Quick start

By the end of this page you will have one score in My Library, with a confirmed title and composer, open in the reader — turning pages and making your first pencil mark. Total time is a few minutes.

You need one score file reachable from the Files app (on the iPad, in iCloud Drive, or in any storage provider that appears in Files). Page Turner imports:

• PDF
• MusicXML (.musicxml, .mxl, .xml), MEI, and MIDI
• Photos or images of score pages
• .sheetturner files shared from another Page Turner library

No sign-in is required for any step on this page.

Note PDFs and images are imported entirely on the device. MusicXML, MEI, and MIDI files are sent to the Page Turner converter to be engraved, so importing those formats needs an internet connection.

Import one score

Page Turner opens on the library, with the My Library tab selected. The other tabs — Catalog, Calibrated, All — browse the shared catalog and combined views; you can ignore them for now.

1. In My Library, tap the + button at the top right of the library.
2. Choose Import files…. The system Files picker opens immediately.
3. Select one file and confirm. Import starts as soon as the picker closes.
4. Wait for the import to finish. Page Turner works from a copy; the original file is not moved or modified.
5. The piece's Properties opens on its own — in the library side panel on an iPad, as a full sheet on an iPhone. There is no confirmation step: the detected title and composer are already applied.
6. Check Title and Composer — the detection comes from the filename or, when the piece is recognized, from a catalog match, and either source can be wrong. Type corrections directly with the keyboard; Key and the form field are optional. Edits are kept as you type; tap Save or Done to close the panel.

The score now appears in My Library in the All Scores list — a flat list, which is the default view.

Note If the file looks like a piece already in your library, a review sheet appears instead of Properties. It offers Add as version of “…” (which files the import under the existing piece) and Keep as new piece (which imports it as a separate entry). Choose Keep as new piece if it is genuinely a different work with a similar name.

Note Scores are not grouped by composer automatically. To browse by composer, select the Composers chip in the row above the list. The same row offers Recents, Form, Period, Instrument, and Collections.

Note That review sheet also carries a Convert to MusicXML for follow tracking toggle. It is off by default, uses cloud analysis, and the choice is not remembered between imports. You can skip it now and convert later from the reader — see the Limit at the end of this page.

Note On iPads that support document scanning, the same + menu also shows Scan a score for paper scores; on other devices the entry does not appear at all. Scanning asks for camera access the first time — see Permissions.

Open the score and turn pages

1. Tap the score in My Library. It opens in the reader.
2. To go forward, tap near the right edge of the page. To go back, tap near the left edge. Swiping left or right also turns pages.
3. On an iPad in landscape, PDFs display as a two-page spread when a facing page exists; page turns advance by the whole spread.

Note A Bluetooth page-turn pedal (AirTurn, PageFlip, Donner, and similar) pairs with the iPad as a Bluetooth keyboard in the system Settings app. Once paired, it turns pages in Page Turner with no extra setup.

Note The exact controls shown in the reader depend on whether the item is a PDF or a Smart Score. See PDF and Smart Score differences.

Make your first annotation

1. In the reader bar, tap the pencil button. The Apple Pencil tool palette appears.
2. Pick a pen from the palette and write directly on the page. The palette also holds the marker, the eraser, and colour choices.
3. Tap the curved back arrow in the annotation toolbar to remove the last stroke.
4. Tap the ✕ button when you are done. Marks are saved with the score and reappear the next time you open it.

Note The annotation toolbar also has a fingering mode: tap a number, then tap the score to place it. Fingerings written by hand with the Apple Pencil can be recognized and converted to placed digits.

Useful next steps

• Add several files or a whole folder with Bulk import and review. Bulk import opens a review flow (Review imports) instead of the single piece's Properties, and a confident catalog match is applied without a confirmation step.
• Adjust titles, composers, versions, and movements later in Score metadata.
• Configure automatic and hands-free page turns — including turning pages with face gestures via the front camera — in Page turning.
• Prepare live tracking, where Page Turner listens to your playing and turns pages itself, with Prepare Follow.

Limit Import and conversion are separate operations. Importing a PDF does not make it editable notation. When you need Smart Score features, open the score and use Convert to Smart Score in the reader's Toolbox (the wrench button). Conversion runs on the Page Turner converter, so it needs an internet connection.