Theory & Analysis

Chord detection, scale tools, and score analysis.

Chord chart

The Chords tab in the Tools panel shows a grid of detected chord names - one per bar - across the whole score. Riffwork uses a Krumhansl-style pitch-class frequency algorithm to detect the most likely chord for each bar.

• Click any cell to jump to that bar
• Shift+click two cells to set them as the A–B loop range
• The active bar highlights as playback moves through the chart
• Toggle ℝn to switch between chord names and Roman numeral analysis

Capo is taken into account - the displayed chord name reflects the sounding pitch, not the fretted position.

Roman numeral analysis

When Roman numeral mode is on in the chord chart, each chord is shown relative to the detected key (I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, vii°). Major chords use uppercase, minor use lowercase.

Key detection

Riffwork automatically detects the most likely key of the loaded score using a Krumhansl-Schmuckler key-finding algorithm. The detected key appears in the score stats bar and is used as the default root for all generators and scale tools.

You can override the key manually in the generator panel's Root + Quality controls.

Scale View

The Scale tab in the Tools panel shows a native fretboard using the score's actual string tuning. Dots show scale degrees in the selected mode.

• 14 scale/mode options: Major, Natural Minor, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Locrian, Phrygian Dominant, Hungarian Minor, Harmonic Minor, Blues, Pentatonic Major/Minor, Power (5th)
• Root and mode selectors at the top
• Click any dot to insert that note at the cursor position (in note-edit mode)
• Chord dots derived from the mode's natural triad (degrees 1, 3, 5)

Capo Finder

Click Capo? in the toolbar to open the Capo Finder. Given the detected key, it suggests capo positions (0–7) that put the song into guitar-friendly open-chord shapes. Click Apply to set the capo on the main staff.

Song structure view

The Structure tab in the Tools panel shows a color-block grid where each block represents one bar. Bars with similar harmonic fingerprints are shown in matching colors, revealing the song's repeating sections. A legend shows repeat groups. Click any block to jump to that bar.

Chord voicing finder

With a note selected, the chord info chip in the note editor shows the detected chord name. Click Voicings (or use the command palette) to open a panel of clickable fretboard diagrams showing different voicings for that chord. Click a voicing to stamp it at the cursor position.

Score search

Press Ctrl+F to search the score by chord name or section label text. Results highlight in the chord chart and the score jumps to the first match.

Lyrics panel

The Lyrics tab in the Tools panel extracts all beat lyrics from the active track and displays them grouped by section marker as readable paragraphs. Click any word to jump to its bar. Add lyrics via the Annotate panel (Aa).

Piano roll

The Piano Roll tab in the Tools panel shows a canvas view of pitch (Y axis) vs beat position (X axis) for all active tracks. Rows are colored by string. Bar separator lines, bar numbers, and pitch labels on the left. Orange highlight on the cursor beat. Click to jump the score cursor to that beat.