projectnotions.com

Introduction

If you are familiar with “shape note” sheet music, then you may have from time to time wished you could print your own sheet music in the shape note style.  These instructions are for you!

Even if you are not familiar with shape notes the classic movie “The Sound of Music” has introduced the concept of the “moveable do” system to millions through the memorable song “Do-Re-Mi.”  Many people prefer to sing from sheet music that is formatted in the shape note style.  

For those of us who are not proficient at an instrument but still like to sing, sometimes there is a musical phrase that gives us trouble.  It can be handy to type a few letters and not only see the musical score (in shaped notes if you prefer) but to be able to press a button and hear the music to help train our ear to the tune.

The tools we will be using are free, very flexible and allow a wide range of vocal and instrumental scores to be entered and printed. The “language” we will use to input the music is called “abc.”  One nice thing about abc notation is that it is entered from your computer keyboard in plain letters and symbols.  If you have been frustrated in trying to learn how to input music in a “high end” software package, you may find that you love how simple and intuitive abc notation is.



A set of instructions and a web site that lets you easily enter, play, and print musical scores, including scores in the 7 shape note and the 4 shape note traditions.

• Introduction
• Step 1 - "Hello World"
• Step 2 - Enter the tune header
• Step 3 - Review the basics of the abc tune body
• Step 4 - Enter music for the Soprano voice
• Step 5 - Enter music for the Alto, Tenor, Bass voices
• Step 6 - Enter the lyrics
• Step 7 - Play, Print, and even more resources
• Step 8 (Optional) - Music Basics Referesher and Links

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

"abc editor  with Shape Notes" web page