Checking, formatting, and fixing mistakes

Read a chapter in the terminal

scorescript docs --list
scorescript docs first-score
scorescript docs connectors

The docs command prints one chapter as Markdown, without needing a network connection. It is included in builds containing this wiki; an older installed CLI may need updating. MCP readers can list the same chapters under scorescript://docs/, starting with scorescript://docs/index.

Check the actual file

scorescript check piece.scorescript
scorescript format piece.scorescript
scorescript format piece.scorescript --write
scorescript render piece.scorescript -o piece.svg
scorescript pdf piece.scorescript -o piece.pdf
scorescript midi piece.scorescript -o piece.mid

Without --write, formatting reports canonical source without replacing the file. Keep a saved revision before a broad edit. After formatting, check again and inspect the rendered music. MIDI output is useful for checking sounding duration and instrumentation but cannot certify printed spelling or layout.

Read diagnostic severity

An error means the requested source was not fully understood or is inconsistent. A warning can describe unfinished or ambiguous notation. Information may explain a derived rest or other normal completion. Read the code, location, and message together; do not just look for a green preview, since the engine can draw the portions it did understand.

Common mistakes

Symptom	Check
A note is in the wrong octave	The previous pitch, apostrophe/comma, and first-note octave anchor
A rhythm exceeds the bar	Sticky duration, dotted values, tuplet ratio, and current meter
Eight bars of rest instead of an eighth rest	`r8` versus `8r`
Several short slurs instead of one long slur	Mark only the opening and closing endpoint
A chord becomes a label	Preserve its duration and use clear bracketed pitch members
Text lands on the other side	Before the node is above; after is below for text/dynamics
Extra silent measures	Addressed range gaps and misplaced physical row breaks
A dynamic prints but does not sound as expected	Playback interpretation and the selected sound source

What formatting does

It normalizes accepted duration spellings, groups measures compactly, anchors the first sounding pitch of each authored section and voice, and condenses equivalent timeline points into maps where useful. It preserves the selected sanctioned arrangement and the order of chord members. Formatting is not a substitute for choosing the right musical notes.

Plain formatting is not automatic musical consolidation. The normalization menu separately controls orientation, maps, duration spelling, whitespace density, shared readers, and named reuse.

Import and export

The native reader can import MusicXML and the exporter can produce MusicXML for interchange. Check diagnostics and the full piece after a conversion; another notation program can carry constructs that this engine cannot yet represent. A successfully opened first page does not prove every part or movement survived.

scorescript import source.musicxml -o piece.scorescript
scorescript check piece.scorescript
scorescript musicxml piece.scorescript -o roundtrip.musicxml

Installation, editor connections, and host APIs are covered in integration. Website display is covered in embedding.

Unsupported or limited notation

Do not assume that arbitrary drum-kit pitch names, multi-staff rh:/lh: instruments, cue-note styling, arpeggio roll marks, or alternating two-note tremolo have a supported compact spelling. Figured bass and custom lines have the limits described in their chapters. Named bracket lines and navigation can have rendering or playback limitations. Treat a diagnostic or render report as part of the result, and verify the delivered pages and audio for the features you use.

For AI-assisted writing, use this same wiki and the actual compile/format tools. Supply complete source and address the exact file, movement, part, and measures being edited. Never substitute a similar instrument or score revision because its filename looks close.