Set your Low A

To get started, all you have to do is make sure you let the app know roughly what frequency the Low A of your chanter is. The app will work with practice chanters, highland pipes, and small pipes in any key.

To enter the Low A frequency, tap on the Play icon on the bottom navigation bar, then tap the Low A box at the top and enter the frequency. It does not have to be exact, just closer to your Low A than the next note up and down!

To find the frequency of your Low A, the best way is to use our Braw Bagpipe Tuner app to get a quick reading. Start the Braw Bagpipe Tuner, tap the Low A button, then tap Calibrate Now and follow the instructions. Afterwards, take a note of the result (it will be shown in the Braw Bagpipe Tuner main screen on the Low A button).

Please be aware that for the detection to work well, the notes on your chanter must be reasonably in tune. Again, we would suggest our Braw Bagpipe Tuner app to help you with this.

Getting a good match

In general, matches are found by looking at the melody notes and their timing, then looking for the closest match in the database, tracking the match over time to gain confidence in the result.

There are tolerances for various differences between what is heard and the music, which should establish a match even with various differences and abilities. If you are struggling to get a match to a tune you know is in the database, here are some tips:

• Make sure the volume bar is moving, if not see the microphone section
• Make sure you have set the Low A to your chanter Low A
• Make sure your chanter is reasonably in tune
• Try to keep your blowing reasonably steady
• Make sure your chanter is closer to the mic than your drones
• Try to keep a steady tempo
• Try to make sure the timing matches the music, in particular dot-cuts
• Find the tune manually in the search tab, and confirm it is really the same arrangement as you play. If not, you can import your own arrangement!

Microphone settings

Braw Tunes requires microphone permission for the features on the Play tab. You will be asked to grant permission for the app to access the microphone the first time you tap the microphone button on the Play tab. If you decline, you can grant it later in your device settings: on iOS under Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone, and on Android under Settings → Apps → Braw Tunes → Permissions (the app's "Permission needed" message has an Open Settings button that takes you straight there). Please note that Android can automatically remove permissions from apps you have not used for a while; if that happens, simply grant the permission again.

Braw Tunes uses the default microphone that your device indicates as the main audio source. Normally this will be the standard microphone on your device, but can also be an external microphone if your device is set up to use one. Configuration and setup of external microphones is not managed by the Braw Tunes app - you need to first get these working and used as the main audio input source to your device.

Here are some quick tips to troubleshoot possible microphone issues:

• In the Play screen, tap the microphone icon to start recording, then play your chanter for a few seconds and watch to see if the volume gauge moves. If it does not, it is likely a permissions issue, or an external microphone configuration problem
• Make sure Braw Tunes has microphone permission in your device settings
• Check for any external Bluetooth headphones or speakers that might be connected, perhaps your device is using a microphone from them? Try turning off Bluetooth on your phone and see if it switches back to your main microphone.
• Try opening a default or well known audio recording app, and confirm that it can record as expected.
• Try closing any other apps or system services that might be using the microphone
• In a noisy room, try raising the Noise floor anchor in Settings; in a very quiet room, try lowering it

Identifying from recordings

It is possible to use the app to identify tunes in recordings (as opposed to you playing live). Here are some tips to help you with this:

• You will need to set the Low A in the Play screen to that of the recording (perhaps the examples in the section above can help you with this)
• The detection will be easiest for just pipes on their own without harmonies, but can also work for multi-instrument recordings, as long as the main melody is relatively strong compared to the backing

Practice streaks

To help you practice regularly, Braw Tunes keeps a weekly practice streak, shown as a flame above the microphone on the Play screen.

• A streak counts weeks, not days. A week (Monday to Sunday) counts if you record a session of 5 minutes or more in which at least one tune is recognised.
• One qualifying session per week is enough; extra sessions in the same week do not change the count.
• Practice the next week to keep the streak alive. Miss a week and the count resets to zero.
• Your longest streak is shown on your Profile and stays there for keeps.
• The flame indicator grows richer as your streak passes 2, 4, 12, 26, and 52 weeks, and a celebration card appears each time your streak moves forward, with special ones at 4, 12, 26, and 52 weeks.

If a session did not count towards your streak, a short message tells you why: either it was under 5 minutes, or no tunes were detected. Tap the flame at any time for a reminder of how streaks work.

Deleting a session that a streak depends on will reduce or reset your current streak; the app warns you before you confirm. Your longest streak is never reduced.

Arrangements

The My Arrangements screen shows you the individual tune arrangements you have added to your library, whether created by hand or imported from a music file.

Editing an arrangement

Once added, you can edit all the details for an arrangement by tapping on it from the My Arrangements screen, and you will be presented with the same fields to edit that you used when creating the arrangement.

Removing an arrangement

You can remove an arrangement by swiping left on it from the My Arrangements screen, and confirming when prompted. If you have shared the arrangement, the people you shared it with will lose access.

Removing an arrangement is treated a little differently to removing a Set or Collection. If you have added the arrangement to a Set, the set will still have the tune name listed, but will not be able to show the full details of your arrangement, and when viewing the set you will see an indication that the arrangement is missing. If another arrangement with the same tune name exists, Braw Tunes will do its best to show that in its place.

Sharing an arrangement

To share an individual arrangement, tap on it from the My Arrangements screen, then tap the share icon at the top of the edit screen. See Sharing for what happens next.

Back to Top

Sets

A Set is an ordered list of Arrangements. An example might be one of your pipe band marching sets, or perhaps your competition March, Strathspey and Reel for this year.

The My Sets screen lets you easily create and manage your own Sets. Sets that have been shared with you also appear here, marked with the "shared with you" icon.

You can also tap on the Set to view it, and when you tap a tune in the set, you will be shown the next arrangement at the bottom of the music screen. Tapping on the music for the Next arrangement will then show the next arrangement, giving you a quick way to change music to the next tune.

Creating a Set

Tap the + icon in the My Sets screen, and you will be taken to the Create Set screen.

Give the set a title, and optionally a description, then add arrangements to your set by tapping the + icon next to "Tunes", then searching for and tapping on the arrangement you want to add. You can add arrangements from the core database, your own arrangements, and arrangements shared with you.

If you want to add an arrangement of a tune that is not in the database, you can first add the arrangement from the My Arrangements screen. You can add an arrangement with just the Name and other details, you don't have to have a digital sheet music file to do this.

You can reorder the arrangements in the Set by dragging them, and can remove them by swiping left.

Press the tick button once you are done, and your Set will be added. Once added, it will be available from the My Sets screen, and you will be able to add it to Collections and attach files to it.

Under the hood, you have created a unique ID for your Set, which is used when adding to Collections, and when sharing. If you update the Set, the most recent version of it will be used in any Collections it is in, and also by anyone you have shared it with, making it easy to make sure you and others are using the most up to date version.

Editing a Set

To edit a Set, tap on it from the My Sets screen, and you will be presented with the same fields to edit that you used when creating the Set. Sets shared with you can be viewed but not edited.

Removing a Set

You can remove a Set by swiping left on it from the My Sets screen, and confirming when prompted.

If you have added the Set to any Collections, the Set will be removed from the Collections. If you have shared the Set, the people you shared it with will lose access.

Sharing a Set

To share a Set, tap on it from the My Sets screen, then tap the share icon at the top of the Set screen. See Sharing for what happens next. Sharing a Set shares the most recent versions of all the arrangements in it, and any edits you make later reach the people you shared it with automatically.

Back to Top

Collections

A Collection is an ordered list of Sets. Examples might be a collection that contains all your band's standard sets, a collection that has all the competition sets for this year, or it could even represent the categories and tunes in a published book.

The My Collections screen lets you easily create and manage your own Collections. Collections that have been shared with you also appear here. Once a Collection is created, it automatically can be used when you use the Play screen to show you the beginning of the next tune in the next Set, which can be very handy!

You can tap on the Collection to view it, which will show you the Sets in the collection. Tapping on the Set will show you the Set, and from there you can drill further down to each arrangement.

Creating a Collection

Tap the + icon in the My Collections screen, and you will be taken to the Create Collection screen.

Give the collection a title, and optionally a description, then add sets to your collection by tapping the + icon next to "Sets", then searching for and tapping on the set you want to add.

If you want to add a Set that does not exist yet, you will need to first add it from the My Sets screen (just save your collection and come back again once you have created your Sets).

You can reorder the sets in the collection by dragging them, and can remove them by swiping left.

Press the tick button once you are done, and your Collection will be added. Once added, it will be available from the My Collections screen.

Under the hood, you have created a unique ID for your Collection, which is used when sharing. If you update the Collection, the most recent version is used by anyone you have shared it with, making it easy to make sure you and others are using the most up to date version.

Editing a Collection

To edit a Collection, tap on it from the My Collections screen, and you will be presented with the same fields to edit that you used when creating the Collection. Collections shared with you can be viewed but not edited.

Removing a Collection

You can remove a Collection by swiping left on it from the My Collections screen, and confirming when prompted. If you have shared the Collection, the people you shared it with will lose access.

Sharing a Collection

To share a Collection, tap on it from the My Collections screen, then tap the share icon at the top of the Collection screen. See Sharing for what happens next. Sharing a Collection shares all the Sets and Arrangements in it.

Back to Top

Importing music files

Digital sheet music files are imported by creating an arrangement: open My Arrangements, tap +, then tap Load and choose the file. The following file formats are supported:

• Bagpipe Music Writer files (.bww, .bmw)
• MusicXML files (.musicxml, .mxl)

Please see the Creating an Arrangement section for further details, or the Creating digital sheet music files section if you would like to know how to create your own music files.

Any other kind of file (a PDF of the music, a photo, a recording) can be added to an arrangement, set, or collection as an attachment.

Music that another Braw Tunes user wants to give you no longer comes as a file: they share it with you, and it arrives through Shared with me, complete with any later updates they make.

Back to Top

Sharing your music

Open the arrangement, set, or collection and tap the share icon (three people) at the top of the screen. The first time, a share is created straight away, and you will see Link share created with the link and these options:

• Send: send the link using your device's share sheet (message, email, and so on)
• Copy Link / Copy Code: copy the link, or just the short code, to paste elsewhere
• Configure share: change who can access it and what is included

By default, anyone with the link can access the share, and both the sheet music and your attachments are included.

Share settings

Tap the share icon again (or Configure share) to see the shares for the item. An item can have more than one share, for example one for your band and one for a friend, each with its own link and settings. Tap a share to change:

• Share music: whether the sheet music is included. With it off, recipients get the tune names and details only.
• Share attachments: whether your attachments are included.
• Access:
  • Anyone with the link (the default): anyone who has the link or code can import it.
  • Specific people: only the people and groups you choose from your contacts. They still use the link or code, but only listed people can import it, identified by the email address of their Piper's Account.
  • Public: anyone can find and subscribe to it.

Tap the tick to save your changes.

Stopping a share

Swipe left on a share in the list and tap Delete. Everyone using that share loses access to the item. Deleting the item itself also withdraws all of its shares. If you only want to stop one person, and the share is for specific people, remove them from the share instead.

Receiving shared music

There are two ways to import something that has been shared with you:

• Tap the link. Links look like brawsound.com/share/bt/…. If Braw Tunes is installed, the app opens and imports the share. If you are not signed in, you will be asked to sign in or create an account first.
• Enter the code. Open the Tunes tab, tap Shared with me, tap +, then paste the link or type the code and tap Import. Codes are not case sensitive.

Once imported, the share appears in Shared with me under the name of the person who shared it, and everything in it appears in your library:

• Shared sets and collections appear in My Sets and My Collections, and shared arrangements in Search, all marked with the "shared with you" icon.
• You can add shared arrangements to your own sets, and shared sets to your own collections.
• Shared arrangements that include music are recognised on the Play screen, just like your own.
• You cannot edit or delete shared items; they are the owner's.
• Shared items count towards your library units, so a share is refused if your library is full.

Managing what you receive

Tap a person in Shared with me to see everything they have shared with you, grouped into arrangements, sets, and collections. Each has a switch: turn an item off to remove it from your library (you can turn it back on later), then tap the tick to save. Turning everything off removes that person from the list.

To remove everything from someone at once, swipe left on their name in Shared with me and tap Delete. This only affects your library; it does not delete their music.

Getting the latest version

Braw Tunes checks for updates to the music shared with you when you open Shared with me (about once an hour). To check right now, pull down on the Shared with me screen, or on a person's list of shares. If the owner stops sharing an item, it disappears from your library, and their list shows that you no longer have access.

Contacts and groups

To share with specific people rather than anyone with the link, add them to your address book: open your Piper's Account screen and tap Contacts or Groups.

• A contact is a display name and the email address of the person's Piper's Account. The email address is what identifies them, so it must be the one they sign in with.
• A group is a named list of contacts, for example your band. Share with the group, and anyone you add to the group later automatically gets access to everything shared with it.

You can also add contacts and groups while setting up a share. Your address book is shared with our other apps: contacts you add in Braw Tunes are available in The Piper's Metronome, and vice versa.

Blocking and reporting

If someone shares content you do not want, you can block them: in Shared with me, long-press their name and choose Block User (or use the menu at the top of their list of shares). All their shares are removed from your library, and you will not see their content again. Blocked users are listed on your Piper's Account screen, where you can unblock them.

To report a shared arrangement, set, or collection as inappropriate or spam, open it and tap the warning triangle at the top of the screen. We review every report.

Menu

At the top left of the profile picture, you will see a cog icon. Tapping on this will get you into the Menu, which has:

• Upgrade to Pro (or a thank-you if you already have Pro)
• Show Intro: the intro slides shown on first launch
• User manual: this manual
• Account: your Piper's Account, address book, and blocked users
• Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
• Reset privacy options: ask again whether we may collect usage data
• Feedback: email us
• Enjoying Braw Tunes?: leave a rating
• Version
• Settings: audio and detection settings, and streak celebrations
• Restore Purchase: force a check with the App Store or Google Play

The profile icon at the top right of the Profile tab is a shortcut to your Piper's Account.

My Stats box

The My Stats box shows your total practice time and longest streak. Tap the box for the full stats: sessions, tunes played, time played, average session length, and average tunes per session for a chosen period (this week, this month, this year, last week, last month, last year, or all time), plus your all-time repertoire and learning counts and your current and longest streaks.

Library Usage box

Shows how many library units and how much storage you have used against your Free or Pro limits. See Free and Pro.

Tunes Played box

The Tunes Played box gives you a quick listing of the tunes you play the most often. Tap the box for more details.

Sessions box

The Sessions box shows your session count and the details of your last session (created by tapping the mic on the Play screen). Tap on the box for more details.

In the Sessions screen you will see a listing of every session you have recorded. Tapping on the session will give you the full details of that session.

Helping to improve and expand the database

You can help improve and expand the database in various ways:

• If you notice a mistake in an arrangement, either in the music, or the associated data, then let us know the details
• You can submit new arrangements to the database. These could be arrangements for tunes not yet in the database, or could be new arrangements for existing tunes.
• You can also contact us via email with details on an arrangement you would like to see added.
• The easiest way to offer us an arrangement is to import the digital sheet music file for it, and leave the "Allow the file to be indexed for the main database" switch on when you save it. We consider these files for inclusion when we next update the main database.
• By default, tunes added to the main database will be considered copyright, until we can confirm the composer, arranger and licence details, so any information you can provide in this regard would help a lot.
• If you are a composer, we would love to hear from you to help make sure your music is properly represented.

How to upgrade

• Tap the Profile tab on the bottom navigation bar
• Tap the cog icon near the top left of the profile picture to access the Menu
• Tap Upgrade to Pro near the top of the Menu screen

You can also tap the FREE badge on your Profile, or any of the "library full" messages. The Upgrade screen shows the price, both as a monthly equivalent and as the yearly amount you are billed.

The purchase and management of your subscription is fully handled by the Google or Apple app store (depending on your platform). Your subscription renews automatically each year unless you cancel it, at least 24 hours before it ends, in your app store's subscription settings.

It is not possible to upgrade the app outside the app stores, this being a restriction imposed on us by the app stores.

The payment methods and details are entirely managed by the app stores, please see their support section for any issues in this regard.

Restoring a previous purchase

Your purchase is tied to the app store account you used to make the purchase.

In general, for the app to unlock you must install the app on your device with the same app store account you originally used to purchase Pro. After this, the app should automatically unlock.

Google Play Store

• Open the Play Store app, tap your profile icon at the top right, then Payments & subscriptions. Confirm that Braw Tunes Pro is listed under Subscriptions (or an older purchase under Budget & history). You can switch Google accounts from the same profile menu if required.
• Make sure Braw Tunes is installed with the Google account that has the purchase
• Open the app, and it should then automatically unlock
• If you still have problems, force a check with the Play Store by going to Profile, tapping the settings cog, then tapping Restore Purchase in the Menu
• As a last resort, try clearing the cache on the Play Store app, then reboot your device

Apple App Store

• Make sure you are signed into the Apple App Store with the account you used to make the purchase
• Check your subscriptions in the Apple App Store app, and confirm you can see Braw Tunes Pro listed
• Open the app, and it should then automatically unlock
• If you still have problems, you can force the app to check with the current app store account by going to Profile, tapping the settings cog, then tapping Restore Purchase in the Menu.

Using Pro on both Apple and Google devices

Google and Apple do not share purchases between their stores. Your Piper's Account carries your Pro status across both: when you purchase Pro while signed in, your Pro status is recorded on your account, and any device where you sign in with the same account is unlocked, whichever platform it is on.

• Make sure you are signed in to your Piper's Account on the device where you purchased Pro, and open the app there once
• Sign in with the same Piper's Account on the other device, and it will unlock
• Pro follows your subscription: if it lapses, or you sign out, the other device returns to Free

If this does not work for you, please contact us with the details of your purchase.

Glossary

Arrangement

An Arrangement (sometimes called a Setting) is a very specific version of a particular Tune.

Attachment

A file (PDF, photo, recording, or anything else) that you have attached to an Arrangement, Set, or Collection. Attachments are synced with your library and can be included when you share.

Bagpipe Music Writer file format

Bagpipe Music Writer was the original music writing software released by Robert MacNeil Musicworks in 1999. This software defined an easy to use Bagpipe Music Writer text format to allow the quick notation of bagpipe music, which was enthusiastically adopted by the piping community, with many thousands of bagpipe tunes being written in the .bmw and .bww formats. This app supports the import of Bagpipe Music Writer format tunes.

Braw Cloud

The cloud service behind your Piper's Account, where your library is synced and shares are stored.

.bww file

A .bww file is a tune written in the Bagpipe Music Writer text file format. You can import these files to this app. The .bww format is a slightly more recent and improved version of the original .bmw file format.

.bmw file

A .bmw file is a tune written in the Bagpipe Music Writer text file format. You can import these files to this app. The .bmw format was the very first Bagpipe Music Writer file format, and was superseded by the more recent and improved .bww format.

Collection

A Collection is an ordered list of Sets. Examples might be a collection that contains all your band's standard sets, a collection that has all the competition sets for this year, or it could even represent the categories and tunes in a published book.

Contact

A person in your address book, identified by the email address of their Piper's Account, whom you can share with directly.

Group

A named list of Contacts, such as your band, that you can share with in one go.

Library unit

The measure of the size of your library. Each set, collection, session, and arrangement with music or attachments is one unit. Free accounts have 100 units and 1 GB of storage; Pro has 2000 units and 10 GB.

MusicXML file format

MusicXML is the standard open format for exchanging digital sheet music. We can import MusicXML files (.musicxml and .mxl) allowing you to import sheet music from most popular notation software apps. Typically these apps have an option to export to MusicXML.

.musicxml file

A .musicxml file is a MusicXML format file. You can import these files to this app.

.mxl file

A .mxl file is a compressed form of the MusicXML format. You can import these files to this app.

Piper's Account

Your free account, shared across Braw Sound's piping apps, which keeps your library in the cloud, syncs it between devices, and lets you share music. Signing in is optional for searching and recognition.

Pro

Braw Tunes Pro, a yearly subscription that raises your library limits from 100 units and 1 GB to 2000 units and 10 GB.

Session

A Session is a period of time between when you tapped the listen button on the play screen, and when you tapped it again. During this time period, the app was listening for recognisable tunes, and will log which tunes were played. Sessions are used to help build your progress, stats, and streak.

Set

A Set is an ordered list of Arrangements. An example might be one of your pipe band marching sets, or perhaps your competition March, Strathspey and Reel for this year.

Share, share link, share code

A share makes one of your Arrangements, Sets, or Collections available to other pipers through the cloud. Each share has a link (brawsound.com/share/bt/…) and a short code; either one lets someone import it. See Sharing.

Streak

The number of consecutive weeks (Monday to Sunday) in which you recorded at least one session of 5 minutes or more with a recognised tune.

Subscribed

A shared item that is switched on in your library. You can unsubscribe from individual items in Shared with me without losing the share.

Tune

A tune is a recognisably distinct melody. A tune can have many different Arrangements, which may have small or large differences in the exact notes, time signature, timing, and gracing.

Unlocked arrangement

A copyright arrangement from the main database that is shown to you in full because you have imported the matching music file yourself.

Verified arrangement

An arrangement we have reviewed and confirmed against a known, respected source.

Back to Top