#scanscore

Musicians are often asked to do more than just play the music they are given: we are asked to transpose music to fit our instrument’s key; we are asked to re-arrange music for ensembles with different instruments; we are asked to prepare music that was hand-written decades ago for our ensembles. We are capable of these tasks, but they are incredibly labor-intensive and, often, not a good use of our time, or our skills. 

We can use the notation software of our choice, like Forte, Sibelius, Finale, as we long for something to give us any assistance. Thankfully, there is a program for Windows OS called ScanScore that was designed to save us all a lot of hassle. 

Through ScanScore, I can import a PDF, JPEG, or other picture file to scan the music. The software accurately scans the music for its features: notes, key signatures, times signatures, clefs, accidentals, and more. It also has impressive playback features including accurate note recognition from the key signature, and a variety of on-board sounds and MIDI capabilities. 

I am a full-time music teacher so I am constantly creating arrangements of music for my students, sometimes very quickly. I have to transcribe the music so it is suited for the instruments that my students play. Thankfully, ScanScore makes this process much easier. I simply scan the sheet music and complete my transcription from there. This software also enables students to listen to their parts and play along with music easily.

The editor was really the best part for me. After the music is imported, the scanned file shows up on the left portion of the screen, and the interpretation on the right side. When editing, there are parallel lines that function as a “tracker” so you can see where the original music compares to the scanned result, making it very easy to fill in any notes or rhythms that may have been overlooked or misinterpreted.

Even though the program is quite impressive, it does leave a little to be desired when recognizing complex rhythms, percussion parts, and musical navigation. Thankfully, even if something is deciphered incorrectly, it is very easy to edit. The software is laid out very intuitively and is easy to figure out even if you aren’t familiar with any standard notation software. It is also noteworthy that importing PDF files can be a bit of a process the first time; an extension from Adobe called Ghostscript will need to be downloaded.

        Scanscore is a paid software for windows 10 which allows you to scan any sheet music and make changes on it. For now, it is only available for windows. This Software comes with a quite lucid design and interface.

    At the start, there are three options for scanning. The first option is the scanner option. This option is the most accurate one for the comprehensive view of the score, however, it is the most impractical one since most of the people use their smartphones instead of a scanner. The second option is importing images or PDF files. For the musicians who mostly use IMSLP to obtain sheet music, this option is very helpful. Third and the last option is to import photos from the app. This option was dissatisfying for me since the considerable amount of notes were absent despite the high-resolution photos that I had took. 

    After the scanning is complete, the first thing awe see is the original score on the left side. On the right side, we see the page with detected notes. Pages can be turned around with the "Change Layout" option. The next thing to be recognized is the Scanscore toolbar that allows you to make the most important changes like editing and playing the scores.  

        This software will make a lot of things easier for musicians, music students, and teachers.  Beginner students and children are enthusiastic about playing some known pieces but most of those pieces are harder than their level. In this scenario, instead of rewriting and arranging the music, the teacher may find a score and simplify it by using Scanscore. 

    Composing process mostly starts with handwriting but it is required to be in a digital platform. After the handwriting, composer usually dictates the whole thing to Finale or Sibelius, one by one. In my opinion, this process might be less painful by using Scanscore. Files can be exported as XML files and that files can be launched in Finale. 

        Scanscore may be used effectively by both amateur and professional orchestras, chamber music groups, a great variety of gigs and in the educational field. I believe this software will continue to be developed by updates and get better.