Samsung

Just because your music is from the really old school doesn't mean the way you read it has to be. That's the message behind the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra's decision to abandon its room full of paper sheet music in favor of the Galaxy Note 10.1.

Orchestra manager Gunther Broucke explained that the orchestra is always looking for ways to not only improve its performance, but also to be innovative. Organizing and distributing sheet music to the entire ensemble, it turns out, is quite a time-consuming process. Seeing an opportunity for a clear marketing win, Samsung donated to the cause 100 of its new Galaxy Note 10.1 tablets with special orchestra software installed.

Samsung Telecom's Loesje De Vriese claims the tablets will save the Brussels Philharmonic 25,000 euros (nearly $32,000) in copies and tape alone, and that the tablet's touch and stylus interface are perfect for musicians, who often make copious notations on their scores. The software also allows a conductor to make notes or changes in a score and automatically send it to all musicians, so they can literally be on the same page at all times.

The orchestra's tablets can also go into special modes for concerts that prevent unintentionally swiping ahead 10 pages or zooming in the middle of a performance. Notifications and other distractions are also disabled to prevent the tragic embarrassment of receiving a Skype call from your mother-in-law in the midst of Brahms' "Tragic Overture."

You can watch a little of the background behind the switch in the video below, and let us know in the comments of any other game-changing uses you've seen for the latest generation of tablets.