Why I Switched to Dorico (and why you should too) 

Thanks so much! I really appreciate the kind words, I’m glad you enjoyed it

Glad it was helpful! That might be a good idea, though I don't think the playback is taxing the system THAT much, but I'll still give that a try. Thanks for watching!

Use noteperformer it's a synthesiser playback engine uses less resources.

Thanks for the kind words! It’s exciting that this software continues to get better and better, it makes the day-to-day work much more manageable than fighting against a software to do what you want!

Have you heard about MuseScore? /s Seriously, Dorico is so worth the money. You don’t even have to be a professional power user to enjoy it (I’m certainly not). Everything just flows so easily, as opposed to the competitors.

Fantastic! I'm going to be making more videos about it soon, so stay tuned!

I know! You would not believe my delight when I saw it. It's the perfect solution for my gripe, I'm using it a lot now!

I'm stuck on 2019/8 version of Sibelius. Update would cost me 160€ or so if I can get through their arcane system of subs and upgrades. Years ago I bought Dorico 3.5 but I have not switched fully. Now I have a new computer (went from pc to mac), I just might update to v5 and be done with Sibelius, which I haven't installed on the new machine yet.

Yeah, I'm not sure what I would do about it, but it is a thing! I suppose it's an unfortunate side effect of the accents. The thing about the percussion tied roll thing: there actually is a distinction between tied and non-tied notes. Not all people write that way, I know several people that write with no ties, and that's valid, but I have played pieces before (like snare drum etudes) where you make tied rolls continuous, and non-tied rolls are separated. You win some you lose some! Thanks so much for commenting and for watching!

It’s only a matter of time! I think I was the one guy at my college using Dorico too, but I hope to spread the good word ;)

As I understand it, they could open your Dorico file using the free version of Dorico - although without the ability to edit. Maybe a start?

Hahahaha. As usual Acadamia is years behind the curve lmfao. Do your profs know what a Music.xml file is or even an .xml file? Either way, it will probably look like dogshit on Finale and Sibelius as they added in .xml files after they were invented.

Yes, please give us an update if you try out Musescore! Although you should wait until they release 4,5 as this first version has quite a few bugs that probably would hinder your professional output.

Can’t agree more

Personally, I would disagree. Professional composer here. Composing as a craft is much more sample-focused than many many academics and colleges would care to admit. While there is still ample work in the concert halls, weddings, schools, and churches, the real money is in multimedia composing. I know composers who make music for top notch orchestras such as the ASO, New York Philharmonic, etc. and they are only making around $50,000 - 70,000 a year. Mind you, this is EXTREMELY risky work as projects can be cancelled, gigs can dry up etc. The risk is just simply not worth the reward you are getting. Similar levels of risk in other areas would earn millions a year for the time spent. In multimedia, the risk is rewarded at least a bit better. Landing the top film and video game projects are going to net you well over $200K a year and it would only be for one project. The reality is that clients are going to want REALLY good examples of some of your ideas. Learning how to use sample libraries such as Orchestral Tools, CineSamples, Spitfire, etc. can give your clients and your portfolio a realistic sound without breaking the bank. $10,000 invested in sample libraries, a powerful computer, solid VST plugins for mixing and mastering, and a good notation software is really not a huge investment considering the amount of time and energy you would be putting into your craft...... Secondly, learning how to mix and master is also paramount. And without good sounds, there's no point in learning these skills. Mixing and mastering musescore sounds isn't going to do you very much good. And telling professionals that you have a musescore file isn't going to impress either. If you want to be a pro, be like the pros.

​@@charlesparsons7862 I think you may have completely missed the point of my comment. 99.99% of composers are not going to compose for NY phil and AAA game titles (even later in the peak of their career). So you absolutely do not multimedia composing and you are totally fine with a great looking score (which, mind you, MuseScore can make perfectly professional looking scores and I have plenty of examples) and a decent sound rendering. MuseScore now supports VSTs, so even very good VSTs can be run on it. Also regarding "doing it like the pros", I am not of the opinion that just because the now old men did it a certain way, should be done like that today, it is easy to get out of touch with today's generation. For example, photoshop is the industry standard, but alternates are doing an equally good job in 99% of cases with the 1% only being like multi 6 figure gigs. The same can be said for pro tools and finale (which no professional can ever convince me are good pieces of software). For me, I don't see my professional career to be composing for NY phil because I'm simply not that good, so I am totally fine with composing for Collegiate/High school bands/orchs (those are the gigs I'm getting now) and handbell choirs. I compose them on MuseScore where they look pretty darn good, I give a audio rendering which is half decent using VSTs from FL studio, and I'm done.

@@amj.composer You started by telling me that I misunderstood you. Then you said exactly what I understood you to say after you said "Also" lol.

@@charlesparsons7862 That's what's up!

@@charlesparsons7862 "The reality is that clients are going to want REALLY good examples of some of your ideas." Sure thing... so if this: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-SIW-2OIOJ5E.html or this: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nng8jhg6dco.html Are not really good examples thereof, I do not know what is.

I use an Apple M1 Max chip which is about an i9 equivalent. Thanks for watching!

You’re looking for voices. Look up “Input into a different voice” for Dorico on RU-vid

That's a good question. I highly recommend using Dorico as your notation program. You can start off with the free or cheaper version before you go for Pro, just to get familiar with how it works at its core. I also Logic, and use them together. Dorico should work with any sample libraries that Logic does, though that can be a whole video in itself. I pretty much use just one library with Dorico though, it's called Noteperformer. It does a wonderful job at playing back the music in a musical way, and since it reads notation, it's not compatible with Logic. You can tweak it as much, but it's not meant to be tweaked anyway. Go check it out!

Absolutely not. If you are new to composing and arranging, begin with MuseScore, because it has a far brighter future than any of the paid solutions. The writing is on the wall for all paid music notation software. The market is slipping away from them more each year as the completely free solutions become "good enough" for more of the market. To be sure, Dorico is a far more capable application than MuseScore. But so was Finale, and so was Sibelius. Neither of those products are generating enough money for their respective companies today to justify continued serious development. And we would be foolish to not predict the same ultimate fate for Dorico. Anyone beginning with music notation today should first see if a free solution covers their needs. This is not the world of Photoshop, where you're investing in your skillset by learning the premium tool. With professional music notation software, it's much more likely you're investing in a product that will eventually die out. I worked for MakeMusic back in the 2000s. At the time, Finale NotePad was the most popular notation software in the world, because it was free. It wasn't nearly as powerful as MuseScore is today, and it wasn't nearly as popular as MuseScore is now. I personally have switched completely to MuseScore now. I'll never go to Dorico, because I can see that they are pursuing a lost cause.

These are Mac equivalents for alt and control respectively on Windows computers

People who have already had the money to buy software like Sibelius, Finale, and Dorico from early have never bothered using MuseScore, and since it's free most "pros" will just think it's a bad, temporary, free alternate. I've used most major notation software (except Sibelius) and I think musescore 4 is literally amongst the best notation softwares out there. Although, you should use it and form your own opinion.

@@amj.composer just needs better playback features and some fixes for dynamics

@@amj.composer musescore bot lol!

MuseScore would be ideal but they don’t make it for iPadOS. They said they have plans for that but for now, it’s only sheet music software. I have just an iPad Pro.

I didn’t mention it, but the rhythmic grid is an important part of note input in Dorico. Basically, a small orange grid appears over a measure when note input is engaged, and you can change the resolution of that grid with a little dropdown in the interface or with key commands. You can make it finer (16ths, dotted 16ths, 32nds, etc) or broader (quarters, half’s, whole’s, etc). The value that the grid happens to be on determines how notes are moved rhythmically forward or backwards and extended forwards and backwards. I tend to leave it eighth notes but will always change it to what I need

Hey there There are features for microtonality including custom accidentals and setting your own tuning system; look up some tutorials on RU-vid. As for Ableton I think it interfaces the same as any other DAW, great MIDI and CC import and export options but that’s about it

@@ErnestoComposer Thank you for your answer. Ithink that Dorico is better than sibelius for microtonality. MaxScore looks for an alternative for graphical composition too.

I don't use Virtual Drumline, but a quick Google search turns up that people use it and it's possible. Dorico uses "Playback Templates" that assigns playing techniques and noteheads to certain sounds, and there are some available for VD and Dorico for download online

I use NotePerformer as well, and though having to use NotePerformer's mixer is a bit of a nuisance, it's not too bad. I only go in there to turn off NotePerformer's reverb, which sounds quite cheap, and I use my own. I add to the master output track in Dorico's mixer. It makes a big difference in the quality of sound, I think. Try that!

Thank you for prompt response.

I still use Sibelius with NotePerformer. I am doing my best to switch but find it hard. I love the engrave and print in Dorico since I’m a middle school band director. I hardly have to edit anything before handing out to my kids. I love the video output on Sibelius. This helps my students practice at home with play-along tracks I upload to RU-vid. Dorico does not have this. Love your videos, I hope to switch sooner than later.

Hey Yeonsuk!! I went to UNT, I remember you there! You and I had a couple of classes early on I think. Maybe aural skills 1 back in the day? Hope you’re doing well

I thought you looked familiar so I had to ask! Great work on the videos! Keep em up!

@@ErnestoComposer no way! I attend UNT now. I've been debating a switch from finale to dorico for a little while now. I think I'll finally pull the trigger and take advantage of this cyber week sale. Thanks for the video!

@@casiano_music Do it!! Dorico sent my productivity into LIGHTSPEED

Anything can. That’s just a general statement

@@ErnestoComposer Okay. I'm considering going with Elements. I'm watching videos and liking it. How easy is it to use EastWest in Dorico. I have it but can't use it with my current software because of some technical issues with my program...too long a story to get into. How is the help manual? I know it does a lot is it easy to find what you need and the various ways of doing things?

Did they do it at gunpoint?

Good point; in fact, what I prefer to Dorico over Sibelius in this regard is that in Sibelius you need a keypad (okay, you can do it with the regular keyboard but you know what I mean), and in Dorico you can alter each of those you brought up on the default computer keyboard. Note duration: numbers 1-9. Accidentals: minus key for flat, plus key for sharp, 0 for natural. Articulations: the bracket, back slash, and ‘ keys all give you accents, tenuto, etc. Basically, I never input music with the mouse!

Hey there, you’re exactly right. It bothers me too… I don’t like having the microphone in the shot, I find it too distracting, I don’t like people thinking about that. But then again, having such a reverberant space is distracting too! I hear too, especially with headphones. Let me try some things for future videos, and I hope you stick around for those!

@@ErnestoComposer Sure - will look out for them 👍

Ehhhh, I don't know about all that

@@ErnestoComposer then you should.

@@ErnestoComposer As someone who's used both, a LOT, you should know that it can. Don't be so close-minded. There are also some things that musescore that simply FAR more intuitively and quickly.

musescore 4 don't have that piano roll anymore for some reason

@@GamingWithJumbo then use 3.6