ChordPro Usage Guide

A comprehensive guide to using ChordPro for creating professional lead sheets from your worship and music files.

What is ChordPro?

ChordPro is a text-based format and tool for creating professional-looking sheet music with lyrics and chords. It converts simple text files into beautiful PDFs that musicians can use.

Installation

ChordPro is installed at: /Applications/ChordPro.app

The command-line tool is available in your terminal as chordpro (restart terminal if needed).

ChordPro File Format

ChordPro files use the .cho or .chopro extension and contain:

• Directives in curly braces {directive: value}
• Chords in square brackets [Am]
• Lyrics as plain text

Basic Example

{title: Amazing Grace}
{artist: John Newton}
{key: G}
 
[G]Amazing [G7]grace how [C]sweet the [G]sound
That saved a wretch like [D]me
I [G]once was [G7]lost but [C]now I'm [G]found
Was blind but [D]now I [G]see

Common Directives

Song Metadata

• {title: Song Name} - Song title (appears at top)
• {subtitle: Text} - Subtitle or additional info
• {artist: Name} - Artist or composer
• {composer: Name} - Composer name
• {key: C} - Musical key
• {tempo: 120} - Tempo in BPM
• {time: 4/4} - Time signature
• {capo: 2} - Capo position

Song Structure

• {start_of_chorus} or {soc} - Begin chorus section
• {end_of_chorus} or {eoc} - End chorus section
• {start_of_verse} or {sov} - Begin verse section
• {end_of_verse} or {eov} - End verse section
• {start_of_bridge} or {sob} - Begin bridge section
• {end_of_bridge} or {eob} - End bridge section
• {chorus} - Repeat the chorus
• {comment: Text} or {c: Text} - Add a comment/instruction

Formatting

• {new_page} - Start a new page
• {column_break} - Break to new column
• {textsize: 12} - Set text size
• {chordsize: 10} - Set chord size

Command Line Usage

Basic Conversion

Convert a ChordPro file to PDF:

chordpro song.cho -o song.pdf

Batch Conversion

Convert all .cho files in a directory:

for file in *.cho; do
    chordpro "$file" -o "${file%.cho}.pdf"
done

Common Options

• -o filename.pdf - Specify output file
• --config=file.json - Use custom configuration
• --lyrics-only - Generate lyrics-only version (no chords)
• --toc - Generate table of contents
• --transpose=N - Transpose by N semitones (e.g., —transpose=2)
• --key=C - Transpose to specific key
• --capo=N - Add capo at fret N

Examples

Transpose a song up 2 semitones:

chordpro song.cho -o song-transposed.pdf --transpose=2

Create a lyrics-only version:

chordpro song.cho -o lyrics.pdf --lyrics-only

Transpose to key of D:

chordpro song.cho -o song-D.pdf --key=D

Working with Obsidian

Creating ChordPro Files in Obsidian

You can write ChordPro content directly in markdown using code blocks:

```chordpro
{title: My Song}
{key: C}
 
[C]This is a [F]simple [G]song
[C]Easy to [F]sing a[G]long
```

Converting from Markdown

To convert markdown files with chord notation:

1. Extract the chord notation from code blocks
2. Add ChordPro directives for metadata
3. Save with .cho extension
4. Process with chordpro command

Organizing Your Songs

Recommended folder structure:

songs/
├── chordpro/          # .cho source files
├── pdf/               # Generated PDF files
└── setlists/          # Song collections

Advanced Features

Chord Diagrams

Add chord diagrams for guitar:

{define: Am base-fret 1 frets x 0 2 2 1 0}

Inline Formatting

• **bold text** - Bold text
• *italic text* - Italic text
• _underline_ - Underlined text

Conditional Content

Show content only in certain versions:

{if: lyrics}
This only appears in lyrics-only version
{endif}

Tab Notation

Include guitar tabs:

{start_of_tab}
e|--0--1--3--|
B|--1--1--0--|
G|--0--2--0--|
D|--2--3--0--|
A|--3--3--2--|
E|--x--x--3--|
{end_of_tab}

Configuration

ChordPro can be customized with JSON configuration files. Create a config.json:

{
  "settings": {
    "chordcolor": "blue",
    "chordsize": 10,
    "textsize": 12
  },
  "pdf": {
    "fontsize": 12,
    "papersize": "letter"
  }
}

Use with:

chordpro song.cho -o song.pdf --config=config.json

GUI Application

For interactive editing:

1. Open /Applications/ChordPro.app
2. Create or open a .cho file
3. Edit in the left pane
4. Preview updates in real-time on the right
5. Export to PDF when ready

Tips and Best Practices

1. Start with metadata - Always include title, artist, and key
2. Use sections - Mark verses, choruses, and bridges clearly
3. Add comments - Use {c: } for performance notes
4. Consistent spacing - Keep chord placement consistent
5. Test transposition - Verify songs work in different keys
6. Version control - Keep .cho files in git for history
7. Name conventions - Use clear file names: song-title-key.cho

Resources

• Official Website: https://chordpro.org
• Documentation: https://chordpro.org/chordpro/chordpro-reference-implementation/
• User Forum: https://groups.io/g/ChordPro
• Full Directive Reference: https://chordpro.org/chordpro/directives/

Quick Reference Card

Task	Command
Create PDF	chordpro song.cho -o song.pdf
Transpose up 2	chordpro song.cho -o out.pdf --transpose=2
Lyrics only	chordpro song.cho -o out.pdf --lyrics-only
To key of D	chordpro song.cho -o out.pdf --key=D
Add capo	chordpro song.cho -o out.pdf --capo=2
Get help	chordpro --help
Version info	chordpro --version

Your Songs Location

Songs folder: /Users/keithperez/Library/Mobile Documents/iCloud~md~obsidian/Documents/keithdperez/songs/

ChordPro exports: ~/Desktop/chordpro-exports/

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Guide created: December 17, 2025 ChordPro Version: 6.090.0