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Double Bass Software for Transcribing?

F

flat five

Sep 1, 2004
17
1
#1
Hi All,
I just got a laptop and I'm interested in finding out which transcription programs are best for bass. I've done a small amount of transcribing the old fashioned way and it has been beneficial but very tedious. Which programs do you prefer, and why? Thanks for your help.
 
#3
Does Finale slow a CD down so you can hear the playing better or is it just for writing it down? If it does both, that would be great, but I've heard that it takes a while to learn it. I've also heard of Band in the Box. Is it any good? I'm new here and I didn't see any links about useful music software anywhere. Maybe someone could point me in the right direction. Thanks.
 
#5
tritone said:
Does Finale slow a CD down so you can hear the playing better or is it just for writing it down? If it does both, that would be great, but I've heard that it takes a while to learn it. I've also heard of Band in the Box. Is it any good? I'm new here and I didn't see any links about useful music software anywhere. Maybe someone could point me in the right direction. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I'm using transcribe!, mostly for pitch/speed change of CD tracks, but it's pretty handy for transcription too, at least to find the notes. For the rythm, it's another ballpark.

Band-in-the-Box (BiaB) won't help you as far as transcribing is concerned. It's mainly a "play-along" programme: you enter the melody & chord changes and the computer generates the tune. You can change the tempo, the "style", and the pitch. You can also knock off parts such as the melody or the bass part. There's a huge archive of BiaB files available at the Yahoo users group.

Finale, Sybelius and the like are mainly music sheet editing and printing programmes. You can use them to edit (and play via the midi interface) the transcribed parts.

Hope this helps
 
#7
Sorry to dig up an old thread, but I had a question about Finale and Transcribe.
The biggest hole in my music reading ability is when it comes to interpreting highly syncopated rhythms. Lets say Im reading a piece and notewise, everything is kosher, but rhythmically, it's not happening. Id like to be able ck my accuracy by plugging in the notes and listening back to it to see if I read it right.
Based on Oliviers' statement, maybe Finale might be better than Transcribe?
Or, is there another program out there that would work better?
 
#8
Finale, Sybelius and the like are mainly music sheet editing and printing programmes. You can use them to edit (and play via the midi interface) the trad parts.
Click to expand...

Oops, just reread Oliviers' post.
It looks like Finale and Sybelius are more suited for my needs. Anybody have any input as to which one would be better for playing back intricate rhythms accurately before I plunk down the cash?
Thanks in advance for your help.
 
#13
I've been using finale notepad since 2003, and its pretty good.But I would have to go with Finale Printmusic... Even though you can get finale notpad 2005 from www.finalemusic.com, the extra $50 for printmusic is well spent. W/Printmusic you can edit instrument sounds, use MIDI keyboards to enter music and take MIDI files from the internet and turn them into hit-or-miss sheetmusic

well... even if you use notepad or printmusic, you'll still have a blast using them!

cheers

--Tyler
 
#14
i use two plugin's for winamp with which i can slow down and loop sections, and then use sibelius 3 to notate. great programs. the slow down tool for winamp is called chronotron and the loop is called loop master. winamp and these plugins are free. sibelisu on the other hand.....

i find sibelisu much easier to use than finale. but its all personal preference.
 
#16
I just want to add that I have started using a piece of software called Crescendo from NCH Software. it is very basic, but the note entry is way easier than Finale (which I own), or Musescore, MusicEase or any other notation software I have ever used. It is very basic -- no MusicXML, limited fonts for formatting, but I was able to chart out all my original music on it with no issues.

Music Notation Software for Writing Music Score

There is a free trial that doesn't seem to expire either, and the paid version, which doesn't really add any features, is only about $50. Even though I felt it was unecessary to pay for it, given the lack of augmented features, I bought it just to support development as I could use the software with virtually no consulting the help, no tutorial, and no video!

For slowing down music, Youtube now has a feature where you can slow down the song without changing the pitch. Click on the settings cogwheel and you can change it. I actually speed up songs more than I slow them down, mostly to get through structure issues when transcribing.
 
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#17
I'm old school and use a cd player because I get better control over the pause and rewind buttons. That and a good set of headphones is my whack.

I'm also of the belief slowing the music down does yourself a disservice. If you are going for ultra accuracy and your job is selling transcriptions then I see a point in that but other wise you are just doing your ears a disservice by slowing it down.
 

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