Music books

Write music in a book and play it on any jukebox. Notes, chords, tempo, 22 instruments, loud and soft passages, and several parts playing at once: enough to write a real song.

1. 1
   Get a book and quill

   Craft one from a book, an ink sac and a feather. You can also use a signed book.

2. 2
   Write the music

   Type notes into the pages, separated by spaces, e.g. C D E F G1. The rest of this page explains everything you can write. Words that aren't music are skipped, so you can add a title or lyrics between the notes.

3. 3
   Punch a jukebox with the book

   Hold the book and left-click (punch) a jukebox. The music plays from the jukebox for everyone nearby, and the action bar shows how long the piece is.

4. 4
   Stop it

   Sneak and punch the jukebox with a book. Breaking the jukebox stops it too. Punching it again with a book starts that book from the beginning.

Good to know

• VolumeMusic books use Minecraft's Jukebox/Note Blocks volume slider, like music discs.
• WhereAny jukebox you're allowed to use: in the wilderness, and in towns where you can switch things (your own town, or one that trusts you).
• LengthUp to 10 minutes per book. Several jukeboxes can play at once.
• Selling musicSigned books can be copyrighted so nobody else can copy them: see Copyright at the bottom.

Your first song

Copy this into a book and punch a jukebox. It's Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, one note per beat, with each beat lasting 300 milliseconds.

d300
C C G1 G1 A1 A1 G1 -
F F E E D D C -
G1 G1 F F E E D -
G1 G1 F F E E D -
C C G1 G1 A1 A1 G1 -
F F E E D D C -

d300 sets the speed, each letter is a note, G1 and A1 are a G and an A one octave up, and each - is a beat of silence. The rest of this page explains each of those, and more.

Notes

There are seven note letters, A B C D E F G, always written in capitals. Add # for sharp or b for flat: F#, Bb, C#, Ab.

• One after anotherNotes separated by spaces play one after another, one beat each. C D E plays C, then D, then E.
• At the same time (chords)Notes written together with no space play at the same moment. CEG is a C major chord, GBD is G major, A1C1E1 is A minor an octave up. You can mix single notes and chords freely: C CEG D DF#A.
• Sharps and flats# raises a note by a semitone, b (small b) lowers it. A# and Bb are the same note.

Octaves and the note ladder

Minecraft's note blocks cover two octaves, and they start on F#, not on C. So each octave runs from F# up to F. That's the one thing that catches everyone out: inside an octave, G is lower than C.

So to climb a scale from C, go up through octave 0 and step into octave 1 when you pass F:

C D E F G1 A1 B1 C1

Writing C D E F G would drop down to the low G at the end.

Changing the default octave

• Per noteAdd the octave number right after the note (and after any # or b): A1, C#1, Bb1. Notes with no number use the default octave.
• For everything aftero1 makes octave 1 the default for the notes that follow, until o0 switches back. o1 C D E o0 C plays C1 D1 E1, then the low C.

Tempo and rests

Every note (or chord) takes one beat, then the next one plays. A beat is 50 milliseconds unless you change it, which is very fast, so almost every song starts by setting the speed.

You can change the speed in the middle of a piece: everything after d150 plays at the new speed.

b100
C E G1 C1 - - G1 E C - - -
d150 C D E F G1 A1 B1 C1

Short notes

Symbols written straight after a note (no space) make the wait after that note shorter, so the next note comes sooner. They're how you write quick runs and uneven rhythms without changing the tempo.

They combine with sharps, octaves and chords: F#1\, CEG*. For a long note, add rests after it instead: C - - - holds for four beats.

d400
C\ C\ G1 G1 A1* A1* A1* G1 -

Instruments

Write i and a number to switch instrument. It stays until you switch again. The default is the piano (i0).

Drums (i1, i2, i3) still take a note, which changes how high they sound: i1 C for a deep kick, i2 F#1 for a sharp snare.

Loud and soft

Dynamic markings set how loud the notes after them are. Louder notes also carry further from the jukebox.

To make a single note stand out without changing the marking, put an accent after it: > plays it one level louder, ^ (marcato) two levels louder.

p A A A B> C^ D D D
mp A A A f B B B

In the first line, A A A and D D D are quiet, B is a step louder and C two steps louder. In the second, A A A is moderately quiet and B B B loud.

Several parts at once: labels

Chords play notes at the same moment, but for a real accompaniment (a bass line under a melody, or drums under a guitar) you need parts that move on their own. That's what labels are for.

How labels work

• Define oneWrite a name followed by a colon, the notes, then a colon followed by the same name: bass: i4 C - G - :bass. Names can use letters, numbers and underscores.
• It plays straight awayThe closing :bass both ends the label and starts playing it. Whatever comes after it plays at the same time as the label.
• Play it againWrite :bass again anywhere later to replay the same part from that point.
• Its own settingsInstrument, octave, speed and loudness changes inside a label only affect the label. The main part keeps its own.
• Several at onceClose several labels one after another and they all start together, along with whatever follows them.

Three instruments playing together, starting at the same moment:

d300
guitar: i7 C E G1 E :guitar
bass: i4 C - G - :bass
drums: i1 C i3 C1 i1 C i3 C1 :drums
i0 C1 B1 A1 G1

Here the guitar, bass and drums parts all start together with the piano melody on the last line. To repeat the backing for a second line of melody, play the labels again:

:guitar :bass :drums
E1 D1 C1 D1

A full example

The opening of Beethoven's Ode to Joy, with a bass line underneath. Paste it across a couple of pages if it doesn't fit on one; pages simply follow on from each other.

Ode to Joy
d280 mf
bass: i4 C - - - G - - - C - - - G - - - :bass
E E F G1 G1 F E D C C D E E - D D -
:bass
E E F G1 G1 F E D C C D E D - C C -

The title on the first line is ignored because it isn't music. bass starts under the first line of melody, and :bass replays it under the second.

Tips and common mistakes

• My melody jumps downNotes above F need octave 1: G1, A1, B1. Remember the ladder starts on F#, so plain G is the low G.
• It plays all at oncePut spaces between notes. CDE is one chord; C D E is three notes.
• It's far too fastThe default beat is 50 ms. Start the book with d250 or b120.
• Nothing playsNotes must be capital letters, and only the symbols on this page count as music. Check for a missing space or a lowercase note.
• A note is missingAnything above F#2 is out of range and is skipped.
• PagesAll pages are read in order as one long piece, so a phrase can carry on over a page break.
• CommentsAny word that isn't music is ignored. Write the title, a composer credit or lyrics between the notes. Avoid all-capital words like CAGE, which are read as notes.

Copyright: stop others copying your music

Signed books can be copied in a crafting table, so anyone with your book could make their own copies to sell. Copyright stops that. It's the same /mapart command used for map art.

• Sign it firstOnly signed books can be copyrighted. Sign the book and quill (which turns it into a written book) once the music is finished, because signed books can't be edited.
• Lock itHold the signed book and use /mapart lock (75 gold). From then on only you can copy it, in a crafting table or a crafter.
• Copies stay protectedCopies you make for buyers keep the lock, so your customers can play them but can't copy them again.
• Unlock it/mapart unlock (30 gold), owner only.