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Open MusicXML files online
Open scores exported from MuseScore, Sibelius, Finale or Dorico, or downloaded from the web, and play and edit them in your browser. Plain and compressed MusicXML both work.
Supported files
| Extension | What it is |
|---|---|
| .musicxml | MusicXML, uncompressed (the current standard name) |
| .xml | MusicXML, uncompressed (older programs use this name) |
| .mxl | Compressed MusicXML (a zip with the score inside) |
How to open a MusicXML file
- On the SimpleNotation home page press Import MusicXML, Guitar Pro or MIDI…, or in the editor open the ⋯ menu and choose Import notation file…
- Pick your .musicxml, .xml, .mxl file. It is read in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
- The score opens in the editor, ready to play, edit, transpose and export. Press Save to keep it.
What comes through
- Every part, named as in the file, with an instrument chosen from its name or MIDI sound
- Notes spelled as written, up to four voices per part, ties, tuplets, grace notes, articulations, ornaments, tremolo, arpeggios, octave lines and pedal marks
- Dynamics and hairpins, chord symbols and chord diagrams, lyrics, text and rehearsal marks
- Title and composer, tempo, time and key signatures, clefs, repeats, endings, segno and coda
- Guitar tab: strings and frets, the tuning and capo, hammer-ons, pull-offs, bends, slides and harmonics
- Percussion parts, as a drum set
What changes
- Layout is recalculated: system and page breaks, spacing and positions from the original are not kept
- A part on two staves, such as piano, becomes two instruments, one per staff
- More than four voices in a part, more than 32 staves or more than 2,000 measures are cut off
- Unusual key signatures (not built from the circle of fifths) are read as C major
Get guitar tab from sheet music
When a guitar or bass part arrives without tab, SimpleNotation adds it: it chooses a string and fret for every note, keeping chord shapes playable and staying near the last hand position. Change any fret by typing over it, then export the result as text tab, PDF or Guitar Pro.
Where MusicXML files come from
MuseScore (File → Export → MusicXML), Sibelius, Finale, Dorico, Logic and Notion all export MusicXML, and many score libraries offer it as a download. Use .mxl, the compressed version, when a program offers both: it is smaller and opens the same way.
Convert MusicXML to another format
Once the file is open, export it from the ⋯ menu:
- PDF, to print it
- Text tab, to paste a guitar part as text tab
- Guitar Pro, to open it in Guitar Pro or Songsterr
- MIDI, to play it with your own sounds in a DAW
- MP3 audio, to listen to it or practise along
Questions
How do I open an MXL file?
Import it into SimpleNotation like any other score: press Import on the home page, or choose ⋯ → Import notation file in the editor. The compressed file is unpacked in your browser.
Can I convert MusicXML to guitar tab?
Yes. Guitar and bass parts get tab automatically, with a string and fret chosen for every note. You can then export the tab as text, PDF or a Guitar Pro file.
Is the file uploaded?
No. MusicXML files are read in your browser. Nothing is sent to our server unless you save the score.
Why does the layout look different from MuseScore or Sibelius?
SimpleNotation lays the score out again with its own engraving rules. The notes and markings are the same, but line breaks and spacing are its own.