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Attention Mac Users
Apple will release macOS 15 (Sequoia) on Monday, September 16, 2024.
Finale v27 is not compatible with Sequoia and will not be updated.

For more information:
macOS 15 Sequoia and Finale Notation Products
Disabling Automatic macOS Updates

In the event that you see the error, "The requested virtual instrument plugin could not be found", it means that Finale is looking for a VST/AU plug-in that a document is trying to use, but cannot be found for some reason. The guide below will take you through a set of steps to make sure that everything is configured properly.

 

The requested virtual instrument plugin could not be found

 

In most cases, the requested VST/AU plug-in that cannot be found is the ARIA Player (used for the Garritan instrument libraries). If you are seeing this issue in relation with a third party VST library, please check out this knowledge base article instead to make sure that your third party library is configured properly for use with Finale.

 

The steps below will help you resolve any configuration or installation issues that could cause ARIA Player to not appear in Finale.

 

Windows

 

Finale version 25, 26, and 27

 

First and foremost, please make sure that you have installed the latest version of the ARIA Player.

  1. Quit Finale.
  2. Launch the standalone ARIA Player by double-clicking the ARIA Player (x64) desktop icon.
    • If you don't have an ARIA Player shortcut on your desktop, navigate to the following directory: 
      • C:\Program Files\Garritan\ARIA Player\ARIA Player x64.exe
  3. Click Settings on the right-hand sidebar of the ARIA Player.
  4. Check ARIA Engine and Version numbers; if the numbers are lower than 1.959, download and run the installer for the latest version of the ARIA Player using this link.
    • Pay close attention to the installation location; make sure it is installing to the following directory: 
      • C:\Program Files\Garritan\ARIA Player
  5. Launch Finale.
  6. Choose MIDI/Audio > Device Setup > Rescan for VST Plug-ins.
  7. Choose File > New > Document With Setup Wizard and create a new document for testing.
  8. If the error message does not appear immediately upon creating the new document, the issue has been resolved.

 

If the error message still appears, you may need to manually clear Finale's VST cache.

  1. Close Finale.

  2. On your keyboard, press the WINDOWS logo key + R. The Run dialog box appears.

  3. Type "%appdata%\MakeMusic\Finale 27\PlogueEngine" and press ENTER.
  4. Delete the following files: 
    • vst_filter_x64.cache
    • vst_x64.cache
    • vstfilelist_x64.cache
  5. Launch Finale.
  6. Choose File > New > Document With Setup Wizard and create a new document for testing.
  7. If the error message does not appear immediately upon creating the new document, the issue has been resolved.

 

If the issue still persists at this point, there are rare cases where Finale is unable to scan the ARIA Player because of the presence of a custom plug-ins folder on the computer. Most often, a previous installation of Cakewalk by Sonar can cause the installer to target the following directory:

  • C:\Program Files\Cakewalk\VstPlugins

 

In this case, Finale will sometimes be unable to scan the ARIA Player properly, even if the installer targeted the correct location.

 

To troubleshoot, follow the steps below:

  1. Choose MIDI/Audio > Device Setup > Manage VST Plug-in Directories.
  2. Select Add.
  3. Navigate to the folder that contains the ARIA Player VST (C:\Program Files\Garritan\ARIA Player\ARIA Player x64.exe if it's in the default location), select the folder, and click Select.
  4. Click close (or press ENTER) to confirm the changes you’ve made and return to the score.
  5. Close and relaunch Finale.
  6. Choose File > New > Document With Setup Wizard and create a new document for testing.
  7. If the error message does not appear immediately upon creating the new document, the issue has been resolved.

 

If the issue persists at this point, contact MakeMusic Customer Support by clicking Submit a Request above.

 

Finale 2014 & 2014.5

 

First and foremost, please make sure that you have installed the latest version of the ARIA Player. You can download the installer for ARIA Player 1.959 from this link. After the installer has downloaded, close any open programs (except for this browser) and run the installer. After you have installed ARIA Player 1.959, please relaunch Finale and test for the error message.

 

If you still see the error, please try the steps below.

  1. Choose MIDI/Audio > Device Setup > Rescan for VST Plug-ins.
  2. Restart your computer.
  3. Relaunch Finale.

If the issue persists, please follow these final steps to manually point Finale to the correct directory.

  1. Open Finale (if it is not open already).
  2. Choose MIDI/Audio > Device Setup > Manage VST Plug-in Directories.
  3. In the VST Plug-in Directories dialog box click the Add button.
  4. Expand the Computer (Windows 7) or This PC (Windows 8 & 10) section.
  5. Expand the C:\ drive.
  6. Expand the Users section.
  7. Expand the section with your computer account user name on it.
  8. Expand the AppData* section.
  9. Expand the Roaming section.
  10. Expand the MakeMusic section.
  11. Expand the Finale [your version number] section.
  12. Click the VST Support folder once so it is selected.
  13. Click the OK button.
  14. Click Close.
  15. Restart Finale to see if the issue has been rectified.

*AppData is a hidden folder. To access this folder, press the Windows key once to open the Start menu, type "Folder Options", choose Folder Options (Windows 8 & 10) or File Explorer Options (Windows 7). When the File Explorer Options window appears, click the View tab, and then in the Hidden files and folders section, choose the Show hidden files, folders, and drives option. After doing so, you may have to reopen the Manage VST Plug-in Directories dialog box using step 2.

 

Finale 2011 & 2012

 

First and foremost, please make sure that you have installed the latest version of the ARIA Player. You can download the installer for ARIA Player 1.959 from this link. After the installer has downloaded, close any open programs (except for this browser) and run the installer. After you have installed ARIA Player 1.959, please relaunch Finale and test for the error message.

 

If updating the ARIA Player does not resolve the issue, it is possible that some files have become corrupted. Make sure Finale is closed, then navigate to the following folder on your computer:

 

Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\[your user account]\Application Data*\MakeMusic\Finale [your Finale version number]\VST Support

Windows Vista/7/8/10: C:\Users\[you user account]\AppData*\Roaming\MakeMusic\Finale [your Finale version number]\VST Support

 

*This is a hidden folder. To show hidden files and folders, go to the Explorer's Tools Menu (XP) or the Organize Menu (Vista/7/8/10), Folder and Search Options, the View tab, and select the "Show hidden files and folders" option.

 

Look through the list of plugins here. Delete the three files listed below and empty the Recycle Bin:

 

FinaleVST_Validated.txt

FinaleVST-Ignore.txt (if present)

FinaleVST_Loadcrumb.txt.

 

Launch Finale again and the files will be regenerated afresh. Try creating a new file with the Setup Wizard using the Garritan Instruments for Finale sound library to see if the error has disappeared.

 

 

Mac

 

Finale version 25, 26, and 27

 

  1. With a Finale file open, choose MIDI/Audio > Device Setup > Rescan for AU Plug-Ins.
  2. Choose MIDI/Audio > Audio Units Banks & Effects.
  3. In the Instrument column, select the Bank 1: (1-16) pop-up menu and verify that ARIA Player appears as an option. Without selecting the ARIA Player, click Close.
  4. If the ARIA Player appeared as an option in step 3, choose MIDI/Audio > Reassign Playback Sounds and test playback.

If the ARIA Player did not appear as an option, continue on to reinstall the ARIA Player:

  1. Quit Finale.
  2. Click the Finder dock icon.
  3. From the top menu bar, choose Go > Go to Folder or press SHIFT+COMMAND+G. A text field appears.
  4. Type "/Library/Audio/Plug-ins/Components" (without quotes) and press RETURN.
  5. Delete the file ARIA Player AU.component.
  6. Click here to download ARIA Player 2.026 for Mac. You may be asked to log in to your MakeMusic account.
  7. Open your Downloads folder and run the downloaded installer, MAC_ARIA Player_v2026.pkg.
  8. Restart your computer and launch Finale.
  9. Choose File > New > Document With Setup Wizard and create a new document for testing.
  10. If the error message does not appear immediately upon creating the new document, the issue has been resolved.

If the error message still appears, you may need to have Finale rescan for plug-ins and/or manually clear Finale's Audio Unit cache.

  1. Quit Finale.
  2. Click the Finder dock icon.
  3. From the top menu bar, choose Go > Go to Folder or press SHIFT+COMMAND+G. A text field appears.
  4. Type "~/Library/Application Support/MakeMusic/Finale 27/PlogueEngine" and press RETURN.
  5. Delete the following files:
    • au_filter_x64.cache
    • au_x64.cache

  6. Launch Finale.
  7. Choose File > New > Document With Setup Wizard and create a new document for testing.
  8. If the error message does not appear immediately upon creating the new document, the issue has been resolved.

If the issue persists at this point, contact MakeMusic Customer support by clicking Submit a Request above.

 

Finale 2014.5

 

In most cases, simply running the installer for the ARIA Player once again is enough to refresh the plug-in component.

  1. Close any open programs. This web browser can remain open.
  2. Click the Finder icon on your applications dock.
  3. Click (in the Finder program toolbar) Go > Go To Folder.
  4. Type in the following directory...

/Library/Audio/Plug-ins/Components

  1. Locate the "ARIA Player AU.component" file and move it to the Trash.
  2. Click here to download ARIA Player 2.026 for Mac. You may be asked to log into your MakeMusic account. If you are not taken to a download page after logging in, click that link again.
  3. Open your Downloads folder and run the downloaded installer, "MAC_ARIA Player_v2026.pkg".
  4. Restart your computer; restart Finale and test to see if the issue is resolved.

If this does not work, follow these steps to manually move in the plug-in component.

  1. Close any open programs. This web browser can remain open.
  2. Click the Finder icon on your applications dock.
  3. Click (in the Finder program toolbar) Go > Go To Folder.
  4. Type in the following directory...

/Library/Audio/Plug-ins/Components

  1. Locate the "ARIA Player AU.component" file and move it to the Trash. Keep this Components folder window open.
  2. Download the "ARIA Player AU.component.zip" file attached to the bottom of this article. Place it on your desktop.
  3. Double-click the "ARIA Player AU.component.zip" file to extract it. A file called "ARIA Player AU.component" will appear on your desktop.
  4. Move the "ARIA Player AU.component" file into the Components folder from which you removed the older component file.
  5. Restart your computer and relaunch Finale.

 

 

 

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