NoteScan Music Scanning Software is the world’s first music optical character recognition software that can capture a scanned image of a printed score, and send it directly into a notation program without prior editing.
- NoteScan Reads a printed score into Nightingale so it can be edited in Nightingale and transposed to any key, and rearranged however you like.
- Works with a photographic TIFF image that you create by scanning a printed sheet of music with a flatbed scanner.
- Converts that scanned score directly into a Nightingale score.
- NoteScan works exclusively with Nightingale.
- Nightingale is the only notation software in the world that can import this type of scanned file directly.
As you install Nightingale 3.0, a copy of NoteScan 1.04 is placed in the Nightingale Utilities folder along with other Nightingale files. The entire NoteScan User's Guide is included as part of the Nightingale Online User's Guide. A special "enabler code" is required to unlock the NoteScan software (see below).
NOTESCAN FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
• How Can I Unlock the NoteScan Software?
A special “Enabler Code” must be purchased from Musicware to unlock the “Open NoteScan File” command in Nightingale. Call Musicware sales at 1-800-99-PIANO, or contact the software dealer who sold you Nightingale. Please be prepared to give your Nightingale serial number and a VISA or MasterCard number when calling.
• What scanner is recommended for NoteScan?
A flatbed scanner is by far the most reliable type of scanner to work with, because hand-held and sheet-feed scanners can make it difficult to keep printed page straight as you scan it. Also, you will want to experiment with the darkness settings before making a final scan of the score, and you don't want to have to reposition the page each time.
-The Apple One scanner is excellent and very sturdy. The HP ScanJet is also excellent. LaCie company out of Portland makes an excellent scanner. The “Mustek” scanner has been reported to have some problems.
-One of the most important variables in the entire scanning process is which "imaging software" is supplied with the scanner hardware for the creation of the original photographic TIFF image of the score. These include "OFOTO", "PHOTOSHOP", "DESKSCAN". These all are good. We do NOT recommend "OMNIPAGE", "
• How accurate is NoteScan?
NoteScan can retrieve the notes and rests off an engraved score with about 90% accuracy. This means that in addition to determining the staff size, page layout, barline placements, key signatures and number of systems per page, NoteScan will find the stem direction, accidentals, and beaming information for most every note in the score. Any notes missed/omitted can be easily added in using Nightingale's powerful editing features.
NOTESCAN BROCHURE TEXT
NoteScan is an exciting new music scanning utility which will bring enhanced power to Nightingale. NoteScan is the first computer program which uses Optical Music Character Recognition to read a printed sheet of music directly into a music notation program. This allows the scanned score to be edited, played back, transposed, rearranged and printed, all in one music notation application.**
(**Please note that all scanned use of copyrighted materials must conform to all established copyright laws and fair use conventions.)
NoteScan is a completely new approach to the concept of scanning music. Early introductions of music scanning software yielded only a string of MIDI data, which first had to be edited for mistakes, and then imported into a MIDI/Music application for further and often extensive work to produce a finished score. Because of the built-in power, ease-of-use, and sophistication of Nightingale, Musicware has chosen to have NoteScan import scanned music files directly into Nightingale, without the user doing ANY prior editing. This eliminates one entire level of editing tasks, saving time and effort for the user.
An important fact is that NoteScan creates far more than merely MIDI note and rest data. It gathers information for score layout, staff positioning, staff size, page size, measure layout, note positioning, note beaming, note accidentals, clef changes, and key changes. NoteScan even determines if there are hidden/optimized staves in the score. It then sends all this information DIRECTLY into the Nightingale music notation application. Using Nightingale's powerful editing capabilities, the user can quickly make changes to the new score, change instrument assignments, and even add new instruments right on the computer screen. At any time Nightingale can play back the score for you, and all MIDI information can be exported to any other MIDI-compatible program.
SPECIAL USES
NoteScan will automatically determine the number of staves in a system by looking at the left end of the systems. If you have a piano grand staff, a single staff solo part, a four-part chorale, or an orchestral score, NoteScan will import the file into Nightingale with the same number of parts per system.
It is also very easy, using Nightingale, to combine parts into a single score, so that, for example, a new conductor’s score could be built from scanned files created from the individual parts of the various instruments in the orchestra.
Another typical usage is to scan a piano or organ work, and then use Nightingale to divide up the notes in the score and distribute them to four or five individual parts, thus, in short order, creating a chamber ensemble piece.
Another typical usage is to scan in a solo instrument part, or a piano accompaniment part, and then use Nightingale to transpose the part into a more comfortable key.
HOW TO USE NOTESCAN - A quick overview
1. Use a flatbed, sheet-feed, or a hand-held scanner to create a TIFF file with a resolution of 200 or 300 dots per inch (DPI). NoteScan can accept DPI settings between 100-400, but not all settings have been tested.
2. Launch the NoteScan utility and use it to "read" the TIFF file, and save it as a "NoteScan file."
3. Launch Nightingale and Import the newly-created NoteScan file.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF USE
The first step in scanning is to create a TIFF file from a printed page of music using a flatbed scanner, sheet-feed scanner, or a hand-held scanner (though the hand-held is a bit tricky to control when creating and experimenting with scans). All scanning hardware is sold with standard scanning software capable of saving a scanned image as a TIFF file in a variety of resolution settings.
The normal, recommended TIFF resolution used by NoteScan is 200 DPI, which is suitable for most scores. This means that a scanned TIFF file will usually be around 400K in size, and will easily fit onto a diskette for transfer between computers. In the case of a score with small staff size, such as a miniature score or a conductors score, 300 DPI is recommended for greater accuracy. Any DPI resolution ranging between 100-400 is possible for NoteScan to interpret (though testing has not been completed with every resolution setting).
Once you have saved the TIFF file, you launch NoteScan, which then opens the scanned TIFF image and displays it on the screen. NoteScan quickly and automatically reads the TIFF image of the scanned score, adjusting automatically for slight skewing of the page, and for the DPI resolution you have used. NoteScan automatically ignores titles, rehearsal letters, articulation markings, text, performance instructions, and even the occasional pencil mark on the score. No adjusting of the score, editing or erasing is necessary until the file is converted into a Nightingale score.
Once TIFF file conversion is completed, the score can be opened using Nightingale. Any “mistakes” (such as a missed note or an omitted beam) can be quickly edited. It takes only one or two steps to change a note's value or pitch, fix a barline, or respace a measure. Since page layout and measure placement is closely adhered to from the original score, it is very easy to quickly get your new score looking like the original scanned score.
Of course, since Nightingale is fully MIDI capable, your score can be played back directly from the notation displayed on the screen, and can be saved as a standard MIDI file for export to any other MIDI program.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
- Both Nightingale and NoteScan operate under System 6.0.5 or higher, and using a Mac Plus or higher (minimum 2.5 MB RAM).
- A flatbed, sheet-feed or hand-held scanner with imaging software to create a TIFF file at 200 DPI or 300 DPI (DPI settings between 100-400 are also possible, though not all settings have been tested).
AVAILABILITY
NoteScan is available to anyone who owns or is purchasing the Nightingale 3.0 application. Both programs can be purchased from local software dealers, or directly from Musicware at 1-800-99-PIANO or 206-881-9797.
