A tune open in the score editor

Edit Every Note

Open any tune in the editor and change whatever you like — pitch, duration, dots and ties, gracenotes, whole bars. The score reflows as you work, bar validation flags anything that doesn't add up, and undo covers every step. Every save becomes a version you can diff and roll back to later.

Embellishment picker

Embellishments & Grace Notes

Select any note and the embellishment wheel appears around it, holding the movements pipers reach for every day — doublings, strikes, throws, birls, grips, taorluaths, shakes. When a movement has other forms — half, thumb, double — curved segments appear around the wheel to choose from; no choice, no clutter. Grace notes render reactively, adapting to the melodic context, and every movement is named the way a piper would say it: Dre, Edre, Vedare, Embari, Odro and the rest, changing with the notes around them.

Piobaireachd mode swaps the wheel to the ceol mor vocabulary — cadences, hiharin, darado, crunluath and company — and imported BWW files keep every thumb, half, double and triple movement exactly as written. And when a figure doesn't match a standard movement — or a scan reads one wrong — build your own custom run of gracenotes note by note, with a live preview as you go.

Bar editing menu

Bar Editing

Tap any bar to access powerful editing tools. Copy, paste, delete, or rearrange bars with ease. Add 1st and 2nd time endings, change time signatures mid-tune, and validate bar durations to catch errors before they reach the practice room.

Time signature picker

Time Signatures

Change time signatures with an intuitive circular picker. Spin the outer ring to set beats and the inner ring for note values — from common time to complex asymmetric metres. And when the rings don't list what a tune asks for, a Custom entry accepts anything — even a dance in 7/16 or 11/16. Time signatures can be set per bar, so mixed-metre tunes are fully supported.

Multi-note range selection

Multi-Note Selection

Select a range of notes across bars and act on them as one. Shift pitch up or down, lengthen or shorten durations, or copy, cut, and delete an entire phrase in a single move. The selection action bar puts every operation a tap away — no more editing note by note.

Creating a triplet by selecting notes

Triplets in a Few Taps

Group notes into a triplet without fuss. Switch to triplet mode and tap the three notes you want to bind — they snap into a properly bracketed, beamed triplet, correctly spaced and ready to play. Change your mind? Break it apart again just as easily.

Creating 1st and 2nd time endings

1st & 2nd Time Endings

Build repeats with proper 1st and 2nd time endings. Mark the start and end notes of a section and Ultimate Piper draws the volta brackets for you — then plays the right ending on each pass through the repeat, exactly as written.

Note Placement & Editing

Tap the staff to place notes, drag vertically to change pitch, and long-press to open a visual duration picker. Every duration from semibreve to demisemiquaver is supported, including dotted variants. Swipe a note down to delete it.

Ties, Slides, Accidentals & Pauses

Toggle ties between consecutive notes, draw a zigzag slide between adjacent pitches, add natural or flat symbols, or place a fermata to pause on a note. A compact toolbar above the selected note puts every option a tap away.

Harmony Lines

Add one or more harmony parts to any staff. Each line has independent note editing, and all parts play back together with adjustable volume and stereo panning.

Staff & Section Management

Add or remove staves, insert single lines or full parts, and label sections with custom headings — perfect for piobaireachd ground and variations.

Annotations

Add colour-coded text notes below the staff to mark tricky passages and jot down performance reminders.

Undo & Redo

Every edit is tracked in a 50-step history. Cmd+Z on Mac or the toolbar buttons step backwards through any change — from a single note placement to deleting an entire staff.

Keyboard Shortcuts

On Mac and iPad with external keyboard, arrow keys adjust pitch and duration, Delete removes notes, and standard shortcuts handle undo and redo.

Pinch to Zoom

Pinch to resize the score on iPhone and iPad, or use Cmd+/Cmd− on Mac. Zoom in to work on fine details or zoom out for an overview of the whole piece.

Set Editing

Group tunes into ordered sets, drag to reorder, and edit each tune individually. Ideal for competition medleys and concert programmes.

Works on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch

All your tunes, folders, practice sessions, and settings sync seamlessly via iCloud.

Requires iOS 26, iPadOS 26, macOS 26, or watchOS 26.