EmCanto — Free Sheet Music Importer and Editor in the browser

1Getting started

On the start screen, drag the file onto the dashed area or use Import score. Accepted: PDF, JPG, PNG and TIFF (several pages or several files, read in alphabetical order), MusicXML (.musicxml, .mxl), Guitar Pro (.gp3, .gp4, .gp5) and .emcanto projects.
To get to know the program without a score at hand, open one of the demos on the start screen.
Check what was read with the Original button, listen with ▶ and fix whatever is needed.
Save the project with Ctrl+S.

EmCanto finds the staves and identifies clefs, key signature, time signature, barlines, repeats, 1st and 2nd endings, notes, rests (including multi-measure rests), dots, accidentals, flags, beams, ties and slurs, staccato and fermatas.
It works best with printed, sharp and straight scores at 300 dpi. For photos with shadows, check “It is a phone photo” when importing.
With “Recognize lyrics and title”, the text under each staff is read (Portuguese, English or Latin) and each syllable is attached to its note. Several lines of lyrics become verses. Doubtful syllables are shown in orange.
Measures whose count does not add up appear with a reddish background; the “measures to review” button takes you from one to the next.
Help › Recognition self-test checks that everything works on your device.

Handwritten scores, old copies, blurry photos and dense piano scores need more correction. Always compare with the original.

Each staff becomes a voice; staves with two voices (stems up and down) are separated. The voice type (soprano, alto, tenor, bass…) is deduced; SATB, SAB, SSA and TTBB ensembles are recognized.
In the voices panel: the eye shows or hides, M mutes, S solos.
Create voices (G key) opens Smart Voice Generation: choose the missing ones (or “Complete SATB”, “SAB”, “SSA”, “TTBB”) and adjust style, harmonic complexity, range and motion. The generated voices can be played, regenerated, edited or deleted.

▶ or Space plays and pauses; loop and section; BPM adjustable during the music; volume per voice; metronome.
Each voice has a timbre (soprano, mezzo, alto, tenor, baritone, bass, child, neutral or instruments) and sings the lyrics, Ah, Oh, Hum or La.
Pronunciation follows the rules of the language of the lyrics (Brazilian Portuguese, English, ecclesiastical Latin, Italian or Spanish), with consonants anticipated as singers do. It is meant for rehearsing your own part.

Turn on the pencil (N), choose the note value (1–6) and click the staff. ↑ ↓ change the pitch (with Shift, an octave); + − = sharp, flat, natural; . dot; R note↔rest; T and U ties and slurs.
Select a passage with Shift+click and use Group for beams and slurs in groups of 2, 3, 4 or all.
Lyrics: double-click the note (or Enter) to edit the syllable; Edit › Lyrics (L) pastes the whole lyrics per voice and verse.
Transpose by semitones, by interval or by choosing the key. Dynamics and free annotations in the Dynamics menu.
Unlimited undo and redo (Ctrl+Z / Y).
With the interface in English, note names appear as C, D, E, F, G, A, B.

Save (Ctrl+S), Save as and Save a copy write the .emcanto project (score, voices, lyrics, settings and original images). EmCanto also keeps recovery copies in the browser.
Print score (Ctrl+P): A4 portrait or landscape, margins, choice of voices, original, harmonized or transposed version; it generates a vector PDF.
Export (Ctrl+E): PDF, MusicXML (.musicxml or .mxl), MIDI, PNG (150 or 300 dpi), MP3 (128 to 320 kbps — great for sending each section its rehearsal track) and WAV.

“I did not find staff lines.” The image is small, blurry or crooked: scan at 300 dpi, with the sheet flat.
Notes a third or an octave off. The clef was misread: click the voice name and change the clef.
Sharps or flats are missing. Fix the key signature in Edit › Score details.
No sound. The browser only allows audio after a click on the page; check the volume and the M and S buttons.
In English and Spanish, Help › User Manual (F1) opens this manual. The program's detailed technical documentation is available in Portuguese only.

Help menu: the Help menu has: User manual, In-program manual (F1), Keyboard shortcuts, the technical documentation and the tests, Terms of use, Privacy, Credits and licenses, 🌐 Language and About EmCanto. The manual and the legal pages open in a window inside the program itself (you can switch between them with the buttons at the top of the window; Esc closes it).
Open EmCanto from the side menu, from its card on the home page or from the search (Alt + K).
The Appearance button at the top of the Workspace switches EmCanto's look between its original look and Nebulosa Default (purple, navy blue, orange and yellow). The choice applies only to this program and is remembered.
The Language button (🌐) at the top of the Workspace — or Help › 🌐 Language inside the program — switches the menus and texts between Português do Brasil (the default), English and Español. The choice applies to all programs and is remembered. The scores and lyrics are not translated.
If you close EmCanto's tab with changes not yet saved to a file, the Workspace asks before closing.
The shortcuts Alt + 1…9 and Alt + 0 (home) work even with the focus inside the program.
EmCanto also opens on its own, outside the Workspace, at its folder's address (for example …/apps/emcanto/) or from the single HTML file.