SongForm Format

Convert any music link into an SFF setlist

Import a Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube Music link and convert it into a canonical song list. Albums and playlists expand automatically into individual tracks, you can add songs manually, and download them as an SFF setlist ready to import into SongForm and add your own way of playing them.

Why SongForm Format?

Musicians need a way to document songs that bridges two worlds:

SFF exists because you shouldn't have to choose. It's a plain-text format designed for musicians, by musicians. It's human-readable (edit it in any text editor), machine-parseable (import and export reliably), and structured enough to preserve the information that matters: what you play, when you play it, and what you sing.

Think of it as "chord charts with metadata". The format guitarists have been scribbling on paper for decades, finally formalized.

Format Overview

SFF combines YAML frontmatter (for metadata) with structured Markdown (for musical content). Every song is a single plain-text file. No proprietary binaries. No lock-in.

[song metadata]
[sections with chords and lyrics]

That's it. Simple structure, powerful enough.

Specification

Frontmatter (YAML)

The file begins with a YAML block delimited by ---. This section holds all metadata and optional chord voicings.

Standard Fields

Chord Voicings (Optional)

If you want to preserve specific chord fingerings or shapes, include a chords dictionary:

chords:
  Am7: 0 0 2 0 1 0
  Gmaj7: 3 2 4 4 3 2
  Dsus4: x x 0 2 3 3

Format: ChordName: fret1 fret2 fret3 ... where x means "don't play" and numbers are fret positions (left-to-right, typically top to bottom on a standard guitar).

Body: Sections and Loops

After the closing ---, the song body contains a sequence of sections. Each section starts with a Markdown level-2 header (## SectionName).

An optional Markdown title (# Song Title) can appear at the top of the file. When present, it should match the title field in the frontmatter.

Section Types

Standard section names:

• Intro, Verse, Pre-Chorus, Chorus, Post-Chorus
• Bridge, Middle 8, Solo, Breakdown, Outro
• Offset: timing metadata in milliseconds (special section)

The same section type can appear multiple times; order defines the play sequence.

Loops: The Basic Unit

Inside each section, the atomic unit is a loop, a single chord progression. A loop has:

1. A duration line: N: Chord1 Chord2 Chord3 ...
2. An optional blank line
3. Optional lyrics on the following line(s)

Where N is the number of bars (measures) the loop occupies. The blank line between the chord line and lyrics is required so that raw markdown renders each as a distinct block. Loops within a section are separated by blank lines; parsers distinguish lyrics from new loops because chord lines always start with N:.

## Verse
4: Am7  G

First progression, four bars

4: Am7  G  F  C

Second progression, also four bars

Chord Notation

Chords are written in standard notation:

• Root: A through G, optionally with # or b
• Quality: m, dim, aug, sus2, sus4, add9, etc.
• Extension: 7, 9, 11, maj7, m7b5, etc.
• Bass note: /Note to indicate inversion

Examples: C, Dm, G#m7, Fsus4, Cmaj7/E

Complete Example

Below is a real song encoded in SFF. Wade in the Water of public domain. It illustrates all the key features: frontmatter with chord voicings, an Offset for audio sync, sections with varying loop lengths, lyrics, and a solo section.

---
sff_version: 1.0.0
title: Wade In the Water
artist: Public Domain
key: A minor
bpm: 113
time_signature: 4/4
tuning: guitar_standard
tags: [Singer/Songwriter]
draft: true
chords:
  Am: x 0 2 2 1 0
  G: 3 5 5 4 3 3
  F: 1 3 3 2 1 1
  E: 0 2 2 1 0 0
---

## Offset
440

## Intro
2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

## Chorus
2: Am  G  F  E

Wade in the water

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water children

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water oh

2: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Verse
2: Am  F  E

Who's that young girl dressed in red?

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water

2: Am  F  E

Must be the children that Moses led

2: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Chorus
2: Am  G  F  E

Wade in the water

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water children

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water oh

2: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Verse
2: Am  F  E

Who's that young girl dressed in white?

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water

2: Am  F  E

Must be the children of the Israelite

2: Am  E  Am

Oh God's gonna trouble the water

## Chorus
2: Am  G  F  E

Wade in the water

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water children

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water oh

3: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Solo
15: Am  G  F  E

## Verse
3: Am  F  E

Who's that young girl dressed in blue?

1: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water

2: Am  F  E

must be the children that are coming through

2: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Chorus
2: Am  G  F  E

Wade in the water

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water children

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water oh

2: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Verse
2: Am  F  E

You don't believe I've been redeemed

2: Am  G  F  E

Wade in the water

2: Am  G  F  E

Just seen the holy ghost looking for me

2: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Chorus
2: Am  G  F  E

Wade in the water

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water children

2: Am  G  F  E

wade in the water oh

3: Am  E  Am

God's gonna trouble the water

## Outro
2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

2: Am  G  F  E

Design Principles

Comparison: Where SFF Fits

SFF gives you all the data required to play precisely along with your audio, with the accessibility of a plain text file.

Getting Started with SFF

In SongForm, you can: