FINALE is over... Is MUSESCORE really the future of music notation?

[@Tantacrul]

Thanks for the review. Someone just shared it with me. I should mention that we're going to be introducing all kinds of major improvements over the coming few releases. We have a large internal team - as well as a vibrant community - beavering away to making MuseScore the best notation app out there. We've spent years improving upon the original and are now planning a range of expansions.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you so much for your comment and congratulations for the huge success of MuseScore4. The entire music community should be thankful for your amazing work and for a project that gives everybody the chance to do music in a serious way.

[@phoenixrising4995]

We need video sync and then we will be good for composing to film.

[@edgarmatias]

Excited to see what you have coming!

[@Ineptune]

Honestly, the feature I want back the most is the piano roll. The piano roll from MuseScore 3 was a janky weird mess, but it allowed you to control so many aspects of the playback if you knew what you were doing. I'd really love to see a more refined, robust, and user friendly version of it.

[@notaninstrument7707]

Love your videos Tantacrul

[@Dominicdiola]

it took me a lot of time learning finale when i started, it only took me a few hours to learn musescore. It is really well designed.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Totally agree!

[@curiouscatlabincgetsworrie7755]

Well, what do you think would have happened if you started with MuseScore and then learned Finale? :D Yes, I 'm pulling your leg but still ... And I also use MuseScore for the record.

[@Vin50000]

​​@@curiouscatlabincgetsworrie7755 based on starting with musecsore myself hours

[@RadioactiveBluePlatypus]

Was it version 3 or 4?

[@liegon]

I think it borrows a lot from Sibelius. The note input and instrument settings are almost identical. I wish there was a quick search / quick add option for the palette items, and more keyboard focused navigation options. This would make it very efficient in my opinion.

[@kaelisash0926]

Hi there, Musescore composer of ~8 years here! Here are a few helpful tips if you decide to give it a wirl again (assuming you are using PC and not Mac, as I dont know how that may affect shortcuts and whatnot): - "S" creates slurs, by default from selected note to next note. Using CTRL you can select individual notes, and then click S to create a slur over the range you selected. This is super good if you want to use slurs to indicate phrasing instead of specific slurs. - When in note input mode you can press ESCAPE to exit quickly and easily. You can also double click most text elements of your score to edit them, including staff text, tempo, expression, and anything else you insert that has text. - When you add staff text if you click it you will see a little sound icon next to it, this is used to indicated specific playback features of the library. Mallot type, expression, non vibrato, etc. (This is a new feature in the last few updates!) - For note input you can use the corresponding letter on your keyboard, which will automatically put you in note input mode. - Selecting a note and holding control and pressing an up or down arrow on your keyboard will octave shift your selected note. - You can press CTRL + T to input staff text on a selected element - You can easily add elements to multiple staves by clicking the first staff, and then holding shift and clicking your final staff you want to select. You can insert dynamics, slurs, accents, basically anything this way so long as they are vertically aligned. - If you want to do the above on a non vertically aligned section, you can use that nifty CTRL click I mentioned earlier to select notes across multiple staves and the above tip applies! - You can use the . on your number pad to toggle dotted note input just like in Finale. - You can adjust text settings by clicking a staff text and clicking the "properties" tab. You can bold text, italicize, adjust size and much more here! - In the property tab you can also adjust playback parameters for most elements! For example you can adjust the stretch length of a fermata, adjust note head types for percussion parts, decide if a note is played or not, or decide of a dynamic is played or not! All this is just scractching the surface and based on my personal work flow, but theres a whole world of shortcuts to discover! Musescore has really set itself apart as a notation software in the last few years and for a long time my plan was to upgrade to Finale but around the time Musescore 3.2 came out there was a clear shift in the teams mentality. I've been riding the wave ever since and have never been happier as a user. I have no doubt that within the next few years Musescore will become a true competitor even at the publisher level if not the new standard if it continues on this trajectory and I am excited to be a composer who is part of that push. Cheers. -Kaelis Ash

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Wow, that's pure gold for the community! I will try everything you suggested, thank you so much!

[@andrew_ray]

And you can use SHIFT+A through SHIFT+G in note input mode to create chords or double/triple stops.

[@blobbi]

hello! i am an amateur composer who's been using musescore for a few years by now. here's some tips. to get in and out of the note input mode, it's "n" you can click on a note/bar and then click on the desired element on the palette to just apply it you can hold down shift to select multiple bars across instruments, or ctrl to select multiple elements i'm pretty sure that if you add a "staff text', and click on the little sound button, you can get "classical phrasing" or something of that matter clicking the mixer button at the top allows you to change how instruments sound, how loud they are or where they're panned, etc. it's one of the most useful features in musescore the best thing about musescore imo is that it's free and because it's open source, it'll never go out of business. as long as people are interested in it, the community will keep on making the software better.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you! I will definitely try some shorcut

[@rijkjtwr5237]

@@amusicaljourneyYTYes, so if you want e.g. a slur that spans multiple bars, just hold shift and click on the first bar and then last bar, and then click to slur, it will automatically apply that slur for the highlighted measures. Same with dynamics and other elements. You don’t have to drag & drop, just click on a note and it will appy to that note, or hold shift and click on the bar, it will apply that element on the entire bar.

[@jeroenneve5807]

I switched to MuseScore about a year ago. What struck me the most, what the ease of use and the navigation through all the options. The user interface is well-thought out, and default engraving parameters are spot-on, as far as I can tell. (disclaimer: I enter fairly basic scores)

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

I have loved the default aesthetics! I see no reason why one should not jump right into it!

[@holton345]

I used Encore as a US Army Band music librarian for arranging. This was in 1988.

[@RoseCadenza]

I've been using MuseScore since MuseScore 2. I've never seen a program make such drastic improvements like MuseScore does and continues to surprise me every time with their updates. The MuseSounds are amazing. When it came to arranging and composing, I always used MuseScore. When MuseScore 4 came out, I actually was intimidated by the new look of everything. Once I started getting into it, it was easy from there. I always have my fingers over 4, 5, and 6. The quick key for dotted notes is the period key on your numpad. I use this all the time. Shift+S is staccato, Shift+V for accent, and Shift+N for tenuto. Pressing the 'T' key will tie your last note to the current note value you have selected for input. Selecting a range of notes and pressing the 'S' key will create a slur across those notes. Quick keys have been my best friend since I went through my college's audio engineering program.

[@gibsonbe1]

Thank you for this review. I have been a Finale user since 1993. My students are MuseScore users so I write my comments on their assignments in MuseScore but have never tried to use it myself. I believe I will make the transition. It may be a slow transition but it is great to know that this option is available.

[@suestreet9934]

For anyone starting N is your friend - switches between new writing and editing

[@kurboe283]

You can even just press the key equivalent to the note you want without pressing n to get writing immediately! Just make sure you're on the correct part of your score first hehe

[@StockhausenFan7]

I can *feel* your comments about the viola - it's probably one of my biggest complaints about MuseScore

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

I see, so it wasn't a random thing, it's A thing!

[@StockhausenFan7]

@@amusicaljourneyYT Yes, to the point that when I'm composing ysing MuseScore I generally use the older, uglier soundfont that doesn't have this problem

[@yoavshati]

You can adjust it in the mixer (top-center of the screen next to the parts button, or F10)

[@StockhausenFan7]

I know, but it's annoying and imprecise, this should just work ou[ of thr bow

[@stevhard]

​@@StockhausenFan7Me too...

[@Lucius_Chiaraviglio]

This is a really good introduction, the first one I have seen of somebody actually using the program, let alone learning how to use it on the fly. And the string quintet sounds quite nice too.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you! 🙏

[@lennyrothbart]

Love the way you did this review - jumping in cold & just seeing what you could figure out intuitively in real time - exactly the way I would have done it. I've never used Musescore & at this point have invested a fair amount of time to learning Dorico, but it's good to know about this.

[@PitchWheel]

Bello trovare youtuber italiani che fanno vera musica! Grazie!

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Ma grazie, davvero!!!

[@joshuaharper372]

I have been a Finale user for more than 20 years, and i am trying to decide whether to pay for Dorico, or whether the free MuseScore will be sufficient. Free is a strong selling point, and I don't need a lot of unusual modern notation capabilities, just regular common practice scoring.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

That's exactly the case of so many former Finale users... If I try to take a look at the future I see Musescore improving a lot and becoming even more serious. Today, it is already a really valid option

[@timothywilliams1359]

I switched from Finale to Musescore about five years ago. Best decision I have ever made. I see no reason to pay for Dorico. Musescore does everything I need it to do.

[@bonuebonue]

@joshuaharper372 I recommend Dorico, it is simply the best out there: you will not regret it and will thank you me later (and the Dorico team)! And also Dorico SE is free!!!

[@kurboe283]

​@amusicaljourneyYT as I've had experience with writing contemporary classical music with musescore I will say it's quite clunky with that. If you're persistent enough and you make sure there are as few automatic layout prompts as possible, it is possible to have a satisfying score. While I will forever be indebted to musescore, "Free hand" notation isn't one of its many strong points

[@MrBasilr]

Thank you so much for this. Like you and so many others I was shocked by Finale's anouncement to the extent of isolating the programme on a separate computer and removing any connection with the internet so that it won't be thrown by software updates. I've tried Dorico and given up - it's not the way I work, or want to work, but this demonstration gives me hope and I have now downloaded Musescore.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you so much, It will take some time but I hope you will find a good workflow with Musescore

[@pneumachina]

thank you for your honest opinion. very useful and clear. and yes, this is the future. thank you again, and thank you tantacrul for musescore. you rock! 🤘

[@anderdelafuente7233]

I definitely would pay for musescore. I am amazed is still free.

[@kurboe283]

For now the most you really do pay for is the number of scores you can share online, as well as the ability to download other scores on their website. Otherwise it's completely free (for now and hopefully for a while) and there are real life workarounds for the prior pay walls!

[@kurboe283]

Aside from having to pay for the ability to download online scores and share as many as you want on the website it's completely free (at least for now and hopefully for a while)

[@RadioactiveBluePlatypus]

I think it would be impossible to make it paid.

[@dukkcc2]

free open source software is awesome, we need more developers who have that mindset of just making good software for free

[@nahblue]

@@RadioactiveBluePlatypus Well they clearly are setting up a model for getting paid somehow, with musehub and selling stuff "around" the main program

[@N3AMK]

This popped up on my feed after I arranged a piece in Finale v26. My main plan is to continue using Finale until my computers are no longer capable of running it (Finale has said they will allow activations "forever"). I only compose occasionally and mainly have it to "create" sheet music of what I play (via a MIDI keyboard). When I finally stop using Finale, I may look at Dorrico or Sibelius, however, for my skillset and use case (assuming it allows for MIDI devices) I may use Musescore. Thanks so much for the video--it's great to get an honest opinion of Musescore from someone more qualified than most of my peers.

[@WillowTitov]

Being someone who started and stuck with MuseScore for at least 12 years now, it's been immensely heartwarming to see it progress and grow, much like I and other many composers have progressed and grown along with it!

[@JMSoloBassist]

Encode! I used in in the late 90s / early 2000s. I have been using MuseScore for a couple years now, and I like it.

[@AnoshterHaar]

Musescore isn't there, yet. But it is getting closer and closer. I think for absolute bigtime users a Dorico would be a faster way to write. But as Musescore is opensource and they have recently got new leadership... They are set to dominate the scoring landscape. Just a matter of time for them to upgrade and fix all small issues and things they are still a bit behind on. But the latest update shows how much improvements are in the pipeline so I will stick to it as Dorico does have some what of a learningcurve. And I feel like in the longterm Musescore could become a way more powerfull platform due to it's rapid development and community behind it.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

I completely agree 🙏

[@Wulfhartus]

Now guys it's time to write music using LATEX !!!

[@charliecarrot]

Lilypond is basically that!

[@redyau_]

​@@charliecarrot Not usable for composing, but it's great for efficient engraving for sure.

[@christianlongobardi5438]

LaTeX is the way. The uninitiated cannot fathom

[@NarendraU23]

I love MuseScore! Tip from me would be to type the notes instead of clicking them, and you can add dynamics, tempo, articulation, etc by selecting the target (it could be a single note, multiple note, bar(s), or even multiple instruments at the same time) and then click what you want to add. That way you don't have to drag and drop all the time.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you! I'll try! The first time I wanted to use it with zero information, but I'm sure there's so much to know to improve the workflow

[@arnoeagleeyes]

Great video! I am a choir director arranging our songs in musescore...since forever. I never used finale. At sometime i tried Sibelius which i found ok too. To add to the list of tips: 1. ctrl K for adding chords, slash chords are no problem like D/F# . The chords are played by a piano, unfortunately you can not choose which inversion. 2. ctrl L for lyrics. You can use - for syllables and _ for whatsitcalled...melismas (?) 3. There is a mixer where you can adjust instruments, volumes, mute and solo. 4. Although i do not use that feature, so i cannot explain it, but you can have multiple versions of your score in one file. 5. And oh yeah....read the friendly manual ;-) Cheers.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you so much for sharing it! I will try everything you suggested 🙏

[@garybeman9497]

I too am a choir director and have tried arranging from time to time but always end up being disappointed by the limitations or sheer complexity of using notation software. I used Capella for a long time mainly because of its pricing. I am also an ex-programmer and have often wondered why our notation software isn't better or more intuitive. I am blown away by Tantacrul and his team with their approach to redesigning Musescore from essentially the ground up - actually I should say 'top-down' :) Tantacrul has a video on the (re)making of Musescore and as a programmer and musician I can honestly say this is amazing. Really inspired by this video (and of course other choral arrangers)! - I haven't been able to find much on lyric formatting, specifically alignment and adding multiple verses. And also if there is a quick way to make a piano reduction?

[@mater5930]

Musescore allowed me to explore compositional ideas I never thought I could. The sounds aren't 100% realistic, but in terms of free software, it is the absolute best!

[@xxkingalphaxxAlpha]

Hello, if you haven't already, try the muse sounds from the Muse Hub Software, it gives you at least an idea of how your composition would realistically sound like

[@michael91703]

back in high school when I first started my professor used Finale and I used Musescore, he’d get a real kick out of this now! 😂

[@JoakimMonsen]

Nice video! I’m a huge MuseScore Studio user.

[@hstanekovic]

Encore, the first music notation software I used, a long time ago! Btw you do not have to drag palette items to notes. You can first select a note and then click on the palette item. Also, you can select a range of notes (click on the first note and then shift+click on the last note) and then click on the palette, for instance to apply slur or hairpin to the range of notes.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Encore❤ Thank you, yes this was really the first time I opened the software and I knew nothing about shortcuts and all, I really wanted to test how friendly was the user interface

[@hstanekovic]

@@amusicaljourneyYT I presumed this is the situation, but anyway I wanted to give you a quick help in case you decide to continue using MuseScore.

[@geoffhurrell8478]

Excellent review, thank you.

[@Gimrison]

Encore, and many more. Thank you very much for sharing !

[@vwtrombone50]

It’s funny to hear someone mention the program Encore! I started off with that program and then moved rather quickly over to Finale, which is what I’ve been using for around 30 years. Like you, I was saddened by the demise of finale, but it’s actually exciting learning the new program Musescore! There are some things that are still hard for me to find at first, but these are small hurdles to jump. I feel like in the long run, MuseScore will outlast all of the other programs due to both ease of learning and of course, the free price point. Enjoyed the video.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you!!! I completely agree with you! 🙏

[@gardengit]

Great video !! And your string quintet is a beautiful composition, just really liked this score and I forgot about the main purpose of the video sometimes…😁I compose for the classical guitar only, and I publish my work for a great danish edition specialized on classical guitar. I never used Finale, always Sibelius, since 2002, Version 2. It scared me a little when the news came Finale is quitting, and I felt very sorry for a lot of my friends and colleagues who put enormous energy and time in this program…so I felt the same will happen to Sibelius, maybe not in the near future…but you never know. So I also layed my hand on musescore 4 now and I was really surprised…shocked somewhow !! This tool is free and it’s amazing. I wish I would have this in my twenties. And you have to keep in mind that of course some things that musescore is not capable now, (there are some issues with final layout for publishing which a program like Sibelius handles easily) will be fixed soon, this program will get better with every update, 3-4 was a milestone. So this is a TRUE competitor for the two remaining big ones and will take a huge role in the near future…

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you so much! That's what I hope and I'm pretty confident that MuseScore will be developed so much in the next versions. You're right, these are just tools, music is our primary goal here!

[@kurboe283]

Hey really interesting background! Young composer here having used MS all my life, could you elaborate on your thoughts of the final layout system? I'm interested to understand more about it

[@cannongeorge]

30+ year user of Finale. Thank you for your video! I went with the Dorico upgrade path and GAWD! that program has an overly-complicated installation and licensing process. A very steep learning curve and after two weeks in I'm not happy with how slowly I'm learning how to use it. I really wish Dorico (and MuseScore, for that matter) will offers seminars for past Finale users at the 2025 NAMM Anaheim show!

[@NotAHandle125]

John Barron at Dorico does live webinars every month and has done 2 so far for former Finale users. They are posted on the KZbin Channel. Last week there was one for Percussion and drum set notation. In the Coming weeks they are looking at Vocal and Choral music, Handbells, Chord symbols diagrams and lead sheets and then Guitar notation and Tab.

[@ÉdouardStrasbourg]

I actually use musescore since more than a year and I love it!

[@themike97_58]

I haven't used finale in probably 15+ years, but i shed a small tear hearing that it was getting killed.

[@raztube90]

So you were in a note entry mode press esc to get out of it first …then you can select everything with out adding random notes everywhere …

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

@@raztube90 That's right, I figured it out later! Thank you!!!

[@Dave1507]

n works both ways, enter the mode, as well as exiting it.

[@raidensama1511]

This is very similar to computer programmers that use vim enter an input mode and use escape to return to a “normal” mode.

[@stevekeller4814]

ENCORE!!!! I used to work as a programmer on Encore, and I was sorry to leave the company (Passport Designs) but it was obviously going downhill and I moved on. I have occasionally used MuseScore in the past few years, but am now mostly using Sibelius. Since I write jazz music, for big bands and smaller groups, my needs are a little different. My composition teacher/mentor recommends Sibelius, and I just started using it this year; I am very happy with it. I wrote a big band piece using Dorico about a year ago and found some things great and some not so great (the whole concept of flows eludes me still…). Very nice video, I look forward to more from you.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you! It's great to hear that you worked on Encore! That software helped me so much on my first steps into composition 🎶

[@MikeMoroneyNZ]

I bought Encore back in the early 90s - operated from a DOS prompt and loaded its own UI. It was slow and clunky but I became quite productive on it. I abandoned it when it wouldn't run on my first Windows machine.

[@ataricom]

Encore! I remember looking for notation software around y2k-01 when I was still in middle school to transcribe stuff to play on my alto sax! There were the big two of Finale and Sibelius that we were prohibitively expensive, as well as a handful of other options like Amadeus and whatever my school's Mac lab had installed at the time. Encore, if I remember right, had a free demo that could print, so that was enough for me.

[@carminepastore3274]

Encore! Wow that is a blast from the past. Encore was the first notation program I had ever used. Unfortunately the company called it quits? After Encore I tried every notation program under the sun. Now I have been using Musescore 4. I own Dorico and Notion but I like working with new Musescore along with Staffpad.

[@recstoppauseplay]

Yes, I started with Encore, then Finale and now will probably go on with MuseScore. 'Preparing for the learning curve! Very nice composition by the way!

[@davidunwin7868]

I found a few hours on Musescore and I picked it up very quickly using the keyboard (letters) and numpad and I haven't used Finale in about 20 years. The only frustrating thing I had with Musescore was tied and slurred notes. You almost have to think ahead before you get to them that was tricky but eventually you get the hang of it.

[@Tacoccino]

Encore! I do remember trying Encore when I was starting out composition. At the time, I no idea what music notation software people used. I remember using Noteworthy Composer for a little (which was more of a MIDI sequencer with notation functions - it was pretty bad looking back. But got me into writing music at least lol). After that, I gave Finale, Musescore, and Sibelius a try, and stuck with Sibelius for 10 or so years. Last year, I made a full transition to Musescore and been loving it ever since. I keep Sibelius around for old scores. Also been trying out Dorico lately (though I don’t really intend to switch now. Just wanted to try it to get an opinion).

[@vbertrand]

I did use Encore, some 30 years ago maybe. Discovered Musescore at least 10 years ago. It came a long way (meaning : it was barely usable when it first came out).

[@dgrjazz]

After years and years of Finale not getting any better but in a way getting worse because they never fix anything but they keep adding new features. That’s not really what I was looking for especially since I had to pay $100 or so every year for an upgrade. Then I was taking a class in music theory with 20 other students, most of whom were using PCs and MuseScore. So even before Finale made its announcement, I was already learning MuseScore, which I have found easier to use. Plus it has the features that I need for my projects which for work are mostly “Leadsheets”. Leadsheets are more or less simple but require both chords and lyrics. Thank you for the video.

[@AndromedaCripps]

I may be incorrect but I believe that you can port in your text fonts and posssssibly even your notation fonts from Finale to Musescore. Since they are files saved on your computer frok having Finale, they can be selected in the settings for a score iirc. At least the text font can!

[@Corredor1230]

I had to learn Sibelius as a composition undergrad, and it was really tough. I struggled a lot at first, but by the end of it, I was writing my entire graduation piece extremely quickly. However, at some point, I decided to try Musescore after it had been revamped for 4.0 and man was I not disappointed. It really feels like a better designed tool (at least better than Sibelius, I never tried Finale). Wish it would've been at this stage while I was an undergrad student.

[@jccheloven]

Hi, a former Sibelius user here. Switched to MuseScore since version 2, and found it ... sufficient. Version 4 is awesome IMO. Regarding your little experiment, it would have been wiser to watch some 10 min tutorial in advance. Man, the "N" thing alone (enter/exit the note input mode) would have save you half of the time. And of course, the quick'n'dirty mouse based approach is not the way. Using the computer keyboard or a midi keyboard is way faster and less prone to forearm injuries. Liked to hear Do-Re-Mi etc :-) Cheers! JC

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Yes! I like to call the notes by their Italian name, this is how I know them and it's a lot easier to sing! You're right, but that was exactly the purpose, to try and see how intuitive the user interface really is. Cheers to you!

[@jkrause365]

Back in the early 2000s I downloaded a freeware music notation program called MusEdit. In comparison, Musescore seems like a more sophisticated version of my old MusEdit. Some of the techniques and keyboard/mouse usages seem nearly identical.

[@esendraga]

As a choir singer we use musescore. But I use to export as xml and then open the score in Melody (Myriad). Then I hear syntetic voices singing the piece. Voices are quite robotic, but you can tweak the voice parameters for a little better results. Being not proffesionals a good and free music app is perfect for us. Thank you for your video.

[@fg87fgd]

Hi Damiano, your major problems when changing things lie in the "enter mode" (a highlighted arrow in the top left. You escape it by hitting the "Esc" key. Other tricks worth mentioning: a rest is entered by hitting "0". So many other keyboard shortcuts are worth mentioning if you want to get fast. Let's begin with "c" for note c, etc. "." for dotted notes ("6" "." "0" = dotted half rest). "s" for slur", "t" for tie. Apple option key + number for intervall, Appl command key + number for division of selected note value (e.g. "5" for quarters CMD+"7" for eights septoles), etc. And maybe you get yourself a cheap MIDI keyboard, especially for chords and barocque lines it saves you hours...

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Hi! The purpose of the video was exactly to try the program without instructions, without a keyboard, without reading the manual or watching a tutorial and see what happens. Thank you for your suggestions, I will try them!

[@GeodesicBruh]

The finale of finale....

[@garybeman9497]

Thank you for making this video and highlighting how intuitive the process can be. I love your composition too, that is definitely a bonus! This new version of Musescore has inspired me to start composing again, the thought and effort that has gone into the redesign should be a lesson to all software developers! :)

[@DarkSideofSynth]

Innanzitutto: complimenti per la composizione, gran bel quintetto! Secondo: vedrai che prenderai facilmente la mano con MS. N per (dis)attivare l'inserimento delle note, era ancora attivo quando tetanti disperatamente di modificare il tempo ;) Il programma ha fatto davvero passi da gigante, specie dopo l'ingresso di Martin (Tantacrul). Buona musica!

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Ciao, ti ringrazio!!! Si, questa cosa della N, se la sai, cambia tutto!

[@JanCarlComposer]

As a MuseScore user for years, I tried but couldn't get into Sibelius, Finale and Dorico, but that may be due to the steep learning curve you mentioned. For me, MuseScore felt more intuitive.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

You're right, when I started with Finale years ago it was so hard to get used to... My first hour with MuseScore felt way easier

[@rosiefay7283]

LilyPond meets all your music notation needs. Its font looks professional. Its layout engine does a good job of laying a reasonable amount of music on the page (some other engines cheat by putting the staves too far apart). And it's plain text, so you can input using the best method --- typing at a normal keyboard in a text editor of your choice.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you, I will take a look at LilyPond too!

[@johaquila]

Also very important: Frescobaldi is an excellent IDE for LilyPond. LilyPond + Frescobaldi together are comparable in usability to MuseScore, once you have learned LilyPond, which admittedly takes a greater effort than learning MuseScore. LilyPond has a steeper learning curve than MuseScore in the beginning, but a shallower one later and more possibilities for advanced use and perfectionists. The main technical disadvantage of LilyPond is that in terms of Music exchange formats it's almost a dead end. Basically you can export only PDF and MIDI, but not e.g. MusicXML. On the other hand, MuseScore can import from the PDFs exported by LilyPond. Here is essentially how the notes from the beginning of this video are entered in LilyPond (on the left-hand side in Frescobaldi, while the score is displaed on the right-hand side), assuming the use of Dutch pitch names (selected with \language "nederlands"), which are a nice international compromise: \clef treble \key bes \time 2/2 \partial 4 bes4 | a2. bes 4 | g2. a4 | f2. g4 | es2 c4 bes' | bes a d2 | ... There would be a bit more boiler plate for setting up the voice lines, the title of the piece etc., but this gives a good idea of the core entry format that you need to learn for LilyPond. Everything else you can just look up as you need it, or copy from a similar previous piece. "bes" is the Dutch name for b flat. With \language "english" you would write "bf" or "b-flat" instead. With \language "german" you would write "b" instead. ("b" is German for b flat; German for "b" is "h". This is why "b a c h" is German for "b-flat a c b".) The most surprising bit is probably _bes'_ in the penultimate line. There is no 4 because it is redundant. If you don't include the time, it's the same as the previous note. And there is an apostrophe (1 apostrophe) because the note is 1 octave higher than the one closest to the previous note. It would be _bes,,_ if it were 2 octaves lower than the previous note. The separation into lines is completely optional. The bar separators are also optional, but they help reading the text and help LilyPond produce warnings if something is wrong about the rhythm.

[@VivekPatel-ze6jy]

15:09 at this point I wouldve selected that bar for all the instruments and placed the dynamic into all of them. Considering that you knew nothing about the software and did trial and error, I'm impressed how far you got

[@ramiroruiz.musica]

I used Encore. I met this program thanks to my first piano teacher (who still uses it 😅). Then when I studied composition at the University they taught me to use Finale. I tried Musescore and Sibelius but never changed to them. At least for now.

[@Harald-yd2bb]

Hello! I used Encore in the past and I appeciated it very much. Now I use Sibelius. It has a lot useful and easy to use functions. But sometimes it is not soo easy to find the function you want to use.

[@c3drox240]

Nice video, I really liked musescore a lot, but after working more and more with different DAWs, I am thinking of switching to Dorico. What is your opinion on Dorico, and maybe it is possible to you, to make a review of it when you have the time?

[@Anirudh20]

I was searching for ages to find a good notation software and also a tutorial on how to actually compose and use the tools to write orchestral music. Thank you so much for putting in so much time of yours to put out a Great video like this. Looking forward to many videos with Musescore and you speaking about the details on how to use dynamics, articulations in the right way ahead❤

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you so much for your beautiful comment! Yes, sure, I can definitely think of making other videos about MuseScore, thanks! 🙏

[@BryanLu0]

Musescore has some tutorials on their KZbin channel about how to use the software

[@kristian.kalmanlehto]

I have been using MuseScore for many years and must say it has got up to a huge level. I was using Sibelius previously, but this notation software was more convenient and I didn’t need to hammer on the number pad anymore. The latest update of the sound library was really fascinating and it sounds like a real song lacking only the lyrics to be sang too. I mostly right vocal music, but also for classical guitar.

[@electricwheelchair]

I also used Encore but can hardly remember what it was like. This must have been in my Soundblaster 16 + Waveblaster module time. I've dabbled in Sibelius and finally bought a license for Harmony Assistant. That last one has a horrible interface but it was very powerful and had a singing synthesizer module which was the reason I bought it. But now it's MuseScore all the way.

[@mannycepeda1]

I used Encore a lot. I was a US Navy Bandleader, and almost 80% of my arrangements were done with Encore. I still have Encore 5!

[@MauroPanigada]

Lilypond, eventually with Frescobaldi as frontend… That has a «steep learning curve» :) … In my attempts at "editing" music, I never had the chance to use "serious" software like Finale or Sibelius. I have tried some free software, musescore included, and always found something odd in the way they handle the insertions/editing of notes. I was accustomed to an Amiga software called DMCS (Deluxe Music Construction Set), in my memory it made it really easy. Anyway, so far, not too bad.

[@MelonyPexed]

I never even know that you could drag things from the palette I always learned by clicking on the note or multiple notes and then just clicking on the palette

[@RodWilliams-m7r]

Encore was good for me and I was mad when it disappeared.

[@Mrphilharmonic]

I found muse score (studio) amazingly intuitive and pretty easy to learn. Just randomly messing about can lead to some great things too!

[@george-f9g1c]

I am still using finale 2011 even though I got a updated finale several years ago. Based on your herein presentation, will definitely use Musescore in the future. I just hope that it has organ files ;-D

[@carbonmonoxide5052]

The viola volume and first violin portamento are common issues. If you press F10, it’ll bring up the audio mixer where you can increase the viola volume and change the violin 1 to the violin 2 soundfont. It’s quieter, but it doesn’t use the excessive portamento.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Thank you, I'll try!

[@mrcheese3981]

That reminds me of an old viola joke: How do you make a viola player play tremolo? Write a long sustained note and write "solo" above it. 😆

[@TomSwanPlaysGuitar]

I spent a great deal of time learning Finale, and I got good results, but found it tedious to use. Then I discovered Lilypond. Maybe it’s not for everyone but for me Lilypond is like having an intelligent virtual assistant that can learn a song and then produce a beautifully engraved score almost as if by magic. Lilypond, not a cad-like graphics tool but rather a scripting language for music engraving, deserves serious consideration as an alternative for disappointed Finale fans. Lilypond is also 100% free. If I wanted a graphical program, however, Musescore would be my top choice. It is very well written software that has come a long way and deserves support as found in your informative video.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

I will take a look at Lilypond, thank you!

[@thepianoplayer416]

As a MuseScore user myself, there are several ways to input notes. Putting the pointer over the line or space on the staff to place a note is the slowest way to enter notes. A faster way that I find is using letters of the alphabet A-G. This is not very precise. If you want a higher or lower G you press [Ctrl] and the up or down arrow. The fastest way is probably plug in a MIDI keyboard and use the keys to enter the notes. The first time learning MuseScore takes some getting used to. Is started out using the "slowest" way to enter notes. After a while I discovered faster ways to do the same job.

[@leworthin]

Encore. I probably still have my old music in that file format saved in the cloud for historic fun. I've been using Musescore for a while and it was interesting when you struggled with the tempo. I've been there, and I wanted to whisper hints.

[@ProfRonanMC]

We should be more than grateful for MuseScore. And by that I mean support this fantastic project. Get a pro membership. Go on. Show your appreciation!

[@chloejackson-reynolds444]

The company that gets the money from the pro membership is completely different to the company that makes the scores donate to the open source project instead

[@ProfRonanMC]

@@chloejackson-reynolds444 I didn't know that! Thank you - I'll go donate!

[@MagnusEhinger01]

I used Enore in tje early 1990’s to write scires for my singinging group!

[@bvino-rosso1913]

I also used encore by passport. It was simple to use but had issues with midi devices as the further development stopped.

[@serhii-ratz]

Lilypond is a way to go :)

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Lilypond appears so many times in the comments... I have to take a look at it

[@Jinkaza1882]

All of the music/noise I have written is in Finale! 😮‍💨😓

[@ximotur]

I did start with Musictime. Encore was already a big improvement for me 😂

[@jomtien123]

Ah yes Encore, I used it I think back in the 90's. Cubase, Dorico and maybe a few others have a thing called Expression Map where you can laterally map any textual input to a MIDI control number, so if you have a VST that can swap sounds of the same note i.e.. pizz., mute, tremolo , you can teach it to read your text as instruction to send the correct MIDI control byte to switch to the sound in the text. I find this very powerful feature. Maybe in future versions of Musescore ;)?

[@tombee389]

Great demo of the system thanks

[@clifflexmiddleton]

Encore, brother!

[@stuartnorman8713]

My late composition teacher, Jack Jarrett, created Notion. Many friends liked it, but it didn't survive. I couldn't use it because it wasn't supported on Linux. I'm impressed by MuseScore, though.

[@tubbums32]

yeah it's 100% worth it to take 20-30 minutes to learn the hotkeys. it won't take you long til you're sooo much faster and more efficient with your workflow.

[@connorericksonmusic]

I really enjoy MuseScore, but I just never fell in love the same way I did with Sibelius. I just find it easier in my personal opinion to use Sibelius and that there are by far more options to work with. Wishing the best for MuseScore though.

[@erobertlord3138]

I used Encore to transcribe my choir director's compositions then switched to Smartscore when Encore went moribund. Had to convert some of his scores to native Finale for submission to some publishers as they didn't want hard copy and never found the program easy to work with. Of course transcribing choral compositions, less spacing compromises forced onto pieces by lyrics, is far simpler than full orchestral arrangements .

[@daved9665]

@amusicjourney - Using a trackball saves my shoulder muscles from extreme fatigue. And about the tempo, I had trouble with that too, 😅LOL, because I kept clicking on the playback tempo in the corner, rather than selecting the one on the page.

[@Misterthe13]

It's the finale for finale!

[@1827641]

I do remember using Encore

[@user-ge2vc3rl1n]

musescore does have its quirks just like any other music editing software. I'm sure you've ran into issues where you've had to change something that the developers seemingly didn't think was important. I remember having many issues in Finale. I don't necessarily think musescore is better than finale, but it is nice that it's free. I consider it an equivalent.

[@stevenkelly1689]

I used Encore in college when we were supposed to use Finale on iMacs in the computer lab. I could never figure out Finale so I did all my assignments on Encore and then moved to Sibelius when it came out.

[@brianjigins]

I did use encore in the beginnings of 2000s maybe finals of 90s even , first notation software I Knew, was life changing to hear what I was notating even with those quaternary MiDI sounds 😅

[@se6369]

Is Noteworthy composer any good? Also, I see this one puts the menu bar in the title bar at the top, can you turn that off and seperate them?

[@manuelvicente9614]

Encore was my fisrt tool, next I tried finale and sibelius but Musescore was my choice, not only by the price, it’s so easy that my students can learn how to use it in only 2 hours

[@_Chuvisco_]

Encore was the simplest! It served me for many years for medium type works.

[@ZachBrungard]

I liked using Musescore, but I think the future replacemnt to Finale is Dorico. I've been using Dorico for the last couple of months and have been loving it. Very professional look and premium features.

[@rikp]

My first music software in 1994 was the stripped-down version of Encore called MusicTime Deluxe.

[@amusicaljourneyYT]

Wow, I have never heard of it!

[@DerailedThought]

I personally like Noteworthy Composer... may have to check Musescore out sometime... when I have time.

[@nonameforareason]

The problem with MuseScore is specially up to modern Notation; i've been waiting 30(!!!) years to find a notation program to write music the Brian Ferneyhough-style; nested tuplets/tuplets across barlines/clusters etc., even with Finale it was a pain and also in Sibelius, in both (and in MuseScore too) it's only working with „tricks“, only visual, so you even have a wrong rhythmic playback after hours of work. So i must admit that Dorico is THE FIRST and only scoring program that handles all of this OUT OF THE BOX with absolutely no playback-issues. So after using the scoring inside Logic (i use it since version 1.0 back in 1993) for the easy things, cause Logic's notation features are more advanced than many people think, and using Finale for the complex stuff i completely switched to Dorico and don't regret any penny i've spent for it. I highly recommend it for modern composers who need a fast workflow. (I'm NOT getting payed by Steinberg for saying this, haha)

[@robinthomsoncomposer]

Go for 2nd generation notation software Dorico Pro blows away Finale Sibelius and MuseScore

[@wolfgangwiesinger9502]

Hi. Does this software runs midichannels to trigger some synthesizers ?