App: Songworks
Developer: Ars Nova Software, LLC
Genres: Music, Productivity

Songworks 4 allows easy entry of melodies, chord symbols, and lyrics - for anything from a simple song to a chorale or instrumental arrangement. It can even stimulate your musical imagination by suggesting tune and harmony ideas that are always new. Supports both standard notation and alternatives such as Shape Notes (both 5 and 7- shape systems, with shapes automatically chosen), stemless, stick, and x-head  notation, all at any scaling, from tiny notes to big ones. In version 4 you can now edit music either in page or panorama view, and control over spacing between staff systems can vary as needed. Lyric text can be typed as a complete line of poetry - type a space or hyphen between syllables and the Songworks will line the syllables up with notes as needed. Chord symbols in Songworks are audible, playing with various accompaniment patterns to give you a better idea of how the chords work with a melody. You can quickly transpose any piece to a different key, or use various composition tools to develop melody (inversion, retrograde, etc.). In addition to tools for writing your own music you have access to the Ars Nova online music library, with many sample files for example or play-along - including Bach Chorales, viol and recorder compositions by Dowland, Byrd, Jenkins and others (including an option to sound at A415 instead of A440), traditional songs, fiddle tunes with chords, Handel's entire Messiah, harmonized Wohlfahrt etudes for violin or viola practice, and more.

Release notes:
Version 4.056 fixes the ability to select text items when in "panorama" (left-right) view. and helps to avoid "stuck notes" in playback of pieces involving complex repeats, first/second endings, etc. Version 4.055 included a number of other improvements to the editing tools, particularly with selecting items and setting insertion points when in page view.