notation-mcp
Server Configuration
Describes the environment variables required to run the server.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| GRADUS_AGENT_NAME | No | Self-report your agent name in X-Agent-Name header | @gradusmusic/notation-mcp |
| GRADUS_NOTATION_API_BASE | No | Override for self-hosted or local-dev API | https://gradusmusic.com |
Instructions
Guidance the server publishes about itself, which clients place ahead of the tool catalog so the model reads it before choosing anything.
This server publishes no instructions, or was last inspected before Glama recorded them.
Capabilities
Features and capabilities supported by this server
Protocol revision2025-11-25
| Capability | Details |
|---|---|
| tools | {} |
Tools
Functions exposed to the LLM to take actions
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| notation_renderA | Render music notation from a JSON score. Returns inline SVG, MusicXML, and MIDI in one call. Use scientific pitches ("C4", "F#5", "Bb3") and duration codes (w h q 8 16 32 64 with optional dots). Bar lines are inferred from the time signature; notes that cross bar lines are split and tied automatically. Call notation_validate first if you are unsure your input is well-formed — validate is cheaper than render. |
| notation_validateA | Pre-flight validate an input shape without rendering. Returns errors with concrete |
| knowledge_searchA | Search the Gradus music-theory knowledge base for authoritative source material. The corpus includes hand-authored curriculum prose, Bach chorale analysis (408 chorales), score commentaries on 50+ orchestral works, and primary historical sources from Fux (1725) through Boulanger. WHEN TO USE: before generating notation if you need to look up a specific theory fact — typical voice leading for a Neapolitan-to-V resolution, idiomatic figured-bass realizations of a particular cadence, what makes a chromatic mediant feel like one composer's style versus another. Hitting this first prevents the agent from inventing chord progressions that are stylistically wrong. WHEN NOT TO USE: for generic music vocabulary ("what is a chord?") that any LLM already knows; for non-theory queries like composer biographies, performance recommendations, or history dates — those are out of scope; for fetching actual score notation (use notation_render or notation_examples instead). INPUT: provide EITHER OUTPUT (JSON): { ok: true, requestId, chunks: [{ id, sourceType, sourceId, title, content, composer?, era?, topics: string[], curriculumSteps: number[], tokenEstimate }], meta: { query, returnedCount, totalTokens, responseTimeMs }, attribution }. EXAMPLE INPUT: { "topics": ["voice-leading", "deceptive-cadence"], "limit": 3 } TYPICAL LATENCY: 200-700 ms (one Voyage 3 embedding call + Supabase pgvector RPC). |
| notation_examplesA | Fetch canonical example inputs (single melody, two-voice counterpoint, chord progression, mixed rhythms with dynamics, string quartet snippet, tied notes across bar lines). Cache the result client-side; the response shape is stable. |
| notation_schemaA | Fetch the JSON Schema for the notation_render input shape. Cache the result client-side; this is stable across the v1 API. |
Prompts
Interactive templates invoked by user choice
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
No prompts | |
Resources
Contextual data attached and managed by the client
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
No resources | |
TDQS
Scored across 5 tools
Each tool has a clearly distinct purpose: knowledge_search for theory facts, notation_examples for example inputs, notation_render for rendering, notation_schema for schema retrieval, and notation_validate for input validation. There is no functional overlap.
Tools use a mix of noun_verb (knowledge_search, notation_render, notation_validate) and noun_noun (notation_examples, notation_schema) patterns. Additionally, one tool deviates from the 'notation_' prefix ('knowledge_search'), reducing consistency.
With 5 tools, the server is reasonably scoped for its purpose of music notation rendering and theory knowledge retrieval. It covers core functionality without being overly minimal or excessive.
The tool set covers search, retrieval of examples, input validation, schema access, and rendering. Minor potential gaps (e.g., no tool to list available examples or manage rendered outputs) are not critical for the stated domain.