PentivoWrite music the way you hear it.
Pentivo is music notation for Mac, iPad and iPhone. Write with the keyboard, Apple Pencil or by playing, photograph a printed score and edit it, and hear every note as it lands.
Seven ways to put a note on the page.
Use whichever is closest to hand. They all write into the same score, and every note sounds as it lands.
Keyboard
Letters for pitch, numbers for values, the way arrangers have typed music for decades.
A–G 3–6
Mouse and trackpad
Click where the note goes. A ghost note shows the pitch before you commit.
Touch and Apple Pencil
Tap, or write with the Pencil. On iPad, hovering shows the note before it lands.
MIDI keyboard PRO
Plug in and play. Notes and chords arrive with the right values.
On-screen piano PRO
Touch the keys to write melodies and chords.
Your voice PRO
Say “C quarter, D eighth” and the notes appear.
Playing or singing PRO
Sing a line or play it on any instrument. Pentivo listens and writes it.
Photograph a score. Edit it a moment later.
Point the camera at a printed page, or open a PDF. Pentivo turns it into real notes you can change, transpose and play: ties, triplets, chord symbols, lyrics, dynamics, rehearsal marks and two voices on one staff.
- Photos and scans
- MusicXML
- MuseScore
- MIDI
- Pentivo
Coming from Finale or Sibelius? Export MusicXML there and open it here. If you open one of their files directly, Pentivo shows you how. Free: five conversions a month, up to three pages each. Pro: no limits.
One photo of the orchestra. Your part, on its own page.
Photograph the full score of a quartet, a band or an orchestra. Pentivo makes it editable, then gives each player their own part, with multi-bar rests, ready to print or send.
Play it, sing it, or say it.PRO
Pentivo listens through the microphone and writes what it hears, on the device itself.
- MelodySing or play one line; it lands on the staff in time.
- NotesSeveral notes at once, from a piano or a guitar.
- Chord symbolsStrum or comp, and the chord names appear above the bars.
- DictationSay the notes and their values in your own language.
From a melody to the whole band.PRO
Voice a chord four ways, spread it across instruments, re-orchestrate a passage, or start from a template made for the music you play. Chord symbols in American (Gm7) or Latin (Sol m7) names, and tablature for guitar and cuatro.
- Lead sheet
- Venezuelan cuatro
- Voice and piano
- Band of four
- Llanero ensemble
- Salsa orchestra
- Big band
- String quartet
The same score, for the whole band.
Invite to edit PRO
Share through iCloud with Messages, Mail or AirDrop. Everyone's changes are joined bar by bar.
Edit together, live PRO
On a FaceTime call, see where each person is working, each in their own colour.
Comments on bars
Pin a note to a bar, reply, and mark it resolved.
Concert mode
Full-screen pages that turn with a Bluetooth pedal.
Write on the score PRO
Fingerings, breaths and reminders by hand, with Apple Pencil, a finger or the mouse.
Handwritten look
A jazz-chart style that reads like a copyist's pen.
Send it the way they need it.
A PDF for the band, a separate PDF for each player, MusicXML for another program, MIDI for a studio, audio to listen anywhere. Add a watermark and your copyright before it leaves.
- PDF per part
- PNG
- JPG
- SVG
- Web page
- MusicXML
- MIDI
- M4A
- WAV
PDF and Pentivo files are free. Every other format comes with Pro.
Four ways to lay out the tools.
Pick the arrangement your hands already know, and change it whenever you like.
Ribbon
Every command in tabs along the top, each with its shortcut beneath.
Floating windows
Palettes you drag anywhere around the page.
Tool palette
One column of tools beside the score.
Side palettes
Panels docked left and right, the music in the middle.
Mac, iPad and iPhone. One purchase.
Your scores sync through your own iCloud. Shortcuts and Siri can describe, export, transpose and convert scores for you.
Mac
The full workstation: keyboard, trackpad, MIDI and every panel.
iPad
The full editor, with touch and Apple Pencil.
iPhone
Read, listen, scan and make quick edits; concert mode on stage.
Free for a simple song. One payment for everything else.
Free
- Up to four staves: melody, chords, lyrics and a small band
- Keyboard, mouse, touch and Apple Pencil
- Hear every note and play the whole score
- Open MusicXML, MuseScore, MIDI and PDF
- Five photo or PDF conversions a month
- Comments, and scores you're invited to edit
- Export PDF
Pentivo Pro
- Unlimited instruments: orchestra, big band, salsa, llanero
- Write by listening: melody, notes, chords, dictation
- MIDI keyboard and on-screen piano
- Unlimited photo and PDF conversions
- Parts, voicings, explode and re-orchestrate, tablature
- Every export: images, SVG, web, MusicXML, MIDI, audio
- Invite others to edit, and edit together live
- Watermark, copyright, and writing by hand on the score
- Every future Pro tool, at no extra cost
One payment, no subscription. Unlocks Mac, iPad and iPhone with your Apple Account. Family Sharing included, and gift codes can be redeemed in the app. Prices vary by country.
Your music stays yours.
No account, no ads, no tracking. Your scores live on your device and in your own iCloud. Reading photos and listening happen on the device, and nothing is sent to us.
Before you ask.
Is Pentivo a subscription?
No. Writing a simple song is free, for good. Pro is a single payment that unlocks everything on your Mac, iPad and iPhone.
Does it open files from other notation programs?
MusicXML, MuseScore (.mscz and .mscx), MIDI and PDF open directly. From Finale or Sibelius, export MusicXML first; Pentivo explains how if you open one of their files.
How well does a photo become a score?
With a printed page in good light, nearly every note comes through. Pentivo marks anything it isn't sure of so you can check it before you play.
Do I need an account?
No. There's nothing to sign up for. Pentivo uses the Apple Account and iCloud you already have.
Which devices does it run on?
Mac with macOS 27, iPad with iPadOS 27 and iPhone with iOS 27 or later.
Can I give Pro as a gift?
Yes. Gift codes are redeemed inside the app, from Settings.
Is the melody I write on this page saved?
Only in this browser, so it's here when you come back. Download the MIDI to keep it, or open it in Pentivo.