Frequently asked questions
Start with what the Arrangement Map shows and how to read it, then find short answers about the catalog, ratings, voting, favorites, and the player. Each answer is linkable.
What is the Arrangement Map?
The Arrangement Map is a bird's-eye view of a MIDI arrangement. It shows when each instrument track is active from the beginning of the song to the end. MIDI contains performance instructions rather than recorded audio, so the map can turn those note events into a visual timeline.
Read the map from left to right as the song timeline. The labeled bar marks sections such as the intro, verses, choruses, and bridge. Each row is one track or instrument; a taller, denser silhouette means more notes start during that slice, while a gap means that part is silent or resting. Colors group tracks into instrument families such as guitars, bass, keys, vocals, and drums.
It shows the arrangement's structure, not notation: it does not show pitch or loudness. It helps you spot entrances, dropouts, and build-ups, and compare different versions of a song before you press play.
What is the rating?
The rating is a single at-a-glance score from 0 to 100%, shown next to every version as a 🔥 flame badge. It blends two things we already know about an arrangement — its technical quality (how complete and well-structured the arrangement is) and its popularity — and then nudges that up or down based on community votes.
A version with no votes yet still shows a sensible rating from quality and popularity alone; as people vote, their thumbs up/down move the number toward what the community thinks. A single vote won't swing it wildly — the more votes a version gathers, the more they count. It's meant as a quick "is this a good version?" signal when a song has many versions.
How do thumbs up / down votes work?
Open a version in the player, sign in, and use the 👍 / 👎 buttons around the rating. You can change your mind at any time — click the other arrow to flip your vote, or click the same arrow again to remove it. Your vote feeds into that version's rating.
We deliberately show only the abstract rating, not raw vote tallies — so the number reflects the crowd without turning into a popularity contest.
What do the flame colours mean?
Just intensity. A muted flame is a lower rating; a bright, filled, glowing flame is a top-rated version. It's a quick visual cue — the percentage is always shown next to it.
What are favorites?
Signed-in users can save songs and individual versions with the ♥ button. Everything you save shows up on your Favorites page so you can get back to it quickly.
Do I need an account?
Browsing songs, playing versions, and downloading MIDI files work without an account. You only need to sign in to vote, save favorites, contribute a version, or save your practice progress. Sign-in is passwordless — we email you a link.
What does “Fit to keyboard” do in practice mode?
Fit to keyboard moves the part you're practicing into the range of your connected MIDI keyboard. If a song reaches notes your keyboard physically doesn't have (for example a guitar part that dips below a 61-key keyboard's lowest key), Fit shifts that part by whole octaves so every note lands on a key you can actually reach.
The shift is applied everywhere at once — the falling notes in the piano roll, the highlighted on-screen keys, the lights on a connected lighted keyboard, and the sound — so what you see, play, and hear all line up. Only the part you're practicing moves; the backing tracks stay at their original pitch. It turns on automatically when a song is wider than your keyboard, and you can toggle it off any time to see the song at its original octave.
How can I connect a MIDI controller on iPhone or iPad?
Safari and other iOS web browsers do not expose the browser MIDI API that the web player and practice mode need to connect a MIDI controller. The on-screen keys still work for practice.
A separate Songparts iOS app with MIDI-controller support will be published soon.
Want the app sooner? Leave feedback and let us know.
What can the player do?
Every version opens in an in-browser player with a piano-roll and guitar-tab view, per-track mute/solo, tempo control, and a practice mode that waits for or follows your playing (computer keyboard or a connected MIDI keyboard). For more on the tab view, see the Guitar Tab View FAQ.
Where do the song versions come from?
The catalog is community-contributed and post-moderated. Song facts like key, tempo and tuning are presented as plain catalog data. Each downloadable version is backed by a MIDI file. If a version infringes your copyright, use the Report button in its player or see our copyright policy — valid notices are actioned promptly.
Is Songparts free?
Yes. Browsing, the player, practice mode, voting and favorites are all free.