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The_Complete_Idiot%27s_Guide_To_Music_Theory

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<strong>To</strong>day, thanks to computer technology, a lot of this notation process can be automated.<br />

<strong>Music</strong> notation software, available for both Windows and Macintosh<br />

operating systems, enables you to create a complete piece of music—including<br />

full orchestral scores—from your computer keyboard. <strong>The</strong> result is a professionallooking<br />

piece of music, complete with proper note spacing and notation marks.<br />

All music notation programs let you enter notes on the page with either your<br />

mouse or computer keyboard. All you have to do is click a position on the<br />

staff, and a note appears.<br />

Many of these programs also let you connect a MIDI keyboard and input<br />

music directly from the keyboard to your computer. <strong>The</strong> notation program<br />

translates the notes you play on the keyboard into corresponding notes on a<br />

staff. You can then fine-tune the music onscreen as necessary.<br />

<strong>The</strong>re are all different types of music notation programs, although they all perform<br />

the same basic functions. Some programs let you include more parts than<br />

others, though, and some include more professional notation features. So when<br />

you’re shopping for a music notation program, here are some things to look for:<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> number of individual staves (instrumental and voice) you can create<br />

for a piece of music.<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> quality of the printed music. (Look especially for proper note spacing,<br />

full extension of note stems, and the automatic avoidance of note collisions,<br />

in which a note or marking from one staff overlaps a similar note<br />

or marking on another staff.)<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> capability to extract individual parts from a score.<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> capability to automatically transpose parts.<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> capability to include lyrics.<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> capability to include guitar tabs.<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> capability to write in standard percussion notation.<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> inclusion of advanced notation markings and the flexibility to place<br />

them wherever you want in the score.<br />

◆ <strong>The</strong> capability to create notation based on MIDI keyboard input.<br />

<strong>The</strong> two most popular music notation programs today are Finale (www.codamusic.<br />

com) and Sibelius (www.sibelius.com). Both programs work in similar fashion,<br />

and both cost around $600 for the full package. Fortunately for cost-conscious<br />

or outright starving musicians, both programs are also available in lower-priced<br />

and/or student versions, so you can get similar (but not identical) functionality<br />

at a bargain price. (Finale even offers a free version, called Finale Notepad, that<br />

you can download from their website.)<br />

Chapter 19: Lead Sheets and Scores<br />

253<br />

Definition<br />

MIDI stands for<br />

musical instrument digital<br />

interface, and is a computer<br />

protocol for passing<br />

audio information digitally<br />

from one electronic device<br />

to another.

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