Music Software
30 May 2009
Does anyone know of a good music notation software program that is inexpensive and easy to use? All I need is something to make so called "lead sheets" with, ie a single note melody line with the chords listed above. It would be nice to have one that plays the tune back once it is "written." I think most software will do this. Even if it just plays it back with that cheesy, computer sound that's not quite real music, it is helpful to hear the piece.
Being the tightwad that I am, "inexpensive" might be the key word here. Free download perhaps?


Hey Richie,
It has been a while since I have looked but a the programs that I have used in the past are Tabledit, and PowerTab. Tabledit has a free reader and a cheap editor add-on and PowerTab is outright free. Both of them display tab as well as notation and will midi the music back to you.
One of the really cool things about Tabledit is that there is already a huge library of tab files (check out: http://www.alltabs.com/) and it seems to be the more prevalent choice for acoustic players.
For more info and opinions on these two programs and their ilk, you might have a look at this previous post where we discussed them in more detail.
-Shawn
Play Well.
Shawn: Thanks a lot for your input. I'll check out both programs and report back when I've had time to form an opinion.
Play nice!
Finale Notepad will cost you ten bucks and it will do what you need. Slick and easy to use.