[Dixielandjazz] Sibellius or Finale or Encore?

[Luís Henriques]

Hi there,

some years ago (10, maybe) I used Finale and it was quite easy to use
and worked just fine for me.  However, I stopped using Windows and had
to find some alternatives for Finale in Gnu/Linux.  The best solution I
found is named Lilypond (I think you can used also on Windows).  It is a
free software alternative (GPL licence) and it can generated several
formats (I use PDF and midi outputs).

There is a problem, however: it is very hard to start using it!  Not
because it is difficult to use (it is not!) but because it is completly
different from anything else you may know.  Basically, you write some
text files with lots of keywords containing the notes, the chords, the
lyrics, etc.  Then, you "compile" it and generate an output file (for
example, a PDF with the trumpet or the clarinet part).

The link to lilypond is: http://www.lilypond.org

Warning: the learning-curve for using lilypond-like software may be
high!  It is, however, worth to try it.

Regards.

On 10 Out 2005, jazzmin at actcom.net.il wrote:
> Shalom Jazz fans,
>
> I still need a bit of help on the question of which direction to go in my
> next music composition software upgrade. Encore 4.2  indeed does not work on
> my new rig with Win XP. If I buy the new Encore for $400, I basically get
> the same capabilities I already had, but it works in XP. I have tried Finale
> before, but only a scaled down trial version, and I didn't like it. That was
> about 4 years ago. Never tried Sibellius.
>
> Questions:
>
> 1.  I have my entire Dr Jazz Band repertoire in Encore files as well as
> other material I use to teach. Do either of the other two read Encore files?
>
> 2.  What significant improvements might there be in Sibellius or Finale over
> Encore?
>
> 3. Can any of them save files to PDF or a graphics format that can be
> emailed to players?
>
> 4. Is there any place to buy any of these programs at a significant savings
> off the retail price?
>
> Thank you for any help anyone can offer from this great list.
>
> Elazar
> Dr. Jazz Dixieland Band
> Tekiya Trumpet Ensemble
> Jerusalem, Israel
> www.israel.net/ministry-of-jazz
> +972-2-679-2537
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-- 
Luís Henriques