TALLY / PRACTICAL GUIDE
Count the Sounds in Japanese Lyrics: Characters vs Mora
A lyric can have the same number of written characters as another line and still feel longer when sung. Count the intended pronunciation first, then sing it against the melody. TALLY helps with the first check.
Start with the reading, not the kanji
The word 今日 has two written characters. Its reading きょう has three kana characters, but two mora: きょ・う. Small ゃ, ゅ and ょ combine with the preceding kana. The sounds っ, ん and the long-vowel mark ー each contribute a mora in these examples.
| Text | Characters | Mora | Breakdown |
|---|---|---|---|
| きょう | 3 | 2 | きょ・う |
| がっこう | 4 | 4 | が・っ・こ・う |
| しんぶん | 4 | 4 | し・ん・ぶ・ん |
| キャット | 4 | 3 | キャ・ッ・ト |
| コーヒー | 4 | 4 | コ・ー・ヒ・ー |
Try a short phrase in TALLY
Paste this original practice text into the editor, switch to Lyrics mode, and show the line-end mora counts:
きょうも
そらを
みあげるThe lines contain 3, 3 and 4 mora, for a total of 10. They contain 4, 3 and 4 written kana characters; the difference is the small ょ in the first line. Keep each melodic phrase on its own line to compare lengths.
Now replace きょうも with あしたも. The first line becomes four mora. Whether that fits is a musical decision: sing both versions at the intended tempo and check where the consonants and vowel changes fall.
Use the count as a starting point
Mora are not the same as musical beats, syllables in every language, or the number of notes. A vowel can stretch over several notes; a melody can also fit multiple sounds inside one beat. Matching counts alone does not guarantee natural phrasing or word stress.
Know what the counter reads
TALLY counts kana rather than converting kanji to pronunciation. Enter the intended reading yourself, especially for names or words with more than one reading. Non-kana text is ignored by mora analysis apart from supported long-sound marks. Use full-width kana for the examples here.
The small-vowel option changes how letters such as ァ and ぇ are counted. With it off, ファ counts as one mora; with it on, it counts as two. Choose a convention that matches your lyric draft and keep it consistent while comparing versions.
Keep the sung version
After checking the count, return to the spelling you want to deliver, sing the phrase, and export a TXT copy. Browser storage is convenient for drafting, but it should not be your only copy of finished lyrics.