Start with one small, well-tagged album folder before indexing a large archive. Replace every example title/path with one actually in your music. Examples use aede on PATH; use ./aede or .\aede.exe from an extracted archive.
1. Build the catalog#
aede scan "$HOME/Music"
aede stats
aede roots
scan reads recursively and remembers the folder. stats checks the result, and roots shows what future scans will read. aede scan later refreshes those roots. A missing/unplugged root refuses the refresh rather than silently emptying that part of the library. Add a second folder with another scan FOLDER; it does not replace the first.
2. Find an album and navigate#
aede albums --limit 10
aede album "Kind of Blue"
aede track "So What" --artist "Miles Davis"
aede artist "Miles Davis"
aede search coltrane
Plural commands list entities; singular commands open one. Read the copyable Open/Continue commands in the output to follow related objects. If an edition is ambiguous, use its displayed MusicBrainz release ID. A file tag identifies local metadata; an external credit remains explicitly sourced.
3. Play locally#
aede play "Kind of Blue"
In macOS/Linux terminals and the native Windows console, Space pauses/resumes, n advances, p goes back/restarts, and q stops without Enter. Redirected input disables interactive controls. Windows console/device acceptance remains pending. Playback may require FFmpeg/ffplay depending on the format/build. Playback defaults to without-effects, with normalization off and flat tone. Add --playback=dsp for automatic album/track normalization, or read the playback reference for the strict policy, device discovery, keys and current limits.
4. Add your own information#
aede love album "Kind of Blue"
aede rate album "Kind of Blue" --stars 5
aede tag album "Kind of Blue" evening,jazz
aede note album "Kind of Blue" --text "My preferred edition"
aede album "Kind of Blue"
These values go into personal data, never audio tags. A note can instead come from a Markdown file with --file notes.md. Album ratings require album.rating in a track query; bare rating targets tracks. loved is intentionally inherited from a favorite album/artist.
5. Ask a question and save it#
aede query "loved played:0"
aede collection Unheard --query "loved played:0"
aede collection Unheard
aede collection Unheard --m3u --output unheard.m3u8
A collection stores the question and reevaluates it later. M3U contains paths, not copied audio. Use copy to create a separate player/card selection.
6. Enrich only when you choose#
aede fetch --credits "$HOME/Music"
aede fetch --summaries --lang en "Miles Davis"
aede fetch --lyrics "$HOME/Music"
These commands contact the named sources. Fetched facts do not rewrite local tags; lyrics create missing .lrc sidecars. Start with a narrow album folder or --dry-run, and read fetch for keys, folder permissions and evidence trust.
7. Preserve your work#
aede backup aede-backup.aede
aede check
aede doctor
The Aède bundle saves catalog/conclusions/personal/source data, not your original music. Back up audio and sidecars separately. check inspects supported container checksums; doctor diagnoses metadata/catalog issues without fixing them automatically. Continue with daily workflows or the complete CLI options reference.