Guidance on creating digitally accessible sheet music is still evolving, however there are steps you can take proactively to deliver a more accessible sheet music experience.
Use Digital Scores
Wherever possible, use and distribute digital scores rather than scanned images of print sheet music.
Digital scores offer many benefits:
- can be searched and more easily annotated,
- better resolution to allow magnification without loss of quality,
- ability to adjust contrast and colors to improve readability,
- support audio playback in some programs, and
- easier to remediate into alternative formats (such as Braille or a screen reader compatible file).
Add Alt Text to Images of Music Notation
If you are including an image of sheet music (such as a notation excerpt) on a course page, website, document, or slide deck, include sufficient alt text to describe what is depicted to individuals who are blind, low vision, and/or using assistive technology.
Review the University of North Texas’ Describing Musical Examples with Text and Alt Text to understand best practices and workarounds for characters that are often misinterpreted by screen readers.
Consider Talking Scores
To go a step further, consider creating a “talking score”, which is an audio-based representation of sheet music for individuals who are low vision or Blind. Talking scores can also be helpful for individuals with neurological disabilities that make processing print content challenging.
In talking scores, music notation is read aloud in sections with details that may include the octave, key changes, repeated sections, instrument changes, or common rhythms. In between these sections, the notation is often played aloud for the listener.
For examples of manually-created talking scores, check out Bill Brown’s Piano by Ear lessons. For examples of talking scores generated using a conversation program, check out the Talking Scores open source project. This project converts MusicXML files into a combination of text description and audio playback files in an HTML format that can be navigated by assistive technologies.
Welcome Accommodation Requests
As with all digital products and services, individuals with disabilities may need specific accommodations to make sheet music accessible to them. There are advanced remediation tools available that can be explored in these instances to ensure user needs are adequately met.
If a student requests a sheet music accommodation for a class or U-M extracurricular activity, please contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) for assistance at [email protected].
If an employee requests a sheet music accommodation to allow them to perform a work function, please contact the Disability Equity Office.