Comparison of scorewriters
This is a comparison of music notation programs.
General information[edit]
Name | Guitar tablature | WYSIWYG editor | MIDI entry[1] | Playback | File formats | Developer(s) | Stable release; review date | License | Cost | Operating systems | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Import | Export | ||||||||||
Canorus | No | Yes | MIDI | CanorusML,[a] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] simple LilyPond[d] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] LilyPond,[d] PDF | Reinhard Katzmann, Matevž Jekovec, Georg Rudolph | 0.7.3; 18 June 2018 | Since 0.7.3: GPL-3.0-only 0.1.0 to 0.7.2: GPL-2.0-only |
No cost | Linux | |
Capella | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST, SoundFonts | Capella,[e] CapXML,[f] MusicXML,[b] MIDI[c] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] BMP, JPEG, TIFF, PNG, Truevision TGA, PCX, HTML | Capella Software AG | 9; 22 November 2021 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS |
Denemo | Yes | Yes | Step-time | MIDI | Denemo,[g] limited LilyPond,[d] MusicXML[b] | LilyPond,[d] MusicXML, WAV, Ogg, PDF, PNG, MIDI | Jeremiah Benham, Richard Shann | 2.6.0; 11 March 2022 | GPL-3.0-or-later | No cost | Windows, macOS, Linux |
Dorico | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST | Dorico,[h] MusicXML,[b] MIDI[c] | MIDI,[c] MusicXML,[b] WAV, MP3, PDF, PNG, TIFF, SVG | Steinberg | 4.3.11; 6 December 2022 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS |
Early Notation Typesetter | No | Yes | No | No | ENT[i] | ENT,[i] PDF | Samuel Gossner, Daniel West, Dieter Theuns | 0.9.6; 20 October 2020 | Proprietary | No charge for single font | Windows, macOS, Linux |
Encore | Yes | Yes | MIDI | Encore,[j] MusicTime,[k] Rhapsody,[l] Compressed MusicXML[m] | MIDI,[c] Cakewalk MIDI,[n] Master Tracks Pro,[o] PDF | Passport Music Software | 5.0.4/5.0.7 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS | |
Finale | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST, AU,[2] Garritan library | Finale,[p] MusicXML,[b] MIDI[c] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] WAV, MP3, AIFF, PDF, TIFF, JPEG, PNG, EPS, BMP, GIF, PICT[2] | MakeMusic | 27.2; 2 March 2022 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS |
Forte | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST | Forte,[q] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] CapXML[f] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] BMP, JPEG | Lugert Verlag GmbH | 12; 2020 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows |
Frescobaldi | No | WYSIWYM | MIDI | LilyPond,[d] MusicXML,[b] ABC | MusicXML,[b] PDF | Wilbert Berendsen | 3.2; 5 May 2022 | GPL-2.0-or-later | No cost | Windows, macOS, Linux | |
Guitar Pro | Yes | Yes | MIDI, RSE | Guitar Pro (versions 1–7),[r] MusicXML,[b] Compressed MusicXML,[m] MIDI,[c] ASCII tab,[s] Power Tab,[t] TablEdit[u] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] ASCII tab,[s] PNG, PDF, WAV | Arobas Music | 8.0 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS, Linux | |
Impro-Visor | No | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI | Impro-Visor[v] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] PDF | Bob Keller | 10.2; 1 August 2019 | GPL-2.0-or-later | No cost | Windows, macOS, Linux |
LilyPond | Yes | No | No | MIDI | LilyPond;[d] using converters: ABC,[w] ETF,[x] MIDI,[c] MusicXML[b] | PDF, PNG, PS, SVG | Han-Wen Nienhuys, Jan Nieuwenhuizen | 2.24.0; 15 December 2022 | GPL-3.0-or-later | No cost | Windows, macOS, Linux, FreeBSD |
MagicScore | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, SoundFonts | SFD,[y] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] Karaoke,[z] WAV, MP3 | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] Karaoke,[z] WAV, MP3, PDF, TIFF, JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF, EMF, WMF | Maestro Music Software | 8 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows |
Mozart | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI | Mozart,[aa] MusicXML[b] NIFF[ab] MIDI[c] Karaoke[z] ABC[w] | MusicXML[b] MIDI[c] ABC,[w] BMP, EMF, GIF, JPEG, PBM, PNG, TIFF | Mozart Music Software | 16.0.3; December 2022 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows |
Mus2 | No | Yes | MIDI | Mus2[ac] | MIDI,[c] AIFF, WAV, PDF, SVG, BMP, JPEG, PNG, | Utku Uzmen (Data-Soft Ltd.) | 3.2.3; November 2022 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS | |
MuseScore | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, SoundFonts, SFZ | MuseScore,[ad] MusicXML,[b] Compressed MusicXML,[m] MIDI,[c] Karaoke,[z] MuseData,[ae] Bagpipe Music Writer,[af] Band-in-a-Box,[ag] Overture,[ah] Capella,[e] CapXML,[f] Guitar Pro (versions 1–6),[r] Power Tab (experimental),[t] PDF (experimental), ABC[w] (with plugin) | MusicXML,[b] Compressed MusicXML,[m] PDF, PNG, SVG, MIDI,[c] WAV, FLAC, Ogg, MP3 | The MuseScore developer community | 4.0.1; 13 January 2023 | GPL-3.0-only for desktop tools; online and mobile tools are proprietary and freemium | No cost for most tools | Windows, macOS, Linux |
MusiCAD | No | Yes | MIDI | MusiCAD,[ai] MIDI,[c] ABC[w] | MIDI,[c] ABC,[w] PDF, JPEG, PNG, BMP | Musys Software | 4.0; 1 May 2015 | Proprietary | Prompt to purchase license appears when saving[4] | Windows | |
MusicEase | Yes | Yes | MIDI | MusicEase,[aj] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] ABC,[w] SongWright[ak] | MIDI,[c] PDF | MusicEase Software | 10; 2021 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS | |
Musink | No | WYSIWYM | MIDI | Musink[al] | MIDI,[c] PDF, PNG, XPS | Lee Reid | 1.3.0.1 | Proprietary | No cost | Windows | |
MusiXTeX | Yes | No | No | No | TeX (incl. PMX and M-Tx),[am] MusicXML[b] (with converters) | DVI,[an] PS, PDF, MIDI[c] (for PMX input) | Daniel Taupin, Ross Mitchell, Andreas Egler | 1.36; 11 January 2023 | GPL-2.0-or-later | No cost | Windows, macOS, Linux |
Notation Composer | No | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, SoundFonts | Notation,[ao] MusicXML,[b] Compressed MusicXML,[m] MIDI,[c] Karaoke[z] | MusicXML,[b] Compressed MusicXML,[m] PDF, MIDI,[c] Karaoke,[z] PNG, BMP, JPEG, GIF, WAV, FLAC, Ogg, MP3 | Notation Software | 4.0.3; 2022 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows |
NoteWorthy Composer | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI | NWC,[ap] MIDI,[c] Karaoke[z] | MIDI[c] | NoteWorthy Software | 2.75a.2; 2017 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows |
Notion | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST | MusicXML,[b] Compressed MusicXML,[m] MIDI,[c] Guitar Pro[r] (versions 4–5) | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] WAV | PreSonus | 6.8; 21 October 2020 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS, iOS (iPad) |
Overture | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST, AU[2] | Overture,[ah] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] Score Writer,[aq] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] WAV, MP3 | Sonic Scores | 5.6.1.1; 2 December 2019 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS |
Philip's Music Writer | Yes | No | No | MIDI | PMW[ar] | MIDI,[c] PS | Philip Hazel | 5.20; 15 July 2022 | GPL-2.0-or-later | No cost | Linux (older versions for RISC OS) |
Power Tab Editor | Yes | Yes | MIDI | Power Tab,[t] MIDI[c] | MIDI,[c] ASCII tab,[s] BMP, HTML | Brad Larsen | 1.0.0.175; 26 August 2006 | Proprietary | No cost | Windows | |
Rosegarden | No | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI | Rosegarden,[as] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] Hydrogen[at] | LilyPond,[d] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] Csound,[au] Mup,[av] PDF | Chris Cannam, Richard Bown, Guillaume Laurent | 22.12.1; 21 December 2022 | GPL-2.0-or-later | No cost | Linux |
SCORE | Yes | No | Step-time | MIDI | SCORE (.mus) | EPS | Leland Smith, San Andreas Press |
5.01; December 2013 | Proprietary | Non-free | MS-DOS Windows |
ScoreCloud Studio | No | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST | MIDI,[c] live audio | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] WAV, PDF | Doremir Music Research AB | 4.7.8; 2022 | Proprietary | Free without file saving | Windows, macOS, iOS |
Sibelius | Yes | Yes | Step-time and real-time | MIDI, VST, AU,[2] Avid library | Sibelius,[aw] MusicXML,[b] MIDI[c] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] MP3, PDF, SVG, EPS, PNG, | Avid Technology Inc. | 2022.12; 14 December 2022 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS, RISC OS |
SmartScore 64 | Yes | Yes | MIDI | SmartScore,[ax] scanned images, MusicXML,[b] NIFF[ab] | MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] Finale,[p] NIFF,[ab] PDF | Musitek Corporation | 11.5.92/93; September 2022 | Proprietary | Non-free | Windows, macOS | |
TuxGuitar | Yes | Yes | MIDI | TuxGuitar,[ay] MusicXML,[b] MIDI,[c] Guitar Pro (versions 1–6),[r] Power Tab,[t] TablEdit[u] | MIDI,[c] Guitar Pro (versions 3–5),[r] LilyPond,[d] ASCII tab,[s] PDF | Julian Gabriel Casadesus | 1.5.6; 28 April 2022 | LGPL-2.1-only | No cost | Windows, macOS, Linux, FreeBSD | |
Name | Guitar tablature | WYSIWYG editor | MIDI entry[1] | Playback | Import | Export | Developer(s) | Stable release; review date | License | Cost | Operating systems |
File formats |
File formats and extensions[edit]
- ^ Canorus native format, .can
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am MusicXML, open standard XML-based music notation exchange format, .xml or (version 3.1 or later) .musicxml
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av Standard MIDI file format, .mid or .midi
- ^ a b c d e f g h LilyPond plain text native format, .ly
- ^ a b Capella native format, binary file, .cap
- ^ a b c Capella native format, compressed ZIP containing XML, .capx
- ^ Denemo native format, .denemo
- ^ Dorico native format, .dorico
- ^ a b Early notation typesetter native format, .ent
- ^ Encore native format, .enc
- ^ MusicTime (by the same developer as Encore) native format, .mto, .mus (different to Finale .mus)
- ^ Rhapsody (by the same developer as Encore) native format, .rhp
- ^ a b c d e f g MusicXML version 2.0 or later, compressed as a ZIP, .mxl
- ^ Cakewalk MIDI file format, .mff[clarification needed]
- ^ Master Tracks Pro (by the same developer as Encore) native format, .mts
- ^ a b Finale native format, .mus (2012 and earlier) or .musx (2014 and later)
- ^ Forte native format, .fnf
- ^ a b c d e Guitar Pro native format version 1–2, .gtp; version 3, .gp3; version 4, .gp4; version 5, .gp5; version 6, .gpx; version 7, .gp
- ^ a b c d ASCII tablature plain text format, .txt, .tab, or .btab
- ^ a b c d Power Tab Editor native format, .ptb
- ^ a b TablEdit native format, .tef
- ^ Impro-Visor native format, .ls
- ^ a b c d e f g ABC plain text format, .abc
- ^ Finale Enigma Transport Format, .etf[3]
- ^ Maestro software family native format, .sfd
- ^ a b c d e f g Standard MIDI file format including standard MIDI lyrics, used for karaoke, .kar
- ^ Mozart native format, .mz
- ^ a b c Notation Interchange File Format, .nif
- ^ Mus2 notation and tuning file format, .mus2, .mu2
- ^ MuseScore native format, .mscz; uncompressed XML-based format, .mscx; style sheet, .mss; score album, .album
- ^ MuseData project format, .md
- ^ Bagpipe Music Writer native format, .bww
- ^ Band-in-a-Box native format, .mgu or .sgu
- ^ a b Overture native format, .ove
- ^ MusiCAD plain text native format, .mc
- ^ MusicEase native format, .mez
- ^ SongWright native format, .sw
- ^ Musink native format, .musink
- ^ PMX, preprocessor language for MusixTeX, .pmx; M-Tx, processor for PMX, .mtx
- ^ TeX device independent file format, .dvi
- ^ NoteSoft file, Notation Software native format, .not
- ^ NoteWorthy Composer native format, .nwc or .nwctxt
- ^ Score Writer (by the same developer as Overture) native format, .scw
- ^ Philip's Music Writer native format, human-readable text, .pmw
- ^ Rosegarden native format, .rg
- ^ Hydrogen drum machine song XML file format, .h2song
- ^ Csound audio domain-specific language format, without orchestra data, .csd
- ^ Music Publisher Score file format, .mup
- ^ Sibelius (scorewriter) native format, .sib
- ^ SmartScore native format, .enf
- ^ TuxGuitar native format, .tg
See also[edit]
- Comparison of MIDI editors and sequencers
- List of guitar tablature software
- List of music software
- List of scorewriters
Notes[edit]
- ^ a b When entering notes, "step-time" means one first selects the note duration then enters notes and chords one a time, while "real-time" means one plays the notes to enter with correct rhythm and the software recognizes the note durations.
- ^ a b c d Mac version only
- ^ "An incomplete description of the Enigma Transport Format". LilyPond.org. Archived from the original on 3 May 2013. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
- ^ Restrictions