# Hands-free control

Pair a Bluetooth page pedal and set up face-gesture page turning from the reader Toolbox.

> Type: How-to · Status: Stable · Platforms: iPadOS 17+ · Last reviewed: 2026-07-18

## Where these controls live

Both hands-free page-turn controls sit in the reader. With a score open, open the `Toolbox` and scroll to its **Accessibility** section:

- `Bluetooth page pedal` — pairing walkthrough for foot pedals;
- `Face gesture page turning` — turn pages with your face via the front camera.

Keyboard page-turn keys, the reader's remappable `Shortcuts` map, and the Apple Pencil toggles are covered in [Apple Pencil and keyboard](pencil-keyboard.md).

## Bluetooth page pedal

Page-turn pedals — AirTurn, PageFlip, Donner and the like — present themselves to the iPad as a Bluetooth keyboard. Page Turner has no pairing screen of its own: you pair the pedal once in the iPad's Bluetooth settings, and the reader listens for its key presses from then on.

1. In the reader, open the `Toolbox` and tap `Bluetooth page pedal`.
2. Put the pedal into pairing mode — follow the pedal's manual, usually a long press until its light blinks.
3. Tap `Open Bluetooth Settings`. The button lands in the iPad Settings app; go to `Bluetooth` and wait for the pedal to appear in the device list.
4. Tap the pedal to connect. It pairs as a keyboard.
5. Back in the score, the pedal turns pages.

Because the pedal registers as a keyboard, it sends the reader's fixed page-turn keys. Those keys, and when they stop responding, are listed in [Apple Pencil and keyboard](pencil-keyboard.md).

> **Note** — The pedal keeps working while a panel or popover is open over the score; you don't have to close it to keep turning pages.

## Face gesture page turning

Face gestures use the front TrueDepth camera (the Face ID camera) to turn pages from a facial movement while both hands stay on the instrument.

### Set it up

1. In the reader, open the `Toolbox` and tap `Face gesture page turning`.
2. Turn on `Enable face gesture` and allow camera access if asked. Without camera permission the feature cannot run; the panel shows `Camera access needed` with an `Open Settings` button.
3. Under `Trigger gesture — pick one`, choose exactly one trigger:
   - `Mouth Open` (the default),
   - `Eyebrows Raise`,
   - `Head Turn`.
4. If you chose `Head Turn`, pick its physical motion under `Head Turn motion`:
   - `Tilt head left / right`,
   - `Turn head (full, with chin)` — the default,
   - `Look up (chin up)` — lift your chin to advance a page.
5. Rehearse the gesture while watching the `Live signal` meter — the page turns when the signal crosses the threshold line. While this setup panel is open, page turns are suppressed so you can practice safely.
6. Adjust `Sensitivity` if turns fire too easily or too reluctantly. Around 55% is the recommended starting point: higher triggers more easily (more false turns), lower demands a more deliberate gesture.
7. Relax your face and tap `Calibrate` under `Calibrate at rest`. The app samples 3 seconds of your resting expression and filters it out, so your neutral face never turns a page.

`Hold duration` sets how long the gesture must be held before it fires: `Instant`, `0.2s` (default), `0.5s`, or `1s`. A longer hold filters out accidental movements; `Instant` reacts fastest. After each turn there is a short built-in pause (about half a second) before the next gesture can fire, so one long gesture never flips several pages.

### Direction

With `Tilt head left / right` or `Turn head (full, with chin)`, one side goes forward and the other goes back. The `Turn head left → next page` switch reverses the sides — useful for a pianist seated with their back to the audience, where the natural "forward" side is mirrored. `Look up (chin up)` always advances to the next page; it has no backward direction.

### Camera and battery

The front camera starts when a score opens and `Enable face gesture` is on. Turn `Enable face gesture` off in the Toolbox when you are not using face turns and the camera stays off.

> **Limit** — Face gestures require the TrueDepth (Face ID) front camera. On a device without one, the toggle has no effect — tracking never starts.

> **Limit** — While the iPad is in **Low Power Mode**, face-gesture tracking is switched off even if the toggle is on. Leave Low Power Mode to get it back.

> **Limit** — Only one trigger gesture is active at a time; picking a new one replaces the previous one.

## Keyboard shortcuts and Apple Pencil

The reader's twelve remappable keyboard shortcuts, the fixed page-turn keys, and the two Apple Pencil toggles are documented in [Apple Pencil and keyboard](pencil-keyboard.md).