Music Scores?

[TheSorrowsPain]

Greetings,

It seems everytime I get on here I end up asking questions. I bet you'd all wish I'd stop doing this. I don't think I can stop. Anyway, I was wondering, is there any way I can get blank music scores set like the ones in concert band. I have my composition idea down, it's just that I want to get started actually writing the music. If you guys know of any place I can get blank scores set to that of concert band (besides the Blank Sheet Music website) I would greatly appreciate it.

Peace,

C. Winston

[stevel]

Originally Posted by TheSorrowsPain

Greetings,

It seems everytime I get on here I end up asking questions. I bet you'd all wish I'd stop doing this. I don't think I can stop. Anyway, I was wondering, is there any way I can get blank music scores set like the ones in concert band. I have my composition idea down, it's just that I want to get started actually writing the music. If you guys know of any place I can get blank scores set to that of concert band (besides the Blank Sheet Music website) I would greatly appreciate it.

Peace,

C. Winston

C - don't you have Finale or Sibelius? If you're going to compose and need to print scores and parts, or charts, etc. you really should invest in something like that. You can make your own!

I kept getting frustrated because they never had the right number of staves, they were the wrong size, too far apart, too close together, and so on.

If you just want blank *manuscript paper*, you can buy it in most music stores (and you can get it on 11 x 17 and a nicer, thicker paper, see Passatino and Carta at http://www.piano-pal.com/manuscript.htm) and online, and I bet there are some free ones out there:

http://people.virginia.edu/~pdr4h/musicpaper/

has a lot.

But really, do yourself a favor and invest in a notation program if you plan to continue in this - it's really worth it.

Best,
Steve

[JimmyJOL]

C.W.

While I agree about the value of notation software, in the meantime, you can try here:

http://www.cs123.com/JGM/

Be Well,

Jimmy

[TheSorrowsPain]

I'm not going to invest in notation software just yet because I want to get everything written down first so that I don't keep going through millions of new projects in Sibelius trying to figure out one composition. I just need to get myself organized and hopefully get this composition done by the end of the summer or by the end of this year. Thanks for the links guys.

Peace,

C. Winston

[JimmyJOL]

C. W.:

Just a thought. I am a professional composer/arranger/orchestrator with old school training. For most of my life I created my scores by hand and turned them over to a copyist.

A little over a year and a half ago, at age 50, after 35 years in show business and more that 40 years writing music, I decided to enter the virtual music world including notation software. I thought it would take a long time to learn and would interfere with my work which sometimes has to be turned out very quickly. I figured I would write by hand and then transfer the material to software later. I was also concerned that using software would interfere with the flow of my creative process. I am one of those who writes directly to score. I don't work things out at an instrument. I do it in my head and then write it down. I couldn't see how working with software wouldn't interfere with that.

I will tell you now that I was completely wrong. The process of learning the software was a matter of hours and days than rather weeks and months. I made up a few exercises for myself: Each day I would duplicate the first 8 bars of randomly chosen sheet music, including the title page and all markings and text. Then I would do a few bars of an orchestra score. At first, I had to look up each marking in the Reference manual but by the end of a week a lot of it was memorized just from doing it every day. Finally, I would think of a simple song in my head, set up a mini score with five or six transposing instruments and write out the melody of the song I was hearing for each of the instruments, then check my transposition by playing the piece, through the software. If there were any wrong notes in the transposition it would be instantly obvious, since they should be in unison (or octave doubled). Since I was only doing 8 bars at a time, this whole process didn't take very long and, eventually went more and more quickly.

Now, I hardly write by hand unless I'm not near the computer. Writing with notation software is both fast and accurate and does not interefere with the creative process at all. Of course, editing is easy and the layout process for scores and parts, while still a bit tedious and detail intensive, is actually better than doing it by hand, especially if you decide to change anything.

The other thing, which Steve already mentioned, is that you can easily create your own manuscript set up, exactly the way you want it and any time you want to write for that group, you just open it and you're ready to go, forever.

After all those years of working the way I did and now after only a short time with Sibelius, I would not want to go back to working by hand. Notation software is faster, more accurate and actually facilitates rather than interferes with my process.

Of course, you have your own situation, financially, artistically and practically but, I'd be willing to bet that if you had the right software, you would be more likely to finish your composition by the end of the summer, or the year, rather than less likely. You won't have to worry about ordering paper, or compromise getting it down exactly the way you want it.

Look into the various programs and pick the one that seem right for the way you work. You won't regret it.

Just my $00.02.

Be well,

Jimmy

[stevel]

Originally Posted by JimmyJOL

I will tell you now that I was completely wrong. The process of learning the software was a matter of hours and days rather weeks and months. I made up a few exercises for myself

Jimmy

I want to add - and thanks for sharing your experience Jimmy - that the whole "notation software has a steep learning curve" is a bit of a myth. The reason why people who go out and buy notation software and think they're going to produce publisher qualities scores out of the box are so disappointed is - because you actually have to know how to notate music first! They think the going out and buying Finale will help them compose a symphony. That's like thinking going out and buying Microsoft Word will help you write a novel, when you don't even know how to read and write!

To everyone out there: Notation software is very easy and intuitive - if you already know how to notate music! If you don't know how many 16th notes fit into a bar of 4/4, then yes, there is going to be a steep learning curve because you're not only learning the software, but you're learning notation at the same time! It's like learning to read and write English at the same time as learning Microsoft Word!

That said, I want to echo Jimmy's statements that notation software is an indespensible tool for music-making. Even hobbyists should have at least some limited notation software - and for goodness' sake, learn how to use it :-)

Best,
Steve

[JimmyJOL]

Steve:

You make good points. To expand briefly, there is a definite difference between creating clear, practical professional scores for performance on stage or in the recording studio vs "publisher quality" scores which meet all the criteria of professional engravers. Also, serious modern composers who create specially designed scores have their own needs (many of which can now be addressed by the latest versions of notation software). However, for someone writing in a "traditional" style for something like a Concert Band, as C.W. mentioned, and who already knows how to write music, notation software is indispensible.

Jimmy

[MidiWorld]

There are two major advantages in using notation software, and they are the following three:
1. Editing is neat and simple
2. The score looks clean and easy to read
3. Copyists are optional
4. You can play back the score via MIDI and catch typos by ear
5. Not to mention that entering notes are so much faster using a digital piano or synth keyboard....

[chckn8r]

Originally Posted by stevel

that the whole "notation software has a steep learning curve" is a bit of a myth. The reason why people who go out and buy notation software and think they're going to produce publisher qualities scores out of the box are so disappointed is - because you actually have to know how to notate music first!

Hit it right on the head Steve and Jimmy - if you know how to notate already, then learning RECENT versions of notation software is quite easy.

I think the whole learning curve myth comes from comments about earlier versions of Finale that had non-intuitive menu and keyboard shortcut systems to "help".

D

[stevel]

Originally Posted by MidiWorld

There are two major advantages in using notation software, and they are the following three:
1. Editing is neat and simple
2. The score looks clean and easy to read
3. Copyists are optional
4. You can play back the score via MIDI and catch typos by ear
5. Not to mention that entering notes are so much faster using a digital piano or synth keyboard....

Umm, that's 10, or is is 5, or 8, or, oh screw it. All good reasons to buy notation software :-)

Steve