Shazam unveils music player for iPhone and iPad

Music recognition service Shazam has launched a new music player app for Apple iPhones and iPads that combines song playback with Shazam's discovery features.

The Shazam Player, which marks the first new release from the firm since its original Shazam app, not only allows iOS users to listen to tracks and iTunes playlists stored on the device but also offers the ability to stream lyrics to these tracks so you can sing-along to your favourite tracks thanks to the LyricPlay feature.

Furthermore, using the Shazam Player you can also share the songs you're listening to on Facebook and Twitter, get direct links to the back catalogues of these artists on iTunes to grow your music collection and even watch the music video to accompany the tracks on YouTube and get information on the latest concert dates for the artists you're listening to.

You can also hide tracks from the Shuffle function if you don't want to listen to them, create playlists and launched the Shazam recognition app from within the player.

"This is a momentous occasion for the company as it is the first separate app we've introduced since the launch of the Shazam App for iPhone in 2008. With the Shazam Player App we are staying true to our core music fans by enabling them to experience their own music libraries in a more engaging and social way," said Andrew Fisher, Shazam CEO.

"We think the Shazam Player App is a great new addition and is an excellent complement to our Shazam App so that people will always have a magical musical discovery experience, whether the song is something that they're just hearing for the first time or is a favourite in their collection."

The Shazam Player App is available to download for free from the iTunes app store now. Shazam has yet to reveal whether it will release an Android version of the app.