AI optical music recognition

Turn a PDF, scan, or photo into a fully editable score.

Opuscan's AI-powered optical music recognition (OMR) reads the music printed on the page and rebuilds it as real notation you can play, transpose, arrange, and export to MusicXML or MIDI. You bring the sheet music. The AI does the typing.

A printed page of Mozart's first string quartet, scanned from the original engraving.

Printed page

  • .musicxml
  • .midi
The same quartet rebuilt by Opuscan as a clean, fully editable score.

Editable score

Powered by Tutteo's own AI model

A recognition AI we build, train, and improve ourselves.

Every PDF and photo is processed by Tutteo's own in-house deep-learning model, not a third-party engine. It doesn't just spot symbols, it reads them in musical context, the way a trained musician would, so the score it rebuilds actually makes sense.

  • Reads rhythm, pitch and layout together, in context, not symbol by symbol
  • Separates instruments and voices, and attaches lyrics, chords and text to the right notes
  • Built end to end in-house, so it gets measurably better with every release

How it works

  1. Import your musicImport a PDF or image on your computer, or snap a photo right in the Opuscan mobile app.
  2. Opuscan reads the pageIt scans each page and recognizes the staves, notes, and symbols.
  3. Review, edit, and exportYour music opens as a fully editable score. Review and fix anything, then transpose, arrange, play it back, or export to MusicXML and MIDI for your notation editor.

Capture from your phone. The in-app camera uses on-device document scanning that finds the page, crops it, and flattens the image before recognition. A cleaner capture means a cleaner conversion.

What Opuscan can read

Opuscan's OMR is built for standard Western music notation that has been engraved, meaning music typeset by notation software or professionally printed. That covers most sheet music, method books, parts, and lead sheets.

Works well

  • Printed or digitally engraved sheet music, including scans and photos of printed pages
  • Solo parts, piano and other grand-staff music, and multi-instrument scores
  • Lead sheets with chord symbols

Not supported

  • Handwritten or hand-copied music
  • Tablature (guitar/bass tab), which is not yet supported
  • Pages with no standard notation (text-only, lyrics-only, cover pages)

Which notations are supported?

Within engraved Western notation, Opuscan recognizes a wide range of symbols, including:

CategoryWhat Opuscan recognizes
ClefsTreble (G), bass (F), alto and tenor (C) in all positions, octave-shifted and percussion clefs, including clef changes within a piece
Key signaturesAll key signatures, from 7 flats to 7 sharps
Time signaturesAny numerator from 1 to 24; denominators of 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32; plus common and cut time
Note valuesWhole down to 1024th notes, plus breve, long, and maxima, with augmentation dots
RestsRegular rests and multi-measure rests
TupletsTriplets and other ratios (3:2, 2:3, 5:4, 6:4, 7:4, 7:8, 9:8, and more)
BeamsStandard beams, partial beams, hooks, custom beaming patterns, and beams across rests
Pitches & chordsThe full pitch range with ledger lines, chords, and multiple voices on a single staff
AccidentalsSharp, flat, natural, double sharp/flat, courtesy, and microtonal (quarter-tone) accidentals
Ties, slurs & grace notesTies, slurs, grace notes, acciaccatura, and cue (small) notes
Dynamics & hairpinsppp to fff plus sf, sfz, fz, fp, rfz, and more, with crescendo and decrescendo hairpins
ArticulationsStaccato, staccatissimo, tenuto, accent, marcato, detached legato, breath marks, caesuras, and jazz marks
Ornaments & tremolosTrill, mordent, turn, shake, schleifer, Haydn ornament, wavy line, and 1 to 4 stroke tremolos
Lines & tempoOctave lines (8va, 8vb, 15ma, 15mb), metronome marks with BPM, and rit./accel.
Barlines & repeatsNormal, double, final, repeat and heavy-light barlines; voltas, Segno, Coda, D.C., D.S., To Coda, and Fine
Measure repeatsSingle-bar repeats (%) and rhythm slashes
NoteheadsStandard, X, circle-X, cross, diamond, triangle, square, slash, and hidden noteheads
Multi-staff & percussionPiano and grand-staff instruments (up to 7 staves), percussion staves and noteheads
Chord symbolsChord symbols and charts, recognized as editable chords, not just text
Techniques & pedalHarmonics, fingerings, bowing, pizzicato, stopped/open strings, thumb position, and sustain pedal
Text & lyricsLyrics, rehearsal marks, and text annotations

Lyrics in non-Latin languages. Latin-script languages are recognized automatically. For Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and Cyrillic-script languages, just select the language in the convert screen before you scan.

Best practices for accurate scans

The AI is good, but it can only clearly read what's on the page. A few habits make a big difference in how accurate your converted score is.

The golden rule. If it's hard for a human to read, it will be hard for the AI to read too. The cleaner and sharper your source, the better the conversion.

Do this

  • Use high-resolution scans, or sharp, well-lit photos
  • Lay the page flat and fill the frame, straight
  • Prefer printed or digitally engraved music
  • Use the in-app camera so the page is cropped and flattened automatically
  • Import one piece per file, with one instrument per file for solo parts

What hurts recognition

  • Low-resolution or blurry files
  • Bent, warped, or curved staves (photographing a book near the spine)
  • Faint, partially erased, or heavily marked-up notation
  • Scanning artifacts, shadows, or skewed and rotated pages

Optical music recognition, explained

What is optical music recognition (OMR)?

OMR is the music equivalent of OCR for text: software that reads the notation printed on a page and rebuilds it as structured, editable music. Opuscan uses an AI model to recognize staves, notes, rhythms, lyrics, and dynamics, then gives you a real score you can play and export.

Can AI convert a PDF of sheet music into an editable score?

Yes. Opuscan converts PDFs and photos of printed or engraved sheet music into fully editable scores, and exports standard MusicXML and MIDI for MuseScore, Dorico, Sibelius, Flat, and any DAW.

Does it work on a photo taken with my phone?

Yes. The in-app camera uses on-device document scanning that finds, crops, and flattens the page before recognition. For the most accurate result, see the best practices above.

Is handwritten music or tablature supported?

Not yet. Opuscan is built for standard Western notation that has been engraved or printed. Handwritten music, guitar/bass tablature, and pages with no standard notation aren't supported.

Developers

Automate score conversions.

The same recognition that powers Opuscan is available as an API. Send a PDF or image, get structured MusicXML back, ready to store, render, or edit.

Built for scale

One API, your whole catalog.

  • Upload a PDF or image, download MusicXML or MIDI
  • The same model behind the apps, no accuracy trade-off
  • Batch entire catalogs, hands-free

Recognition that
keeps getting better.

We improve scanning continuously. See exactly what's changed.

Explore Opuscan use cases