- #Finale 2014 vs sibelius upgrade
- #Finale 2014 vs sibelius registration
- #Finale 2014 vs sibelius software
To test this, I entered a jazz lead sheet with complex chord symbols. Sibelius doesn’t allow you to move notes relative to each other by dragging. I was able to move them using the properties window and manually entering spacing positions (which show the adjustments in real-time), but I’d also like to be able to drag the individual notes right or left as can be done in Finale. When I locked five measures in a system, the last two notes were condensed onto the barline and wouldn’t shift using the standard moving command (alt+shift and the arrow keys). It’s easy enough to move them up, but, again, I wish this would happen by default. The trills on the G on top of the staff clashed with the notehead all the others were fine. I also entered a klezmer piece with a number of trills and an ossia. In general, there seems to be a bug that causes the arrow keys to sometimes function inconsistently when adjusting slurs and lines. I also discovered an apparent bug where slurs on the first system don’t respond properly to the up arrow key and move down instead of up. I do wish that the program was able to recognize and correct the conflict on its own. The differences are minor and won’t make a difference on the bandstand, but I thought I should mention it. I was able to adjust the individual slurs to avoid the accidentals, but a sharp-eyed reader might notice that they are not uniform. I did find that the slurs were overlapping the accidentals though. I love the navigator, and I find that it takes less keystrokes/mouse clicks to enter data relative to Finale. Sibelius’ interface feels much more intuitive to me compared to Finale's. I found it quite easy to enter the melody using the computer keypad. I started off by entering a klezmer clarinet piece that included lots of articulations and diverse note values onto a lead sheet template with the Inkpen font. Now lets take a look at how I’ve been using the program. Both Finale and Sibelius require the user to tweak various aspects of their scores for optimal results.
#Finale 2014 vs sibelius software
Personally, I find that Sibelius' approach suits my work style better, but longtime Finale users may find the learning curve to be steeper than those whose first music notation experience is Sibelius.Īlso, no music notation software is perfect. That being said, the two programs approach things very differently it will take some time for a Finale user to really “get” Sibelius’ approach. Overall, Sibelius is an impressive program, and I especially prefer its GUI to Finale’s interface. Here’s are some general observations first. Additional impressions will be coming soon in part II. Instead of trying to give a comprehensive overview/full review of the program, I’m simply going to describe how I used it and what my impressions are. Now that that’s out of the way, lets take a look at the program. The people I’ve spoken to there have been very helpful once they’re made aware of an issue and I’d like to acknowledge that.
#Finale 2014 vs sibelius registration
I should emphasize that Sibelius was quite courteous about this as well as a registration issue I’d contacted them about with version 3.
#Finale 2014 vs sibelius upgrade
In my opinion, it is reasonable for a software buyer to expect a free upgrade if a new version of the product is announced within 30 days of purchase. I contacted Sibelius about this and was referred to someone in the company who was kind enough to send me the free upgrade, but I shouldn’t have had to do that. It felt quite frustrating to read that I wasn’t going to get the free upgrade, when I hadn’t yet paid the credit card bill for the program.
grace period, but within the U.K/Australia period. In my case, I registered Sibelius 3 before the short U.S. Adobe) have more liberal upgrade policies and grant free upgrades to users who have purchased a program 30 to 60 days prior to the announcement of a new version. I did a quick net search, and most of the big name companies (i.e. In particular, giving only a few days grace period in the States from when Sibelius 4 was announced seems unfair. I see no reason for Sibelius’ policy of differentiating registration cutoff dates by country when honoring free upgrades. In other words, I am approaching Sibelius 4 as a new user, rather than as one upgrading from Sibelius 3.Ī brief digression, I have to note that Sibelius’ upgrade policy seems unfair to me.
Sibelius 4 was announced just after I cross-graded to Sibelius 3, so after quickly notating a few lead sheets for an upcoming gig, I decided to set the program aside and wait until version 4 arrived. I’ll be contrasting Sibelius 4 with Finale 2004, my most recent version. So I’ve finally made some time to note my impressions of Sibelius 4 and here are my thoughts.įor background about why I decided to try Sibelius after using Finale for years, check out my previous posts here and here.