VIBE PIANO
Why a browser on iPhone cannot see your piano
Short answer: on iPhone and iPad no browser can connect to MIDI or Bluetooth. On a computer and on Android they can.
What is going on
For a website to see a digital piano, the browser has to support two interfaces: Web MIDI for an instrument on a cable, and Web Bluetooth for a wireless one.
Chrome, Edge and Opera support both, on Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. Safari and Firefox support neither.
On iOS and iPadOS every browser draws pages with the WebKit engine - Safari, Chrome, Firefox and the rest alike. So none of them has these interfaces and the Connect button has nothing to find. It is not your piano and not this site.
Where things work
| Where you open it | Piano on a cable (MIDI) | Piano over Bluetooth |
|---|---|---|
| Chrome, Edge, Opera - computer | works | works |
| Chrome - Android | works | works |
| Safari - macOS | no | no |
| Firefox - any system | no | no |
| Any browser - iPhone, iPad | no | no |
| Web MIDI Browser - iPhone, iPad | works | through GarageBand |
What to do on iPhone and iPad
- Install the free Web MIDI Browser app and open vibepiano.ru inside it. It is a separate browser that adds the missing MIDI support, including instruments over Bluetooth.
- Connect the piano to the iPhone or iPad with a cable through an adapter (Lightning or USB-C to the instrument’s USB port), or connect it over Bluetooth MIDI - see below.
- Open a lesson and press Connect MIDI - the staff will start following what you play.
Open Web MIDI Browser on the App Store ↗
We did not make that app, we do not support it and we earn nothing from it. We name it because on iOS there is no other way through a browser.
A Bluetooth piano on iPhone and iPad
- Turn on Bluetooth MIDI on the piano. On many models Bluetooth audio and Bluetooth MIDI are separate features; the instrument’s manual says how to enable MIDI.
- Connect the piano from an app that has a Bluetooth MIDI panel. The simplest is Apple’s free GarageBand: create any project, then Settings → Advanced → Bluetooth MIDI Devices and choose the piano - it says “Connected”. The piano maker’s app works too.
- Go back to Web MIDI Browser and tap Refresh: the piano’s name appears, and the signal light blinks when you press keys.
- You can close GarageBand afterwards - the connection holds while the piano and the phone stay on. After the piano is switched off or the phone restarts, iOS does not restore Bluetooth MIDI by itself: repeat step 2.
Common problems
- Echo: a note sounds twice, including from the piano’s speakers. The phone is also connected to the piano as a Bluetooth speaker, so the app’s sound goes there too. Mute the app’s sound (the speaker button) - the piano will sound on its own.
- Only “Session 1” is listed. That is the iPhone’s network MIDI session, not the piano: Bluetooth MIDI is not connected yet - do step 2.
- The piano is paired in Settings → Bluetooth but the keys do nothing. That pairing carries sound only, and its “Device Type” (Car Stereo, Headphone, Speaker and the rest) does not affect MIDI. The keys need step 2.
- It worked yesterday, not today. The piano or the phone was switched off - repeat step 2.
- The piano is not listed under Bluetooth MIDI Devices. The model most likely has no Bluetooth MIDI or it is switched off. Use a cable then.
The Vibe Piano app
We are preparing our own app for iPhone and iPad, where the piano connects directly without a third-party browser, on a cable and over Bluetooth. It is not on the App Store yet.
If none of this helps
Check that the cable carries data and not only power, that the instrument has MIDI mode on, and that the adapter powers the instrument. Practice in the browser works without a piano too: you can press the notes with a mouse or on the on-screen keyboard.