tool for transcribing tunes

Oxymorons "R" Us
Forum rules
Please see forum announcement for description and rules!
User avatar
john
Posts: 853
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2002 6:00 pm

tool for transcribing tunes

Post by john »

please could somone advise me of a program that can be used to transcribe piping tunes - something that would allow you to notate things like triplets and to indicate rolls and crans - anything that would allow tunes to be notated along the lines of what e spring did with the camden breeze would be perferct
User avatar
MTGuru
Posts: 18663
Joined: Sat Sep 30, 2006 12:45 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: San Diego, CA

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by MTGuru »

Recommended:

http://abcnotation.com/
http://abcnotation.com/learn
john wrote:what e spring did with the camden breeze
Sorry, what is e spring?
Vivat diabolus in musica! MTGuru's (old) GG Clips / Blackbird Clips

Joel Barish: Is there any risk of brain damage?
Dr. Mierzwiak: Well, technically speaking, the procedure is brain damage.
User avatar
john
Posts: 853
Joined: Mon Aug 12, 2002 6:00 pm

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by john »

Edwin Spring of The Camden Breeze fame - a program that allows you to type in notes straight into manuscript would be perfect (i don't get on very well with abc)
Elmek
Posts: 658
Joined: Thu Jun 16, 2005 12:52 pm
antispam: No
Location: Up North

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by Elmek »

I hate ABC as well and prefer a proper music score. Was recommended the following http://musescore.org/ which I am told is based on the high end Sibelius scorewriting program and is just as powerful

It is available for all platforms (Windows, Linux, Mac) and best of all it is free of charge

John
Kypfer
Posts: 500
Joined: Fri Oct 29, 2010 4:27 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 12

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by Kypfer »

I hate ABC as well and prefer a proper music score
... might I suggest having a look at "ABC Explorer", http://abc.stalikez.info/abcex.php it's freeware for the PC and, once you've got the headers entered (title, tempo and key), just type your notes (A b c/2 etc) and the musical score appears at the same time. Yes, you do need to spend a few minutes familiarising yourself with the basics of ABC notation initially, but once you've mastered those (or made up a crib sheet) you can look up the more advanced features as you need them.
"I'm playing all the right notes—but not necessarily in the right order."
User avatar
CHasR
Posts: 2464
Joined: Wed Jul 26, 2006 8:48 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: canned tuna-aisle 6

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by CHasR »

Elmek wrote:I hate ABC as well and prefer a proper music score.
:o wow finally I hold something in common with Elmek??
imho, there is no substitute for notation. Transcribing a tune from a recording to paper by hand, gives one an intimate connection with the piece that is seldom broken :thumbsup:
[abc my ars, btw] :love:
User avatar
Peter Duggan
Posts: 3223
Joined: Tue Aug 30, 2011 5:39 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: I'm not registering, I'm trying to edit my profile! The field “Tell us something.” is too short, a minimum of 100 characters is required.
Location: Kinlochleven
Contact:

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by Peter Duggan »

Elmek wrote:Was recommended the following http://musescore.org/ which I am told is based on the high end Sibelius scorewriting program
In the sense that they're both scorewriting programs, perhaps...
and is just as powerful
It's not!
It is available for all platforms (Windows, Linux, Mac) and best of all it is free of charge
But it is free.
CHasR wrote:Transcribing a tune from a recording to paper by hand, gives one an intimate connection with the piece that is seldom broken :thumbsup:
Best way to start any transcription, no matter what you intend to do with it afterwards! :)
And we in dreams behold the Hebrides.

Master of nine?
User avatar
Nanohedron
Moderatorer
Posts: 38211
Joined: Wed Dec 18, 2002 6:00 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Been a fluter, citternist, and uilleann piper; committed now to the way of the harp.

Oh, yeah: also a mod here, not a spammer. A matter of opinion, perhaps.
Location: Lefse country

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by Nanohedron »

Peter Duggan wrote:
CHasR wrote:Transcribing a tune from a recording to paper by hand, gives one an intimate connection with the piece that is seldom broken :thumbsup:
Best way to start any transcription, no matter what you intend to do with it afterwards! :)
I saw the title "tool for transcribing tunes", and immediately thought: pencil. :wink:
"If you take music out of this world, you will have nothing but a ball of fire." - Tribal musician
User avatar
Denny
Posts: 24005
Joined: Mon Nov 17, 2003 11:29 am
antispam: No
Location: N of Seattle

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by Denny »

oh, the intervals...
Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free
It's dizzying, the possibilities. Ashes, Ashes all fall down.
cboody
Posts: 676
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2009 10:45 pm
antispam: No

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by cboody »

I tend to agree with the pencil idea. Lots to be learned in the process.

But at the same time, I don't understand at all the "I hate ABC" crowd. I'd hate it too if I intended to play from it, but I don't view it as that sort of thing. It is a useful tool for quickly getting a tune onto paper, for exchanging tunes with others, and for collecting tunes without using tons of storage space.

What makes it useful for me, though, is the simplicity of seeing the music notation result. Easy ABC does this beautifully on any platform. I'm told ABC Explorer does it too, though I don't use that. If what you want is nice clean notation ABC is an excellent tool. If what you want is bagpipe notation ABC handles it. Playing from it would be a drag, particularly I think for pipers, but some folks love it for that.
User avatar
colomon
Posts: 2140
Joined: Thu Aug 30, 2001 6:00 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Whistle player, aspiring C#/D accordion and flute player, and aspiring tunesmith. Particularly interested in the music of South Sligo and Newfoundland. Inspired by the music of Peter Horan, Fred Finn, Rufus Guinchard, Emile Benoit, and Liz Carroll.

I've got some compositions up at http://www.harmonyware.com/tunes/SolsTunes.html
Location: Midland, Michigan
Contact:

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by colomon »

Just decided to see how fast I can enter ABC.
Sol's Tunes (new tune 2/2020)
User avatar
colomon
Posts: 2140
Joined: Thu Aug 30, 2001 6:00 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Whistle player, aspiring C#/D accordion and flute player, and aspiring tunesmith. Particularly interested in the music of South Sligo and Newfoundland. Inspired by the music of Peter Horan, Fred Finn, Rufus Guinchard, Emile Benoit, and Liz Carroll.

I've got some compositions up at http://www.harmonyware.com/tunes/SolsTunes.html
Location: Midland, Michigan
Contact:

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by colomon »

Here we go, three tunes I know but have never seen transcribed.

Code: Select all

X:1
T:Boyd's Cove Joey Clement's
M:2/4
L:1/8
R:Single
K:D
EF AF|EF D2|EF AF|EF A2|Bc/B/ AF|EF D2|EF AF|E2 E2:|
|:Be ed|BA d2|Be2f|e2 de|fe ed|B2 AF|EF AF|E4:|

X:2
T:Boyd's Cove Single #2
M:2/4
L:1/8
R:Single
K:G
GA Bd|de/f/ g2|GA Bd|GB A2|GA Bd|de/f/ g2|ae ed|GB A2:|
|:ae ed|de/f/ g2|ae ed|GB A2|ae ed|de/f/ g2|ge ed|GB A2:|

X:3
T:Boyd's Cove Single #3
M:2/4
L:1/8
R:Single
K:D
dc B2|AF AB/c/|df e2|fe e2|dc B2|AF AB/c/|df e2|[1 fd d2:|[2 fd de|
|:fd fg|a2 ag|fd fg|a2 ag|fd B2|AF AB/c/|df e2|[1 fd de:|[2 fd d2|]
Notation.

Look at the time stamps to see how long it took me, and hey, I had to go check out the Lima Locomotive works in the family room.

[Edited to fix errors in my conception of how the tunes should be notated.]
Last edited by colomon on Wed Sep 19, 2012 2:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Sol's Tunes (new tune 2/2020)
cboody
Posts: 676
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2009 10:45 pm
antispam: No

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by cboody »

Ah! Got you IDed. How goes it? See y ou next Midland, maybe. We can play Frieze Britches...

Chuck Boody
User avatar
colomon
Posts: 2140
Joined: Thu Aug 30, 2001 6:00 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: Whistle player, aspiring C#/D accordion and flute player, and aspiring tunesmith. Particularly interested in the music of South Sligo and Newfoundland. Inspired by the music of Peter Horan, Fred Finn, Rufus Guinchard, Emile Benoit, and Liz Carroll.

I've got some compositions up at http://www.harmonyware.com/tunes/SolsTunes.html
Location: Midland, Michigan
Contact:

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by colomon »

Oh! I certainly never put together your ID and your face. That was Steph who knew Frieze Britches, though, I only know "Buried My Wife..." (two-part version). Suppose I should get off my behind and learn F.B., though, it's a classic.

BTW, everyone, I'm pretty sure those ABCs above have rhythmic glitches. Not a limitation of ABC at all, just the hazard of quickly notating music which might be crooked -- I think I stuck the downbeats in the wrong spot on #2 and definitely accidentally added a beat in the second part of #3. So I was able to use ABC to quickly get all the notes and rhythms I wanted (actually made no ABC coding mistakes at all entering those three) but I wasn't able to quickly figure out the details of the tunes. I'll update them in a minute (and update them again if Gerry Strong comes back with further suggestions).

Anyway, here's the Dardanelles playing the set.
Sol's Tunes (new tune 2/2020)
cboody
Posts: 676
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2009 10:45 pm
antispam: No

Re: tool for transcribing tunes

Post by cboody »

I never knew my ID and my face had anything in common! :boggle:

Yeah I know you didn't play FB, my comment was a gentle push! :)

Seriously, it was fun to play with you folks. A nice sense of style. Perhaps better than some of the others there. It was unfortunate we had so few tunes in common beyond the very common though. PM me some tune lists and I'll look into picking up some of your stuff. I liked some of it quite well.
Post Reply