: Recognizes notes, chords, rests, clefs, and key/time signatures from scanned pages, JPEGs, or PDF files.
: Clean, printed PDFs generated directly from notation software typically yield the best results. Shadows, smudges, or handwritten marks on printed scores can confuse the recognition engine.
The software is available in two main versions, often bundled with Avid Sibelius . PhotoScore Lite PhotoScore Ultimate Up to 12 staves per page / 20 pages per score Up to 64 staves per page / 400 pages per score Music Markings Basic notes, ties, and triplets Slurs, hairpins, dynamics, articulation, and ornaments Text Recognition No text/lyric recognition Reads lyrics and text in 120 languages Handwriting Limited "NotateMe Now" version Full NotateMe handwritten recognition Editing Tools Basic keypad Bad Timing Navigator, Find & Replace, and Rescoring Practical Tips for Best Results photoscore
PhotoScore is an optical music recognition (OMR) software developed by Neuratron that converts printed or handwritten sheet music and PDFs into editable digital notation. It is widely used by musicians and composers to speed up the process of transcribing music into notation programs like Sibelius, Finale, or Dorico. Key Features and Capabilities
: Aim for 300 DPI when scanning for optimal accuracy; lower resolutions (down to 72 DPI) are supported but may yield more errors. : Recognizes notes, chords, rests, clefs, and key/time
: Professional users often focus on capturing notes accurately and manually re-entering lyrics or symbols later, as text recognition can be less reliable than note recognition. steinberg.net/dorico/">Dorico ? PhotoScore & NotateMe Ultimate Introduction
: Includes a "Bad Timing Navigator" to highlight rhythmic errors and a keypad for manual corrections before exporting. The software is available in two main versions,
: Uses the OmniScore²™ engine to achieve high accuracy on complex documents.