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What is Tonic Notes and who is it for?

Tonic Notes captures everything that happens in your music lesson. It turns each lesson into a clear summary and full transcript, so teachers can stay present, students always know what to practice, and parents can follow along at home. Built with teachers, useful for the whole studio.

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What devices can I use Tonic Notes on?

We support both iOS and Android devices.

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Do I need permission to record a lesson?

Yes. Before you start recording, let everyone in the lesson know and get their permission. Recording someone without their okay isn't allowed under our Terms, and for a child it also needs a parent or guardian's okay.

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Can I use Tonic Notes offline?

You can record a lesson on Tonic Notes with no internet connection. The recording is saved on your phone and uploads by itself the next time the app is open and you're online. If the app closes or your phone restarts, the recording isn't lost. It picks up again when you open the app. You also have the option to record your lesson as a voice memo and upload it to Tonic Notes at a later time. You can also review already-loaded content like previous lessons, stats, and use tools like the metronome and tuner offline.

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How do I record a lesson in the app?

Open Tonic Notes before your lesson starts, tap the "+" button in the lower right corner, then tap "Add a lesson." Select "Start lesson recording." The first time, an intro screen appears first. Tap "Get started" and you're good to go!

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What if I already recorded the lesson on a separate device or recorder?

Not a problem, you can upload audio files directly! Tap the "+" button in the lower right corner, select “Add a lesson”, then tap “or upload from device,” which is under the record button.

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How long does processing take after a lesson?

Usually a few minutes, and longer recordings take longer. You'll get a notification when your summary is ready. If a lesson shows "Processing failed," please email support@tonicnotes.com.

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What is a pod?

Pods are an organized place to upload your lessons and practice sessions. Students or parents can join a pod and follow all the progress that's happening. To invite someone, select a pod, tap the icon in the top left, then tap the three dots to the right of the pod name and choose "Invite."

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Can I share lesson notes with my students and their parents?

Yes! Once a lesson has been processed, tap the three dots in the top right corner (Lesson options), then choose "Move to pod." It will then be visible to everyone in that pod. Any edits either of you make will show up on both sides.

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Do both the teacher and student need to record?

No. Only one person needs to record. Once shared, you both have access to the same lesson file.

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Can I share with parents too?

Absolutely. Just add the parent to the same pod as the student, and they'll have access to all lessons shared into that pod.

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Can I organize lessons by student?

Yes! Use Pods to keep each student's lessons grouped together by creating one pod per student. Students can also use pods to organize lessons across multiple teachers.

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How do I remove someone from a pod?

You can't. Pods don't have an owner or an admin, so no one, including the person who created the pod, can remove another member. Anyone can leave a pod on their own: open the pod, tap "Pod options," then tap "Leave pod." There's no delete button for a pod. It goes away when its last member leaves, as long as nothing is left in it.

What about Studio plans?
Studio plans are separate from pods. A Studio owner can remove someone from the plan on the Tonic Notes website account page ("Remove member"). Their Studio access ends right away, but their lessons and notes aren't deleted. A member can also choose "Leave studio" themselves.

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How can I edit a lesson?

Once inside a lesson, tap the three dots in the top right-hand corner. From here, you will see the option, “Edit overview”. You can also edit the title (tap it), homework, notes, speaker names and bookmarks.

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How do I bookmark in my lesson?

Open the Transcript tab, then tap and hold a music section. Your bookmarks show up in the Bookmarks tab.

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Is Tonic Notes free?

The app is free to download, and every new account starts with a 30-day free trial of the full app, with no feature limits. After the trial, Tonic Notes is a paid subscription. Current prices are always at tonicnotes.com/pricing; there's a monthly plan and an annual plan that costs less overall. Nothing is charged during the trial, and you can cancel anytime.

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Does each person need their own subscription?

No. One subscription (or one Studio seat) covers every profile on the account.

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What happens when my trial ends, or if I cancel?

When the trial ends, the plan you picked starts automatically, unless you cancel before then. On our website, a card is needed up front to start the trial. Each account gets one trial. If you've subscribed before, you're charged right away.
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You cancel where you subscribed: the App Store, Google Play, or our web billing page. There's no cancel button inside the app. You keep access until the end of your trial or the period you've already paid for.
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If you subscribed through the App Store or Google Play, the store manages your subscription, so we can do much less to help. We can't cancel or refund an Apple subscription, so please contact Apple. For Google Play, please start with Google Play.

Subscriptions bought on our website are the ones we can manage directly.

After your access ends, a subscribe screen covers the app until you subscribe again. A recording you haven't uploaded yet stays on your phone and uploads once you resubscribe.
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Your lessons and notes stay in your account when you cancel, and they're there again when you resubscribe. You can't open them while you're not subscribed.

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Why does the app store show a different price than the website?

Prices are set in your local currency wherever you subscribe: the App Store, Google Play or our website. So the price can differ between countries, and between the stores and our website. For example, on an Australian or Canadian device the price is in AUD or CAD, not US dollars.
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The renewal price shown beside your subscription (on Apple's subscription screen, for example) is what a renewal would cost, not money already taken. It can also differ from your first price because of local tax, rounding, a price change or an introductory offer. For exact charges, check the purchase history of wherever you subscribed. If you subscribed on our website, your receipts are on the web billing page. We give 30 days' notice of price changes.

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Studio plans

For questions regarding Studio plans, check here or contact our team.

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What are profiles?

With Premium, one Tonic Notes account can hold up to 3 profiles, for example a parent and their children. Everyone signs in with the same email and password, then picks a profile. Each profile has its own lessons, recordings, practice, pods and AI chat.

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I already pay for separate accounts for my kids. Can I combine them?

Email support@tonicnotes.com and we'll help you bring everyone onto one account.

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How do I add a profile for my child?

In the app, go to Settings → Manage account → Add a profile. Enter their name and birthday. If they're under 13, enter a parent or guardian's email; we'll send a link to approve the profile, and it shows up once it's approved. Until then it says Needs approval, and you can Resend email. If the parent declines, or doesn't answer within 21 days, the profile is removed. To fix a mistyped parent email, delete the profile and add it again.

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How many profiles can I add?

With Premium, an account can hold up to 3 profiles. When you reach 3, you can delete a profile to add another.

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How do I switch profiles?

Settings → Switch profile. If your account has more than one profile, the app opens on Select your profile. You can't switch while you're recording or practicing.

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Can I follow my child's lessons?

Yes, through a shared pod. Profiles on one account don't see each other's lessons unless they share a pod. Invite your child's profile to a pod the same way you'd invite anyone.

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What's shared between profiles?

The sign-in and the subscription. Changing the email or password signs everyone out on every device. Everything else belongs to each profile. Switching doesn't ask for a password, so anyone using a signed-in device can open any profile on it.

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Who can manage the account?

Every profile can add and delete profiles, manage the subscription, change the sign-in email or password, and delete the account.

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How do I delete a profile?

Manage account → the profile → Delete this profile. This deletes that person's lessons, recordings, practice, AI chat history and anything they added to shared pods. It's immediate and can't be undone. To delete everything, delete the account instead (see "How do I delete my account?" below).

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My recording keeps cutting out on Android.

One possible cause is Android's battery optimization feature. The app now asks about this once on its own ("Keep recording sessions safe," then "Open settings"). You can also go to your phone's battery settings, find Tonic Notes, and set it to "Unrestricted." Low storage on your phone can also stop a recording.

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My recording failed to upload. Is the lesson lost?

If the lesson fails to upload, please don't delete it. The app retries failed uploads by itself and shows a banner where you can retry or discard. To keep a copy of the audio, open Lesson options (the three dots) and tap "Download audio." This works even before the upload finishes. If you upload that file again, it creates a new lesson.

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Is there a maximum time limit to lessons or practice log recordings?

A single lesson or practice recording can run up to 6 hours. If it reaches that, it stops on its own and saves what it captured. An audio file you upload can also be up to 6 hours long.
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Recording won't start with less than about 100 MB free on your phone. If your phone runs out of space mid-recording, it stops and saves what it has. Recording keeps going when your screen is locked or you switch apps. Phone calls pause it, and it resumes afterwards.

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I already use the Tonic app. Is my account linked to Tonic Notes?

Not linked. Tonic Music and Tonic Notes are separate apps with separate sign-ins and separate subscriptions. Paying for one doesn't cover the other.
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If you use both, you can bring your Tonic Music practice into Tonic Notes. First, turn on the Tonic Notes connection in Tonic Music (menu → Tonic Notes). Until it's on, the import options don't appear. Then start the import from Tonic Music: One studio at a time: tap "Import to Tonic Notes" on a studio, or use the "Ready to import" prompt after practice.
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All past studios at once: go to menu → Tonic Notes → "Import past studios."

Each studio becomes a practice in the pod you choose, marked "Imported from Tonic Music." It brings over the date, length, instrument, journal, the pieces you played, and your listeners, XP and boosts. A recording only comes over when you import a single studio that was recorded on that same phone, and only the latest recording on the phone is kept. Importing all past studios doesn't bring any recordings. Nothing goes from Tonic Notes back to Tonic Music. You're welcome to use the same email for both.

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Is Tonic Notes safe for minors to use?

Yes. Tonic Notes is designed for use in music lesson settings. There is no open social or public-facing component to the app. A child under 13 needs a parent or guardian's approval by email before they can use Tonic Notes. Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle children's information.

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Who can see a lesson in a pod?

People in a pod can see your profile name, @username and picture. They never see your email, birthday, subscription or a parent's email. They can see everything shared to the pod: lessons (recording, transcript, summary and notes), practices, posts, files, links and comments. Any member can comment on and edit what's shared. Only the person who added something can delete, move or download it. Before sharing a lesson, check who is in the pod and make sure it's the right place for everyone in the recording.

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How old does someone need to be to use Tonic Notes?

Tonic Notes is for people ages 4 and up. A child under 13 needs a parent or legal guardian to approve their account or profile by email before they can use it. That's how we make sure a parent knows what we collect and agrees to it. Ages 13 to 17 need a parent or guardian's permission. Teachers must be at least 18.

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Can a teacher create an account for my child?

A teacher can invite a student to Tonic Notes, but a parent or legal guardian has to approve a child under 13 by email. A teacher can't give that approval for the parent.

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How can I review or delete my child's information?

A parent or guardian can ask to see the information we have about their child, ask us to delete it, ask us to stop collecting or using it, or take back their permission at any time. If you ask us to delete it, we'll delete as much as the law allows. Email us at privacy@tonicnotes.com. You can also read more in our Privacy Policy.

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What AI does Tonic Notes use?

We built and run the system that transcribes your lesson audio. AI services help turn the written transcript into summaries and answers about your lessons.

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Who can access my audio recordings?

People in a pod can access recordings shared there. We also use service providers to store and play back recordings. Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle your data.

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How does Tonic handle my data?

We use your information to provide Tonic Notes, including processing your lessons and making them available to you and the people you choose to share them with. We also work with service providers that help us run the app, including providers for storage, playback, and AI-assisted features. We don't allow our service providers to train their AI models on your personal information. For more about how we use and share information, including your privacy choices, see our Privacy Policy. Have a privacy question? Email privacy@tonicnotes.com.

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Who owns the content I add?

You keep ownership of the content you create and add to Tonic Notes. Please make sure you have the permission you need to record and share other people's content. Please refer to our Terms and Privacy Policy for details.

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What is a voice profile?

A voice profile helps Tonic Notes recognize your voice across recordings, so it can tell who is speaking. It only matches voices of people in the same pod who have also chosen to turn it on. It's your choice, and you can turn it on or off any time in Settings → Voice profile. When it's off, transcripts still separate the speakers and you can name them yourself. Tonic Notes just won't recognize you automatically across lessons. Turning it off deletes your voice profile (a numeric summary of your voice). It doesn't delete your recordings or transcripts. Deleting your account deletes your voice profile too, and it's also deleted automatically 3 years after you last use the app. A child under 13 is only asked about voice profiles after a parent has approved the child's profile. To ask for deletion or ask a question, email privacy@tonicnotes.com. Learn more in our Biometric Notice.

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How do I change my password or account email address?

In the app, go to Settings → Manage account, then tap Change email or Change password. Every profile on the account shares the same email and password, so changing either signs everyone out on every device. If you've forgotten your password, tap "Forgot password" on the login screen and we'll email you a reset link. If you sign in with Apple or Google, or need help, contact us at support@tonicnotes.com.

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How do I delete my account?

1. Cancel any paid subscription first. The app won't delete an account that will still be billed.

2. In the app, go to Settings → Manage account → Delete account, type to confirm, and tap Delete my account. You can also ask for deletion by emailing support@tonicnotes.com.

3. Your account is switched off right away and permanently deleted within 30 days. You'll get a confirmation email once it's deleted. Signing back in won't bring it back.

4. Changed your mind? Email support@tonicnotes.com as soon as possible. Until the deletion is done we may be able to recover your account, but we can't promise it.

Deleting your account also deletes what you shared to pods. Deleting a single profile is immediate and can't be undone.

If you can't access your account or need help, contact support@tonicnotes.com. For questions about deleting your personal information, contact privacy@tonicnotes.com.

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We're a small, founder-led team, and we genuinely care about the trust you place in us. If you have any questions not covered here, please reach out directly; we'd love to talk!
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