How to write musical notation in Obsidian

With its power and flexibility, Obsidian has become a popular choice for digital note-taking. But did you know that it can also be a platform for creating and learning music? Using the ABCjs library, you can compose, view, and listen to sheet music right inside your cabinet.

Writing music in obsidian

A while ago, I decided to delve into music theory. I was tired of writing songs without a coherent understanding of what I was doing. Like any serious activity, I turned to my Obsidian vault to document everything I was learning. But I quickly discovered that Obsidian went beyond text notes—it also allowed me to play music genres.

I found a great plugin that allows me to write and play music directly in Obsidian. The plugin is called ABC Music Notation. It integrates the ABCjs library into Obsidian, allowing you to write music. It then displays your notes as beautiful music notes, and you can even listen to that music in Obsidian.

Install ABC Music Notation plugin

Installing any Obsidian plugin is a simple and straightforward process, and ABC Music Notation is no exception. Here's how to do it:

1. Click the gear icon in the lower left corner of the Obsidian window to open the settings menu.
2. In the left sidebar, click Community Plugins.
3. Use the search bar to find ABC Music Notation Additional component.
4. Click Fixed And then maybe To activate the plugin.

How to use ABCjs in Obsidian

Using the ABC Music Notation plugin in Obsidian is simple. However, like writing mathematical notation in Obsidian, it takes some getting used to. If you've used ABC or ABCjs notation before, it'll be easy, as the process in Obsidian is the same.

To get started, paste the code below into a new note:

```music-abc
``` 

This will create a block of code. You can then insert a musical notation between these two lines and ABCjs will translate it into a musical notation.

The ABCjs library is a comprehensive library. It covers almost everything found in sheet music: notes, polyphony, dynamic notation, and much more. Explaining all of its features would take thousands of words, so I'll try to keep it simple by reviewing and analyzing a sample piece.

Paste the code below into your code block to get started:

X:1
T:Speed the Plough
C:Trad.
M:4/4
Q:1/4=120
K:G
|:GABc dedB|dedB dedB|c2ec B2dB|c2A2 A2BA|
  GABc dedB|dedB dedB|c2ec B2dB|A2F2 G4:|
|:g2gf gdBd|g2f2 e2d2|c2ec B2dB|c2A2 A2df|
  g2gf g2Bd|g2f2 e2d2|c2ec B2dB|A2F2 G4:| 

In your Obsidian note, it should look like this:

In each block of ABC notation, the first few lines identify the piece and its title, while the rest of the lines represent the music itself. Here's what the title of this piece means:

• XThis is the reference number for the tone. It is usually set to: 1 For most pieces.
• TTitle of the piece. In this example, the title is: Plow speed.
• G:Author of the piece. Here, it is marked as a traditional piece (traditional).
• M:Scale or time signature. This piece is in 4/4 time.
• S:Rhythm, refers to the number of quarter notes (1/4) is played per minute. Here, it is set to 120.
• yourSignature key. This piece has a key. G.

After the title, come the musical notes:

• MessagesEach letter represents a tone. Uppercase letters (A, B, C) indicate tones in the lower octave, while lowercase letters (a, b, c) indicate tones in the higher octave.
• numbersAdding a number after a letter that specifies an octave. For example, G2 means the G note in the second octave.
• BarsUse the pipe symbol (|) to indicate bar lines.
• repetitionUse a colon (:) to specify sections that should be repeated.

Once you've finished writing the music, click anywhere outside the block to see the translated sheet music. You can click on the sheet music to play it!

This is the simple process you can use to start writing music in your Obsidian Notes. Remember, there’s more to ABCjs than meets the eye. The ABCjs website is a great resource for exploring more advanced capabilities. From there, all you need is a little practice, and you can turn your closet into an interactive music studio.