MidiToLily is a console application that converts a MIDI file to LilyPond format. You can create sheet music from a MIDI file by using MidiToLily as a preprocessor for LilyPond. MidiToLily is an alternative to the midi2ly script that ships with LilyPond. MidiToLily is currently only available for Windows, though that may change.
Download the latest release, unzip it, and run MidiToLily.exe. MidiToLily doesn't have an installer, doesn't have dependencies, and doesn't store things in the registry or anywhere else.
If your MIDI file is fully quantized, try this simple command:
MidiToLily mysong.mid
If that succeeds, create your score with this command:
lilypond "mysong [lily].ly"
If your MIDI file is not fully quantized, or you get an error, try this instead:
MidiToLily mysong.mid -quant 16 -triplet 16
If you're sure your file doesn't contain triplets, you can omit the triplet parameter. Depending on your file, other quantization values may work better.
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| MIDI_FILE | The path of the input MIDI file; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑output PATH | The path of the output LilyPond file; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑title STRING | The title of the composition; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑subtitle STRING | The subtitle of the composition; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑opus STRING | The title of the opus; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑piece STRING | The title of the piece; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑composer STRING | The name of the composer; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑copyright STRING | The copyright notice; if it contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑frenched | Hide empty staves. |
| ‑verify | Compare the input MIDI file to a LilyPond-generated MIDI file; MidiToLilyIn.txt and LilyPondMidi.txt are created. |
| ‑quant DURATION | Quantize note start and end times to the specified duration (1=whole, 2=half, 4=quarter, etc.); if combined with triplet quantization, notes snap to the nearest grid. |
| ‑triplet DURATION | Quantize note start and end times to the specified TRIPLET duration (1=whole, 2=half, 4=quarter, etc.); if combined with regular quantization, notes snap to the nearest grid. |
| ‑offset OFFSET | Signed offset in ticks added to all MIDI event times. |
| ‑clef LIST | Comma-separated list of clef overrides, each consisting of t=c, where t is a track index and c is a clef name defined in LilyPond. By default, a track is automatically assigned treble or bass clef, depending on what pitches it uses. |
| ‑section LIST | Comma-separated list of one-based measure numbers, each of which specifies the start of a section. |
| ‑ottava LIST | Comma-separated list of octave shifts, each consisting of t_M:B:T=n where t is a track index, M:B:T is a time in Measure:Beat:Tick format, and n is a signed number of octaves to transpose the staff by. |
| ‑staves LIST | Comma-separated list of track indices specifying which tracks are assigned to staves, from top to bottom. |
| ‑key LIST | Comma-separated list of key signatures, each consisting of M=k where M is a one-based measure number, and k is the key signature in LilyPond note format, optionally followed by the letter 'm' to indicate a minor key. |
| ‑time LIST | Comma-separated list of time signatures, each consisting of M=n/d where M is a one-based measure number, and n and d are the the time signature's numerator and denominator. |
| ‑tempo LIST | Comma-separated list of tempos, each consisting of M=T where M is a one-based measure number and T is a tempo. The tempo can be a metronome mark, a description, or both. If the list contains spaces, enclose it in double quotes. |
| ‑params PATH | Read parameters from the specified text file. |
| ‑help | Display the help. |
| ‑license | Display the license. |
| ‑logging TYPE | Enables various types of logging; specify a bitmask in hexadecimal, ? to list the types, or * to enable all. |
| Example | Description |
|---|---|
| ‑quant 16 | Quantize to the sixteenth note grid. |
| ‑section 33,65 | Start sections at measures 33 and 65. |
| ‑clef 1=C,2=C | Use alto clef for tracks 1 and 2. |
| ‑ottava 1_5:3:0=2 | Shift track 1 up two octaves starting at MBT time 5:3:0. The longer example 1_5:3:0=2,1_8:1:45=0 also restores the same track to its unshifted state at 8:1:45. |
| ‑staves 3,1,2 | Assign track 3 to the top staff, track 1 to the middle staff, and track 2 to the bottom staff. |
| ‑time 1=3/4,9=4/4 | Set the time signature to 3/4 at measure 1, and then change it to 4/4 at measure 9. |
| ‑key 1=ef,9=csm | Set the key signature to E flat major at measure 1, and then change it to C sharp minor at measure 9. |
| ‑tempo 1=110,9=120 | Set the tempo to 110 at measure 1, and then change it to 120 at measure 9. A unit can be specified, as in 9=2=50 to set 50 half notes per minute at measure 9. A description is also supported, as in 9=Largo or 9=Largo2=50. |
Only type 0 MIDI files are supported, and the first track is reserved for the tempo map.
Track indices are zero-based, but since the tempo map is track zero, the first track with note events is track one. The valid range of a track index in a command line parameter is from one to the number of tracks in the MIDI file.
If your input MIDI file isn't quantized, use the quant and triplet parameters, otherwise you'll get errors, such as invalid duration.
If your tracks aren't shown in the desired order, you can use the staves parameter to reorder them. The staves parameter can also be used to hide specific tracks. The default behavior is tracks are assigned sequentially from top to bottom, i.e. track one gets the top stave, and the last track gets the bottom stave.
Here's an example of MIDI verification, by running MidiToLily again after LilyPond runs. For the verify pass, cosmetic parameters like title and composer can be omitted.
MidiToLily mysong.mid -quant 16 -triplet 16 -title "My Song" -composer "My Name"
lilypond "mysong [lily].ly"
MidiToLily mysong.mid -quant 16 -triplet 16 -verify
If you're using many parameters, instead of editing a long command line, you may prefer to put the parameters in a text file. That way each parameter can be on its own line, which is much easier to read and edit. Pass the text file to MidiToLily via the -params parameter, like so:
MidiToLily mysong.mid -params myparams.txt
MidiToLily is written in C++ using MFC. It compiles cleanly in Visual Studio 2012 and 2019. MidiToLily does what I need it to do, but undoubtedly it could be improved. Enhancements I'm considering include:
- Fix issues with time signature denominators other than 4
- Add a tempo change parameter
- Better triplet handling; current implementation fails in various corner cases