Scanning a PDF
Upload a PDF of a score and let OCR read its metadata for you, right from the browser, without typing anything in by hand.
From Library → Import, upload a PDF of a piece. Church Music Locker creates a placeholder piece immediately and reads its metadata in the background — you don’t need to wait on the page. The PDF is discarded after OCR finishes (successfully or not); the score is never stored.
Choose a PDF
Only PDF files are accepted for this flow.
Upload
The piece is created right away with a “processing” status. The file is uploaded only long enough for OCR to read it.
OCR runs in the background
You can navigate away — a notification appears elsewhere in the dashboard when the scan finishes.
Review
Once ready, open the piece to review and correct anything OCR got wrong.
What OCR fills in
OCR reads the score and populates the same fields described in Adding and editing pieces — title, composer, voicing, key, and so on — as best it can from what’s printed on the page. Always review a scanned piece before treating its metadata as final.
Lyrics are transcribed from the printed music (not from the PDF’s hidden text layer) so they can power search and help identify things like scripture references. By default, the transcription is discarded after processing and is not stored as plain text on the piece.
Check Store the lyrics text for bulletin use before uploading if the text is public domain or your church has permission, license coverage, or another lawful basis to store and reproduce it. When selected, the transcription is saved to the piece’s Lyrics field, organized by verse and refrain when applicable. The refrain appears in full once under a Refrain heading; later repeats are marked (Refrain) rather than reprinted. Verses are labeled Verse 1, Verse 2, and so on. If stacked hymn text appears beneath a single melody line, each stacked line becomes its own verse.
Multi-movement works
If the scanned PDF looks like a cantata, suite, or other multi-part work, OCR can detect that and create the work with its movements automatically, rather than a single flat piece. See Multi-movement works.
If a scan fails
A scan that fails to process is marked failed rather than left stuck — open the piece to see the error. The uploaded PDF is discarded either way, so retrying means uploading it again. From the piece page, Upload PDF runs OCR again (the same lyrics-text checkbox is there). You’ll be asked to confirm first, because the new scan overwrites OCR-extracted details and, for a multi-movement work, replaces its movements.
Other ways to import
- Already have your library in a spreadsheet? See Spreadsheet import.