It’s fair to say that the concept of music notation software is easy to understand. You write music on a computer, it shows up on your display, and you print it out. What could be so difficult about that? Well, as we all know, plenty.

Philip Rothman and David MacDonald remember beginning with zero knowledge about programs like Finale, Sibelius, and Dorico, and eventually progressing to the point where we can actually teach those programs to others trying to learn them. Along the way, we’ve discovered and refined approaches to learning that we share with each other, and with you, in the course of our discussion.

We revisit our original discussion on the topic, and add a postscript — what we've learned about learning in the intervening years.

No, we won’t be reciting all 892 pages of the Sibelius reference or 1,605 pages of the Dorico manual, but we will relay some key philosophies so that you have more confidence when you work with the software you use to create music.

More on Scoring Notes:

Documenting the documenter: Lillie Harris
Conquering Finale with Jason Loffredo
An interview with Sibelius expert Robin Walker
Read the friendly manual