Audio and video transcription
Import MP3 or MIDI files, drop in audio, or paste a YouTube link. YouTube piano videos are downloaded and transcribed on the computer.
lumikey
lumikey is a Mac and Windows app that transcribes MP3s, MIDI files, audio, and YouTube links into an interactive piano roll for learning and practice. It supports MIDI keyboards and microphones, with tools to slow, loop, edit, and export arrangements.
Piano learning through interactive transcription
lumikey is a desktop piano-learning and audio-transcription app for Mac and Windows. It turns MP3 files, MIDI files, audio, and YouTube links into a piano roll that shows notes falling toward the keyboard, allowing players to follow a song while practicing.
The app is designed for interactive practice rather than transcription alone. Players can connect a MIDI keyboard or use a microphone with an acoustic or digital piano, isolate either hand, slow playback to a quarter of the original speed, loop difficult passages, adjust the generated notes, and export a corrected arrangement as MIDI. More than 40 classics are included to provide starting material without importing a song.
Features
Visual piano-roll playback
View incoming notes in a falling-note piano-roll interface and follow the notes as they reach the keyboard.
MIDI and microphone input
Connect a MIDI keyboard over USB or Bluetooth, or use a microphone with an acoustic or digital piano so lumikey can detect played notes and chords.
Guided practice controls
Practice with left-hand-only, right-hand-only, or both-hand waiting modes. Playback can be slowed to one-quarter speed and difficult passages can be looped.
Hand and fingering guidance
Notes are color-coded by hand, and finger badges suggest fingering. You can select a different finger and lumikey remembers the choice.
Transcript editing and MIDI export
Move or stretch notes, reassign them to the other hand, align chords, remove unwanted sounds, and export the adjusted transcription as a MIDI file.
Use cases
Learn a song from online video or audio
Paste a link to a piano video or add an audio file to generate a playable piano-roll arrangement instead of working out every note manually.
Build coordination at a manageable pace
Use wait modes to keep one hand or both hands paused until the required notes are played, then reduce speed and repeat the hardest bars.
Practice with different piano setups
Connect a keyboard by USB or Bluetooth for direct note detection, or place a microphone with an acoustic or digital piano when a MIDI connection is not being used.
Clean up an imperfect transcription
Inspect a generated arrangement, remove noise, correct note lengths and hand assignments, and align chords before saving the result as a MIDI file.
Start with built-in repertoire
Use the included selection of more than 40 classics when you want material to practice without first finding and importing a separate recording.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Supports several starting points, including MP3, MIDI, audio, YouTube links, and a library of more than 40 classics.
- Offers practical practice controls such as hand isolation, quarter-speed playback, looping, and editable note transcription.
- Accepts input from both MIDI keyboards and microphones, including acoustic and digital pianos.
- Processes transcriptions on the computer, and the site states that nothing leaves the machine.
- Exports edited transcriptions as MIDI files.
Cons
- The pricing page does not provide licensing or price information in the available source.
- The mobile companion is described as coming soon, so the documented workflow currently centers on the Mac and Windows desktop app.
- The source does not specify system requirements, account requirements, or detailed transcription limitations.
FAQ
What can I use as input?
lumikey accepts MP3 and MIDI files, YouTube links, and audio dropped into the app. It transcribes the material on the computer into a piano roll.
Can I use a MIDI keyboard or microphone?
Yes. You can connect a MIDI keyboard over USB or Bluetooth. The app can also listen through a microphone to an acoustic or digital piano.
How does lumikey support practice?
You can slow playback to one-quarter speed, loop difficult sections, and wait for the left hand, right hand, or both hands before continuing.
Can I edit and export a transcription?
The transcript can be edited by moving or stretching notes, changing a note's hand, aligning chords, and deleting unwanted sounds. Corrected arrangements can be exported as MIDI files.
Which devices does lumikey support?
The desktop app is available for Mac and Windows. A companion for iPhone, iPad, and Android is described as coming soon; it will sync transcribed material over Wi-Fi after pairing by scanning a code.
Quick Facts
- Category
- Piano learning and audio transcription
- Desktop platforms
- Mac and Windows
- Input formats
- MP3, MIDI, audio, and YouTube links
- Practice input
- MIDI keyboard over USB or Bluetooth, or microphone
- Output
- Editable piano roll and MIDI export
- Processing
- Runs on the computer; site states that nothing leaves the machine
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