Modernized Finale Update

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Jason Euresti Posted February 02, 2021 14:57

Hello, I just purchased Finale as it was required of school to learn Finale for composition purposes. Many years ago I tried Finale and Sibelius and it was extremely difficult and didn’t make sense. So my first true notation software was actually Noteflight and they just came out. One of the things I loved about the program was its ease of use. I could type in notes very fast and click on and note CTRL+L and type lyrics. The background was white like paper and not yellow. But over the years I and just recently I switched over to Musescore and they transition was seamless. Now I’m doing the same thing plus with more features and am able to create beautiful scores. But for school purposes, I do have to use Finale. For as long as Finale has been around I do not understand why it’s still archaic looking and you have to click a tool for this and that, which is overly complicated. If publishers are looking for scores to be made in Finale then why not have templates for Octavos, Hymns and other types of scores that are preset and all anyone has to do is fill in the spots? Can you create a lite version that envisions Finale like an app in our modern day?

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MIKE ROSEN Edited February 02, 2021 16:35

To a certain extent, I'll agree with you. If you're taking a composition class, you're learning how to write music, not how to "engrave" it. Your instructor should be able to judge that regardless of whether you use Finale or pen and ink.

On the other hand, with twenty students handing in their compositions, having them in the same format certainly helps the instructor. If you all have different apps, if you ask the instructor how to do a particular task, they may not know.

All you need in the beginning is knowing how to set up a score, and enter the dots. With a little instruction, you can learn that. It's unfortunate that Finale dropped the more basic programs, but that's their business decision.

Harald Schollmeyer Posted February 14, 2021 22:47

"If publishers are looking for scores to be made in Finale then why not have templates for Octavos, Hymns and other types of scores that are preset and all anyone has to do is fill in the spots?"

Finale is used all over the world, and publishers and musicians have very different needs. Hymns look totally different e.g. in the US, in Europe, in Asia... surely, more than a several thousand presets would be needed for each different scenario of publisher-ready notation projects. An online database for Finale templates would probably make sense, but I would prefer not to clutter my disk space with hundreds of templates I never need.

"Can you create a lite version that envisions Finale like an app in our modern day?"

I guess you want to replace the tool-centered approach...which alternative way of accessing Finale's functions do you suggest?

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