About

BacksideBeat is a songbook and performance companion. Write chord charts, organize setlists and ideas, and play along with a synced count-in that speaks section names, counts beats, and plucks chords.

For gigs and rehearsals, host a live session from a setlist so bandmates can join on their own devices. Everyone stays on the same song, count, and transport—the host leads, and joined players follow in real time. See Sets and live sync in Help.

All your data stays on your device—your data is never sent or stored on BacksideBeat servers. When your catalog is empty, use Create Example Song below to load a demo chart (“Gone”).

Help

Getting started

• Catalog (C) — left sidebar with Songs, Sets, and Ideas tabs. Open from the top-left edge.
• Song Menu (S) — top toolbar when a song, set, or idea is loaded. Open from the top-right edge.
• Global (G) — bottom toolbar for count-chord mode, lyrics, pedals, keyboard synth, and the audio mixer. Open from the bottom edge.
• On your first visit to Help, an overlay highlights the Catalog, Song Menu, and Global edges—click Got it or check Don’t show this again to dismiss.
• View (Ctrl+Alt+K) — formatted chart for performance.
• Edit (E) — plain-text chart editor.
• Help (H) — this screen.
• Fullscreen (F) — Full Screen button in the top bar when a song is loaded.

Catalog (C)

Open from the top-left edge or press C:

• Songs tab — your song library; + Song creates a new song
• Sets tab — ordered setlists for gigs. Select a set to see its songs. Toolbar on the active set: Host, Join, Edit, Copy, Del. + Set creates a new setlist
• Ideas tab — drafts with optional recordings; + Idea creates a new idea
• While editing a set: rename it at the top, reorder or remove songs in the list, and add songs from your catalog in the panel below. Sets store references to songs — not separate copies
• Import / Export All (Songs tab footer) — full backup including audio and uploaded soundfonts; also imports SongBookPro .sbpbackup (songs and sets) and ChordPro .pro / .chordpro / .cho / .crd song files (chords above lyrics)
• Import / Export Set (Sets tab footer) — selected set and its songs
• Import / Export Ideas (Ideas tab footer) — all ideas and recordings

Song Menu (S)

Available when a song, set, or idea is loaded. Open from the top-right edge or press S. Sections appear top to bottom in this order:

• Top bar — app logo, version, and Full Screen (F)
• Metadata — Title, Author, Category, Key, Capo, BPM, Time, Bars, Count, estimated duration, Pre-Roll, Transpose, Backing Track (K, WAV/MP3/MIDI). Undo / Redo reverse Song Menu settings for this session only (not chart text). Plays count and Reset
• Display — Columns (+ / −), Zoom (View mode only; buttons, pinch on touch devices, or Ctrl+scroll on desktop)
• Playback — Play (Space or double-tap chart), Pause (P while playing), Repeat (R), Skip − (Pg Up), Skip + (Pg Dn), Replay (Home)
• Set Clock — session-only running time of the set; starts on first Play, keeps running through stop/end, Reset returns to 0 until the next Play
• Modes — View (Ctrl+Alt+K), Edit (E), Help (H), then Copy and Share
• Song list — Previous / Next / Delete (labels change to Idea on the Ideas tab)
• Recordings — Ideas tab only, last section: + Recording adds a row; use Record or Add more on each row to capture audio (activates Mic (8)), plus play, download, and delete

Global menu (G)

Open from the bottom edge or press G. Controls appear top to bottom in this order:

• Beat 1 / Beat 1&3 / All Beats (B) — cycle when to play chords during count
• All Counts / Count 1 — toggle spoken count digits: every beat (default) or only beat 1 of each measure (pre-roll always counts all digits)
• Play Chord / Play Root (N) — toggle count plucks between the full fretted voicing and the lowest root from that voicing (see Chords below)
• Continuous Play — session-only toggle; when on, the next visible song starts automatically when the current song ends (manual Play / Stop still works)
• Lyrics (L) — lyrics only, hide chords
• Pedals (P when stopped) — assign keyboard or MIDI triggers; see Pedals below
• Keyboard (D) — opens a floating GM synth panel; see Keyboard below
• Explorer (X) — opens the chord modal empty so you can drop notes on fret, piano, or staff. Remembers its own instrument; neck direction and handedness stay shared with the chord popup. See Chords below
• Advanced (A) — ping delay (1–30 seconds), pedal hold (1–10 seconds), BPM step (1–50), Transpose Capo on/off, autoscroll on/off (1-column View), row/chord highlight on/off, show count on/off, root note sustain on/off, chord notes sustain on/off (Play Root / Play Chord during count), OpenDyslexic Font on/off (song chart text and this Help page), light/dark theme, Reset All Play Counts, and Reset app (clears all local data; cannot be undone)
• Mixer (1–9) — Cue, Count, Click, Chords, Ping, Keyboard, Backing, Mic, and Master faders with mute buttons and per-channel routing; see Audio below
• Mixer Profile — dropdown below the channels with Save, New, and Delete; see Profiles under Audio

Writing charts

Charts use plain text:

• Section headers — lines ending with :, e.g. Verse 1: or Chorus:. Optional numbers work on any name (e.g. Bridge 2:). Recognized names: Intro, Verse, Chorus, Refrain, Bridge, Pre-Chorus (Pre Chorus), Post-Chorus (Post Chorus), Outro, Instrumental, Interlude, Solo, Break, Tag, Hook, Ending, Coda, and Vamp
• Chord lines — space-separated chords above lyrics, e.g. G D Em C
• Chord-only lines — leave a blank line after chords, or start a new section
• Inline chords — [G]word embeds a chord in lyrics
• Advanced chords — extensions and alterations such as G7#5b9, Fmaj7#11, Db13sus4, C13#11b9 (Unicode ♯/♭ also work)
• Slash chords — bass note after /, e.g. G/B, D7/F#, E/G#. This is not the same as beat / inside pipes (see below)

 G      G7         C         G
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound

Advanced:

• Pipes — | G C | groups chords that share one count span. Bars sets how long that span is: at Bars 1 in 4/4, one measure’s beats are split across the piped chords (| G C | → 2 beats each); at Bars 2, two measures are split across them (| G C | → 1 bar each)
• Beats — / between spaced tokens inside a pipe extends the chord before it; . is a silent beat. This is beat notation, not a slash chord (G/B has no spaces). With beat notation, Bars multiplies the total beats in the pipe. E.g. Bars 1 in 4/4: | G / / C | → G 3, C 1; Bars 2 in 4/4: | G / / / / / C / | → 8 beats; | G . . . | → G 1, then 3 silent beats
• Dashes — - marks a fixed beat in the pipe and extends the previous chord (not silent). Use adjacent -. for a silent beat (not - .). Ignores Bars and time signature. E.g. | G - | → G 2 beats; | G - - | → G 3 beats; | G -. -. | → G 1 beat, then 2 silent
• Key — Key: G, Key: F#m, Key: Bb; optional chart line (also in Song Menu)
• BPM — BPM: 120, BPM: 168; tempo for count and MIDI backing (WAV/MP3 backing plays at its native speed)
• Time — Time: 4/4 sets time signature; add x2 for Bars and (1234) for count, e.g. Time: 3/4, Time: 6/8x2, Time: 4/4 (1234), Time: 4/4x2 (1234)
• Note — Note: … performance/reminder text shown in the chart; ignored by Play. Continuation lines are allowed until a blank line or the next meta/section/chord line, e.g. Note: this is a note. with a then line break. on the next line

Song Menu metadata fields:

• Undo / Redo — reverse Song Menu settings changes for the current session (per song, in memory; not chart text)
• Title, Author, Category, Key — song metadata. Author and Category are free text; as you type, matching values already used on other songs appear in a dropdown below the field
• Capo — fret number (0–12, default 0). Shifts count chord/root plucks and the root ping by that many semitones. Transpose Capo in Advanced is Off by default; turn it On to also show and copy the sounding key and chords for musicians playing without a capo. Diagrams remain based on the displayed chord symbols. Shown as Capo2 in the song heading/footer when not zero
• BPM — tempo for count and MIDI backing (WAV/MP3 backing plays at its native speed). Use Tap (T) or [ / ] step buttons (step size set in Advanced)
• Time — time signature, e.g. 4/4; sets count pattern
• Bars — measures each unpiped chord is held; inside | … |, those measures (or beats, with / and .) are split across the piped chords
• Count — spoken count per beat (empty uses a default for the time signature)
• Pre-Roll — audible count-in measures before the song; a silent “Get Ready” measure always runs first (even when Pre-Roll is 0)
• Transpose (Q / W) — shift chords without editing source
• Backing Track (K) — upload, remove, and manage a WAV, MP3, or MIDI (.mid) backing. MIDI follows the song BPM and Transpose/Capo; mute/solo instruments in Composer. Use Composer (M) to create a new MIDI from scratch (inherits song BPM and time signature, starts with piano) or edit an uploaded file (add, move, resize notes). Change each lane’s instrument with its dropdown. In Edit, Add inserts another piano lane; each lane’s Delete removes that instrument (asks for confirmation); Ctrl+C / Ctrl+V copy/paste the highlighted note at the playhead on the same pitch. In Select, click a lane to choose where to paste, or copy/paste onto a chosen lane. Preview (on by default) plays a short sound when notes are created, moved, or pasted. Snap (on by default) locks note timing and the playhead to the grid; turn it off for free placement. The highlighted lane has Velocity, Pitch, Sustain, and Mod tabs — Pitch edits channel pitch-bend automation over time; Sustain edits damper (CC64) automation; Mod edits modulation (CC1) automation. Arm one or more lanes, press Play, then perform via MIDI or the Keyboard modal to record the same performance into every armed instrument. Grid sets the snap and draw resolution (1/1-1/512; default 1/16). Song Play / Stop / Skip / Repeat / Replay are unchanged while Composer is open (saved backing only; Composer edits apply on Save). Hold Ctrl for temporary Navigate; hold Alt for temporary Select (drag a box to multi-select for Delete, click to set playhead; release returns to Edit). Changes apply only when you Save. Audio plays at native speed (not stretched to BPM)

Ultimate Guitar paste: paste in Edit; [Verse 1] becomes Verse 1:. Set BPM and Key in the Song Menu if needed.

Play and display

Play (Space or double-tap chart) in the Song Menu Playback section runs a silent Get Ready measure, then your Pre-Roll count-in (if any), then speaks section names, counts beats, and plucks chords or roots (see Play Chord / Play Root in the Global menu). Backing track stays in sync. Pause (P while playing) freezes count and backing; press again to resume. When stopped, P opens Pedals in the Global menu.

• Current section and chord are highlighted during Play (disable row or chord highlight in Advanced); click a section label to jump
• R, Skip −/+, and Replay (Home) are in the Song Menu Playback section
• Pg Up / Pg Dn — while playing: previous/next chord; stopped: previous/next song in the catalog list
• B — cycle Beat 1 / Beat 1&3 / All Beats in the Global menu
• All Counts / Count 1 — in the Global menu; applies after pre-roll (pre-roll always speaks every count); section cues still play on beat 1
• 1-column View auto-scrolls during Play (disable in Advanced)
• Columns and Zoom are in the Song Menu Display section; Zoom appears in View mode only
• Lyrics (L) — in the Global menu

Audio (1–9)

Upload and manage WAV, MP3, or MIDI (.mid) backing tracks in the Song Menu metadata row (Backing Track, K). Mixer channels are in the Global menu Mixer section. Backing levels stay per song; mic mute is session-only (resets on reload). Each channel has a fader and mute button. Cue–Click–Ping and Keyboard use Stereo / Left / Right output; Mic uses Mon Off / Mon Stereo / Mon Left / Mon Right for monitoring. Master (9) is the final output stage after all channel faders:

• 1 Cue — spoken section names
• 2 Count — spoken beat numbers
• 3 Click — metronome on the Click mixer channel (defaults: GM A 76 High Wood Block, B 77 Low Wood Block). On by default; mute Click (3) or press 3 to silence it. Notes are set in the Keyboard panel Click Settings section
• 4 Chords — count-in plucks and chord-modal previews (see Chords below for voicing; tone from Keyboard Inst)
• 5 Ping — while nothing is playing, plucks the first chord’s root on a configurable interval (1–30 seconds in Advanced) in the middle-C octave, shifted up by Capo (defaults to middle C if no song or chords). Unmute Ping (5) or press 5 to enable; mute to turn off
• 6 Keyboard — live GM synth play via MIDI (works when the panel is closed), QWERTY, and on-screen piano. Click Keyboard (6) or press 6 to mute/unmute
• 7 Backing — uploaded WAV, MP3, or MIDI track (upload in Song Menu with K; mute and volume in Global). Mute/solo individual MIDI instruments in Composer. Click Backing (7) or press 7 to mute/unmute
• 8 Mic — microphone input. Starts muted with Mon Off. Click Mic (8) or press 8 to unmute and allow access; Record or Add more on an idea recording also activates the mic for capture. Recordings are always captured in stereo. Mon Off keeps the mic available for recording without live output. Mon Stereo, Mon Left, and Mon Right route live mic audio through the fader to your output—useful with headphones or a stereo splitter. Live monitoring through mains, PA speakers, or open room monitors can cause feedback; keep Mon Off or use headphones in those situations.
• 9 Master — final output stage after all channel faders. Left and right faders; Linked (default) moves both together, Unlinked trims L and R independently. Level meters beside each mixer fader show post-fader signal (Master meters are post-output). Click Master (9) or press 9 to mute/unmute all output—including mic monitor.
• Hardware — after Master: Mic Input selects the microphone device (mono); Master Out picks the stereo output device. Output routing requires browser support for device selection. Compressor On/Off (default On) toggles the master compressor after Master Out—tap to toggle, hold about a second to open compressor settings (threshold, knee, ratio, attack, release).
• Profiles — Mixer Profile dropdown below the channels. Switch setups (e.g. different hardware or monitor routes). The first profile is Default; rename it, create new profiles with New, or delete extras with Delete. Fader, routing, and hardware changes apply immediately but are stored in the active profile only when you click Save; switching profiles with unsaved changes asks for confirmation

WAV and MP3 backing tracks play at their native speed — set BPM to match the count. MIDI backing is different: it is stretched to the song BPM (and to chart BPM: lines) from the tempo written in the file, and it follows Transpose and Capo. Any tempo changes inside the MIDI file are ignored so it stays locked to the count. Audio files stay at the recorded speed and pitch.

• Left / Right routing — send cue to one ear and backing to a PA via a stereo splitter (separate L/R, not a headphone duplicator)
• Bluetooth adds latency and cannot split channels—use wired headphone or USB audio

Sets and live sync

On the Sets tab in the Catalog, build ordered setlists. Each shows estimated duration and song count. Select a set to use Host and Join in the set toolbar, Edit to rename, reorder, remove, and add songs, or Copy to duplicate the setlist as Original name - Copy 1 (then Copy 2, and so on).

A setlist is an ordered list of songs from your catalog. If you open a song from a set and edit its chart, metadata, transpose, or backing track, you are changing the song itself—the same song on the Songs tab and in every other set that includes it. Removing a song from a set only removes it from that setlist; it does not delete the song from your library.

Live sync with a set selected:

• Host — share a QR/link; you control song, count, and transport
• Join — open a host link or paste a room code
• Tap OK when prompted to start following the host
• Leave session to disconnect; joiners are follow-only (host leads playback)

Ideas and Share

• Ideas — like songs, plus optional recordings. Create with + Idea on the Ideas tab in the Catalog. Manage recordings in the Song Menu Recordings section (last section, Ideas tab only). + Recording adds a row; click Record or Add more on that row to activate Mic (8) and capture audio. Leave monitoring on Mon Off unless you need to hear yourself (see Audio for feedback cautions).
• Share — link or QR with chart and settings (backing tracks do not transfer via link, use Host / Join for that); button in the Song Menu Modes section, after View / Edit / Help
• Copy — copies the formatted chart with current transpose; button in the Song Menu Modes section

Keyboard (D)

Press D or choose Keyboard (D) in the Global menu to open a floating, draggable synth panel. Live play routes through the Keyboard (6) mixer channel; count-in plucks and chord-modal previews use Chords (4); the root ping uses Ping (5); metronome hits use Click (3) (on by default). Drag the panel header to reposition it—panel position is saved globally. Inst (tone), octave, monophonic mode, and MIDI preference are stored in named profiles at the bottom of the panel (see Profiles below). Click Settings drum note and velocity are saved globally.

• Inst — General MIDI program for SoundFont synth tone (not fretted voicing; see Chords below). − / + step to the previous or next program (wraps at either end)
• SoundFont — bundled GeneralUser GS by default; open Manage in the Keyboard panel to upload SF2/SF3/DLS files and choose the active font. Applies to keyboard, plucks, ping, click drums, and MIDI backing
• On-screen piano — tap or slide across keys while holding (mouse or touch), or use QWERTY: white keys Q W E R T Y U (C through B); black keys 2 3 5 6 7. Wider screens add more keys to fill available width (up to 88)
• Pitch and Mod wheels — vertical drag controls on the left of the playboard; apply to the GM synth (including vibrato rate from Mod rate)
• Mod rate — toggle Hz / BPM sync; in BPM mode, use − / + to set vibrato cycles per beat
• Octave — default 5 (range 1–7); shifts keyboard notes and count-in chord plucks together
• Monophonic — when enabled, only one note can sound at a time on the live keyboard (new notes cut off the previous voice)
• Click Settings — choose drum notes and velocities for the metronome Click (3) mixer channel (A and B). Defaults note 76 / 77, velocity 127 / 97. Plucks use Vel A on the first beat and Vel B on the remaining beats, in either Play Chord or Play Root mode (multi-note voicings are polyphonically balanced). Use − / + to step notes (35–81); they wrap at either end and preview the sound. Note and Vel fields also accept typed numbers (velocity 1–127)
• Enable MIDI — route notes, pitch bend, modulation, and sustain (CC64) from a connected MIDI keyboard (works even when the panel is closed)
• Profiles — dropdown at the bottom to switch setups (e.g. piano vs organ). The first profile is Default; rename it, create new profiles with New, or delete extras with Delete. Changes apply immediately but are stored in the active profile only when you click Save; switching profiles with unsaved changes asks for confirmation
• Trigger — optional keyboard or MIDI trigger to jump to this profile. Choose Tap (default, fires on press) or Hold (fires after continuous hold; duration set in Advanced, default 2 seconds) before Capture, then press a key or send a MIDI event; the binding saves automatically to the active profile. Clear removes it (click Save to persist). Triggers work when the panel is closed; MIDI switches require Enable MIDI
• While the panel is open, piano key bindings take priority (Q–U, 2 3 5–7 — e.g. Q plays C instead of transposing down). Digits 0–9 and O P are also disabled so mixer mutes and pedals do not fire while playing. All other shortcuts still work. Esc closes the keyboard panel

Chords

Click any chord in View to open a centered chord modal with note names, interactive fret / piano / staff diagrams, ▶ Play preview, and the Instrument / Voicing dropdown.

• Instrument / Voicing — dropdown on the fretted diagram; Guitar, Bass, Ukulele, Mandolin, Banjo, or Piano. Sets fingerings, tuning, and which notes count-in plucks use—the same symbol can be voiced differently on each instrument. Root dots mark the chord root. Piano uses staff voicing for plucks; the left-panel guitar diagram stays as a visual reference. Saved globally for all songs.
• Diagram view — ↑ / ← / → rotates the fretted diagram so the neck points up (default), left, or right; RH / LH switches right-handed (default) and left-handed string order. All toggles faded overlays of every catalog shape on the full neck (on by default; when on, drag or scroll into a shape to highlight it and sync piano/staff). Pinch or Ctrl+scroll zooms the neck. Neck, hand, and All are saved globally. − / + jumps to the previous/next shape
• Explorer — the chord modal is always interactive: drop or remove notes on the fretboard, piano, or staff. All three panels stay in sync; the title updates to the closest chord match. Clear removes all notes; ▶ Play previews the selection. Neck direction and handedness stay shared and are remembered. The Keys tab lists possible keys with the match, its relative, and both parallels, each with diatonic chords by degree. The RhymeBrain tab looks up rhymes (default) or portmanteaus via RhymeBrain.com
• Explorer (X, Global menu) — opens the chord modal empty. Remembers its own instrument; neck direction and handedness stay shared with the chord popup
• Play Chord / Play Root (N) — Global menu toggle; Play Chord plucks every note in the diagram voicing with +6 dB output compensation after polyphonic balancing, while Play Root plucks only the lowest root from that voicing. In both modes, velocities follow Keyboard Click Settings: Vel A on the first beat and Vel B on the remaining beats. In Advanced, Root Note Sustain and Chord Notes Sustain hold notes like a sustain pedal until the next pluck (both default on)
• Keyboard Inst — GM synth tone (see Keyboard above); not which pitches are plucked. Octave on the Keyboard panel shifts pluck pitch up or down
• Piano / staff diagrams — when a fretted instrument is selected, the piano keyboard and staff panels are reference only; when Piano is the diagram instrument, staff voicing drives plucks

Pedals (P)

Press P when stopped or choose Pedals (P) in the Global menu to assign keyboard or MIDI triggers. Triggers work when inputs are not focused.

• Profiles — dropdown to switch setups (e.g. different foot pedals or keyboards). The first profile is Default; rename it, create new profiles with New, or delete extras with Delete. Captures and the MIDI toggle save automatically to the active profile
• Bindings — choose Tap (default, fires on press) or Hold (fires after continuous hold; duration set in Advanced, default 2 seconds) per action, then click Capture and press a key or send a MIDI event to bind. Click Clear to remove
• Enable MIDI — route triggers from connected MIDI inputs
• Actions — Play / Stop, Pause / Resume, Repeat, Replay, Skip −/+, Previous / Next Song, Continuous Play, BPM −/+, Tap, and Master Mute
• Advanced — Previous / Next Profile triggers that apply to every pedal profile. Optional Play / Stop profiles auto-load one profile while a song is playing and another while stopped (pause still uses the playing profile)

Keyboard shortcuts

Troubleshooting

• USB audio drops on mobile — Some phones and tablets drop external USB audio interfaces when the app is silent for a while. Unmute Ping (5) in the mixer so a soft root note plays periodically while idle; that keeps the audio path active. Adjust the interval in Advanced (1–30 seconds).
• No sound from USB audio on mobile — On some phones and tablets, the app must finish loading before the external USB interface is available. Wait until the app is fully open, then plug in your interface. If it was already connected when you launched the app and you hear nothing, unplug it and plug it back in after the app has loaded, then pick it under Master Out in the mixer Hardware section if needed.

Privacy

Effective July 2026. BacksideBeat does not require an account. Your songbook—songs, sets, ideas, backing tracks, and settings—is stored locally in your browser on your device. Catalog data is not stored on BacksideBeat servers.

• Analytics — Google Analytics may collect standard usage and device/technical data. Chart and song content are not sent as analytics events. See Google’s privacy policy for how Google processes that data.
• Share — When you create a Share link, chart text and settings are encoded in the URL you choose to send. Anyone with the link can open that content.
• Host / Join — Live sync is peer-to-peer. When you host or join a session, set and playback data are shared with connected peers for that set. Connection setup may use public signaling relays.
• Mic, MIDI, and audio devices — Used in the browser only when you enable those features. Audio is not uploaded to BacksideBeat servers.
• Deleting data — Use Reset app in Advanced, or clear this site’s data in your browser settings.

Questions: DavidHarrisonMusic.com. This policy may be updated; the effective date above will change when it does.

Credits

BacksideBeat uses these third-party libraries:

• lamejs — MP3 encoding for ideas and recordings. License: LGPL-3.0. github.com/shijinyu/lamejs; LAME: lame.sourceforge.net
• qrcode.js (qrcode-generator by Kazuhiko Arase) — Share and Host QR codes. License: MIT. github.com/kazuhikoarase/qrcode-generator
• trystero (Dan Motzenbecker) — live Host / Join peer-to-peer sync. License: MIT. github.com/dmotz/trystero
• spessasynth_lib / spessasynth_core (spessasus) — SoundFont MIDI synthesizer for keyboard, count plucks, click, and MIDI backing. License: Apache-2.0. github.com/spessasus/spessasynth_lib
• GeneralUser GS (S. Christian Collins) — bundled GM SoundFont (SF3). schristiancollins.com/generaluser. Upload your own SF2/SF3/DLS via Manage in the Keyboard panel
• OpenDyslexicMono (Abbie Gonzalez; Reserved Font Name OpenDyslexic) — optional chart font. License: SIL Open Font License 1.1. opendyslexic.org
• RhymeBrain — rhymes and portmanteaus in the chord modal RhymeBrain tab (API). RhymeBrain.com