I’ve been working on a new experimental web tool called ABC Live Transcriber.
It listens to you play an instrument and automatically enters the notes it recognizes as ABC notation.
The pitch recognition is based on the same pitch-detection technology used in my Chromatic Tuner tool, which I’ve found works very well for recognizing clear, sustained notes.
This is not a full automatic music transcription system.
At this stage, it recognizes pitch only. It does not try to determine note duration, rhythm, measures, or phrasing.
Instead, while you play, the detected pitches are entered automatically, and a set of buttons below the ABC editor lets you manually add things like note durations, spaces, barlines, repeats, triplets, grace-note braces, decorations, and other ABC notation characters as you go.
The tool also includes a live notation preview that automatically updates as the ABC changes. You can play back the current tune using the controls below the preview, with a playback cursor that follows the notes and automatically scrolls the notation as needed. If the microphone is listening when playback starts, pitch detection is temporarily paused so the playback audio isn’t accidentally transcribed, then resumes when playback is paused or finishes.
Other features include selectable key and meter, adjustable microphone input gain with a live level meter, an option to transpose detected notes down an octave for tin whistle, and controls to copy or save the resulting ABC or open it directly in ABC Transcription Tools.
The selected key is also taken into account when writing the ABC—for example, an F♯ played in the key of D is entered as F, since the F♯ is already implied by the key signature.
It’s still experimental, so I’m interested in seeing how well it works with different instruments, microphones, playing styles, and environments.
For best results, it’s probably best run in a desktop browser. I’ve tested it on a Mac running Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
Demo video:
Link to the tool: