bassbloke Posted October 8, 2002 Share Posted October 8, 2002 Anyone know of any software that enables quick generation of Lead Sheets? I use Finale Notepad for writing out transcriptions but it doesn't seem very user friendly for this purpose. Bassbloke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patrick_dont_fret Posted October 8, 2002 Share Posted October 8, 2002 Do you mean sheet music sheets? As in transposing from say TAB to standard notation? If that is the case, then check out the MusEdit program. You can download a demo of it by simply typing the words 'MusEdit demo' into the search engine of your choice. It lasts forever, not for a week or two, but doesn't do as much functionally as it would if you bought it. Definitely good for someone like me, who just uses it to print out blank sheets of music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassbloke Posted October 9, 2002 Author Share Posted October 9, 2002 Patrick I was thinking more of something that will let you draft out the structure of a song - you know, intro x bars, verse x bars, chorus x bars, sample bass line for each section, maybe some lyric excerpts to trigger memory for that section. Finale doesn't even offer repeat signs. I find it reasonably easy to draft out lead sheet structures for jazz, where it's usually a question of knowing the chords, less so for funk etc where its a question of remembering specific bass lines and a structure that might not be very symmetrical. Bassbloke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Connie Z Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 I am also interested in software for lead sheets, but my needs are simpler. I want to be able to type in (or copy and paste) the lyrics and put the chords on top. I do it now in my word processor, using "Courier New" as the font, because it's the only font that will keep the spacing correct that I can find. The yucky problem is that when I am placing the names of the chords over the lyrics in their correct positions, it requires tons of hitting the space bar to get them located correctly. I'd love to find software that would just let me point and click about the word that I'd like to put the chord above, and just put it there, without spacing over. Any ideas? Thanks... Connie Z "Change comes from within." - Jeremy Cohen The definition of LUCK: When Preparation meets Opportunity! http://www.cybergumbo.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 Connie Z, I've been mostly doing any notating by hand on some score paper I built in Lotus WordPro ever since I got ripped off a couple years ago for most of my non-bass gear. I can do it pretty fast and clean because I use to write lots of charts for horn bands and big bands. I guess I'd suggest downloading various trial versions; some of the midi-oriented proggies are pretty fast at doing lead sheets with lyrics I believe. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randy clay Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 You could take a look at Band in a Box. I haven't used it for lyrics, but I'm pretty sure you'll get closer than what you've got. I'm trying to think but nuthin' happens.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike H. Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 There was a software program a few years ago called "Memphis". It was a chart writing software that you could insert lyrics, chords & symbols, and some notation; basically a Nashville chart of sorts. This was 4 years ago, so I don't know if it's still out there. http://www.identity5.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Capasso Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 Originally posted by Connie Z: The yucky problem is that when I am placing the names of the chords over the lyrics in their correct positions, it requires tons of hitting the space bar to get them located correctly. I've been doing this like Connie, using Courier for the chords and whatever for the lyrics. I type one bar that has two chords like this: |Bb - Cm - | I make some kind of mark (either a chord or a hyphen) for each beat. This method will break down if I ever have to do something more complicated, but it's been fine for what I need. I also do the chord section bold, and the lyrics not bold. Connie - use the TAB key to get across faster. If you go too far, backspace and then use the space bar to align as needed. I do this with the lyrics. Tom www.stoneflyrocks.com Acoustic Color Be practical as well as generous in your ideals. Keep your eyes on the stars and keep your feet on the ground. - Theodore Roosevelt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil-E-Phil Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 Originally posted by bassbloke: Anyone know of any software that enables quick generation of Lead Sheets? I use Finale Notepad for writing out transcriptions but it doesn't seem very user friendly for this purpose.You need the full version of Finale to do that. You can however use Microsoft Word to create lead sheets, it won't be as fancy as Finale, but it will get the job done. Phil Smith - Creator of the iGigBook iPad/Android App Over 1300 Jazz Chord Charts That You Can Transpose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassbloke Posted October 9, 2002 Author Share Posted October 9, 2002 Phil one thing I want to do is insert bass lines - I'm assuming Word can't handle music notation? Bassbloke Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g. Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 Well, for several bands I've used Lotus WordPro to prepare what I call road maps - because you aren't supposed to look at them when you are driving ; } ...They have a template, lots of defined styles with cetain fonts and indentations, and macros, and I can easily put well-spaced chord-charts down with emphasises and rests where needed. I put the lyrics just below them in each song section, taking special care to present the lyrics in two- or four-bar chunks per line so that it is always easy to tell what goes where in relation to the chord sections. I also have a stave on a hotkey that I can insert wherever there is a riff or line that is especially important, that needs to be archived. I write the phrases down in the time-honored fashion on that stave: by hand. But usually I use lower-case letters in a certain font to represent notes and small caps to represent chords if they are interspersed. Because if these people could actually read music we wouldn't need these roadmaps - we'd be using real leadsheets or condensed scores or be able to remember where we put our car keys ; } ...If you want to do real music notation you DO NOT use a desktop publisher or word processing app ; } - you get the right tools for the job. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebrownbass Posted October 9, 2002 Share Posted October 9, 2002 You know good old davebrownbass will weigh in with an opinion on this one. Plus, got to get my post count up...younguns are catchin' me. Don't mess around with anything named Finale. I know tons of pros writers (well, 4 anyway) who are desparately chunking it overboard just as soon as they get files transferred into the best software format: SIBELIUS!!!! They don't offer a notepad version, they have pretty good copy protection so you can't steal somebody elses. It is expensive (about $500) unless you are a teacher or church musician. But it is absolutely the most intuitive, well written, user friendly software out there. It has guitar chords, you can change the voicing, it translates notation into tab (this is not perfected) It can write lyrics...you just type them in...when you hit enter, it aligns a syllable up with a melodic note automatically. In fact, you don't use your mouse to input notes (the hard way.) You type them in. Wow. "Let's raise the level of this conversation" -- Jeremy Cohen, in the Picasso Thread. Still spendin' that political capital far faster than I can earn it...stretched way out on a limb here and looking for a better interest rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil-E-Phil Posted October 10, 2002 Share Posted October 10, 2002 Sibelieus is good, but I think Finale has the edge on it. I've used both programs and prefer Finale over Sibelieus, though there are some things that I like about Sibelieus, i.e. you can enter chord symbols without having notes in the measure. I hate the screen navigation with Sibelieus, it's totally counter intuitive to me. Phil Smith - Creator of the iGigBook iPad/Android App Over 1300 Jazz Chord Charts That You Can Transpose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebrownbass Posted October 10, 2002 Share Posted October 10, 2002 Did you start with Finale? As far as I know, Finale still have lots of drop down tool bars and you point, click and select. When I use Sibelius, I rarely have to touch the mouse, and I type in notes as fast as I type text in a word processor. Screen navigation...grab a page and pull it down...or use the little corner window to move rapidly from page 1 to page 24? In my incarnation as a orchestra director, I know dozens of people who write music. Often, they write a lot in 3 days, then don't use it again for 3 months. I do that...Sibelius wakes up to me very quickly. Last year, our music supervisor ordered a symphony set of a Mendelssohn symphony. The Clarinet and trumpet parts were in A, but all our All District kids played Bflat horns. I went home and input 4 parts, printed them out...took only a few hours for the whole symphony. Couldn't have done that with Finale (a speed user probably could have.) But seriously, I do meet 4-8 people every year at convention who are switching from Finale to Sibelius. Of course, variety is what makes the world go round (or, is it "sprinkled with love that makes the world go round.") "Let's raise the level of this conversation" -- Jeremy Cohen, in the Picasso Thread. Still spendin' that political capital far faster than I can earn it...stretched way out on a limb here and looking for a better interest rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebrownbass Posted October 10, 2002 Share Posted October 10, 2002 Post of the day to davebrownbass for the random "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" reference. "Let's raise the level of this conversation" -- Jeremy Cohen, in the Picasso Thread. Still spendin' that political capital far faster than I can earn it...stretched way out on a limb here and looking for a better interest rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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