# Studio parts - paper size? A4? B4?



## PaulWood (Jan 24, 2010)

Hi guys,

I realise this is a very generalised question, but is there a "standard" size for orchestra parts for scoring sessions?

ISO A4 - whilst a standard in Europe, and more and more in the US - seems to be a little on the small side, but I have never really looked into what people use. It's a balance between what fits and is manageable on the stand and what allows as much music as possible to fit per page whilst still being readable.

B4 (250 × 353mm or 9.8 × 13.9in) looks like a good compromise.

Incidentally, I use a staff size of 8mm for my parts, which seems to work far better from a distance than the standard 7mm that Sibelius defaults to.

Thoughts appreciated!

Paul


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## bryla (Jan 25, 2010)

350mm becomes to high for musicians. I would use A4 for parts


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## synergy543 (Jan 25, 2010)

John Williams Signature scores are 355mm (14 inches)


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## bryla (Jan 25, 2010)

yes the full score is


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## JJP (Jan 30, 2010)

In the USA 9"x12" or 9.5"x12.5" is common. Fits on the stand nicely. Letter (8.5"x11" - equivalent to A4) is usually considered a little small for sight reading.

Bigger staves are a good idea. Many notation program defaults are fine for publishing, but a little small for good studio parts.

Also use good quality paper. It makes for quieter page turns and is less likely to flop over or wrinkle.

Bottom line: Make things as easy on the players as possible. If there is a lot riding on the session (money or reputation), hire a good professional copyist to have it done right. It's money well spent.


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## PaulWood (Feb 4, 2010)

Thanks very much. I had thought there was a small difference generally.

On the staves - yeah I use 8mm staves (Sibelius default is 7) which seems to strike a good compromise between legibility and the ability to fit a decent amount of music on the page (with a decent gap between systems for "beautification" and any markings that need to be made).

I'm also using the Petrucci font, which has slightly smaller noteheads, and seems to "fit" on the staves better.

In my small little world at the moment, I'm fine to do the copying. I don't hear the LSO a'callin' 

P


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## JohnG (Feb 4, 2010)

For those desperate to know, A4 paper is about 8.3 inches by 11.7 inches.

JJP's advice about using a good copyist is -- good advice.


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## billval3 (Feb 7, 2010)

I'm interested to see if there are any other opinions about staff size. Is 8mm too big?

EDIT: You might want to check this link out:

http://www.mola-inc.org/MOLA%20Guidelines%20Text.htm

They say 8.5mm for staff size.


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## PaulWood (Feb 9, 2010)

Thanks guys!


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## PaulWood (Mar 4, 2010)

Having had a look at the MOLA guidelines, I'd like to come back to this topic briefly.

My background is as an orchestra pit MD / keys player, not so much studio work. In NO shows that I have done have these guidelines been adhered to - whether they be musicals where the parts are created (or updated - which I have done on occasion) by the MD / players, or large scale shows which use copyists.

A4 paper is generally a given (in Europe at least) for pit parts - the necessity of copying the parts for deps (subs) and general scribbling on makes that almost a requirement.

I have never seen a staff size of 8mm or greater in pit parts. In addition, 20mm for each of the 4 margins? On many shows there are barely 10mm.

And binding - more often than not the parts are in ring binders, in plastic pockets.

The one thing that is generally done correctly are page turns.

All this goes towards making life easier for "admin" (part copying/reprinting/changing etc.), but it can be quite hard to read when playing. And for deps (subs) especially it is tough (from experience!).

Not really a complaint - it seems to work! More an observation.

Cheers!

Paul


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