Free Alternative

Regarding my previous post about Finale Notepad: apparently there is a free alternative to this that I was unaware of. Many thanks to user "toemaz" who commented on my post about Finale, informing me about the free version. It's called MuseScore. I haven't had a chance to try it out myself so I will quote the comment.

toemaz said...

Hi Geoff,

There is a free alternative for Finale Notepad which is called MuseScore. There is a nice list of the differences between Finale Notepad and MuseScore: http://www.musescore.org/en/comparing-musescore-and-finale-notepad-feature-feature

You can download the upcoming 0.9.5 version at http://www.musescore.org/en/node/2078

July 28, 2009 8:15 PM

Music Notation Software

In my previous post, I covered a blank sheet music generator called Blanksheetmusic.net. This is a great tool for blank sheet music, yes, but what if you need more? Finale Notepad 2009 is a hyper-charged version of this and is excellent in its ability to notate music. With this program, you have access to a wide variety of different tools to get music from your head, to the paper. The most handy feature that I have found is the ability to play back the music. For example, you write down the score for "Mary Had a Little Lamb," but you want to hear the music to make sure you didn't make any mistakes. So you hit the play button and it plays the song rigt back for you! You can even choose from many different instruments to get the sound you want. Unfortunatley, it is about $10 for a download, but the trial version is what I have used in the past, and it has worked great.

http://www.finalemusic.com/notepad/

~Geoff~

Sheet Music

Hello, everyone. Today I came across a great tool for generating blank sheet music. Its called BlankSheetMusic.net. If you need to quickly jot something down on paper that you though of in your head, I would recommend having this site handy. However, if you are more interested in composing a song for a whole orchestra, this isn't for you. If writing long, more advanced notation is for you, I will cover some other software that will help you get the job done. In the meantime, BlankSheetMusic.net allows you to add in Key Signature and Time Signature and plenty of other music notating essentials. When your done formatting the page how you want it, you can print it to a printer or an XPS document to save on your computer. Best regards.

~Geoff~

More About Backing Tracks

I wrote yesterday about the use of backing tracks to play along with a popular song that you like. But what if you want to jam along with something you wrote? Making your own backing tracks can be a tricky task, even with a quality equipment setup. For this, there is Jam Studio.com. Similar to Apples Garageband, Jam Studio.com allows you to piece together the song you want to create, chord by chord. Theres plenty of instruments to choose from and many different modes, also. What I mean by modes is that you can choose the drum beat, or the strum pattern for the guitar, or the rythm for the piano. Unfortunatley, you have to pay to save your work as an MP3 file. But with a free account, you can still save your song on their website and listen to it whenever you have an internet connection. Also, the user interface is very useable and bogus-free. Have fun.

~Geoff~

Looking For Backing Tracks?

If you search Youtube for any popular song, chances are you will find a singer or guitarist or whatever doing their own cover of the song. Many guitarist choose to play lead with what is called a "backing track," which is the song they are playing minus the instrument of their choice. It is essentialy a "karaoke" version of the song, but not in a bar with the cheesy singers. Anyways, there are a myriad of websites to find backing tracks to along with your lead guitar playing, or singing, or anything. Guitar Backing Track.com has been the most useful for me, whether I want to record a track, or just have fun and jam along. They have a wide range of songs to play along with, just look at the "Popular Backing Track" list on the site.

Enjoy!

~Geoff~