Finale Notepad...Is it any good?

So my 16th birthday is coming up and I decided I wanted some music notation software. Then I saw the prices for both Sibelius and Finale.

*jaw drops*

No way are my parents going to buy me one. They don't even want to send me back to piano lessons even if it doesn't cost that much!...Anyway...so I stumbled upon finale notepad, downloaded it, and ooh la la! I'm now putting my music into actual sheet music!...But the real question is...Is this just as good as all the other software you actually have to pay for?

...Is [Notepad] just as good as all the other software you actually have to pay for?

It's a good starting point. It's essentially a heavily crippled version of the full software. SO many things you can't do...but, at the same time, many things that you can. For many purposes - especially those of a beginner, it's adequate.

It's a good starting point and will start you on the right path - preparing you for when you finally do get some 'real' software.

You can use Finale as a beginner to an advanced composer, but the features aren't as good for when you're advanced, or you can use a program like Cubase, but that won't be good for a beginner and only good for someone advanced with all the professional equipment.

What I think is that you should get Finale, and wait and see if you want to choose composing as a career or not, and if you do, then you can get a more advanced program.

Please differentiate between Finale and Finale Notepad. They're two VERY different softwares. Finale, being possibly the MOST powerful and professional notation software available. Notepad, being the free, stripped-down teaser.

:musicwhistle:

hahaha teaser. well, I DO want to be a film scorer when I'm older but I'm seriously a little novice when it comes to composing so Finale Notepad is pretty satisfactory to me. :)

I used Noteworthy composer a few years ago, while it was easy to use, it was VERY crippled. However, it worked for me at the time. As my musical knowledge expanded, though, I started checking out other notation programs and for a short period of time composed with paper and pencil again.

In my opinion, Sibelius looked great but it took me a long time to get used to. I didn't think it was exactly what I wanted. Plus, it wasn't free. That's when I found Finale Notepad.

Finale NotePad is great. I used it for two years before buying the full-fledged Finale, though. I would recommend Finale NotePad for the beginner, but after using it for a while, you will want Finale Print Music or Finale.

When I used NotePad, I was working closely with the musicians playing my music, so I was able to make changes to the music as they played it and sometimes just ended up using it for sketches.

I still use NotePad on my laptop and my other computers, but on my main computer I use the full Finale. NotePad really helps me if I get an idea or need to make changes to a score and print out new copies during a rehearsal.

Notepad isn't bad if you want to open .MUS files. It's the best option available if you don't have Finale. After that, there's really not that much you can do with Notepad. One thing that's bothersome is that you can't change keys throughout a piece. That's what really irked me.

But, as already mentioned, it's not bad for beginners, or for assignments.

Cubase - http://www.musiciansbuy.com/mmMBCOM/images/motifxs_cubase4.jpg

:blink: Are you serious? What is all that crap?! Please, because I'd love to see it - using Cubase: engrave and print professional looking parts for a simple string quartet.

I'm not going to get dragged into this again.

agreed... notation and sequencing are two very different things.

Use notepad, and if you don't miss anything, well, perfect! No need to pay for anything you don't need. The question of whether to actually buy a more expensive program only becomes relevant when you notice there are some things you simply can't do with notepad which you want to do.

And because Songjun already apologized in his sig, I'm not commenting on that. :P

What NO one seems to be bringing up is this: yes Notepad is free, and limited...

But you said you are 16?

Which means you are in school right now.

Which ALSO means you are eligible for the student discount on all teh Finale-family products.

Finale is the top-of-the-line programme that MakeMusic publishes, however, they also have a number of less expensive (and add on your student discount - wow!) software packages, from which you can VERY easily upgrade to the full-version of Finale for a reduced cost.

QcCowboy is right. Finale is out of reach for most kids, so my favorite alternative is

Finale PrintMusic

It has a lot of the functionality of Finale, and it's a fraction of the cost. WIthout a discount it's 60-70 dollars, but if you have a music teacher you know buy it, it's half that cost.

Arguing over a forum is dumb.

(John Cleese voice): Yes, it is.

*clears throat* yeah...anyway...haha

What NO one seems to be bringing up is this: yes Notepad is free, and limited...

But you said you are 16?

Which means you are in school right now.

Which ALSO means you are eligible for the student discount on all teh Finale-family products.

Finale is the top-of-the-line programme that MakeMusic publishes, however, they also have a number of less expensive (and add on your student discount - wow!) software packages, from which you can VERY easily upgrade to the full-version of Finale for a reduced cost.

well, technically I'm 15 but yes, I'm still in school! (hooray for education! :toothygrin:) Wow...discounts AND upgrading?? awesome! Soooo...if I don't like Finale Notepad ... I should just get Finale Songwriter? I've heard of others, but I can't really tell which would suit me better.

I've heard of others, but I can't really tell which would suit me better.

Try them all and pick the one you like. Doesn't hurt to just try

Oh, and i recommend PrintMusic.

PrintMusic says you can have sheet music up to 24 staves. To me, that sounds kinda short. Or is that just me? What if I've come up with a 7 minute piece and it needs like 50 staves or something?

PrintMusic says you can have sheet music up to 24 staves. To me, that sounds kinda short. Or is that just me? What if I've come up with a 7 minute piece and it needs like 50 staves or something?

24 staves:

2 flutes

2 oboes

2 clarinets

2 bassoons

(that makes 4)

4 horns

3 trumpets

3 trombones and tuba

(that makes an extra 6)

timpani

a couple of percussion

(2-4 more staves)

a string section

(5 staves)

That makes a total of around 19 staves for a full symphony orchestra.

Even my very largest work, for double chorus, full symphony with woodwinds by 3s, piano, harp, and massive percussion section, doesn't take up 50 staves.

Are you maybe confusing the term "staves" with "systems"?

systems??? oh gosh..haha never mind then. you explained the whole "stave" thing perfectly for me, cowboy. haha thank you. :)

Oh, I have another problem. How do you attach a finale notepad file here? I'm struggling with a composition and I want others to analyze it but I can't seem to upload it.

systems??? oh gosh..haha never mind then. you explained the whole "stave" thing perfectly for me, cowboy. haha thank you. :)

Oh, I have another problem. How do you attach a finale notepad file here? I'm struggling with a composition and I want others to analyze it but I can't seem to upload it.

Save it as a .MUS file (which is the default format) and upload it as provided for in the new topic screen

I'll just add my 2 cents-

When I first started composing, I used Finale Notepad. While it is, very limited, its not bad. However, I very soon was wanting something more. I researched the products and tried the demos and found that I like Sibelius a heck of a lot more. I found it a lot easier to get straight to the music and the page view is a lot clearer. With the student discount, it wasn't that unaffordable and my work output pretty much quadrupled. A professional program is definately worth it, in my opinion. And if you do decide to go for a full fledged product, I would suggest not taking anyone's word for it. Try them out, see which one works best for you.

Just my thoughts, take them for what you will. ;)

Writing by hand always is a possibility too. (And I know many professionally published scores in handwriting that look great.) Lots of my pieces have never found their way into the computer. And many of my teachers don't even know how to use a music notation program :P

You know a pretty descent notation software for $60 is Score Writer from Genie soft. Cake walk used to cary it but they sold it to geniesoft. They now have Score writer 4. I had score writer 1 and I loved it. I now Have finale 2007 and it's great and all but there are things I miss from Score writer. So I think it'll be right up your alley of what you are looking for.Music Notation Software from GenieSoft

The best thing about notepad is, it's free to download. It can do most basic things but lacks when trying to put together a score.