Klarinet Archive - Posting 000524.txt from 2005/03

From: Joseph Wakeling <joseph.wakeling@-----.net>
Subj: Re: OT: Re: [kl] music notation software
Date: Mon, 21 Mar 2005 09:03:04 -0500

Patricia A. Smith wrote:

> Does this mean the means of input for notations? Is it possible in
> both Finale and Sibelius to use a keyboard hooked up to the computer
> for input to your score? (I have seen this done, but only in old
> programs - years & years ago - that were not well done, and took more
> time than they were worth)

Both Finale and Sibelius (and other programs too I believe) allow
various methods of music entry, including via MIDI keyboards. I think
there are several methods in fact---you can play "live" to enter music
directly, or if you are not so hot at piano you can just use the
keyboard to select the pitches required and use other techniques to
select the rhythms. Personally working with Finale I tend to use a
mixture of computer keyboard (not piano-style keyboard but the one I'm
using to type this email;-) and mouse.

Installation with these programs is easy, like most modern computer
programs for Windows or Mac. Basic use is fairly easy---for example
writing a simple piano piece---but once you get into more complicated
stuff the learning curve is a little steep. I am continuously learning
with Finale and have never yet hit a point where I couldn't do what I
wanted, although there are some things I find annoying: for example, I
wish someone would design a music notation program that incorporated as
a matter of course the standard notation (and playback) of microtonal
intervals. Igor looked to be heading nicely in this direction (at least
for quarter-tones) but is not up to scratch in other aspects yet.

The manual with Finale is immense but you do not need to read much to
get a good start---going through simple early tutorials will start you
off nicely and then, later, you will begin to appreciate the exhaustive
depth of the manual when you need to look up little things that go
beyond the simple. I think Sibelius' learning curve is less steep but I
remember it being less friendly when one wanted to go beyond the
"standard". Since I'm talking about an earlier version of Sibelius,
though, that may now be out of date.

Depending on what you want to use it for it might be worth trying out
some of the smaller programs like Finale Allegro, which has less
features but is cheaper and easier to use. I don't have direct
experience myself because I went straight for the big guns. ;-)

Lilypond looks like it could be very interesting for serious musical
engraving work; since I work in science I'm familiar with the TeX/LaTeX
typesetting languages and I guess therefore the learning curve would not
be so steep for me, but of course this has the disadvantage of being
more difficult to edit and not having musical playback. I wouldn't
recommend this sort of stuff for someone who just wants to get notes
down on paper.

I believe there are other (more expensive) pieces of software
specifically designed for engraving *only*, and not for the playback and
other features used in Finale and Sibelius. At some stage I may check
these out, but I don't know much about them or whether they are used
that much professionally. Most of the modern scores I've seen look like
they were Finale or Sibelius products.

Hope this helps!

-- Joe

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