Helpful Tips For Reading Music On An IPad With Low Vision

I started reading music on an iPad when I was in high school after having difficulties with accessing large print sheet music and keeping the large pages organized in a folder or my backpack. Learning how to read sheet music on an iPad gave me more flexibility with displaying notation in large print or making annotations, and I also appreciated the portability of an iPad compared to the 11-inch by 17-inch pages that I had previously been using to read music. Compiled by a visually impaired clarinet and bass clarinet player, here is a list of strategies and tips for reading music on an iPad with low vision and enlarging music on an iPad with low vision.

Choosing an iPad for reading music and optional accessories

When choosing an iPad for reading music with low vision, it is important to note that a larger screen size is not necessarily more accessible or easier to see when it comes to visual access. Visual impairment is a spectrum, not a binary, and the ideal screen size for individual users with low vision depends on a number of factors, including:

Visual field or field of view/field of vision. For users with visual field neglect or reduced peripheral vision, a smaller screen may be easier to position within the field of vision so the entire screen can be viewed at once or with minimal movement. Users can also hold smaller devices with their hands or position themselves closer to the screen.
Visual complexity of applications. An app that has a lot of small icons or lots of text may run off the edge of the screen on a smaller device. This is something to consider for productivity applications that are used in school or in the workplace.
For users that plan to use Split View or multitasking features, a smaller screen may not provide a large enough viewing area for running two applications at once.
A larger screen may be more challenging to position without the use of a case or tablet stand, and may also be heavier/less portable. That said, this issue may not be as prevalent on music stands.
Larger screens are generally designed for use in landscape or horizontal orientations, similar to a computer. Smaller screens generally prioritize portrait or vertical orientations, similar to a smartphone.

Tablet screen sizes are generally divided into these categories:

Small tablets: between 8 inches and 8.9 inches
Mid-size tablets: between 9 inches and 11 inches
Large tablets (often marketed as pro models): greater than 12 inches

My personal iPad that I use for reading music (among other tasks) has a 10.9-inch screen and I can pick up the device with one hand or zoom in on specific parts of the screen quickly. That said, many of my friends with low vision prefer the 13-inch iPad Pro screen for reading music since they can display larger portions of music on the screen, especially if they play instruments like flute that frequently have parts with eighth or sixteenth note runs.

iPad accessories for reading music with low vision

While the iPad is definitely the most important component when it comes to reading music on an iPad with low vision, musicians may also be interested in using one or more of the following accessories to help make it easier to read or access music with visual impairment:

Apple Pencil for annotating sheet music or making notes
Folio case for protecting iPad screen when not in use or for positioning the iPad at an angle
Page turner button or Bluetooth button for turning sheet music pages— I like the small size of the Flic button and similar designs
PageFlip foot controller, AirTurn, or other page turner pedal for turning pages using a switch
Anti-glare/anti-reflection screen protector for iPad screen for privacy

All of these items can make it easier to read music from an iPad with low vision, but users can still read music or use other sheet music apps without having to buy additional accessories.

Placing an iPad on a music stand

In all of the ensembles I have played in, I use a solid back music stand that is identical to the ones used by other musicians; the primary difference is that I have my own music stand and don’t share with another musician. iPad music stands are another option that can hold an iPad in place and make it easier to rotate/re-position the iPad screen to read music with low vision, but I haven’t used any of these as a musician.

When positioning my own iPad for reading music, I place the device in the center of the stand and adjust the angle of the stand so my iPad is positioned within my field of view. I’m also careful to make sure that nothing bumps into my stand so that the iPad doesn’t fall on the floor and keep my stand away from walkways and other high-traffic areas. One of my friends added grip tape for gym equipment to the back of their iPad case to create more friction and help the iPad stay in place on a stand, while another added Velcro to both their personal music stand and iPad case to help with positioning.

Make music easier to read on an iPad with display customizations

For musicians with low vision, there are several display customizations and accessibility settings that can make it easier to read music on an iPad. Here are some features to consider:

Portrait orientation vs landscape orientation: I prefer to use a landscape (horizontal) orientation for music so I can position the screen under my lined bifocal or zoom in on specific measures, though other musicians may prefer a portrait (vertical) orientation if they have more limited peripheral vision.
Use Classic Invert or Invert Colors to view light-colored notes on a dark-colored display
Reduce the white point of the display to make bright colors appear less sharp
Enable display accommodations to add a colored tint to the screen
Turn on Guided Access to restrict the iPad to only display a specific application until the user enters a passcode

Some sheet music apps support dark mode or inverted colors for reading music with light notes on a dark background, though another option is to add shortcuts for accessibility settings to the Control Center or AssistiveTouch so they can be enabled without having to switch applications.

Adding sheet music to an iPad: Multiple options

There are several options for adding sheet music to an iPad for low vision musicians to access with large print/magnification. The most important advice I can share is that the original music page/file should be the highest quality possible to ensure that the digital scans do not get blurry or distorted when zooming in or magnifying notes.

Many sheet music publishers offer music as born-digital PDFs or MusicXML files that are not blurry when enlarged and that can be imported into either the Files app on iPad or into a specific sheet music app for iPad. For one ensemble I was in, I purchased individual clarinet parts from an online sheet music store for the songs we were playing so I could configure my own music.

Optical Music Recognition (OMR) is an emerging technology that can be used to convert physical music pages to digital files, though no technology is 100% accurate and users may need to verify sheet music accuracy with a sighted assistant. For iPad, I have used apps like Sheet Music Scanner and the PlayScore 2 sheet music scanner, both of which are paid services (around $6 USD per month). Both applications worked well with sheet music for multiple types of clarinets.

Over the years, I have also used scanner apps or my iPad/phone camera to take pictures of sheet music pages and scan them into my device, which can also be saved as PDFs. It’s important to position the devices to avoid shadows or other artifacts that can show up on when taking photos of pages, as well as to ensure that the entire page is in focus.

Organizing sheet music on an iPad with low vision

Users have two options for digital sheet music layouts on iPad: fixed layout or reflowable layout. A fixed layout mimics the traditional page layout and requires gestures like pinch-to-zoom or swiping to enlarge music, while reflowable layouts automatically adjust to fit to the size of the screen and generally support a higher resolution.

There are several digital sheet music apps for iPad that support magnification or zooming in at high levels to view individual measures in a reflowable layout, such as forScore (which is available for a one-time purchase of $25 USD). These applications often require music to be imported as MusicXML files instead of PDFs; for example, someone could use PlayScore 2 to create a MusicXML file to import into forScore.

For users that are not interested in speciality sheet music apps for iPad, the following built-in tools can be used for organizing sheet music on iPad with low vision:

Create a folder in Photos or Files

For musicians that are only playing a few songs or that consistently play songs in the same order, creating a folder with sheet music in the Files app or Photos app can make it easier for musicians to easily turn pages between songs or use gestures such as pinch-to-zoom or swiping across the screen. As I become more familiar with different pieces, I create a routine for how I swipe through different measures or when I zoom in to read items more closely as I play.

Add sheet music to Apple Books

For musicians with a larger repertoire of PDF sheet music, another option is to use Apple Books (iBooks) to import PDFs and read music in a fixed layout, using pinch-to-zoom to enlarge music. Users can add sheet music to Apple Books by opening a PDF and selecting Share, followed by Copy to Books. This is the system my friend uses for keeping music organized in pep band.

Using Markup and annotating music with low vision

Markup is a built-in tool for drawing, writing, highlighting, and adding stickers to images and PDFs, and is a helpful tool for reading music on iPad with low vision (especially when paired with the Apple Pencil). I personally use Markup to make sheet music easier to read in the following ways:

Increase the line thickness or color-code symbols and notation so it is easier to see
Write out measure numbers in larger print or add symbols to serve as a visual landmark
Make notes in music as needed or as directed by the conductor
Highlight crescendos, decrescendos, dynamics, and tempo changes in different colors
Mark areas for page turns; I typically memorize the first line and last line of each sheet music page to assist with page turns

Since I can’t read gray pencil lead on white sheet music, I love that Markup makes it easy for me to add notes to my music or erase/remove notes cleanly from a page without requiring me to scratch out symbols or try to draw things perfectly on the first try.

Tips For Reading Music On An iPad With Low Vision

Choosing an iPad for reading music and optional accessories

iPad accessories for reading music with low vision

Related links

Placing an iPad on a music stand

Related links

Make music easier to read on an iPad with display customizations

Related links

Adding sheet music to an iPad: Multiple options

Related links

Organizing sheet music on an iPad with low vision

Create a folder in Photos or Files

Add sheet music to Apple Books

Related links

Using Markup and annotating music with low vision

Related links

Other tips for reading music on an iPad with low vision

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