Manual contents

Plain text files

SongSheet Pro can import songs from plain text files.

Importing

This page explains how SongSheet Pro interprets the contents of a plain text file. For the different ways to bring a file into SongSheet Pro, see Adding songs.

Plain text files usually use the .txt extension. During import, SongSheet Pro reads the file line by line and identifies metadata, stanza names, chord lines, and lyric lines using the rules below.

Reviewing a plain text import

Before adding the song to your library, SongSheet Pro shows a preview on the Import Song screen. Use this preview to check the line types it detected.

To change the type of each line in the song, tap Line Types or swipe the song to the left. In this view, you can override the line types that SongSheet Pro detected.

To change the identification of a line, tap the line, then choose the appropriate line type from the list on the right. You can also tell SongSheet Pro to ignore a line by selecting Ignore this line. Tap Preview to return to the song preview.

Once you are happy with the import, tap Import in the top-right to add the song to your library. Tap Cancel in the top-left to dismiss the import view without importing the song.

Song metadata

Lines that set the song’s metadata can appear anywhere in the file. If more than one line sets the same value, the last one is used.

Title and artist:

A line that starts with Title, Artist, or By: sets the title or artist:

Title: Amazing Grace
Artist: John Newton
By: John Newton

Capital letters do not matter, and the colon is optional after Title and Artist, but not after By.

Anything that is not set by a label is guessed from the first two lines of text, skipping blank lines. When the first line is lyrics:

• If the second line is By followed by one to three words that each start with a capital letter, such as By John Newton, the first line becomes the title and the name becomes the artist. A line such as By your side, or one where the first word after By is a common word such as My or All, doesn’t count as a By line, but the rules below can still make it the artist.
• If the second line is not lyrics, for example a key, capo, tempo, or time signature, a stanza name, or chords, the first line becomes the title.
• If the first two lines are next to each other and are followed by a blank line or any other line that is not lyrics, they become the title and the artist.
• If a blank line separates the first two lines, the first line becomes the title when the second line is followed by more lyrics, and they become the title and the artist when the second line is followed by a line that is neither lyrics nor blank. When the second line is followed by another blank line, neither is guessed.

When the first line is a Title line, the second line becomes the artist if it is a By line like the one above, or if it is followed by a blank line or any other line that is not lyrics. When the first line is anything else, such as chords or a stanza name, nothing is guessed.

For the most reliable results, put the title and artist on the first two lines with metadata such as the key straight after them, as in the example below, or use Title and Artist lines. If no title is found, the file name is used.

Key:

key a
key: a
key of a
key of: a
Key: Aminor
Key A minor
Key of: Fb
Key C major
Key of G
Key = Amin
Key=G

Capo:

Capo 5
Capo -1
Capo 3
Capo: 3
Capo: 9
Capo:5

Tempo:

120bpm
120 BPM
Tempo 120bpm
Tempo 120
Tempo: 120
Tempo:120
Tempo = 120
bpm = 120
bpm=120

Time signature:

4/4
3/4
5/16
7/4

Copyright:

A line that starts with Copyright, (c), or the © symbol, i.e.

Copyright 2023 Some copyright details
(c) 2023 Some copyright details
© 2023 Some copyright details

Stanza names

Any line starting with one of the following followed (optionally) by a number, and optionally by a : is recognized as the name of a stanza:

• verse
• chorus
• refrain
• bridge
• intro
• outro

e.g.

Verse 1
Verse 2:
Intro

are all recognized as stanza names.

or any line with text ending in : such as:

Prechorus:

Chords

Chord lines are expected to appear on their own line above a line of lyrics.

If a file uses embedded chords in square brackets, SongSheet Pro treats it as ChordPro instead of plain text.

Chord lines must contain only text that can be recognized as chords e.g. A, Gmin, Asus4, etc

Everything else is assumed to be lyrics.

For example, this is recognized as a line of chords followed by a line of lyrics:

 D                  G         D
Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound)

Example

e.g. a valid file could be:

This is the Song Title
Artist Name
Key: A
Tempo: 110
4/4
© 2023 Some copyright info

Verse 1:
  A
A line with chord above

Prechorus:
This is the prechorus

Chorus:
And now, the chorus!

Verse 2:
The second verse now