From recorded sound to editable notes
A MIDI file does not contain sound. It lists notes: pitch, start time, length and velocity. To convert WAV to MIDI, a program has to listen to the audio and work out which notes were played. This page uses basic-pitch, an open-source transcription model by Spotify, running locally in your browser. The model is downloaded once and your recording stays on your computer.
WAV is the ideal input for this job. It has no compression artefacts, so the model hears the clean attack of each note and the true overtones of the instrument. If you recorded yourself in a DAW or with a recorder app that saves WAV, use that file rather than an MP3 copy.
Typical uses
- Turn a piano improvisation into notes you can edit and print.
- Sing or hum a melody idea and get it into your music software as MIDI.
- Capture a guitar riff or bass line to play it back with a synthesizer.
- Get a first draft of a transcription for practice or teaching.
Honest expectations
The model is polyphonic and can detect chords, but transcription is never perfect. These are the factors that matter most:
| Recording | Expected result |
|---|---|
| Solo piano, close microphone | very good, most notes correct |
| Solo voice, flute, violin | good melody, some extra short notes on slides and vibrato |
| Acoustic guitar chords | good, some missing inner notes |
| Full band or orchestra | rough sketch only |
| Drums and percussion | not transcribed |
Lots of room reverb blurs note endings, and background noise can create ghost notes. A dry, close recording works best; noise reduction can help with hiss before transcription.
After the conversion
Open the MIDI file in your DAW or notation software and choose any instrument. Timing follows the performance exactly and is not quantized, so use the quantize function if you want neat sheet music. Remove stray short notes, and set the tempo to match your playing. To hear a MIDI file rendered back to audio, try MIDI to WAV.