, picked from your earlier runs
Each run has one goal, shown as a single line, and nothing on screen counts it.
- Stay in the key.
- When the chord changes, land on an outlined key.
- End your phrases on home, the 1.
- Try notes you haven’t used yet.
The app picks it on your device from how your earlier runs went, and gives the next run a different one.
When your first note after a chord change fits the new chord, that key glows softly. There are no points and no counter: the glow is only a nod.
Quiet mode
Less on screen, when you want it
Tap Less on screen, and the goal line and the legend step away.
On iPhone the keyboard then shows more of the piano. The chord card stays, and Show everything brings the rest back.
Quiet mode changes only the picture, not what is played or recorded.
When you stop
A Done card in words, not a score
In Play freely no clock runs out, so you decide when to stop.
Then the Done card shows the coach’s words about what you played, with no score and no numbers.
When there is enough to go on, one sentence says where you landed, such as how often your first note after a chord change fit the new chord.
Again starts another run with a count-in, and Finish leaves the screen.
Anywhere in the app
Play on most screens, and see the chord’s name
With a keyboard connected, you can play on the dashboard and most other screens, and it sounds like a piano.
A panel rises with your keys lit and, while you hold a chord, its name, such as F minor 7. Keys outside the key you are in are grayed.
Nothing played there is recorded, and the panel hides by itself a few seconds after you let go.
Common questions
Can I play wrong notes in Play freely?
No, in Play freely no key is wrong: a key outside the lit ones sounds like any other and turns soft gray for a moment. Nothing is marked against you.
Does Play freely give me a score?
No, Play freely has no score: when you stop, the Done card shows the coach’s words about what you played, with no numbers.
What does the app play while I play freely?
The app holds a chord or a single low note under you. A card names it as a number and a name, such as 1 · C.
Which key does Play freely use?
Play freely opens in today’s key, whether that is the coach’s pick or one you set yourself.
Do I need a keyboard for Play freely?
Yes, Play freely needs a MIDI keyboard connected or a computer keyboard attached, because everything on the screen comes from your keys.
Join the beta
Invitations go out in small waves. KeyFu is free during the beta.
We send one confirmation email, then invitations in small waves. Without the tick we use your address only for the beta and the launch (privacy).
You need an iPhone or iPad and a keyboard that connects by USB or Bluetooth MIDI — most digital pianos do. What one session looks like.