Music composition software

[kww]

I have been using a shareware copy of "Music Publisher 5" to write sheet music with. I am starting to weary of some of the limitations of the shareware version (won't play back the entire score, skips repeats, and puts a big ad across the printouts unless I cheat and print via screen captures), but I am not thrilled about spending the $170 to register it. Before I do, I'd like to find out what other people use.

My usage is limited to simple arrangements: taking a purchased score, re-entering it, and arranging it to match the instruments I actually play (saxophone, harmonica, mandolin). Exotic things like quarter-tones and sixty-fourth notes don't appear. Most online scores I purchase are intended for Sibelius Scorch or MusicNotes. I may also use it to arrange public domain pieces for a small group of harmonicas (if I wind up teaching some of the local kids how to play).

[John Craton]

I'll put in my vote for Sibelius. It's expensive, but well worth every penny. I wouldn't trade it for anything (though I'm sure there are Finale users who would say the same about their program). You can do virtually anything with Sibelius, and my experience with their tech support has been exemplary. Plus, if you teach, you can qualify for the educational discount and save hundreds on your purchase. In my mind, it can't be beat.

(Just for comparison, the first music-writing program I had, an old DOS-based program from the 1980s, cost considerably more than Sibelius, but Sibelius will do probably a thousand times more. Every other program I've used has had its plusses, but nothing — nothing — in my experience out-performs it. And no, I get no commission for pointing people in their direction ... I just am one very satisfied user and can heartily recommend it.)

[WJF]

I agree with Opera guy ... Sibelius is a great program with less of a learning curve than the other big name on the block (which I also own), Finale.

If you're serious about creating scores or parts from scratch, editing existing scores (that you can scan in) you'll almost certainly end up with one of the two (Finale or Sibelius) but because of the "easier" learners curve, Sibelius gets my vote.

[glauber]

I think it gets my vote too, because i didn't like the user interface in Finale. The one nice thing about Finale is that all their products use the same file format, so you can start with a cheaper version and move up when needed.

In the end, i still use ABC - abcm2ps does 98% of what i need to do (like the PDF i posted in this other thread).

[jmcgann]

After 10 years of Finale, I am moving to Sibelius.

[kww]

Glauber: Thanks for the link to ABC. It looks well within my price range.

I just can't justify spending Sibelius's price tag, even though it looks like a fine package. It would be great if someone would come up with something that could translate Sibelius and Finale files to ABC.

[CraigF]

I also use Sibelius. It's a great program. Depending on your needs there is also G7 which is desiged for guitarists but is cheaper and may suit your needs. There is also a "Student" edition, but I'm not sure if that is limited to actual students or just a cheaper (less functional) version.

This thread reminded me of something I've been meaning to do. I started a new thread here...
Seeking info on Mando Family

[glauber]

Here (click) is the ABC resource that i use the most. I use the "making music with ABC Plus" document, plus the binary for abcm2ps and the documentation that comes with it. I then use Ghostscript to convert the postscript output to PDF; i leave Ghostview (part of Ghostscript) open, so i can modify the ABC file and regenerate the output, and Ghostview automatically reloads it, so i can see my edits in "almost real time". For text editor i use Vim, but there are many otpions that could work well.

ABC works best for single-line melody, although people have done krazy things like using it to typeset Beethoven symphonies, just to show that it can be done. I like ABC because it's simple, human-readable and works well on the PC. Other people like Lillypond or MusiTeX. For single-line melodies, i can write ABC more efficiently than writing the music by hand; something that i can't do using the graphical-interface mouse-driven programs. If i were doing this for a living, i would probably end up buying Sibelius.

[mando.player]

I use G7 (made by Sibelius) and it suits my needs very well. Entering notation/TAB manually is very intuitive. The printed output looks great.

[August Watters]

Sibelius and Finale are both good options. One advantage of Finale is that if you don't want to pay for the full edition, there are less expensive versions that are almost as powerful -- with a simple interface and easy learning curve. I don't think that Sibelius has any learning-curve advantage over Finale Allegro.

There's also a free version if you want to just try it out.

[lastchair]

A question on G7. Does it print out Tab where the numbers are in the spaces instead of on the lines? I like the numbers in the spaces because it is clearer to see. Also, can you enter using the keyboard like in Noteworthy, where you can move the cursor up and down with the arrow keys, hit enter and it enters the note. I can type faster than I can point/click.

thanks!

[JamesPV]

I haven't used it in a while, but I've used Noteworthy Composer, a significantly simpler program, with good results, and it's quite affordable. I think the download was $39.00 when I bought it several years ago.

[lastchair]

Okay, I downloaded both demos. Seems like Noteworthy does not have tab, at least I couldn't find it. G7 was pretty easy to enter things and there are ways to customize the tab so that the numbers are in the spaces. I couldn't figure out how to get rid of the 5 strings on the fretboard if I selected to draw the numbers in the spaces, and added a top line (5 lines). G7 seems pretty well written program and it also works on a MAC. Noteworthy seems to chew up Windows memory and things got unstable. At one point, I hit save only to have my computer lock up into oblivion. Another time, the GUI refresh was all wierded out.

[Shelby Eicher]

I use Encore and it does everything. It's also very user friendly.