# kennethreitz/pytheory

Music Theory for Humans.

Repository: https://github.com/kennethreitz/pytheory
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/pytheory
Homepage: https://pytheory.org/
Language: Python
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: music-theory, music, scales, python, sympy, hacktoberfest
Last push: 2026-07-21T12:06:19+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 90/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:39:23.370411+00:00)
- activity 93, release rhythm 80, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2926, "days_push": 43, "days_rel": 57, "gap_med": 0, "n_releases_24m": 84}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1637, forks 83 (observed 2026-08-28T04:05:14.881839+00:00)

## What it is
PyTheory is a Python library for exploring music theory (tones, scales, chords, keys, intervals, harmony) and composing multi-part arrangements with drums, synths, and effects. It can play audio live, export to MIDI/WAV/MusicXML/tab, tune instruments, transcribe recordings, and is drivable from a Claude Code plugin.

## Use cases
- explore scales chords and chord progressions in python
- sketch a song with drums bass and synth parts and export midi
- identify chords and intervals from note names or chord symbols
- get guitar chord fingerings scale diagrams and nashville number charts
- tune a guitar with a real-time strobe tuner
- transcribe a hummed melody into midi or sheet music
- compose music from natural language with claude code

## When to choose
- you want to learn or apply music theory programmatically in python
- you want to sketch multi-part arrangements in code and export midi without a daw
- you need guitar fingerings, tablature, or tuning tools without ad-filled websites

## When to avoid
- you need professional notation engraving or a full DAW production environment
- you work primarily with non-western tuning systems beyond its supported set
- you need a graphical sequencer rather than a code-first workflow

## Facets
- artifact type: library
- maturity: active
- function: audio-processing, sdk, developer-tools
- domain: audio, education, media, developer-tools
- platform: python, cross-platform, cli
- tags: music-theory, midi, composition, chords, scales, synthesis, guitar, audio-playback, claude-plugin, tuner, web

## Member repositories
- kennethreitz/pytheory (main) score 90

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:14.881839+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T03:46:41.453853+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/kennethreitz/pytheory (fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:14.881839+00:00, sha 3349e1a37c7e)
  - homepage: https://pytheory.org/ (fetched 2026-08-29T11:19:56.715210+00:00, sha bfbda06e9d3f)
  - site_page: https://pytheory.org/guide/quickstart.html (fetched 2026-08-29T11:19:56.724909+00:00, sha f03596ffc61e)
  - site_page: https://pytheory.org/guide/claude.html (fetched 2026-08-29T11:19:56.727585+00:00, sha 422bcd01b229)
  - registry_pypi: https://pypi.org/pypi/pytheory/json (fetched 2026-08-29T11:19:56.734446+00:00, sha 2fbdf78f97f0)
  - site_page: https://pytheory.org/changelog.html (fetched 2026-08-29T11:19:56.729925+00:00, sha 83b198475211)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.