Can anyone recommend a good music composition software for trad music?
Does such a creature exist?
Depends on what you mean - software that will compose trad music for you, or software to compose music in. There’s a book out called Any Fool Can Write Fiddle Tunes. Is that the kind of thing you’re looking for? Or are you looking for something that will control MIDI devices? Or something that will create scores?
djm
Sheet music or ABC?
The freeware Finale Notepad (search google for Finale Notepad) is perfect. Traditional music (traditionally) doesn’t change key or meter ppartway through, doesn’t require more than 8 parts, and doesn’t need a sophisticated method of writing it. It is sheet music, and it saves as a proprietory file-type. The only major downside is there is no “uilleann pipes” instrument choice available. I would use flute or oboe…
If you deside to pull a Liam O’Flynn, this won’t do, as it isn’t really suitable for symphonies.
Also, it helps to have a .pdf distiller installed so you can make pdf files to distribute (if that’s what you want…)
Good luck
My ambitions are far more modest. Finale Notepad sounds interesting.
Thanks guys.
I’ve used Finale 97, Finale 98, Finale 2001, Finale 2004, Sebilius 3, Cakewalk and Melody.
Of the bunch, I find Melody the best for simple trad-type-stuff, and the ability to convert .wav and midi to sheet music is a bonus.
Melody gets annoying for larger, orchestral-style works. For that I like Finale 2004.
Melody’s also not as expensive as the others and can be found here
www.myriad-online.com/en/products/melody.htm