MuseScore

Dear all,Today we’d like to share important news with you concerning MuseScore.Ten years ago we (Werner, Nicolas and Thomas) started working on MuseScore with the mission to democratise access to sheet music. The plan came in two steps. First by ... [More] developing free music notation software for everyone, then followed by a platform to upload and share sheet music. The latter is a commercial service which sustained the development of the free and open source MuseScore music notation software.We can fairly state that today MuseScore is the most popular notation software on the market, and by extend the world’s largest sheet music creators community. This is a great achievement which we, as an open source community, should be extremely proud of. Millions of people are learning and creating music with MuseScore every year.That said, it’s important to also look at the other side of the medallion, a side which we didn’t much communicate about. As MuseScore has become a very large software project, on which so many users rely on for their hobby and work, keeping up with the growth has become a major challenge. Our company resources were not equally growing fast enough, and therefore the future of the MuseScore project could become uncertain.It was always our intention to put a business model in place which could work for all stakeholders involved (creators, right holders, consumers) but we learnt that we could only achieve this by either a substantial external investment, or through a strategic partnership with a company who has established relationships with music publishers. After some time of researching both options, we opted for the latter.In short, we have decided to let Ultimate Guitar acquire the MuseScore company. Ultimate Guitar has pioneered a successful model for working with music publishers, and all MuseScore users will be able to benefit from this. Additionally, there are more resources now to take on the next steps and turn MuseScore into the online destination for sheet music.Of course, it is important to all of us that the open source nature of the MuseScore project is preserved. Therefore we would like to emphasize that the MuseScore notation software remains open source and that all code contributions will continue to be made under GPLv2. We are fully committed to make MuseScore 3 and all future releases happen and we will continue to make them available for free to the world.We would like to thank everyone who has been on our journey so far and we hope to continue to work with all of you on the future of MuseScore. We also like to invite you to read the announcement by Ultimate Guitar founder Eugeny Naidenov.Yours truly,Werner, Nicolas, Thomas [Less]

Dear all,Today we’d like to share important news with you concerning MuseScore.Ten years ago we (Werner, Nicolas and Thomas) started working on MuseScore with the mission to democratise access to sheet music. The plan came in two steps. First by ... [More] developing free music notation software for everyone, then followed by a platform to upload and share sheet music. The latter is a commercial service which sustained the development of the free and open source MuseScore music notation software.We can fairly state that today MuseScore is the most popular notation software on the market, and by extend the world’s largest sheet music creators community. This is a great achievement which we, as an open source community, should be extremely proud of. Millions of people are learning and creating music with MuseScore every year.That said, it’s important to also look at the other side of the medallion, a side which we didn’t much communicate about. As MuseScore has become a very large software project, on which so many users rely on for their hobby and work, keeping up with the growth has become a major challenge. Our company resources were not equally growing fast enough, and therefore the future of the MuseScore project could become uncertain.It was always our intention to put a business model in place which could work for all stakeholders involved (creators, right holders, consumers) but we learnt that we could only achieve this by either a substantial external investment, or through a strategic partnership with a company who has established relationships with music publishers. After some time of researching both options, we opted for the latter.In short, we have decided to let Ultimate Guitar acquire the MuseScore company. Ultimate Guitar has pioneered a successful model for working with music publishers, and all MuseScore users will be able to benefit from this. Additionally, there are more resources now to take on the next steps and turn MuseScore into the online destination for sheet music.Of course, it is important to all of us that the open source nature of the MuseScore project is preserved. Therefore we would like to emphasize that the MuseScore notation software remains open source and that all code contributions will continue to be made under GPLv2. We are fully committed to make MuseScore 3 and all future releases happen and we will continue to make them available for free to the world.We would like to thank everyone who has been on our journey so far and we hope to continue to work with all of you on the future of MuseScore. We also like to invite you to read the announcement by Ultimate Guitar founder Eugeny Naidenov.Yours truly,Werner, Nicolas, Thomas [Less]

Dear all,Today we’d like to share important news with you concerning MuseScore.Ten years ago we (Werner, Nicolas and Thomas) started working on MuseScore with the mission to democratise access to sheet music. The plan came in two steps. First by ... [More] developing free music notation software for everyone, then followed by a platform to upload and share sheet music. The latter is a commercial service which sustained the development of the free and open source MuseScore music notation software.We can fairly state that today MuseScore is the most popular notation software on the market, and by extend the world’s largest sheet music creators community. This is a great achievement which we, as an open source community, should be extremely proud of. Millions of people are learning and creating music with MuseScore every year.That said, it’s important to also look at the other side of the medallion, a side which we didn’t much communicate about. As MuseScore has become a very large software project, on which so many users rely on for their hobby and work, keeping up with the growth has become a major challenge. Our company resources were not equally growing fast enough, and therefore the future of the MuseScore project could become uncertain.It was always our intention to put a business model in place which could work for all stakeholders involved (creators, right holders, consumers) but we learnt that we could only achieve this by either a substantial external investment, or through a strategic partnership with a company who has established relationships with music publishers. After some time of researching both options, we opted for the latter.In short, we have decided to let Ultimate Guitar acquire the MuseScore company. Ultimate Guitar has pioneered a successful model for working with music publishers, and all MuseScore users will be able to benefit from this. Additionally, there are more resources now to take on the next steps and turn MuseScore into the online destination for sheet music.Of course, it is important to all of us that the open source nature of the MuseScore project is preserved. Therefore we would like to emphasize that the MuseScore notation software remains open source and that all code contributions will continue to be made under GPLv2. We are fully committed to make MuseScore 3 and all future releases happen and we will continue to make them available for free to the world.We would like to thank everyone who has been on our journey so far and we hope to continue to work with all of you on the future of MuseScore. We also like to invite you to read the announcement by Ultimate Guitar founder Eugeny Naidenov.Yours truly,Werner, Nicolas, Thomas [Less]

Welcome to December’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This has been your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each month of 2017. In these twelve months, we’ve featured twelve great MuseScorers, including a wide ... [More] variety of composers who create different types of music, as well as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to ThatEuphoniumGuy. This month, we’re closing out 2017 and this series with Isaac Glover! How did you discover MuseScore? In a music class in year 10, I improvised a melody on the piano that stuck with me and that I continued adding onto. A friend of mine was listening to it and told me that I should write it down before I completely forget how it went. Because my notation skills aren’t all that good by hand, I looked online for something to write the music for me, and I came across MuseScore, which was free and easy-to-use with very descriptive tutorials! What motivates you to compose? Music has always been a big passion of mine, something that I’ve always grown up listening too, and something that I have always turned to at any given moment. My biggest inspirations definitely came from either classical composers such as Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Rossini, and film composers such as Yann Tiersen and Bruno Coulais. Their music has had such a big effect on me and the way I write my music, and I’ve always loved the idea that maybe one day my music could have that effect on someone else in the future. What is your typical composing workflow like? I have approached my pieces differently, to test out what brings out the best results. Sometimes I’ll start my songs by using a chord progression (“Spanish Seduction” was written using this process) and working my way around that. Another way I have approached a song is to have a melody in mind and then write the accompaniment later (the harmonies, the chords and how the other instruments will compliment the melodic line). Sometimes I just flat out improvise—I’ll pick a key and an instrument and write down a random melody and see where that takes me. Sometimes my inspiration will come from playing around on my keyboard or on my xylophone. I don’t have a set formula when it comes to writing music. What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of? There are three pieces: The Conductor’s Invasion—a piece that started off simple and completely improvised, and then the next thing I knew I was making a story (poorly told due to lack of experience at the time). Space-Port Invasion Theme—I was approached by a guy named Noah who asked me to write for a video game, and the theme song has definitely captured a bit of attention! It was my very first theme song and I am very happy with the reactions it has caused! Woodwind Quintet in C Minor (Dance of the Angry Baby Chicks)—my very first piece for woodwind quintet, which I later expanded and changed around and turned it into the way it is now. Space-Port Invasion - Theme by Isaac Glover It’s been a pleasure putting together these blog posts and communicating with so many of you. I know there are many more of you fantastic MuseScorers who deserve to be featured—but, as it was originally planned to be, this has been a 12-part limited series through 2017. 2018 is a whole new year—who knows what it may bring? Happy scoring, everyone! Warmly, Isaac Weiss [Less]

Welcome to December’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This has been your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each month of 2017. In these twelve months, we’ve featured twelve great MuseScorers, including a wide ... [More] variety of composers who create different types of music, as well as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to ThatEuphoniumGuy. This month, we’re closing out 2017 and this series with Isaac Glover! How did you discover MuseScore? In a music class in year 10, I improvised a melody on the piano that stuck with me and that I continued adding onto. A friend of mine was listening to it and told me that I should write it down before I completely forget how it went. Because my notation skills aren’t all that good by hand, I looked online for something to write the music for me, and I came across MuseScore, which was free and easy-to-use with very descriptive tutorials! What motivates you to compose? Music has always been a big passion of mine, something that I’ve always grown up listening too, and something that I have always turned to at any given moment. My biggest inspirations definitely came from either classical composers such as Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Rossini, and film composers such as Yann Tiersen and Bruno Coulais. Their music has had such a big effect on me and the way I write my music, and I’ve always loved the idea that maybe one day my music could have that effect on someone else in the future. What is your typical composing workflow like? I have approached my pieces differently, to test out what brings out the best results. Sometimes I’ll start my songs by using a chord progression (“Spanish Seduction” was written using this process) and working my way around that. Another way I have approached a song is to have a melody in mind and then write the accompaniment later (the harmonies, the chords and how the other instruments will compliment the melodic line). Sometimes I just flat out improvise—I’ll pick a key and an instrument and write down a random melody and see where that takes me. Sometimes my inspiration will come from playing around on my keyboard or on my xylophone. I don’t have a set formula when it comes to writing music. What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of? There are three pieces: The Conductor’s Invasion—a piece that started off simple and completely improvised, and then the next thing I knew I was making a story (poorly told due to lack of experience at the time). Space-Port Invasion Theme—I was approached by a guy named Noah who asked me to write for a video game, and the theme song has definitely captured a bit of attention! It was my very first theme song and I am very happy with the reactions it has caused! Woodwind Quintet in C Minor (Dance of the Angry Baby Chicks)—my very first piece for woodwind quintet, which I later expanded and changed around and turned it into the way it is now. Space-Port Invasion - Theme by Isaac Glover It’s been a pleasure putting together these blog posts and communicating with so many of you. I know there are many more of you fantastic MuseScorers who deserve to be featured—but, as it was originally planned to be, this has been a 12-part limited series through 2017. 2018 is a whole new year—who knows what it may bring? Happy scoring, everyone! Warmly, Isaac Weiss [Less]

Welcome to December’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This has been your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each month of 2017. In these twelve months, we’ve featured twelve great MuseScorers, including a wide ... [More] variety of composers who create different types of music, as well as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to ThatEuphoniumGuy. This month, we’re closing out 2017 and this series with Isaac Glover! How did you discover MuseScore? In a music class in year 10, I improvised a melody on the piano that stuck with me and that I continued adding onto. A friend of mine was listening to it and told me that I should write it down before I completely forget how it went. Because my notation skills aren’t all that good by hand, I looked online for something to write the music for me, and I came across MuseScore, which was free and easy-to-use with very descriptive tutorials! What motivates you to compose? Music has always been a big passion of mine, something that I’ve always grown up listening too, and something that I have always turned to at any given moment. My biggest inspirations definitely came from either classical composers such as Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Rossini, and film composers such as Yann Tiersen and Bruno Coulais. Their music has had such a big effect on me and the way I write my music, and I’ve always loved the idea that maybe one day my music could have that effect on someone else in the future. What is your typical composing workflow like? I have approached my pieces differently, to test out what brings out the best results. Sometimes I’ll start my songs by using a chord progression (“Spanish Seduction” was written using this process) and working my way around that. Another way I have approached a song is to have a melody in mind and then write the accompaniment later (the harmonies, the chords and how the other instruments will compliment the melodic line). Sometimes I just flat out improvise—I’ll pick a key and an instrument and write down a random melody and see where that takes me. Sometimes my inspiration will come from playing around on my keyboard or on my xylophone. I don’t have a set formula when it comes to writing music. What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of? There are three pieces: The Conductor’s Invasion—a piece that started off simple and completely improvised, and then the next thing I knew I was making a story (poorly told due to lack of experience at the time). Space-Port Invasion Theme—I was approached by a guy named Noah who asked me to write for a video game, and the theme song has definitely captured a bit of attention! It was my very first theme song and I am very happy with the reactions it has caused! Woodwind Quintet in C Minor (Dance of the Angry Baby Chicks)—my very first piece for woodwind quintet, which I later expanded and changed around and turned it into the way it is now. Space-Port Invasion - Theme by Isaac Glover It’s been a pleasure putting together these blog posts and communicating with so many of you. I know there are many more of you fantastic MuseScorers who deserve to be featured—but, as it was originally planned to be, this has been a 12-part limited series through 2017. 2018 is a whole new year—who knows what it may bring? Happy scoring, everyone! Warmly, Isaac Weiss [Less]

Welcome to November’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This is your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each mon th of the year. We’re featuring a wide variety of composers and types of music in this series, as ... [More] well as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to Rivergrove. This month, meet Nathan Stys, aka ThatEuphoniumGuy! How did you discover MuseScore? I started using MuseScore almost five years ago, when my school’s band director encouraged me to use it to transcribe my favorite songs and such. I became pretty popular as a band geek, because I always brought in the latest songs playable for band instruments. I started composing months later, although I didn’t expect to get much out of it. From there it just escalated. What motivates you to compose? Composing is my major hobby along with playing video games. My motivation for composing is to provide innovative and eccentric pieces of music, unusual and interesting. This stems from my love of the video game soundtracks. I am even the owner of the groups “Rare and Neglected Instruments” and “Impossible Music” (I’m not very responsible though). Nowadays, I mainly use MuseScore to write songs for friends or simply to have fun. What is your typical composing workflow like? I haven’t quite paid attention to how I start a piece, but I notice that many times it comes out of my keyboard. I started taking piano lessons in March and have been growing steadily since then; before that, I didn’t actually play piano, but I just fooled around on it, and sometimes I would find a cool idea and go from there. In contrast, sometimes I start a piece with a very specific goal in mind and try my best (e.g., writing a spooky song for Halloween). What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of? The scores I’m most proud of (that I’ve posted) include “just your everyday Piccolo Trombone Solo”, “The Elements: Fire”, and my ”Spooky Locrian Groove“ (I can never get the instruments to balance right on the website, unfortunately). I used to compose gigantic and quirky pieces using MuseScore, but now I have expectations to live up to so I can’t do that as freely. However, I still try to put much effort into making my pieces enjoyable. New Series!! - - - The Elements: FIRE by ThatEuphoniumGuy Watch for our next—and possibly last—MuseScorer of the month in December! [Less]

Welcome to November’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This is your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each mon th of the year. We’re featuring a wide variety of composers and types of music in this series, as ... [More] well as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to Rivergrove. This month, meet Nathan Stys, aka ThatEuphoniumGuy! How did you discover MuseScore? I started using MuseScore almost five years ago, when my school’s band director encouraged me to use it to transcribe my favorite songs and such. I became pretty popular as a band geek, because I always brought in the latest songs playable for band instruments. I started composing months later, although I didn’t expect to get much out of it. From there it just escalated. What motivates you to compose? Composing is my major hobby along with playing video games. My motivation for composing is to provide innovative and eccentric pieces of music, unusual and interesting. This stems from my love of the video game soundtracks. I am even the owner of the groups “Rare and Neglected Instruments” and “Impossible Music” (I’m not very responsible though). Nowadays, I mainly use MuseScore to write songs for friends or simply to have fun. What is your typical composing workflow like? I haven’t quite paid attention to how I start a piece, but I notice that many times it comes out of my keyboard. I started taking piano lessons in March and have been growing steadily since then; before that, I didn’t actually play piano, but I just fooled around on it, and sometimes I would find a cool idea and go from there. In contrast, sometimes I start a piece with a very specific goal in mind and try my best (e.g., writing a spooky song for Halloween). What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of? The scores I’m most proud of (that I’ve posted) include “just your everyday Piccolo Trombone Solo”, “The Elements: Fire”, and my ”Spooky Locrian Groove“ (I can never get the instruments to balance right on the website, unfortunately). I used to compose gigantic and quirky pieces using MuseScore, but now I have expectations to live up to so I can’t do that as freely. However, I still try to put much effort into making my pieces enjoyable. New Series!! - - - The Elements: FIRE by ThatEuphoniumGuy Watch for our next—and possibly last—MuseScorer of the month in December! [Less]

Welcome to November’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This is your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each mon th of the year. We’re featuring a wide variety of composers and types of music in this series, as ... [More] well as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to Rivergrove. This month, meet Nathan Stys, aka ThatEuphoniumGuy! How did you discover MuseScore? I started using MuseScore almost five years ago, when my school’s band director encouraged me to use it to transcribe my favorite songs and such. I became pretty popular as a band geek, because I always brought in the latest songs playable for band instruments. I started composing months later, although I didn’t expect to get much out of it. From there it just escalated. What motivates you to compose? Composing is my major hobby along with playing video games. My motivation for composing is to provide innovative and eccentric pieces of music, unusual and interesting. This stems from my love of the video game soundtracks. I am even the owner of the groups “Rare and Neglected Instruments” and “Impossible Music” (I’m not very responsible though). Nowadays, I mainly use MuseScore to write songs for friends or simply to have fun. What is your typical composing workflow like? I haven’t quite paid attention to how I start a piece, but I notice that many times it comes out of my keyboard. I started taking piano lessons in March and have been growing steadily since then; before that, I didn’t actually play piano, but I just fooled around on it, and sometimes I would find a cool idea and go from there. In contrast, sometimes I start a piece with a very specific goal in mind and try my best (e.g., writing a spooky song for Halloween). What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of? The scores I’m most proud of (that I’ve posted) include “just your everyday Piccolo Trombone Solo”, “The Elements: Fire”, and my ”Spooky Locrian Groove“ (I can never get the instruments to balance right on the website, unfortunately). I used to compose gigantic and quirky pieces using MuseScore, but now I have expectations to live up to so I can’t do that as freely. However, I still try to put much effort into making my pieces enjoyable. New Series!! - - - The Elements: FIRE by ThatEuphoniumGuy Watch for our next—and possibly last—MuseScorer of the month in December! [Less]

Welcome to October’s edition of “MuseScorer of the month.” This is your chance to get to know one of MuseScore.com’s many brilliant members each month of the year. We’re featuring a wide variety of composers and types of music in this series, as well ... [More] as some members who use MuseScore to transcribe and share public domain sheet music. Last month, we introduced you to Aaron David. This month, meet the inventor of the gymnosolitude (see below), Finnish pianist Tuukka Jokilehto, aka Rivergrove! How did you discover MuseScore? I browsed the Internet for a free notation software to write down a few piano pieces I had composed and quite luckily found MuseScore right away. It was just what I was looking for. What motivates you to compose? I’m mainly interested in composing easy-to-play piano music for amateurs, beginners and children. My experience as a piano teacher tells me what kind of passages take a lot of practice and what kind don’t, so I try to write music that doesn’t take too much time to practice but would still be interesting for the player and the listener. A big motivation for me to compose is the ready audience and the immediate feedback and comments one gets from all the nice people here on MuseScore. What is your typical composing workflow like? I try to improvise some interesting sounding patterns on the piano and develop them into a piece. If I can’t come up with something in ten minutes, I quit and try again later. An interesting (unusual, funny, etc.) title is usually very inspiring for me. A good example of this might be a piece called ”Nagging Piano Teacher”. When I came up with the title, it didn’t take me more than a few minutes to compose the actual piece. What have you shared on MuseScore.com that you’re most proud of? The main body of my work, the numerous piano pieces written for beginners which I hope take a fresh approach to piano playing and learning. If I had to pick just one piece, I would go for ”Champagne Rag Overture”. It’s a large-scale, virtuosic rag turned into a symphonic kind of overture. Special section on the origins of the gymnosolitude The story of the gymnosolitude began when I thought of composing a sequel for Burping Dinosaur, a piano piece for children. This time, however, the piece turned out to be a little bit too big and difficult for a children’s piece. I was imagining the dinosaur wandering about with nowhere particular to go. So I invented, with a little help from Satie (the composer of the three gymnopédies), a musical genre describing solitary walking, the gymnosolitude. To my astonishment, people here on MuseScore started writing gymnosolitudes, all with their own unique styles. Champagne Rag Overture by Rivergrove Watch for our next MuseScorer of the month in November! [Less]