ABC notation

Some of the songs I can play are in ABC-Notation [docs] [abc.js] (500KB) which is a text format for musical notes that can be exported to HTML and MIDI alike.

ABC text [tutorial] [syntax] consists of header and body. Header must start with "X" and "T", and end with "K".

• X: Index, just use 1 unless several songs in a file
• T: Title
• M: Meter, e.g. 4/4
• L: Length of standard note, e.g. 1/4
• Q: Quickness aka "tempo", e.g. 360 for 120bpm, lower is slower
• K: Key, e.g. C, or Gmaj or Gmin, or C# or Bb

Body contains sections and notes.

• CDEFGAB are standard notes, starting "low"
• cdefgab ... and one octave higher.
• c' two octaves higher than C
• C, one octave lower than C
• ^C _C half tone higher or lower, =C for next note
• C2 C3 C4 note in longer, including punctuation
• C/2 C/3 C/4 note in shorter
• z z2 z3 z4 pause
• | (pipe) || (2x pipe) [| start |] end bar lines
• |: :| repeat section and :||: (or ::) for immediate next, [1 [2 etc. alternate repeats
• (CDE) legato
• .C .D .E staccato
• {CDE}F grace notes, always fast, leading to F
• (2CD (3CDE (4CDEF tuplets
• [Acea] chord
• "C" "D" "E" chord above the bar lines
• w:A bird flew on → aligned with spaces between notes
• V:1 name="bass" multiple voices
• GAB BAG & D6 | short 2nd voice

Optionally, headers [docs] may contain:

• C: Composer
• S: Source
• O: Geographic origin
• N: Textual notes
• Z: Name of transcribing peson
• R: Rythm