MTT13: Best notation apps and software for music educators

MTT13: Best notation apps and software for music educators

Best notation apps and software for music educators

Notation apps for desktop computer, iPads and other tablet devices – what’s currently available? Which ones are the best? What should I use if my students have Chromebooks? Or iPads?

In this episode I’ll talk about the available notation options for music teachers.

 

Resources and links mentioned in this episode

Episode sponsor:

A big thank you to this episode’s sponsor SmartMusic – the learning platform that allows teachers to connect with students as they practice. The new SmartMusic is in the cloud so it works with the devices your students have today. Best of all you can use it for free.

Learn more about SmartMusic here.

 

Notation software mentioned:

  1. Finale
  2. Sibelius
  3. Dorico
  4. Noteflight
  5. Flat.io
  6. Notion
  7. MuseScore
  8. Notion for iOS
  9. Symphony Pro
  10. NotateMe
  11. Touch Notation
  12. StaffPad

 

Further reading – articles by music educator George Hess:

 

 

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Midnight Music Community: special rate for MTT podcast listeners

The Midnight Music Community (MMC) is an online space for music teachers interested in learning more about music technology. There are online courses, lesson plans and lots of other resources for Chromebooks, iPads, Macs and PCs. Professional development certificates are available for all training undertaken by MMC members and I am in the Community everyday, personally answering questions and offering advice to members.

Access the special rate for podcast listeners here.

Music technology courses for teachers

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7 Comments

  1. Johan P April 13, 2017 at 4:01 am - Reply

    Great advice, and nice with all the new stuff.

    I’ll be looking into Dorico, and especially Noteflight, and at least listen to Notion, and NotateMe is interesting for the handwriting.

    And that Notation Wars article is in a tab ready to be read!

    You refer to the “short-URL” midnightmusic.com/13 but that doesn’t work.

    • Katie April 17, 2017 at 12:43 pm - Reply

      Thanks Johan 🙂 I’ll check/fix the URL too – thanks for letting me know.

  2. Mandy April 13, 2017 at 12:18 pm - Reply

    When I inquired about using NEW SmartMusic last month, I was told it was USA only, so I had to pay more to get SmartMusic Classic (and cut the number of subscriptions I was getting). Did they tell you something different?

    • Katie April 18, 2017 at 10:20 am - Reply

      Hi Mandy – SmartMusic have let me know that the “new SmartMusic” will be available outside the US soon. No firm date yet, but it’s definitely on its way. I’ve been lucky enough to have a sneak peek at it and it’s really fantastic, so hopefully you’ll be able to take a look when it’s available for you.

  3. George Hess April 13, 2017 at 1:46 pm - Reply

    FYI, Notion iOS now supports handwriting, too. Works best on iPad Pro with a stylus, but it also works on other iOS devices.

    • Katie April 17, 2017 at 12:42 pm - Reply

      Thanks George! I’ll take a look

  4. […] consider yourself an expert.  Examples are notation software (like Sibelius, Final, Noteflight and all the others), music recording and editing software (GarageBand, Logic, Mixcraft, Abelton Live, Acid, Audacity), […]

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