Welcome to Sibelius 4! Return to Notation Programs /To E-mail The Mac and Windows versions have same the file format making them 100% compatible with each other. List Price $599 - Academic Price $265 Lab Pack of 5 $729 With Pro PhotoScore $395   Sibelius 4 represents a dramatic advance in writing music - with new features and enhancements across the whole spectrum of what you can do. Sibelius 4 is essential for everyone - from students and teachers, to professional composers and publishers. And we're sure you'll like it, because we've based the upgrade on thousands of ideas and suggestions from users like you. Sibelius is the world's best-selling music notation software for Windows and Mac. It is as intuitive to use as a pen, yet so powerful that it does most things in less than the blink of an eye. There are other music programs, but Sibelius was created by musicians for musicians. Sibelius 4 represents a dramatic advance in writing music - with new features and enhancements across the whole spectrum of what you can do. Sibelius 4 is essential for everyone - from students and teachers, to professional composers and publishers. Great new features in version 4: System Requirements Windows: Windows 98/ME/NT4/2000/XP; Pentium or faster; 64Mb+ RAM (128Mb+ for Windows 2000/XP); 70Mb hard disk space. Scanning may need more RAM. *** Mac: OS 9.1/9.2/10.1.5 or later; iMac/G3/G4/G5;128Mb+ RAM (OS 9) or 192Mb+ RAM (OS X); 70Mb hard disk space. Scanning requires TWAIN-compatible scanner and may need more RAM.   What's new / Better in every way Create CDs & MP3s of your music High-quality sounds built-in Auto page breaks Focus on staves Live Flexi-time, editing and playback School feature set Optical™ note spacing 30 new plug-ins ...and much more Creating music Starting a score When you run Sibelius 4, it offers you a list of the most common tasks to choose from - create a new score, open a recent file, scan, etc. You can start a new score entirely from a single, easy-to-use dialog - select instruments, key & time signatures, title, composer, tempo, etc. You can also choose the text fonts and house style (e.g. handwritten), and even create a title page - all from the same dialog. Focus on Staves When writing for orchestra, band or other large ensemble, there are so many staves that it's easy to get lost. So we've added two new features to help. Focus on Staves shows just the staves you specify and hides all the rest, so you can work on just (say) the brass. The hidden staves still play back, so you can also use this to hide realizations in Sibelius or Scorch, such as a lead sheet that plays with a full accompaniment even though only the melody is visible. Also, you can ask Sibelius to number every bar and label every staff, so you can easily see where you are even when the instrument names are off the screen. Playback Create audio CDs The revolutionary Save as Audio Track feature creates a high-quality sound recording of your score, ready to burn straight onto CD. So now you can produce high-quality CDs of your music to demo to performers and publishers, for people to rehearse to, and for friends to enjoy. Save as Audio Track uses the exceptional sound from Kontakt Player Silver/Gold to create standard .wav and .aiff files, which you can burn to CD using any CD writer. You can also turn them into MP3 files to post on the Internet or send by email. (Due to the processing requirements of high-quality audio, you need a high-specification computer for best results from Save as Audio Track and Kontakt Player Silver/Gold.) Kontakt Player Silver Sibelius 3 includes Kontakt Player Silver, which produces surprisingly realistic playback of your music using top-quality instrumental samples. From Native Instruments, the world's leading software synthesis company, Kontakt Player Silver includes 19 unpitched sounds and 100 unpitched percussion sounds (marked * here) - covering a useful selection of brass, woodwind, strings, percussion, voices and a Bösendorfer piano. You can expand this to 64 or more pitched sounds and 110 unpitched percussion sounds, including a wide range of useful orchestral and band instruments, by buying Kontakt Player Gold (see box, right). If you already have a good MIDI sound module or sampler, you can use it in conjunction with the Kontakt Player. ample library by Sonic Implants with instruments from Peter Seidlaczek (Best Service), Northstar, Zero-G, Tap Space and Dan Dean Productions. Live Playback New Properties options for playing notes, dynamics, etc. ondifferent repeats, and for editing playback of individual notes If a score was created with Flexi-time or from a MIDI file, you can click the new Live Playback button to hear it with all the subtle nuances of the original performance. You can also fine-tune playback to perfection, like in a sequencer: view the dynamics as colored bars and re-shape phrases with the mouse. The new Transform Live Playback dialog also lets you adjust timings & dynamics en masse, such as making notes more staccato/legato, scaling dynamics, and making rhythms 'tighter' or 'looser'. Repeats Sibelius 3 supports every kind of repeat you can imagine - not just D.S., D.C., Coda, Segno and Fine, but complex repeat structures with up to 8 repetitions. You can even make Sibelius jump between arbitrary points in the score during playback, e.g. to skip guitar fill boxes or simulate aleatory performances. You can make individual notes, dynamics etc. apply only to certain verses or repeats, so you could have the brass play only the second time round, or make verse 3 p and verse 4 f. What's more, timecode now shows separate timings for each repeat. Further improvements The mixer is now resizeable so you can view any number of faders, and you can hide the data panel at the right-hand side. Sibelius 3 automatically plays dynamics written between keyboard staves, metric modulations, and glissandi from tied notes and over barlines. You can set a metronome mark just by clicking the mouse in the desired tempo. The keypad and properties window now disappears during playback, so you can see as much of the music as possible. Sibelius 3 also includes a sophisticated sound set editor. Power tools Auto page breaks This remarkable feature puts page turns at convenient places for you in extracted parts. There are various useful options such as how many bars rest to allow for a turn - and if there isn't a convenient place, Sibelius can warn the player by writing 'V.S.' or drawing spectacles in the margin! Auto page breaks are automatically updated, so Sibelius will instantly find new page turns whenever you change the music or layout. Scanning Sibelius 3 includes PhotoScore Lite 3, which features much-improved accuracy, e.g. it automatically cleans up dust, holes etc. which can affect lower-quality originals. It now scans 6-string guitar tab. Editing is quicker thanks to dragging of objects, zoom, and number keys to add intervals. PhotoScore Lite 3 also plays back multiple pages, including repeats and guitar tab. PhotoScore Professional 3 has all these improvements too, plus it now works out the length of pick-up (upbeat) and irregular bars, reads 4-string tab (including crosses) and guitar frames, reads PDF files (on Windows, requires GhostScript), and has improved recognition of text, rhythms (particularly tuplets) and chord symbols. If you don't yet have PhotoScore Professional, you can buy it with your Sibelius upgrade at a special discount. It reads text, slurs, ties, hairpins, articulations, tuplets, up to 32 staves, 8 types of clefs, up to 5 beams, and up to 200 pages. If you already have PhotoScore Professional, you can upgrade it to PhotoScore Professional 3 from www.neuratron.com Plug-ins Sibelius 3 includes no fewer than 30 extra plug-ins, now in a new main menu, plus many improvements to existing ones. The new Scales & Arpeggios plug-in (below) will keep instrumental students busy for months! It creates a complete set of scales and arpeggios from a huge range of possibilities - you can specify any key or progression of keys (e.g. circle of fifths), double in octaves or thirds, use different clefs, write for single-staff or keyboard instruments, etc. As well as major and minor it includes diminished/dominant/ minor 7th arpeggios, modal scales (e.g. dorian), jazz scales (e.g. lydian flat 7), numerous exotic scales such as octatonic, Japanese pentatonic, and more. Other new plug-ins include: Lyrics: apply traditional lyrics beaming, add slurs to melismas, and ensure lyrics are aligned along every staff Realize Figured Bass Realize Chord Symbols - create accompaniments from lead sheets etc. Add Drum Pattern: writes a drum kit for you in a wide range of styles …and many more! Scorch Scorch now has an optional 'split view' so you can see the next system before the page turns. This lets you use your screen as a music stand and play along. You can also view music a system at a time so it fits on the screen, while still printing complete pages. Scorch includes most of the new Sibelius features, such as live playback and colored objects. You can even make lead sheets and jazz scores play back with hidden accompaniments and realizations. Plus there's a new plug-in which turns a folder of scores into a complete indexed Scorch web site. Files When you open a MIDI file, the music is now notated using 2 voices, just like Flexitime. The original velocities and timings are preserved, which you can play back and edit just as if you'd inputted using Flexi-time. Saving a MIDI file also saves these velocities and timings, and other new playback enhancements such as complex repeats all work equally well with MIDI files. By popular request, Sibelius 3 can save in Sibelius 2 format, so you'll remain compatible with other users even if they don't upgrade. Save as Graphics can now export TIFF files, and there are new options to specify dpi resolutions directly, adjust the staff size to improve the quality, and output in monochrome to reduce file size. Sibelius 3 can save all the lyrics from your score into a single text file, and now also opens Finale 2004 ETF files. We've replaced Transfer Saving with a new system which makes it easy to use your copy of Sibelius on two different computers without typing in long numbers Notation & engraving Optical™ spacing Assisted by several of the world's leading music engravers, we have devised an entirely new note spacing algorithm for Sibelius 3 - Optical spacing. It's designed to ensure that when notes are widely spread, their spacing is unaffected by obstacles such as accidentals; but when space is tight, notes, accidentals, leger lines, lyrics, etc. all pack together as close as possible without touching. Space is only added when required, and is removed again when no longer needed, e.g. if you delete an accidental. This revolutionary algorithm also greatly enhances the spacing of tuplets and crossrhythms between staves, with further improvements to lyrics. Advanced users have precise control over all the intricacies, thanks to numerous adjustable options. Beaming Sibelius 3 has completely revised rules for beaming notes into groups, based on the time signature and context; it handles almost every situation perfectly for you. But should you want to adjust the beaming rules, a sophisticated new dialog lets you set beam groups and subgroups of any length (e.g. 4, 6), or choose to beam from, over and to rests. There are also new options for breaking beams around tuplets, and for using horizontal beams throughout particular staves (e.g. percussion or guitar tab). Text You can now change the text font of all text styles at once, with the new Edit All Fonts dialog. There are new plug-ins to find and replace text, to reposition text (e.g. fingerings) away from notes, and to revise dynamics en masse. Guitar You can now add your favorite guitar frames to libraries, for re-use in other scores. They also now automatically transpose, and a new menu option lets you step through alternative fingerings for any chord. Tab input is now even easier: the arrow keys move up/down the strings and left/right through the bar, and you just type plain numbers to specify frets. When inputting from MIDI or copying from notation, you can specify your maximum stretch and preferred fingering range for tab, e.g. between the 3rd and 10th fret; you can also refinger existing tab using these settings. There are many new tab style options, such as showing the tuning for each string at the start of the score. Sibelius now loads and saves the popular ASCII tab file format, making it easy to share music with other guitarists via the Internet. Among other guitar enhancements, you can now scan in tab and guitar frames. String indicator lines are now included, as are 50 new fretted instruments and tunings - everything from 12 lute tunings to dulcimer and sitar. Sibelius 3 is also compatible with our new guitar software G7. Color You can now change the color of almost anything in the score - notes, text, lines, symbols, etc. This is particularly useful for educational music, marking up sketches, and for making important markings (e.g. repeats and rehearsal marks) stand out. They print in color, too. User Guide & help The Sibelius 3 User Guide has been completely updated, and almost every page revised to make it an even easier read than ever. We've also made it optional for Sibelius 2 users, so if you don't want a new User Guide, you needn't pay for one - we'll send you a booklet about just the new features instead. On-screen help is also completely revised. It's now searchable, and pops up in a moment. Other improvements Among many other enhancements, you can now drag the right-hand end of systems to indent them; create 'system' symbols which are extracted into all parts (e.g. for codas, segnos or pauses above barlines); and position system text with the arrow keys or using Align in a Row/Column. More new features There are so many new features in Sibelius 3 that we don't have space to explain them all in detail, but here are those we haven't mentioned already:  Look & feel: new selection colors for system objects, objects in multiple voices (e.g. dynamics) and selected hidden or colored objects (so you can tell that e.g. a rest has been hidden even when selected) caret shows voice color when inputting notes new textures: graph paper (for measuring in spaces), coffee-stained paper, tiger skin desk, Sibelius 3 ocean-blue desk hide message boxes which you don't want to see again File menu lists 10 most recent scores (was 5) Creating music: 18 new jazz Arrange styles, in the style of Count Basie, Sammy Nestico, Thad Jones, Billy Strayhorn, etc. repitching now accessed via a special shortcut so you can't start repitching by accident hit space to skip notes you don't want to repitch MIDI file importing splits music between staves better 'looseness' control for inputting strummed chords from MIDI guitar unplayable guitar tab notes shown as red question marks several new instruments added that are scored in bass clef but written in treble clef in extracted parts enharmonic spelling in step-time input improved improvements to the appearance of percussion notation in imported MIDI files choose the page size, orientation and house style when importing MIDI files or sending scanned music from PhotoScore Flexi-time: replace existing music or merge with it (overdub) improved splitting between staves set length thresholds at which staccato and tenuto are notated better clicks in compound time signatures Playback: hide MIDI data panel at right-hand side of mixer plays silent gap between pieces/songs/movements in same file new playback dictionary entries for jazz tempo words etc. playback dictionary includes case sensitivity option, so you can make 'SWING', 'Swing' and 'swing' all equivalent playback of trills over barlines and tremolos improved new Ped * line which plays back latency control for syncing playback between multiple devices velocity calibration curves for MIDI devices System Real Time messages to control sample players such as Gigastudio uses device names from Audio MIDI Setup (Mac OS X) supports Core Audio soundfonts (Mac OS X) Notation & engraving: automatic initial barline on lead sheets 'cross in circle' percussion notehead new symbols for repeat 4 times, guitar shake, figured bass slashed 5/6/9, handbell techniques, Japanese-style coda & segno various improvements to existing symbol designs (e.g. larger rhythm dot) and to chord symbol font can hide redundant accidentals which arise with cross-staff beaming beams no longer go over barlines unless explicitly told to can independently flip either end of a slur across a page break new text styles for title/composer on title page, percussion stickings, fake time signatures on a single staff, right-aligned repeat text (e.g. To Coda) adjustable leger line length page numbers aligned with staff margins (option) articulations centered on stems (option) set stem length & stem direction rules for each staff (useful for percussion, guitar tab, bagpipe, etc.) 'keep bars together' layout option improved common guitar frames brackets & braces omitted on single-staff systems bar numbers adjusted for pick-up bars lyric options for East Asian languages (e.g. elision slurs underneath lyrics consisting of multiple characters) all appropriate word menus now include smart quotes & accented characters Roman numerals, jazz tempo marks, Ped symbol, double sharp/flat & repeat words in appropriate word menus low clarinets, low brass etc. automatically change from bass to treble clef when parts are extracted Power tools: View > Layout Marks (replacing Breaks and Locks) now also shows auto page breaks, dotted line where staves are hidden, section end barline, new 'keep bars together' option shortcuts categorized by menu & feature type to make them easier to create create & choose between multiple sets of shortcuts & menus transfer sets of shortcuts between computers as files import guitars from MIDI files as notation or tab no need to update layout when opening Finale files imports Unicode text (e.g. Japanese) and new-style guitar tab from Finale 2003/2004 & Finale Guitar PhotoScore Lite & Professional 3: improved editing interface X flips stems draws small staves to scale adjustable full detail view window automatic page margins open multiple files at once groups staves with same name with brackets & barlines supports dual monitors (Windows) can re-edit .opt files even if original scan missing PhotoScore Professional 3 only: can transpose music itself automatic page text justification input/edit grace notes and cross noteheads (though not currently read) save repeats in MIDI files save as MusicXML and NIFF print from PhotoScore (with option to print rests/stems in tab or not) play with Espressivo, Swing and reverb from PhotoScore Plug-ins: further new plug-ins - Simplify Accidentals (respells to suit the key signature) Add Accidentals to All Notes (for avant garde music) Number Bars (e.g. repeated bars) Print Multiple Copies (queues up multiple files to print, with different numbers of copies for each) Remove Unison Notes (for cleaning up MIDI files and after using Arrange) Combine Tied Notes and Rests (for cleaning up Flexi-time and MIDI files) Convert Simple Time to Compound Time Straighten Swung Eighths Ornament Playback Compare Staves Add Verse Numbers Add Schenkerian Scale Degrees Calculate Statistics for Folder of Scores (compiles a report of the number of bars, staves and pages in multiple files - useful for copyists) Add Harp Pedaling (devises harp pedal diagrams and warns when the music is unplayable) Apply Shape Notes Check Multiple Stops Convert Folder of SCORE Files Convert Folder of MIDI Files Color Pitches Boomwhacker Note Colors Remove Overlapping Notes Harmonics Playback ManuScript can now access notehead types, Live Playback data, object colors, version information, etc.  Sibelius 3 is by far the largest upgrade to Sibelius we've ever produced. In fact, it's one of the biggest upgrades of any software ever. With over 200 new features and significant feature enhancements across the whole spectrum of everything Sibelius can do, this upgrade is essential for everyone - from students and educators, to professional composers and publishers. Whatever kind of music you write, and whatever level you're at, Sibelius 3 will make your work faster, easier, and more enjoyable   Return to Top of Page S