Notation Filetype (.nft)

.nft (Pronounced "Nifty") is a markup language for musical notation.
The idea is to create a format that translates simple music notation in the form of plain text (i.e. the kind of stuff you see on GuitarTabs.com) into computer-readable and translatable music notation. This format allows a user to quickly write sheet music using any text editor without having formal knowledge of music symbols.
Because of the loose method in which .nft is defined, you could also theoretically copy-paste a file from a music website and hopefully get a nice editable template for music.

Documentation

The .nft format is html-like with only one special tag: meta (case insensitive).
The meta tag specifies settings, variables, and other information for the entire score Any other tag is assumed to be a group of however many subtags there are. Note tags may only be nested with a depth of 1

Metadata

All files start with a metadata section.

Single Notes

Write a single note by simply writing C, D, E, F, G, A, or B
A 'b' following a note will lower it by one semitone. Ex: Db
A '#' following a note will raise it by one semitone. Ex: D#

Chords

The first way to define a chord is to write a note and follow it with a chord name
ex: Dmaj = D major
Possible chord names are:
maj - Major
maj7 - Major 7th
min - Minor
min7 - Minor 7th

The 2nd way is to enclose a group of notes in square or curly braces separated by commas
ex: {E,G,B}
ex: [E,G,B]

Rests

A rest is specified by R

Other symbols

There are various other symbols available.
A full list of them will be available soon.

Octave

Specify the octave of a note by appending it to the end.
This typically isn't necessary for rests (and probably won't even work)
This may cause formatting problems in some cases.

length

Change the length of a note by adding the denominator of a fraction in front of it.
If none is specified it is assumed to be a whole note.
ex: 2C = half note C.
This also works for rests...
ex: 2{rest} = half note rest

Duplication/Repeating Notes

It's laborious to type out the same note multiple times. i.e. in the case of multiple rests before an instrument comes in.
in that case use the duplication syntax to duplicate any type of notation or group.
Ex: R*5

Measures

If you want to end a measure simply use || and any notes followig will start on a different measure.
Additionally if you want to repeat a measure use :|| and any notes preceeding will be repeated

Staff/Staves

Use a single # to specify a staff.

Options/Parameters Syntax

Options/Parameters are inherited from the parent with a few exceptions.

Lyrics

Sometimes you want to add lyrics to your score.

Format

Spaces are only used to separate notes, chords, etc.
Newline characters, tabs, do not matter.
If you wanted to, you could put an entire song on one line. It would look ugly, but we're not here to tell you hot to run your life...don't do it though.

Examples

This example shows

# Meta { title = 'Hello - Adele', key = 'C', hiderests = true, transpose = 0 }
# Voice { sig='4/4' }

# Piano { sig='4/4' }
## { clef='treble' }
## {clef='bass'}
[Intro]
Emin  Gmaj  Dmaj  Cmaj
Emin  Gmaj  Dmaj  Cmaj
Emin  Gmaj  Dmaj  Cmaj

The parse tree, in JSON format, looks like this:

{
  'meta' : {
    'title' : 'Hello - Adele',
    'key' : 'C',
    'hide_rests' : true
    'transpose' : 0,
    // default variables that are required, but were not defined
    'staff_size' : 5,
    'time_signature' : '4/4',
    'pitch' : 0,
  },
  'staves' : [
    {
      'meta' : {},
      'comp' : [
        {
          'chord_name' : 'Emin'
          'notes' : ['E', 'G', 'C'],
        }
      ]
    }
  
  ]
}

Every option/variable specified in meta section trinkles down to all groups but can also be overwritten by them. Single hashtag specifies a group. Naming them is optional. Any options specified trinkle down to children if not overwritten. Double hashtag represents

The Many Ways To Use NFT

CLI

After writing your score in plain text compile it with the command line.

nft input.nft -o output.xxx

The nft cli will eventually have support for JSON, XML, pdf, and png/jpg/webp (as a series of seperate image files).

Web/Desktop Application

There's also a dead simple web application consiting of a text editor window and an output window. Text goes into the text editor window and an image representing the score comes out the output window.

Browser Library

The library itself simply parses input text and returns a JSON object representing the structure of the score. A Separate program (an example of which is included with the command line client) converts said JSON to a visual form and/or manipulates the JSON.

Khauri / NFT