Making the Most of Notation Software

One of the most fascinating and time-saving orchestrating tools in Sibelius is the Arrange feature. I have been using it since Sibelius 3 and it is a wonderful time saver. I think of the Arrange option as actually an orchestration feature since it orchestrates the music you provide for the instrumentation that you select. It does not harmonize your music, realize chord symbols, add counter-lines, substitute chords, or remove the need to study these and other topics further if you need to use them. (Sibelius does have plug-ins that can be used to harmonize, realize chord symbols and more. These will be covered in a future post).

The Sibelius Arrange feature has many built-in orchestration styles that can be applied to any style of music and can save time. Even if it does not give you the complete final result, it can be a helpful guide to finding the idea orchestration.

I use a sketch staff when writing an arrangement. Then I can copy and paste from these staves and use them to score other parts. Here is how you can use the Arrange feature in Sibelius:

1. Select the source region containing the music you wish to orchestrate.
2. Copy it.
3. Select the destination staves.
4. Choose the Arrange Style and choose paste.

The key is to use the arrange feature for parts of a score, not an entire score. And, if you are working with a full band, jazz or orchestra score, you can use different arrange styles for the various sections.

Here is an example. I entered some 5-note chords in the sketch staff and then use the Arrange feature to put them into the sax section staves.

The steps include:

1. Select the staff with chords: double-click to select a system, click and shift-click to select a region.
2. Use the shortcut: Command+C (Mac); CTRL+C (Win) to copy the selected bars.
3. Click on the Alto 1 staff in bar 1, then shift-click on the Baritone part.
4. Select Notes > Arrange or use the shortcut: Shift+Command+V (Mac); Shift+CTRL+V (Win) to access the Arrange Styles list.
5. At the top of the Arrange window, choose Explode.

Explore Other Arrange options

1. Press the Undo arrow at the top of the screen several times to remove the notes just entered.
2. Select the top part.
3. Use the shortcut: Command+C (Mac); CTRL+C (Win) to copy the selected bars.
4. Click on the Alto 1 staff in bar 1, then shift-click on the Baritone part.
5. Select Notes > Arrange or use the shortcut: Shift+Command+V (Mac); Shift+CTRL+V (Win) to access the Arrange Styles list.
6. Choose: Jazz: Saxes Tenor Lead 1.
7. Undo this and experiment with other Arrange options.

There are many jazz styles such as Sammy Nestico and the Count Basie Orchestra and others.

And, the Arrange feature is not limited to jazz. Check out the incredible list of options for other ensembles.

There are times when you will get the dialog box that Sibelius can’t arrange the source material into the selected staves. So, experiment with different options.

For more information on the Arrange feature:

Check out Jazz arranger David O’Rourke’s document, which describes how to create great jazz voicings using the Arrange feature and the Jazz Arrange styles in Sibelius.
https://secure.sibelius.com/download/plugins/index.html?plugin=5

Check out the book, Sibelius a Comprehensive Guide, that I co-authored with Vince Leonard. It has a section of Chapter 11 dedicated to the arrange feature: Chapter 11, pages 302-311 written by Vince.

When writing a score in notation software, I do most of the work on the computer. A few years ago one of my grad. Students at the University of the Arts asked how I composed. I told him I sketched the piece on manuscript paper and then created the score in notation software. He said, really? Why not do it all in the software so you can take advantage of copy and paste? That was good advice. Ever since then, I create several scratch staves at the top of the score, often just a treble and bass staff. Then I compose the melody, bass line, counterlines and some of the harmonies and chord symbols. I then can copy and paste these ideas into the score and save time.

BTW, be sure to use the instant copy command that is used in both Finale and Sibelius. Select the source material, hold down CTRL (Win) or Command (Mac) and click the mouse in the destination bar. It saves a lot of time. The highlighted portion is not lost so you can do this multiple times throughout the score.

Scketch Staves

So, when I am creating my sketch and there is going to be harmony in a section of the entire score, I place the chords in one voice of the sketch score. Then, use Explode to push them into the specific part of the arrangement. Here are the steps:

1. Enter the block chords in the sketch part.
2. Select them with the Selection Tool.
3. Press the shortcut the number 2 or choose Utilities > Explode Music.

4. Make the appropriate settings in the Explode Window – how many staves, and where to place the notes. Finale does the rest.

Band-in-a-Box Plug-ins
The second time saver that I find very Helpful in Finale is the Band-in-a-Box plug-ins. These are borrowed from the www.pgmusic.com program Band-in-a-Box and work best as follows:

1. Enter a melody in the Sketch part
2. Add the chord symbols
3. Select the source material
4. Copy it to the first part, in this case the 1st trumpet.
5. Select the source material.
6. Choose Plug-ins > Scoring and Arranging > Band-in-a-Box Auto Harmonizing. I often use the Drop 2 when scoring for a group of instruments. For more information on drop 2 voicings check out:
http://www.outsideshore.com/school/music/almanac/html/Music_Theory/Jazz_Voicings/Drop_2_Voicings.htm

7. Create the settings to place the three new voices in the parts starting with trumpet

The screen shots in this post are in trasposed view in Finale. You can also view a transposed score in concert pitch by selecting it from the Document menu.

Also, if you own Band-in-a-Box, the program has many more options that can be experimented with for auto-harmonizing. If you like one, in band in a box, save it as a MIDI file and import it into Finale.

Use Sparingly
Use these tools sparingly. They are not going to make your arrangements instant masterpieces. You still have to develop the ideas, orchestration, unison passages, etc. However, if you want to harmonize a section, Explode and Band-in-a-Box auto harmonizing are great time-saving tools. You can also experiment with different voicings and choose the best one for a particular passage.

What time saving scoring and arranging tools do you find most helpful in Finale?

Many teachers have found that notation software is an excellent medium to encourage composition and to reinforce theory and other concepts. Are you and interested in finding ways to integrate music notation software in the curriculum? There are some articles, lesson plans and books that are available to help.

Lesson Plans and Web Resources
Some excellent notation lesson plans are located on the http://www.soundtree.com/lesson-plans site. All of the articles here are written by practicing music educators. I have several articles on notation software on this site and there are others. Each article includes the necessary resource materials for the lesson.

The Vermont MIDI site, www.vtmidi.org is the longest running site that has been dedicated to student composition. I have been following this site for years. There are some archives of student work and some lesson plans by educators located at http://www.vtmidi.org/AtoC.html

If you are looking for elementary/middle school notation lessons, than check out Karen Garrett’s site at http://www.musictechteacher.com/lessons001.htm. Karen has posted her lesson plans and materials that can be downloaded on a variety of curricular areas including using Sibelius notation software.

By the way, If you are an elementary teacher and interested in technology, check out Amy Burns blog http://amymburns.musiced.net/

Both Finale 2010 and Sibelius 6 have worksheets that can be used to enhance the teaching of music notation software.

TI:ME, Technology for Music Education www.ti-me.org has more than 500 lesson plans on music notation software. The database is only open to members and is located in the “Members Only” section of the website. The annual membership cost is $40 per year. This is rich resource of lesson plans on all software applications in general and music notation in particular.

Method Book
I am one of the co-authors of a new series by Alfred Publishing, the MusicTech series. There are currently three books in the series and one is dedicated to music notation software entitled Composing Music with Notation. The book comes with a CD that contains all of the lesson files and it is a turn-key solution for integration notation into the curriculum. It I available from all of the typical music book resellers.
http://www.alfred.com/alfredweb/front/ProductDetail.aspx?itemnum=%20%20%20%20%2025565&pubnum=0

Are there other resources that you use when working with students and music notation software?

This week I presented two sessions at the TI:ME/TMEA conference in San Antonio on Sibelius Worksheets. My handout is posted at www.tomrudolph.com/handouts.htm. Many people I meet in Sibelius workshops have no idea that these Worksheets are lurking on their hard drive. If you are a Finale user, you might want to purchase a copy of Sibelius just to have access to these worksheets. Finale has a few helpful worksheets, but I think Sibelius has enough to make it worth the cost of the software for the worksheets alone.

Sibelius 4 or 5 Required
If you own Sibelius 4 or 5 then you have access to more than 1700 worksheets and templates. Here is how to get there: open Sibelius. From the File menu, choose Worksheet Creator. There are two options:
Teaching and Learning Materials and Templates

The Teaching and learning materials have a host of options that include, and go far beyond, teaching and learning materials.

Loading Worksheets
The first time you go access the Worksheets it may take as long as 5 minutes to load. Subsequently, the search will take a minute or less. Choose File > Worksheet Creator.

How Worksheets are Organized
Worksheets are organized into six major categories

Each category has many sub categories. Some of my favorite worksheets include:

1. Circle of 5ths:
01 Elements of Music > 06 Scales and Key Signatures > 02 Key Signatures >
02 Complete Circle of Fifths

2. Composition Exercises: 02 Writing and Creating Music (117 files)

3. United Kingdom curriculum materials are available. Check it out at 06 UK KS3 and GCSE Projects (33 of 33)

Repertoire
Check out the materials in the repertoire section. It includes an amazing number of compete compositions. Included are works by Bach, piano and instrumental pieces and even poetry to use for composition.

The 265 songs for teaching are complete with melody and lyrics. Of course, the files can be transposed in Sibelius and manipulated as you would any other file or used as a basis for an arrangement. Open a song, press the letter I to add new staves. Then, compose your own arrangement of the piece. All the repertoire is in public domain and free to use, print and manipulate.

Reference
The reference section is chock full of useful materials.

There are some excellent materials on orchestration. These include 04 Reference > Instrumental and Vocal ranges.

Worksheets are Sibelius Files
The cool thing is every one of these worksheets is a Sibelius file so it can be edited and adjusted as needed. You can save your customized worksheets by choosing File > Add to Worksheet Creator.

For more information on worksheets, check out:

1. The Sibelius 5 Tutorial Video #15 Worksheets (Help > Tutorial Videos)

2. Read about Worksheets in the Sibelius Reference (Help > Reference)

3. My lesson plan at www.soundtree.com – click on lesson plans and then search for “Composing with Sibelius Worksheets.”

4. Visit: www.sibeliuseducation.com for more free worksheets that users have uploaded to the Sibelius site.

5. Chapter 15 Worksheets, from the book Mastering Sibelius 5 by Marc Schonbrun

6. Worksheets for purchase are available from Mary Elizabeth at http://stores.lulu.com/patternsforlearning

So, do check out Sibelius worksheets. What Worksheets do you find most useful?

The technology of scanning converts a piece of sheet music into a digital media that can be read by music software. Scanning, the musical version of OCR (optical character recognition) has been around for years. The technology has come of age and is a viable way to input music from printed sheet music into music software in general and music notation software in particular.

Why Use Scanning Technology?
If you are using music production software then you might be interested in scanning technology so you can take a piece of printed music, say a bass or piano part, and scan and convert it into a sequence. The more common use of scanning technology is to save time inputting notation into Finale or Sibelius or other music notation software. Scanning can be a fast way to input parts from printed sheet music.

Three Scanning Technology Options
There are currently three scanning technologies. They include:

1. SmartScore Lite and SmartScore Pro – for Mac and Windows computers and is integrated with Finale Notation software
2. PhotoScore and PhotoScore Ultimate – for Mac and Windows computers and is integrated with Sibelius notation software
3. SharpEye – for Windows computers. The software costs $169.00 and SharpEye Music Reader converts a scanned image of printed music into a MIDI file, a NIFF file, or a Music XML file.

Required Hardware
You will need a flatbed scanner to scan the sheet music you want to convert. You don’t need a high-end scanner since music is typically scanned in black and white or grayscale and at a relatively low DPI (dots per inch) of 300. Most scanners will work for this purpose. Do check with the software company’s website for recommended scanners. I have had good success with Canon and Epson scanners. The one I am currently using is a Canon CanoScan LiDE 25 that I paid less than $50 for. It is a no-frills scanner, but does the job nonetheless.

Sibelius’ recommendations for scanners
SmartScore’s recommendations

Sibelius = PhotoScore
Sibelius ships with a free, lite version of PhotoScore. This version can do basic scanning, but there are significant limits. For example, the current shipped version does not recognize triplets. So, if you want the most powerful scanning option for Sibelius, I recommend that you purchase the full version of the software, PhotoScore Ultimate.
There is an excellent help file posted in the Sibelius website, written by Bruce Munson.

Finale = SmartScore
Finale notation software ships with a lite version of SmartScore. You will get much more accurate results if you upgrade to the full version of SmartScore Pro. The best place to get familiar with scanning in Finale is to view the tutorial video. Launch Finale. From the Help menu, choose QuickStart Videos. Then select Getting Started > Importing Music > Scanning.

Scanning to MIDI
If you want to convert sheet music to MIDI to import into Music Production Software, then scanning software can be a solution for you. There are several options to choose from including Musitech’s MIDI Edition and Neutron’s PhotoScore MIDI.

It may take some time to get the right hardware and tweak the software settings to get accurate results with scanning. I have found it is worth the effort.