Making your own song

Sing a tune or write it, get suggested harmony, and share it by link.

Contents

On this page

Where to start

On the home page, tap "New song", the first card in Your songs, then "Make a harmony". Choose "Sing it", "Start from chords", "Write it", or "Open a file" (a song exported from Stackapella).
Your draft saves as you go. Leave any time, and find it in Your songs, marked "Draft", with Resume and Discard.
To turn a song you've recorded into a template, open its Song settings, then Save as template.

Pick a tempo you can sing comfortably: tap the beat, or choose Slow, Medium or Fast. Wear headphones, so the click stays out of your singing.
Paste the words, one line for each phrase, and fix any syllables that split wrongly. No words? Sing each phrase on "oo".
Sing the tune line by line, with Play the key note to hear the key's home note first. A bar of clicks counts you in; stop when you're done, or just go quiet. If you have a lower voice, say so, and we write the tune where it belongs.
Check the notes we found: tap any note to hear it, then move it higher or lower, split it, or join it with the next. Where a note looks like a slip (an octave away from its neighbours, or outside the key), we say why and offer Fix it, or Fix the 3 we can for all of them at once, and Undo puts them back.

Draw notes on the lane, drag to move them, and drag an end to change a length. Every note sounds as you go.
Writing a whole song is easier on a bigger screen. On a phone, tap a note to fix it.

Pick the chords you'll sing over: tap a card's play button to hear it, and tap the card to choose it. Name the chords in Letters, Numbers or Numerals.
At Key and tempo, pick your voice (or Not sure? Check your range): we suggest a key, with Lower and Higher, and you set the tempo, the feel and the backing sound.
Sing or hum over it: after a bar of clicks, the chords go round a few times, and we write down what you sing. The chords become the other parts.

At "The other parts", choose "Suggest them" for an alto, tenor and bass made to fit your tune. Hear three styles (Simple, Warm and Bright) and pick one.
Not quite right somewhere? Tap "Try another chord" at that bar.
Or choose "Write them" to add the notes yourself, or "Just the tune" for one part.

Give it a title, and say who wrote it: you, traditional (or in the public domain), or someone else. Songs by someone else stay private.
Choose who can open it, "Only me" or "Anyone with the link", then Save.
Saving opens your song's own page. Under Pick your part, choose 2, 3 or 4 Singers, then a part: each shows its range against Your range, the one that suits you is chosen first, and its play button plays it alone. Hear all parts plays them together.
Then tap Learn the bass part (or the part you chose) to learn and record it like any song.
The free plan keeps one of your songs in your account, and the others stay on this device. Plus keeps them all.

Sign in and open your song from the home page. Under You made this, a card says where it's kept: on your account, or only on this device and why. If details are missing, fill them in and tap Back it up.
Choose Anyone with the link, then Copy link or Share. Friends who open it can learn it, part by part. Only me keeps it to yourself.
Edit, Make a copy and Export file are under it. Delete asks first, and offers Undo for a few seconds after.

The song builder is coming: a chorus and a bridge suggested to fit your verse, and chords found for a tune you sing.

Still stuck? Tell us what you tried: it sends the details we need, like your browser and your last timing check.