Find the chords of a song by ear. Play it near your phone, or choose a song file, and get the chord progression, the key and the tempo, with shapes for guitar, ukulele and piano.
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Tap Listen and play a song nearby, or choose a file. Nothing is uploaded: your own device does the listening.
How to get the best result
- A song file is the most accurate. Choose an MP3, M4A or WAV from your device and the whole song is analysed, with the chords shown on a timeline you can play back.
- Listening works best close and loud. Hold your phone near the speaker, keep the room quiet and let the song play for about 20 seconds. Talking, a noisy room or a small tinny speaker make it less sure.
- Read the result as a strong first guess. The chord finder hears harmony the way a musician does, and like a musician it can mistake a chord for a close relative. Play along to check, and correct by ear.
- Looking for a known song? Our chord sheets are written by hand, with the chords placed over the lyrics. Search for the song first.
Once you have the chords: check a shape in the Chord Shape Generator, get in tune with the tuner, and practise at the song's speed with the metronome.
Questions
How does the chord finder work?
It measures how strong each of the twelve notes is, moment by moment, with extra attention to the bass, and matches that against the shapes of major, minor, seventh and other chords. Then it works out which key those chords belong to and how fast the beat is.
How accurate is it?
With a song file, it usually finds the chords a published chord sheet lists. Through the microphone it is less sure, because the room, the speaker and other sounds get in the way: expect most of the chords, not all. The key is the hardest part and is sometimes given as the relative major or minor, which uses the same chords.
Is my music uploaded or recorded?
No. Everything happens on your own phone or computer. The sound is never sent to Yalle Media or anyone else, and nothing is saved.
What is the line of Doh, Fah, Soh under the chords?
Tonic sol-fa: each chord named by its place in the key, the way many choirs learn music. Doh is the key's home chord, so the same line works in any key.
Which files can I use?
Any sound file your browser can play: MP3, M4A, AAC, WAV, OGG and FLAC, and the sound from an MP4 video. Songs up to about 12 minutes work best.