# StaffPad does Star Wars - Binary Sunset(ish) test



## maclaine (Apr 12, 2016)

Hi gang,

I occasoinally see posts about StaffPad on the Microsoft Surface, so I wanted to give a real-world usage example. Over this past weekend, I was away from my main composing rig but had my Surface (the max spec Pro 3 model) with me. StaffPad was one of the first programs I bought for it, but I had admittedly used it very little. I've wanted to work on writing out sketches in notation before going to a DAW for a while now, and also wanted to dive deeper into StaffPad, so this seemed like as good an opportunity as any.

I did not have access to any sort of piano or other sound source, so rather than write some music from scratch, I thought I should write out a melody I already knew pretty well. The Force Theme from the Binary Sunset cue in the original Star Wars is usually my go-to test melody when loading up new patches, so I can visualize it pretty well. Initially I just wrote out the opening horn melody. However, I've transcribed the whole cue in the past, so I thought I should really test myself and see if I could write it all out purely from memory. The results are attached.

Keep in mind that I purposely didn't listen to the cue while notating it. Listening to it now, there's all sorts of stuff that is missing and it's in the wrong key, but overall, I think it's pretty good for going on memory alone. Here's the original cue for reference.



Both the score and the mp3 are direct outputs from StaffPad. The sounds are good but not great, as is to be expected. However, the ability to hand draw in expression curves gives it a bit more life. 

I was able to create a good looking score much faster than I would be able to in Sibelius, honestly, but my Sibelius skills are fairly low level. StaffPad is very fast to use. Correcting mistakes or altering parts is really easy. A huge benefit is just seeing the notes on the page. My last transcription was solely by ear straight into the DAW, and while that's useful, I think it does more the help your mockup skills than your orchestration skills. Seeing it as just notes on the page forced me to think of who was really playing what and how I would approach the orchestration.

Hope this helps answer some questions about StaffPad for potential buyers. It's an amazing program given its limitations compared to Sibelius/Finale, but it can absolutely be used to produce real, usable scores.

[AUDIOPLUS=http://vi-control.net/community/attachments/staffpad_binarysunsettest-mp3.5365/][/AUDIOPLUS]


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## BlueStar (Apr 13, 2016)

Hi Maclaine, fantastic work - and from memory - wow.
I find the idea of the software fantastic. It's great that you have tried
it and you like it. I love my Sibelius, but I might try it out in the future.
How long did it take for you to learn the basics of the software?
Can you draw the notes like you would do it on a piece of paper or did
you have to adjust your handwriting very much?
I appreciate the compositions and perfectionism of David William Hearn
very much and I'm sure the software he invented must be superb as well.
David


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## maclaine (Apr 14, 2016)

BlueStar said:


> Hi Maclaine, fantastic work - and from memory - wow.
> I find the idea of the software fantastic. It's great that you have tried
> it and you like it. I love my Sibelius, but I might try it out in the future.
> How long did it take for you to learn the basics of the software?
> ...



Hi David! Thanks for the kind words.

Like I said, I'm really a pretty basic Sibelius user, and I find that I obsess over getting all the little details lined up in some organized fashion, which is very time consuming. It's something I hope I'll get better at as time goes on and I use it more. I don't think StaffPad can ever take the place of Sibelius, at least not in its current form. However, it's still a very powerful tool, and works exactly as is shown in the marketing videos. I found I didn't need to adjust my handwriting much in order to work quickly. The one thing I did have to change was how I write an "f" for forte, making it more like the letter you see on scores than how I write it out in real life, and I had to maybe slow down just a little bit so that my note stems and slurs connected properly, but that's really it. 

When/if we ever end up in the same place at the same time again, I'd be happy to demo it for you.


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## BlueStar (Apr 14, 2016)

Would be fantastic to see you demoing it and meeting you again for recordings in person!


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## Saxer (Apr 14, 2016)

Cool! Is your attached mp3-file the audio output of staff pad?


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## maclaine (Apr 14, 2016)

Saxer said:


> Cool! Is your attached mp3-file the audio output of staff pad?



Yes it is. Straight out of StaffPad with no additional processing.


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