Support

Last updated: August 27, 2026

Music Practice Coach is a guided practice runner. It runs as an app on iPad and iPhone and on Mac, and in a web browser at music-practice-coach.com. The three share the same practice plans, so you can build on one and run on another. This page answers common questions and explains how to get help.

Getting started

A short Welcome plan is installed the first time you open the app. Select it to see its steps, then start a session to walk through them.

Where your library lives depends on the platform:

• iPad and iPhone: in the app's own storage. Nothing to set up.
• Mac: choose a folder with Choose Folder… — an existing practice folder or a new empty one. The app creates the subfolders it needs inside it.
• Web: the default is private browser storage, which needs no setup. In Chrome or Edge you can instead pick a real folder from Library ▾ → Open a folder…, and point the Mac app at that same folder so both share one library.

Three ways to get practice plans

1. Install one from a catalog. Open Catalog Plans for ready-made packages, complete with their audio, scores and video. If your teacher publishes their own, type their GitHub username into Catalog account and press Load to see theirs instead. On Mac and iPad a package installs in one tap; in a browser it downloads as a .zip you drag onto the window.

2. Open a package a teacher sent you. Practice packages are ordinary .zip files, sent by email, Messages, AirDrop or a cloud link.

• iPad and iPhone: tap the zip and share it to Music Practice Coach, or use Get Plans → Import Package File… inside the app.
• Mac: open Files… from the plan panel and drop the zip on it.
• Web: drag the zip anywhere onto the window, or use the Files panel.

The app unpacks the zip and files everything into the right folders. Files you already have are never overwritten.

3. Make your own. Create a plan, add steps, and point each step at a recording, a score, or a YouTube video. On iPad and iPhone you can record audio and video into a plan directly.

Adding your own audio, video and scores

Media lives in your library, and steps refer to it.

• iPad and iPhone: Manage Files, then Import from Files…, Import from Photos…, Record Audio… or Record Video….
• Mac and Web: open the Files panel and drop files on it, or click to browse. Each file is sorted into the right subfolder automatically by its type.

Sharing a plan with a student

Select the plan, then use the share or export menu:

• Package — unlocked (iPad/iPhone: Share Package — Unlocked): a zip with the plan and every file it uses, ready to play anywhere.
• Package — protected: the same, but with your own media locked behind a code. See Security for what that protection is and is not.
• Plan JSON only: just the plan file, for a backup or a quick share when the student already has the media.
• Export to GitHub: publishes to your own catalog, so students install it in one tap. Setup instructions are in the app, under Information → For Teachers.

Packages under roughly 25 MB usually fit as an email attachment; anything larger is easier to share as a cloud link, or through a catalog.

Frequently asked questions

Does the app teach me how to play an instrument?

No. Music Practice Coach is a practice organizer. It shows sheet music, runs metronomes, loops passages, and follows a plan you or your teacher built. It does not contain lessons.

Where do my files live?

• iPad and iPhone: in the Files app, under On My iPad → Music Practice Coach → Packages. The in-app screens are easier for everyday use.
• Mac and Web (folder mode): in the folder you chose, in subfolders named practice_plans, audio, pdfs, video and midi. Add and remove files through the app rather than in Finder, so plans and files stay in step.
• Web (browser storage): in private storage belonging to the site. Your browser can clear it, so keep a backup — or switch to a folder with Library ▾ → Save this library to a folder…

Does my library sync between devices?

There is no automatic sync, and no account. Two things come close:

• The Mac app and the web app can share one folder — put it in Dropbox or iCloud Drive and both see the same library. There is no conflict detection, so avoid editing the same plan in both at once.
• To move a plan to iPad or iPhone, export it as a package and open it there, or publish it to a catalog and install it.

Can I use the same plans on all three?

Yes. Plans use the same format everywhere, so a plan built on the Mac runs on an iPad or in a browser.

A teacher's package asks for a code.

Its media is protected. Enter the code your teacher gave you — separately from the package itself — and every file locked under it unlocks at once. The app remembers it on that device. Codes you have entered are listed under Codes ▾, where you can also back them up and restore them on another device.

Which audio and video formats are supported?

Audio: mp3, m4a, aac, wav, aiff, aif. In-app recording produces m4a / AAC. Video: mp4, mov, m4v. In-app video recording produces mp4. Scores are PDFs, and MIDI files may be .mid or .midi.

Video made on a Mac sometimes uses an encoding (HEVC/H.265) that will not play everywhere. If a video step shows an error or a black screen, ask whoever made it to export it again as MP4 with H.264.

My older iPad cannot install the app.

The apps need iPadOS or iOS 17 and macOS 14 or later. On an older device, use the web version at music-practice-coach.com, which works in any modern browser.

The metronome stops when I lock the screen. (iPad and iPhone)

Audio loops and metronomes keep running with the screen locked. Video and YouTube steps deliberately pause, which is expected.

My headphones disconnected mid-session. (iPad and iPhone)

The app pauses when audio output changes, following the usual iOS convention. Press Play to continue.

I got an interruption from a call or Siri. (iPad and iPhone)

The app pauses and waits for you. Auto-resume is deliberately not done — it becomes unreliable when interruptions stack up.

Where are my session logs?

The Logs view in the app is the easiest way to read them. On iPad and iPhone the files sit in the Files app under On My iPad → Music Practice Coach → logs; on Mac and Web they are in a logs folder inside your library.

Reporting a bug or asking for a feature

Email support@music-practice-coach.com with:

• What you were doing when the issue happened
• What you expected, and what actually happened
• Which version you were using — the iPad/iPhone app, the Mac app, or the web version
• Your device and OS version, and for the web version, which browser
• The app version, shown in the About panel inside the app

A short screen recording is the fastest way to show a problem with the interface.

Privacy

See the Privacy Policy. Short version: nothing is collected.