Create iPhone Ringtones in GarageBand

Ringtones are a fun way to personalize your iPhone. GarageBand, on every Mac, lets you create ringtones from music in your iTunes library.

Create a Ringtone Project
Launch GarageBand, select "iPhone Ringtone" (in the left column) and then double-click "Example Ringtone." Name the new ringtone project as you like.

Next, GarageBand will open the new project with a single track named "Jingles." In the track is a music snippet named "Pastel Slide Medium." Click on the snippet and press the Delete key to remove it.

Choose a Song
Click the Media Browser button (in the lower right corner of the window) and then drag a song from your iTunes Music library into the "Jingles" track. A bar with the title of the song will appear in the track.

Most songs are too long to use as ringtones. GarageBand uses a yellow bar (above the track) to let you specify an 18-second piece of the song to use.

Drag the yellow bar over the portion of the song you want to use for the ringtone. If you like, you can drag the ends of the yellow bar to create a longer ringtone. While the default 18 seconds is a nice length, 30-45 seconds is typical and let's you include more of the song.

Ringtones loop. So, if you let a  ringtone play long enough when your phone rings, it'll play again from the beginning.

Send Ringtone to iTunes
Select "Send Ringtone to iTunes" from the Share menu. GarageBand will convert and export the ringtone to the Ringtones library in iTunes. The next time you sync, the ringtone will be installed onto your iPhone for you to use.

Jam with Magic GarageBand on your Mac

Jam with your Mac using Magic GarageBand. Rock, Jazz, Country and other genres are available to help unleash the musician within you - whole songs laid-out by GarageBand to get your creative juices flowing.

On your Mac, launch GarageBand. (GarageBand comes with every Mac.) In the project window, click Magic GarageBand.

Choose a music genre.
Next, choose the genre of music you're in the mood to groove with. There are nine to choose from: Blues, Rock, Jazz, Country, Reggae, Funk, Latin, Roots Rock and Slow Blues.

Set the Stage.
Click the Audition button (or the Choose button). The stage will load and you'll see a virtual band, ready to play. You can connect an instrument to you Mac, or click "No Instrument". You can play along - "unplugged" - with a guitar or other instrument or sing along, instead.

Mix it up.
You can change the mix of instruments in two ways. Click on an instrument and then choose an alternate instrument (displayed just below the stage). Or, click on an empty part of the stage and then click the "Shuffle Instruments" button to randomly change all the instruments. Click the play button to hear the new mix.

If you'd like to edit the mix even more, you can click the "Open in GarageBand" button to open the song in Track View so that you can change, rearrange and add to the song anyway you'd like.

Things To Do With GarageBand, Even If You're Not a Musician

GarageBand is a part of the iLife suite of Mac applications from Apple. If you're a musician, you're probably already using GarageBand to lay down tracks, write songs and play with song ideas. If you not a musician, you can still use GarageBand in many useful and fun ways.

Create a cool voicemail message.
Instead of recording your voicemail message "live" into the phone, use GarageBand on you Mac to record it. The recording controls in GarageBand are much easier to use than any voicemail system. Plus, you can add background music and sound effects, too.

Create a ringtone for your phone.
Drag a music file into GarageBand. Trim it down to the portion of the song you'd like to use as a ringtone. If you have an iPhone you can use the "Send Ringtone to iTunes" item in the Share menu. The next time you sync, your custom-created ringtone will be installed on your iPhone.

Rehearse a speech.
Record a speech you are rehearsing and play it back to hear how it sounds.

Record your kids practicing an instrument, and play it back for them to hear.
If your son or daughter is learning to play an instrument, perhaps practicing a piece of music for a recital, it will help for them to hear a playback of part of their rehearsal.

Learn to play the guitar or piano in GarageBand.
Can't accommodate a regular guitar or piano lesson into your schedule? GarageBand offers video lessons that can teach you to play, with teachers such as Sting and Colbie Caillat. GarageBand let's you progress at your own pace and repeat lesson sections as much as you'd like. Slow down songs you're learning, and speed them up to normal tempo as you get better.

Learn your lines.
Read the script and record the lines of the other characters, leaving space for your lines. Then, play it back and say your lines using the recording to prompt you. It's a good way to learn and rehearse your lines and line cues.

Record a class or meeting.
With GarageBand installed on a MacBook, you can record a seminar, class session, speech or meeting as you take notes. You can refer to your audio recording later if you need to.

Remember a song you like.
If you're sitting in a Starbucks and hear a song you like, record it so you have a better chance of recalling it later to find the name of the song and who performed it.

Record yourself singing to a karaoke track.
Download a karaoke track from the web or iTunes Music Store and drag it into GarageBand on your Mac. Then sing and record. The cool thing about GarageBand is that you can record portions of a song, a little at a time. And, you can re-record any portion to get it just right. Add echo, too.

Create your own radio show, for fun.
You can be your own DJ. Drag music files into GarageBand and spread them out. Then, record song intros and clever quips. Add sound effects and musical jingles, too.

Create a podcast.
One of GarageBand's specialities, it turns your Mac into and podcast studio and provides sounds effects and jingles to spruce-up a podcast. Plus, GarageBand makes it easy to create and share a podcast. To start, launch GarageBand and select New from the File file. Then, click "Create New Podcast Episode." Name your podcast. GarageBand will open a template ready for you to start recording.

Learn to Play the Guitar with Sting

Have you always wanted to learn to play the guitar, but just couldn't accomodate a regular lesson schedule?

GarageBand '09, included in iLife '09, includes video lessons that teach you the basics. Then, learn songs to practice what was taught.

GarageBand let's you progress at your own pace. Repeat lesson sections as much as you'd like. Slow down songs you're learning, and speed them up to normal tempo as you get better.

Lessons are available from the GarageBand Lesson Store. You can also purchase lessons led by popular artists. Sting can teach you to play "Roxanne." Learn "Bubbly" from Colbie Caillat. Play "Proud Mary" with John Fogerty. And, there are many others.

So, sit down with your Guitar. Fire up GarageBand and start learning and jamming.