A full band, a horn section, or a string quartet is the hardest thing to transcribe, because several instruments are competing for the same space in one recording. Until recently the honest advice was to work one instrument at a time. That is still a great option, but it is no longer the only one: Songscription's Multi-Instrument mode transcribes every instrument in one pass and hands back a part for each one. This guide covers the three routes you have today and when each one is the right call.
Multi-instrument guides by goal
Find what you are trying to do, read the guide, and take the next step.
| Your goal | Guide to read | Next step |
|---|---|---|
| Understand what AI can and cannot do | Can AI transcribe multiple instruments at once? | Try Songscription free |
| Choose between one pass and one part at a time | One-pass vs per-instrument transcription | Upload a recording |
| Transcribe a full band recording | How to transcribe a full band recording | Try Songscription free |
| Work from stems or multi-track audio | Transcribe multi-track audio to sheet music | Create a free account |
Three ways to transcribe several instruments
1. Every part at once with Multi-Instrument. Choose Multi-Instrument when you upload, and Songscription transcribes the whole recording in one pass. You get a separate part for each instrument it hears, from drums and bass to strings, brass, and saxophones, shown as a multi-staff score and available as multitrack MIDI. Keyboard parts are split into left and right hands, so a piano or synth part reads like real keyboard music. This is the route for band leaders handing out parts, arrangers writing out a horn or string section, and producers rebuilding a song in their DAW.
2. One part, as clean as possible. Pick a single instrument, such as bass guitar or vocals, and the model listens only for that sound and ignores the rest of the mix. Because it is focused on one job, this is still the most accurate way to get a single part, and it is the right choice when one line matters more than the rest.
3. One playable version of the whole song. If you want to play the song yourself rather than document every instrument, a piano cover, a piano + vocals arrangement, or a lead sheet condenses the whole arrangement into one part that captures the melody and harmony.
What Multi-Instrument can transcribe
Multi-Instrument recognizes nine instrument families and writes each instrument it hears as its own track.
| Family | What it includes |
|---|---|
| Keys | Acoustic piano, electric piano, organ, and mallet percussion such as vibraphone, marimba, and glockenspiel |
| Guitar | Acoustic, clean electric, and distorted electric guitar |
| Bass | Upright bass and electric bass |
| Strings | Violin, viola, cello, contrabass, harp, timpani, string ensemble, and synth strings |
| Brass | Trumpet, trombone, tuba, French horn, and brass section |
| Reeds and winds | Soprano, alto, tenor, and baritone sax, oboe, English horn, bassoon, clarinet, flute, piccolo, and recorder |
| Synth | Synth lead and synth pad |
| Voice | Sung parts, as a voice track |
| Drums | Drum kit |
Keyboard tracks are split into left and right hands. A choir comes back as one voice track, not separate soprano, alto, tenor, and bass parts. The more instruments overlap in the same range, as in a dense orchestral recording, the more cleanup to expect. When one part matters most, single-instrument mode is still the cleanest way to get it.
One pass or one part at a time?
Multi-Instrument trades a little accuracy per part for getting everything from one upload. Single-instrument mode does the opposite. On a dense mix, some parts will need more cleanup than others. A practical pattern is to run Multi-Instrument for the whole song, then rerun the one part you care most about in single-instrument mode and swap it in. The full comparison is in one-pass vs per-instrument transcription, and the broader question of what AI can do with several instruments is covered in can AI transcribe multiple instruments at once.
Do you need stems?
Short answer: no. Both Multi-Instrument and single-instrument mode work from the full mix. Stems, the separated instrument tracks of a song, are an optional aid rather than a requirement. If a song already exists as separate tracks, transcribing each stem on its own gives the cleanest parts of all, because no model has to pull anything out of a mix. A concert or rehearsal tape caught on one room mic is the hardest version of this, and our roundup of the tools that cope best with live recordings covers what to expect and which optional cleanups actually help. What stems are and when they help is explained in what is stem separation, and the multi-track workflow end to end is in transcribing multi-track audio to sheet music.
From parts to a finished score
With Multi-Instrument, the parts arrive already assembled as one score. Review each part in the editor, fix anything the model missed, then download the score as PDF or MusicXML, or the multitrack MIDI for your DAW. Every instrument also gets its own linked part, so you can print a part for each player, and for the step-by-step from upload to finished parts, see how to get sheet music for every instrument in a song. If you built the parts one instrument at a time instead, you combine them into a multi-staff score yourself, which is walked through in how to build a full score from separate parts. To get each individual part right, the per-instrument techniques for piano, guitar, bass, horns, strings, voice, and drums live in the instrument transcription guide.
Related guides
- The approach: can AI transcribe multiple instruments and one-pass vs per-instrument.
- The workflow: transcribe a full band recording and transcribe multi-track audio.
- The pieces: stem separation and the instrument transcription guide.
- Do it step by step: how to separate stems before transcribing.
- Assemble the score: how to build a full score from separate parts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can AI transcribe a full band at once?
Yes. Songscription's Multi-Instrument mode transcribes a mixed recording in one pass and gives you a separate part for each instrument it hears, including keys, guitars, bass, strings, brass, woodwinds, saxophones, synths, voice, and drums, as sheet music and as multitrack MIDI. Expect to check each part and fix the odd note in the editor. If you only need one part and want it as clean as possible, pick that instrument on its own instead, and the model isolates it directly from the mix.
Should I use Multi-Instrument or transcribe one instrument at a time?
Use Multi-Instrument when you want every part of a song from one upload, for example to hand out parts or rebuild the song in your DAW. Pick a single instrument when one part matters most, such as a bass line you want to learn note for note, because the model can focus all its attention on that one sound. Many people do both, running Multi-Instrument for the whole picture and a single-instrument pass on the part they care about most.
How do I get a full score from a band recording?
Upload the recording, choose Multi-Instrument, and Songscription returns a multi-staff score with a part for each instrument it hears, plus multitrack MIDI. Keyboard parts come split into left and right hands. Review the parts in the editor, then download PDF, MusicXML, or MIDI. If you only need one playable version of the song instead of a full score, a piano cover or lead sheet is faster.
What are stems, and do I need them?
Stems are the separated instrument tracks of a song, the drums, the bass, the vocals, and so on, split out from the full mix. You do not need them. Multi-Instrument works from the full mix, and so does single-instrument mode, which isolates the part you pick directly. If a song already exists as separate tracks, transcribing each stem on its own is the cleanest route of all.
The fastest way to start is to upload a song you want every part of. Try Multi-Instrument on your recording.
