Questions about the play-along maker

From a rhythm or a simple melody that you write, it makes three things: playback in the browser with a count-in and a marker that moves over the notes, a play-along video with sound for the projector, and printable charts: a colour chart for colour-coded tubes and bells, the notation, and one-bar cards for station work.

Use the grid: choose a note and pick its length, make it a rest, dot it or tie it to the next note, by mouse, touch or keyboard. Or open the text box and type rhythm words such as ta ti-ti ta rest, with a bar line | between bars. Each bar says whether it adds up, and nothing plays until every bar does.

Add a bells part and give each note a pitch from C4 to C6: press a letter from A to G, step it up or down, and add a sharp or a flat. In the text box, write each note as pitch and length, such as C5/4 for a quarter note C or F#4/8 for an eighth note F sharp.

The part is left as it was and every word that did not read is listed with its bar and its place, such as Bar 2, word 3, with the reason. Nothing is guessed or filled in for you; fix the words and use the text again.

Beats a minute, from 40 to 200. In 2/4, 3/4 and 4/4 a beat is a quarter note; in 6/8 a beat is a dotted quarter, so 6/8 at 60 plays one dotted quarter a second and a bar every 2 seconds. A change of tempo while it plays starts at the next bar line.

The starting convention is red C, orange D, yellow E, green F, teal G, purple A and pink B, a common one for colour-coded tubes and bells. Every colour can be changed in Settings to match your own set. A sharp or flat takes its letter's colour and always prints with its sign, and every circle carries its letter, so colour is never the only cue.

The page says before you start. Where the browser can encode H.264 with WebCodecs (current Chrome, Edge and Safari, and Firefox on most systems), it makes an MP4 in the background, faster than it plays. Where it cannot, it records the video while it plays once in real time, as WebM, or as MP4 where the recorder makes MP4. If a browser can do neither, it says so and the charts still work.

Yes. The count-in, the backing and every part are rendered into the video's sound track with the same sounds you hear in the browser, timed to the same marker. The video opens with a short title card, then the count-in.

Every note is scheduled on the audio clock, not on a page timer, and the marker reads that same clock on every screen refresh, less the delay the browser reports for its speakers. Over 16 bars at 200 beats a minute it stays within a few thousandths of a second of the notes.

Choose A4 or US Letter under Charts and cards, then print the colour chart from the page, or save it as a PNG or a PDF. Print at actual size, or 100 percent. The one-bar cards print 4 to a page with dashed lines to cut along.

Yes. A board can hold up to 4 parts, each with its own sound, for layered play-alongs; the free plan plays 2. Parts can be muted while you teach them one at a time.

In this browser only. Boards are written, played and saved on your device and never uploaded, and there is no account. Save a backup file to keep a copy or to move to another computer. If the browser blocks storage, the maker still works for the visit and says that nothing will be kept.

Yes. Choose Share this board under Your boards and copy the link. It carries the board in the address after #, which never reaches any server; whoever opens it sees the board as Shared with you and nothing is saved on their side until they choose Keep a copy. Untick Include names to leave out the title and part names.

Yes. On an iPhone or iPad, open the site in Safari, tap the Share button, then Add to Home Screen. On Android and on a computer, choose Install Clapchart in the menu or at the foot of any page when your browser offers it. After one visit online the maker, the starters and the printables open without a connection, and PDFs and videos work offline once one has been made.

Writing, playing, printing, the PNG colour chart and a landscape video of up to 30 seconds are free, with 2 parts and 3 saved boards. Premium adds full-length videos with no mark, portrait videos, PDF charts and cards, 4 parts and more saved boards.

Yes. The 20 rhythm patterns and 12 melodies were written for this site. Open one, change it as you like and use it in your lessons.

Clapchart is an independent tool for music teachers. Clapchart is not affiliated with any instrument maker, publisher or music exam board.