I'd like to get some sort of music notation software that will allow me to do all of the following:

1. Start with a blank score, create multiple parts note for note and convert to midi for playback
2. Start with a midi file and convert to score for editing and arranging.
3. Add guitar chords
4. Add lyrics
5. Add normal music notation symbols

I'm not looking to invest in something as complex as say, Sibelius, nor as basic as some freebie might be.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

Finale should be able to do all that and more. It comes in several different levels, so choose the one that fits your budget while also fulfilling all of your needs.

finale.com

We used the full version of Finale in our electronic music class and I found it very useful when working with standard music notation and MIDI. (We used other software for recording audio.)

Thanks for the suggestion. I haven't looked at Finale in a while. I suspected it has had several upgrades since I last saw it.

Finale Notepad is free I think.

I'm pretty sure that Band In A Box does this, and probably Sonar.

Bill