Guides
The essentials for writing, saving, and working together in solfa. These guides are available when you are signed in.
Take a guided tour
New to Solfaapp? Walk through My Scores, creating scores, folders, sharing, and notifications. You can skip or restart the tour anytime. The popup automatically moves above, below or beside the highlighted section as space allows, and stays above the highlight border.
Start dashboard walkthrough →Start a score
In My Scores, select Create score, name it, choose a key and beats per bar, and optionally put it in a folder. Use Create & Edit to open the editor in a new tab.
Write in the editor
The tabbed ribbon keeps the existing dark top bar and teal colors. Click a tab to show its actions horizontally in the bar below, without a dropdown. Compose is selected by default and contains note length, lyrics, Playback and musical settings. Tabs stay selected until you choose another; clicking an action does not close the ribbon. File contains My Scores, Print preview and Export PDF. Edit contains Undo, Redo, Copy, Paste and Bar tools. Insert adds a score line, lyrics or a voice part. View opens the voice parts pane, musical settings or the current line’s layout. Help opens editor help, the walkthrough and Guides.
Return to Compose for note length and the lyric-part selector. Insert also includes a synchronized lyric-part selector and add button. The small + beside Lyrics adds a lyric row. Playback opens piano and MIDI controls; the sliders icon opens musical settings. Use Left/Right arrows or Home/End on the tabs to switch sections, Down to enter their controls, and Escape to focus the selected tab. Controls wrap on smaller screens. Switching tabs does not change the score or interrupt playback.
Select a part line and a beat, then enter your solfa notes. The selected note length determines how much time each entry uses. A beat must add up to one. Use the note length selector to work from longer to shorter values.
- . enters a rest; rests can use any available note length.
- - continues a previous note; a pull cannot start before a note.
- ] sharpens and [ lowers an eligible note. Press the opposite key to move through natural.
- \ switches note length. Other editor shortcuts appear in the editor Help control.
Automatic beat and bar spacing
Beats and bars automatically share the available width based on their content. A beat with many notes, octave marks or longer lyrics gets more room; simpler beats and bars shrink. All visible voices and lyric rows keep the same beat boundaries, and bar numbers stay centered above their bars. A general lyric phrase entered alone at the start of its row can span its bar.
Fill page remains the default overall width. Natural and Custom still control the line width; balancing happens inside that width. On phones, Edit view balances beats within each displayed bar; Paper view and PDF use the full-line balance.
If the whole line needs more space than is available, the editor shows a Crowded line message and preserves readable minimum widths. Use fewer bars on that line, widen it with Layout, or reduce score text size. PDF export asks you to resolve crowded lines first. No notes, note lengths, voice selections or playback timing are changed.
Four quarter-beat notes
Choose ¼ beat in Compose → Note length, select a beat and enter four notes: m,f.m,f, d,r.d,r or m,f.s,f. Each note lasts one quarter of the beat. A comma divides a half-beat into quarters; the middle full stop marks the half-beat boundary. The final beat boundary is shown by the normal colon/barline.
The selected note length stays selected while it fits. The editor only switches to a shorter remaining length when the chosen length would exceed the space left. Rests and pulls use the same duration limits. Four quarter-beats total one beat, and playback/MIDI preserve all four attacks.
Save and export
Changes save automatically to your account when online. Offline changes stay in this browser and sync when you reconnect. Wait for All changes are saved before closing. PDF export warns about incomplete bars; rests and pulls count at their selected lengths.
Collaborate
Share a score from its menu in My Scores. Invite someone by email as Co-Composer, Editor, Commenter, or Viewer. Co-Composers write directly, Editors propose changes for the owner to approve, Commenters discuss, and Viewers read. Comments can attach to a note, bar, part line, or score line.
Need a hand?
If something is unclear or breaks, send feedback. Include the action you took and what happened so we can reproduce it.
What does the New badge mean?
A small New badge highlights a meaningful recent addition, currently Playback, Show half-bar divider Bar tools and the score-line Layout control. It appears for signed-in users whose accounts existed before the feature was released, and expires 30 days after release. New accounts learn existing features through the walkthroughs.
The MIDI badge disappears when you open its right pane. The divider badge disappears when you focus or use that setting, or see it unobstructed for two seconds. Opening Settings alone does not dismiss an offscreen setting. Each badge is independent; score settings and music are unaffected.
Discovery is saved to your account when online and refreshed when you return to the editor on another device. Offline discovery stays in this browser and retries syncing when you reconnect or reopen the editor. You can always revisit features through Help and these guides.
Highlight, copy and repeat music
Drag across note positions to highlight beats in one or several voices within the same bar. Drag from the first beat of the top voice to the last beat of the bottom voice for all parts. You can also double-click a voice’s notes for its whole bar, or click the bar number for every part. Shift-click or Shift+arrows extends a selection within the bar.
Press Ctrl+C, select a beat in the destination bar and voice, then Ctrl+V. A whole-part copy replaces that voice’s entire bar; an all-parts bar copy replaces the whole bar, regardless of the destination beat you clicked. Partial beat selections paste from the clicked beat and voice, without spilling into another bar or extra voices. Copies remain available for repeated pasting in the same editor tab until it is reloaded. Normal lyric/text highlighting still uses normal text copy/paste.
Ctrl+Z undoes a paste in one step. Ctrl+Y or Ctrl+Shift+Z redoes it. The curved-arrow Undo and Redo icons are in the top bar; unavailable actions are dimmed. On Mac, Command can replace Ctrl. Text fields keep their normal text-editing undo/redo.
Existing target notes or lyrics require confirmation. Paste preserves exact note lengths and lyrics, checks bar lengths and pull continuity, and never truncates music. For an alternate button workflow:
Choose Edit → Bar tools. Select any beat in the source bar and the voice you want, then choose Copy this part. Select a beat in the destination bar and voice, then Paste into this part. You can copy Soprano into another Soprano bar, or into a different voice. Other voices and general lyrics stay unchanged.
For the whole bar, choose Copy all parts, select the destination bar, then Paste all parts. This replaces all voices and includes general lyrics. Both modes include note lengths, rests, pulls, accidentals, octave marks, underlines and part lyrics. Part and whole-bar copies are kept separately, and can be pasted repeatedly until you reload or leave the editor.
Existing destination content requires confirmation before replacement. Undo restores the previous contents in one step. Source and destination bar lengths must match, including pickups and shortened final bars; nothing is truncated. Whole-bar copies also require the same ordered voice list. A paste introducing invalid timing or a pull without a preceding note is blocked with an explanation. Read-only users can copy, but cannot paste.
Selections cover one bar at a time. Partial selections can span several voices; copied notes and lyrics replace only the corresponding rectangle. General lyrics are included only when copying an entire bar with all parts.
Listen and download MIDI
In the editor, choose Playback to show the piano and download controls as a page of the right pane. The score stays visible and available for reading and scrolling while it plays. Switching to Settings, comments or account settings, or closing the pane, keeps playback running. Open MIDI again to return to the same controls and selections; choose Stop to end playback. Select all voices for the full arrangement, or select a single part for rehearsal. Play uses sampled acoustic piano. A moving amber highlight follows the current beat across every selected voice; for one selected part, only that voice is highlighted. Rests, pulls and empty beats still advance in time. The score scrolls only as needed to keep the current beat visible. Pause holds the highlight and resumes from the same position; Stop and playback completion clear it. The playback highlight is separate from your editing selection and does not appear in PDF export. Changing the voice-part list stops playback and refreshes the selection. Editing notes, rhythm, key, tempo or bar structure while playing or paused stops playback and clears the highlight; choose Play to hear the updated score. Selecting notes, scrolling, editing lyrics and changing typography do not stop playback. Piano samples load on the first play, so connect to the internet first.
Playback uses the score key, accidentals, octave marks and BPM in Settings. Without a BPM, it uses 80. Rests are silent; pulls sustain the preceding note, even across bars. Empty beat time stays silent rather than moving later notes. Soprano and Alto use tonic in octave 4; Tenor and Bass use octave 3. Other part names use octave 4. Use the score octave marks to change register.
Download MIDI saves the selected parts together as separate tracks in one file. Separate part MIDIs saves one file per selected voice; your browser may request permission for multiple downloads. Files request General MIDI acoustic grand piano. The MIDI player supplies the sound, so it may differ from the app’s piano.
If a note exceeds the bar length or a pull has no preceding note, the playback notice identifies the bar and part to fix. Incomplete beats remain silent.
Piano samples: Salamander Grand Piano by Alexander Holm, distributed through Tone.js Audio. See sample credits.
Add a half-bar divider
Open editor Settings and enable Show half-bar divider. It is off by default and saved with the score. A short vertical line marks the midpoint of the bar, splitting its displayed width into equal halves. For an odd number of beats, the midpoint falls within the middle beat. The divider also appears in print preview and PDF; it does not split notes, change beat arithmetic or change MIDI timing.
Keep short lines tidy or make room for long lyrics
Choose Layout above the score line you want to adjust. Its controls open in the right pane. Each line saves its own width.
- Natural is optional: removing columns leaves the remaining bars at their usual width, aligned left, with plain white space after the closing barline.
- Fill page is the default and spreads the remaining bars across the full music area, giving long lyrics more room.
- Custom reveals a live slider from the natural width to 100%. Adjust it to give that line just enough space.
Existing and new lines without a saved width keep Fill page by default, preserving their current appearance. Natural uses the score’s largest line or four columns as the initial reference. The reference is retained when columns are removed, and can grow if you add more columns. Full lines still occupy the full music area. Bar numbers and closing borders follow the chosen width; print preview and PDF use the same layout.
Width changes do not remove music, alter note timing or stop MIDI playback. They save with the score, are retained when a line is copied or duplicated, and can be undone with the top-bar arrow or Ctrl+Z. Choose Fill page if a long lyric needs the previous stretched appearance.
Export a PDF with your song name
Choose File → Export PDF, then Save as PDF in your browser’s print window. The suggested filename uses the score title, with spaces changed to underscores: Morning_Song_solfaapp.pdf. Without a title it is Untitled_song_solfaapp.pdf. Your browser may let you change the final filename.
Incomplete bars trigger a warning only during export. Rests and pulls count toward the bar’s duration. You can complete the bar or choose Export PDF anyway. Invalid overflowing bars and pulls without a preceding note must be resolved first.
Use Solfaapp on a phone
My Scores fits the screen. Open the hamburger menu beside the Solfaapp name to reach All scores, Recent, Shared with me, folders and help. Select an item, tap outside or press Escape to close the menu and tap a score title to open it in the same tab. The three-dot menu provides score actions; desktop double-click still opens a new tab.
Compose on a phone
Mobile Edit view shows one bar at a time across the screen with larger note positions and voice labels. Tap a beat, then use the solfa keypad to enter d, r, m, f, s, l or t, rests, pulls and octave marks. The arrows move between beats. Choose the note length in Compose; the same timing rules and Undo apply. Keypad hides or shows the keys; Parts opens the voice list. For repeating music, use Edit → Bar tools without needing a drag gesture.
Paper view preserves the printed page layout. Fit scales it to the screen; Edit view returns to readable bars. These view controls do not change saved line widths or the PDF. More editor actions (•••) holds sharing, comments, notifications, proposals and account controls. Playback and settings appear below the score in a scrollable panel; minimize it to gain space and expand it to reach controls. Closing or minimizing playback keeps the music running. The keypad temporarily makes room when playback controls are expanded.
Use different voices on each score line
Part symbols (S, A, T, B, Mz, CT and Bar) appear in the existing left page margin beside the first bar of each line, aligned with its voices. They do not move the bars or change line widths. Custom parts use their parent initial and an added number, such as S1 or T1. Full voice names stay in the Parts controls. Print preview and PDF hide symbols by default. To include them, enable Settings → Page setup → Include part symbols. This choice saves with the score and supports Undo; it does not change music or MIDI.
Choose parts for each line
Choose Parts in a score line’s tools, or select a beat and choose + Add part. Tick the voices for that line: line 1 can use SATB while line 2 uses S, SA or SAT. The × beside a voice omits it from the selected line only. Omitted notes and lyrics are kept for restoring, stay silent in playback/MIDI, and are left out of the page and PDF. Keep at least one voice per line. Undo/Redo restores changes.
The Add part dropdown offers Soprano, Mezzo-soprano, Alto, Countertenor, Tenor and Baritone, and Bass. Choose Custom part for your own name and its required Soprano/Alto/Tenor/Bass parent. Parts always display high to low: Soprano first, then its additional voices; Alto, Countertenor, Tenor, Baritone and Bass last, with custom voices in their parent group. Alto stays named Alto. Predefined names stay fixed; custom names can be renamed. Add to this line only is the default; All score lines is available explicitly.
New score lines inherit the selected line’s voices. Duplicating a line preserves its voices. Whole-bar copying requires matching line parts; use Copy this part for a voice copied between different ensembles. Mobile Line tools contains the same Parts control. These changes retain saved musical data and stable comment positions.
Voice classification reference: OperaVision: Voice types. The editor uses the familiar choral name Alto. Custom parent grouping is an editor arrangement choice; it does not force notes into a particular range. Soprano/Alto families play with tonic in octave 4, Tenor/Bass families in octave 3; octave marks remain available.
Add dynamics to a score
Open Compose → Dynamics. Choose the Italian marking and its start bar/beat, or use Use selected beat or Pick on score. All voices is selected by default for each new marking. Choose Selected voice or Selected voices when needed, then Add marking. A level remains in effect until another level changes it; Subito makes the change explicit.
For crescendo, diminuendo or decrescendo, set the last beat included and target level. The start can use the prevailing level or an explicit From level. Use a highlighted range within a bar, or pick start/end beats across bars and lines. Rinforzando/rinforzato can also span a range. Accents and attack-then-piano markings attach to a beat.
Shared All voices markings appear once just above the top barline, outside the bar, at the same small size as voice-specific superscripts. Markings for selected voices appear as small superscripts beside their beats, separately from octave marks. Click a marking or its Score markings entry, to change, retarget or remove it. New starts another marking. Each change saves automatically and supports Undo/Redo. Viewers can inspect controls but cannot save changes. Markings appear in print preview/PDF. Piano playback and MIDI downloads follow these markings.
Markings stay attached to their bars when lines are inserted. Removing or replacing an anchored bar leaves an entry flagged Missing bar for retargeting/removal. Notation and line copies do not duplicate dynamics; add the intended expression explicitly in the destination. No separate dynamics rows are added beneath individual voices. Gradual shared changes span their beats above the voices; voice-specific changes use compact superscript labels. Bar widths and octave marks are preserved.
Dynamics during playback and MIDI
Piano playback and combined/separate MIDI downloads share these note-on velocities: ppp 16, pp 33, p 49, mp 64, mf 80, f 96, ff 112 and fff 127. Unmarked music begins at mf 80. Shared markings affect every voice; a more specific marking wins at the same position.
Hairpins interpolate directly between velocities over their explicit start/end beats; their target persists. Subito immediately replaces the baseline and interrupts a ramp. fp attacks exactly at its marked position at 96, then later attacks use 49. sfz, sf and fz add 30 to attacks during the marked beat, then the current underlying level resumes. rf/rfz reinforce their chosen span. sfp/sfzp combine a reinforced attack with piano.
Select a sounding note and open Dynamics → Selected note articulation. Accent (>) multiplies its velocity by 1.2; Marcato (^) multiplies it by 1.4. Clear articulation removes it. These are applied after dynamics, rounded and capped at 127. Undo/Redo and saving include articulations.
Dynamics change note attacks; already sounding or pulled notes retain their attack loudness. Niente endpoints suppress new attacks at zero. Rests remain silent, and omitted voices remain silent. Editing music, dynamics or articulations stops active/paused playback; choose Play to hear the latest score. Missing dynamics anchors must be retargeted or removed before playback/export.
When does a dynamic end?
A level such as ff stays active across bars and lines until another marking replaces it. It does not cancel automatically. For example, ff in bar 1 followed by mf in bar 5 makes bars 1–4 fortissimo, then returns to the app’s starting level: mf, velocity 80. There is no universal “natural” dynamic; mf restores this app’s unmarked playback level.
A hairpin keeps its target level after its selected span. sfz ends its temporary accent after the marked beat, revealing the underlying level; Accent/Marcato affect only their selected note. fp establishes piano after its initial forte attack. To end a loud passage, add the next desired level at the next beat. Removing a marking removes its effect from the passage rather than adding an endpoint.
Dynamics: Italian names and relative levels
From softer to louder: pianississimo (ppp), pianissimo (pp), piano (p), mezzo piano (mp), mezzo forte (mf), forte (f), fortissimo (ff), fortississimo (fff). Crescendo increases the prevailing level across a passage; diminuendo or decrescendo decreases it. Sforzando (sfz) is a temporary accent; fortepiano (fp) means a strong beginning followed by piano. Subito makes a change sudden; niente is a fade to or from silence.
Dynamics do not prescribe universal MIDI velocities. A playback system must choose its own interpretation. Use Compose → Dynamics to add and edit score markings. Piano playback and MIDI downloads now follow dynamics.
Take the editor walkthrough
Open any score, choose Help → Editor help & walkthrough, then Start editor walkthrough. Built-in Help also provides a quick reference to the current ribbon, selection copying, Undo/Redo, moving playback highlights, line-width modes, half-bar dividers and named PDF export. The walkthrough covers composing, musical settings, piano and MIDI, PDF export, sharing and comments. The popup automatically moves around the highlighted section and follows it when the page scrolls or resizes. On small screens or very large sections, it uses the least obstructing position with scrollable text. The walkthrough never creates notes or changes score settings. New users see it when they first open the editor.