Best way to go from song to sheet?
I've tried the MIDI > sheet idea and it comes out as musical gibberish. I've tried ScoreCloud and AnthemScore and those miss notes and write down wrong durations. Do any of you have any other suggestions?
There's a Scottish reel I'm interested in, and the sheet music is out there, but there's usually just the melody/chorus and that's it. (I have a version with an introduction, but it's a really short intro.) Trouble is, I have a version that I found on a CD with a nice intro to it, but I can't find the sheet music!
(Plus a couple newer Enya songs that I like but there doesn't seem to be sheets for.)
Comments
The standard way, and only good way in my opinion, is to use pen and paper and a piano.
Work your way through the song, using pause-rewind-play on your CD-player. Or if you have an ogg/mp3 file, use something like Audacity where you can play short segments on repeat until you find them on your piano.
If you have never done this before, it will be a slow process at first, but it is the only good way. And you will learn a lot, and it will go much quicker after a few songs.
/Andreas
In reply to The standard way, and only by AndreasKågedal
Going to have to go with Lasconic's method, as I have no piano and my note identification skills are limited to "that's wrong" when I listen to the playback on something I'm working on. (If I was that talented, I wouldn't need MS!)
In reply to Going to have to go with by DRyelle
On the contrary, I think that people who can transcribe songs by ear still have lots of use for MuseScore. MuseScore is at this point mostly a tool for engraving, and does not have much in the way of specific features for transcription. So they would
1. Transcribe the song using pen/paper/pionao/Audacity etc
2. Engrave to beautiful, easy to read, printed music using MuseScore.
In reply to The standard way, and only by AndreasKågedal
Thank you.
i am gonna try Audacity.
I agree with Andreas. If you don't want to go through the process yourself, you can always hire someone to do it for you. Check https://musescore.org/services or some online platforms like fiverr or upwork for transcription services.
I'm used to transcribing music by hear since a long time ago, so I think you have already been given the best available suggestion. Nevertheless, I think you could find it REALLY useful a tool like Transcribe! from SeventhString.
In reply to I'm used to transcribing by Aldo
Sounds a little like AnthemScore. I don't think it changes pitch like Transcribe, but it has a visualizer and names the notes that are being played.
Of course, seeing the Transcribe site might be useful for all the software suggestions. So maybe I'll figure something out someday...
You do not need pencil and paper and you do not need a real piano. MuseScore has a "Piano Keyboard" feature that lets you press on the virtual keys and hear the sound - great way to work out a song if you don't have a real instrument handy and even if you feel that you are no good at it to begin with you will, in all likelihood, learn and get good at it.
As above. The old ways are the best :)
Pencil, paper and piano, or direct software using the keyboard onscreen (perhaps more fiddley if you are usrd to using pencil & paper)
Transcribe is pretty good - can help to slow down the fast passages.
AS it happens I am in the middle of engraving some Irish tin whistle melodies ( I have several projects on the go!) but I would be interested in taking on the Transcription work if you want.
In reply to As above. The old ways are by stupot101
Sadly, I'm out of money right now, so it would have to be a swap. Otherwise, I'll wait and hire someone from MuseScore's services page.
I have one more suggestion for the OP, as regards using MuseScore to engrave the music contained in a MIDI file.
The "trick" is load the MIDI file in a MIDI editing program and edit it in order to make it good for importing. What do I mean by "good for importing"? Well, let's see.
1. quantize note on with mathematical accuracy
2. quantize not off as well, keeping in mind that the musician who reads a score adds lots of "virtual rests" by himself according to the meaning of music, and that those rests (if explicitly written) make sheet music a mess
3. MuseScore is not that good in importing tuplets via MIDI -- sometimes leaving them "out of the way" and adding them by hand in a further step is a better choice than having to correct a bad import
4. get rid of any pitch bending data and substitute them with "real" MIDI notes (MuseScore does not transcribe MIDI pitch bending)
5. split each voice on a different MIDI channel, THEN (if needed) join the channels on a single staff in MuseScore
The resulting MIDI file will sound horrible, but it will import much better from a notational point of view. Give these suggestions a try and let me know the results!
In reply to I have one more suggestion by Aldo
6. Realize that the OP has no clue how to do any of that and that you probably ought to point her to a site for that sort of thing, so long as the instructions aren't too complicated. (And remember that she's bad at math.) [Hee hee]
In reply to 6. Realize that the OP has no by DRyelle
From within MuseScore, there are a bunch of settings available when you open a MIDI file to tell MuseScore how to interpret it. https://musescore.org/en/handbook/midi-import has an overview; without knowing what specific type of gibberish you're getting, I can only suggest "try stuff," but if you would like to attach a sample MIDI file here we can see what things would be likely to work.
In reply to From within MuseScore, there by Isaac Weiss
Would it work better if the MIDI had its channels split? Even with the options, MS is still rendering the song as one instrument, instead of multiple instruments and humans.
In reply to Would it work better if the by DRyelle
Probably, yes.
In reply to 6. Realize that the OP has no by DRyelle
Dear OP... :D
Have a look here >> http://dhost.info/spifferiamo/altro/musescore_midi_import/mmi.htm
In reply to Dear OP... :D Have a look by Aldo
I'm better of just paying somebody.
Not only do I have no idea how to "quantize" notes (what does that even mean?), but I can't figure out how to get Logic Fun to cooperate even with the manual open!
In reply to I'm better of just paying by DRyelle
Hi. The reality is that music and especially its "capture" is a highly skilled, complex matter. The ability to deal with it in an efficient manner takes a great deal of work over a good deal of time.
If all you want is a particular piece, you are better off hiring someone capable to do it.
If you want to gain mastery, welcome to the struggle and good luck. It is as thrilling as it is frustrating, and provides great personal satisfaction. If you are wanting a career, understand that there is little money in it for the vast majority, and great riches for a very few.
There is no real shortcut, just more specific tools, and you have to learn how to use them.
Regards,
In reply to Hi. The reality is that music by xavierjazz
If I wanted a career, I'd have been a music major in college or gone to engineering school--and I sure as hell wouldn't be using MuseScore! (I probably wouldn't have gotten C's in band, either.)
In reply to If I wanted a career, I'd by DRyelle
Not sure why you say wouldn't be using MuseScore - it's actually an extremely popular choice among professional musicians these days. Especially emerging professionals. Old-timers were forced to buy expensive commercial programs back in the day did so and many stick with what they know, but unless you are going into the engraving business specifically, MuseScore is more than sufficient for the needs of most professions.
Although a bit "technical" to use, one of my favorite transcribing tools is Sonic Visualiser (SV). SV is a free, cross-platform open-source music/sound analysis software. SV can be downloaded at http://www.sonicvisualiser.org/
In reply to Although a bit "technical" to by Sambaji
I tried a few visualizing programs before, but I really wasn't sure how to use them.
Thanks for bumping this thread, though...it reminds me that I have to get off my lazy butt and contact that transcriber I found. ;)
I like jotting my ideas down in musescore. I find the notes either on a melodica and then go to musescore or I open musescore and find the notes. If I'm not sure, I just enter a random note and then move it up or down with the arrow keys. I stop when I hit what sounds like a correct pitch. I play around with the rhythms of the passage until they approximate what I want.
But, if you are really serious about transcribing your ideas accurately, it helps to study Theory. A good knowledge of Harmony can help you navigate a tune because certain musical occurrences are likely to lead to other certain outcomes. If your tune is in the key of C minor, it helps to know the notes of a C minor chord because that chord will feature prominently and your melody is likely to follow that contour. Then there are common chord progressions, and common rhythms that are used. A knowledge of the musical vocabulary is essential.
You might want to study the songs of one of your favorite artist to see what they do. Chances are that you are doing something similar, because you've heard it before from them!
In reply to I like jotting my ideas down by Joe H
I transpose, I don't compose. Spending money on theory lessons (or time, in case of freebies) is a waste--better to have a professional do it.
Practise, practise, practise.............
You asked for the best way.
In reply to Practise, practise, by xavierjazz
Considering I've been out of grade school for thirteen years at this point--and therefore no longer have exposure to music education five days a week/nine months a year--I can no longer (aurally) identify notes. Since I don't plan to transcribe professionally (and barely transpose for fun anymore), your maxim of "practice, practice, practice" is pointless, pointless, pointless!
Also, as far as "you asked"-- yeah, EIGHT MONTHS AGO! This is a necroed thread and I'm honestly surprised a mod hasn't come by to lock it yet!
Why not just use Anthemscore software. you can download it here in this link: https://www.lunaverus.com/download
There's a 30 day trial. but you can transcribe a song from mp3, wav and midi into music xml. it can also connect to musecore. see an example here in this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8KpE0hyFI0
I hope it helps.
In reply to Why not just use Anthemscore… by Johnson Pansoy…
Unfortunately, no--that looks like one of the pieces of software that I tried when I posted this a year ago (how has this thread not been locked for necroing?), and I didn't find it at all straightforward to use.
In reply to Unfortunately, no--that… by DRyelle
I don't think there is an expiry date on Musescore posts, particularly those in the general discussion forum? Plus, other people may find the on-going suggestions helpful. Discussing how to go from "song to sheet" is a worthy topic for continued discussion. For others who may be interested, Anthemscore outputs to Musescore. However, it doesn't seem sensitive enough to pickup the complex rhythms in the songs I tested. But it may work quite well for classical works, etc. Also, Anthemscore is much more affordable than other programs such as Melodyne.
In reply to Unfortunately, no--that… by DRyelle
There is no locking of aged posts here. And this particular one isn't even that old.
In reply to There is no locking of aged… by Jojo-Schmitz
"Not even that old"? Apparently you've never been on a site where you get in trouble for commenting on posts older than two weeks?
In reply to "Not even that old"?… by DRyelle
Here we start frowning on replies to posts that are several years old.
In reply to Here we start frowning on… by Jojo-Schmitz
And I am grateful for that. The supportive, relaxed forum--is a part of what makes Musescore and its community so great. No one should feel reluctant about asking questions, or taking the time to contribute (even if the post is a few months old). Each post is not just for the original poster, but for all those who may have similar questions or suggestions. And Music is all about bringing people together, which is what the forums do.
Additionally, one can always choose to no longer receive updates of a thread by clicking on the "unsubscribe from this thread" link at the bottom of the Musescore email.