daemon@BARTOK.ENG.SUN.COM (10/07/89)
Music-Research Digest Sat, 7 Oct 89 Volume 4 : Issue 57
Today's Topics:
Encore and other scoring programs for the Mac (2 msgs)
Looking for CalArts people
Sequencer File Formats: HELP
*** Send contributions to Music-Research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
*** Send administrative requests to Music-Research-Request
*** Overseas users should reverse UK addresses and give gateway if necessary
*** e.g. Music-Research@prg.oxford.ac.uk
*** or Music-Research%prg.oxford.ac.uk@nsfnet-relay.ac.uk
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 22 Sep 89 04:57:05 GMT
From: Allyn Weaks <ogccse!blake!allyn@edu.ucsd>
Subject: Encore and other scoring programs for the Mac
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
I just got a catalog from Passport today, and there's a 2 page blurb for
Encore, a scoring program for the Mac. (One of the pages is a sample
printout of something simple enough that Concertware or DMCS could do a
decent job of it.) Does anyone know anything about it? Is it shipping?
Has anyone seen it? From the specs listed it looks like it's aimed
somewhere between Professional Composer and Finale. List price is $600, so
it will probably be available for about $400 if MacZone decides to carry
it. (They carry other Passport programs, and Finale for $475).
And speaking of score programs for the Mac, is there anything at the high
end other than Finale, Pro Composer, HB Music Engraver, NoteWriter II, and
now Encore? I'm researching them for a composer friend, and I've looked
extensively at all of them except Encore, and they aren't a pretty sight.
Finale is the only one with any power, and even it leaves out some real
essentials, such as staggered barlines when using different meters in
different staves. Or even being able to leave out bar lines on just one of
the staves. Aside from the sheer ugliness of the interface, I really
object to Finale's assumption that a measure is the basic data structure of
music, thereby making the most trivial operations painful, and some
impossible.
So, are there any programs out, or due to be out, or vaguely rumored to be
hatching in someone's imagination, that can handle a full modern orchestral
score? Not avant-guard, even, though some sort of graphics tools to let
you put in wierd symbols, curves, and such would be nice. We'd settle for
something that could at least handle something other than common-practice,
say from renaissance through Stravinsky, including some jazz. And handle
it with a reasonable approximation to a Mac interface. Proper part
extraction (compression of multiple measure of rests) and reasonable lyrics
handling are a must, as is good control over page layout, spacing, which
measures (or partial measures) go on which line. Step-time entry from MIDI
would suffice if it can transcribe from standard MIDI files--full built-in
sequencers are kind of a waste since I believe in mix-and-match, but real
time entry of one voice at a time could be nice.
The state of the art looks bad enough at this point that I'm getting
tempted to design one myself. Not write it, mind you; I don't have 4 years
of living expenses saved up :-) Any suggestions? Other than 'Just think
of what word processors were like 15 years ago - music processing will grow
up eventually'. I'm much too bloody impatient for that! :-) I'd rather
have your features wanted lists, references to musical typography, etc...
-----
Allyn Weaks
Internet: allyn@blake.acs.washington.edu |
sweaks@phast.phys.washington.edu
bitnet: sweaks@uwaphast
uucp: {siesmo|microsoft|decwrl...}!uw-beaver!blake!allyn
USnail: Department of Physics FM-15
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195
The professor was silly enough to think that if doctors had to pass
examinations before they could cut out his appendix, then members of
parliament ought to pass examinations before they could rule his life.
-- T.H. White, Mistress Masham's Repose
------------------------------
Date: 25 Sep 89 02:59:31 GMT
From: Alan Rinehart <van-bc!rsoft!mindlink!a86@net.uu.uunet>
Subject: Encore and other scoring programs for the Mac
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
I may not be able to help you in your search for Mac scoring software but I can
give you an opinion on SCORE for the IBM. I have run a Desktop Music
Publishing company (NovaScribe Editions) for nearly two years now and have done
a wide variety of jobs from children's snogs with oversized note heads to a
brand new 75 minute work for string orchestra and boy soprano. SCORE is
certainly not an easy program to learn but once the 'system' is mastered, there
is virtually nothing it can't do, I think that right now it is the only program
commercially avaliable that can really do the trick. Looking for ward to
hearing from you, Alan Rinehart, Mindlink, Vancouver, BC
------------------------------
Date: 18 Sep 89 18:33:32 GMT
From: zephyr.ens.tek.com!orca!eve.WV.TEK.COM!steveb@net.uu.uunet
Subject: Looking for CalArts people
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
Hi folks,
Rand Steiger from UCSD and I are looking for the E-mail addresses of anyone
who attended CalArts in Los Angeles. If you are one, or know of one, please
let me know how to contact you.
Thanks,
Steve
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FROM: STEVEN C. BILOW -- Software Engineer, Tektronix
EMAIL: steveb@orca.WV.TEK.COM PHONE: (503) 685-2463
USMAIL: P.O. Box 1000 61-028, Wilsonville, OR 97070-1000
------------------------------
Date: 28 Sep 89 15:25:20 GMT
From: Dave Lockwood <mcsun!ukc!axion!vision!davel@net.uu.uunet>
Subject: Sequencer File Formats: HELP
To: music-research@uk.ac.oxford.prg
I'm trying to put together a suite of conversion software which will provide
conversion between as many as possible of the storage formats of the popular
sequencers on PC, Mac, ST etc.
HELP!
1 Any suggestions as to which formats should be included would be appreciated
as I'm likely to miss a few.
2 Any file layout structures etc even more welcome...I am writing to various
manufacturers for permission to use their format, but any contributions
would save time and would aid the project greatly.
The results of this exercise will be posted!
Thanks for your assistance (I hope :-)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* I I Dave Lockwood These opinions are shareware.
* II Technical Consultant If you like them, send $10...
* I * *
* ** * davel@vision.UUCP VisionWare Ltd,
* * * * ...!uunet!mcvax!ukc!vision!davel Leeds Business Park,
** ** +44-532-529292 X2439 Leeds, LS27 0JG,
* * United Kingdom
VISIONWARE DOS/UNIX Integration
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------
End of Music-Research Digest