Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Share what you’d like to see added to Ableton Live.
heybuddy
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Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2015 6:52 pm

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by heybuddy » Sun Apr 25, 2021 7:33 pm

I would also love this!

codekiln
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Joined: Wed Jun 02, 2021 11:33 pm

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by codekiln » Tue Nov 30, 2021 1:01 pm

I don't have any meaningful experience using score support in other DAWs. As someone with experience in classical music, Ableton feels conspicuously handicapped when it comes to communicating and representing harmonic and rhythmic intent. It feels strange to me, as though someone decided to make literature writing software using international phonetic alphabet or some sound-based representation rather than using the visual conventions writers have used for centuries.

Ideally, for me, each MIDI clip editor would have a score view, with optional annotation overlays for automation or other curves. Then the arrangement view would have a score view that looks - wait for it - like a score one could read, e.g. like a symphony score.

Audio clips could have their waveform transcribed in lieu of a stave, and preferably one could put an icon on a waveform to represent the sound.

jonljacobi
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Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by jonljacobi » Tue Nov 30, 2021 11:12 pm

Just a guess mind you, but Ableton is likely dealing with a whole lot of users that don't read music. For the more classically trained, you're better off with a notation program that outputs MIDI files and using LIve for the rest. Not saying I wouldn't love to have notation. It's the way I was raised.

iainduncan
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Location: BC, Canada
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Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by iainduncan » Sat May 14, 2022 10:01 pm

+1, would love to be able to look at multiple tracks on a score!

jonbongjovi
Posts: 76
Joined: Wed Jun 08, 2011 1:50 am

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by jonbongjovi » Fri Jun 03, 2022 12:38 am

+1 I'm a little amazed that ableton still haven't implemented at least a basic score visualisation. I mean its not a big deal to implement in Max https://octoechos.com/index.php?route=p ... uct_id=117

I don't understand why such a simple thing that all other DAWs have. It doesn't have to be a detailed implementation but yes its probably time at least a token Notation/Score was included .

jlgrimes
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Location: Atlanta, Ga

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by jlgrimes » Sun Jun 05, 2022 2:18 pm

jonbongjovi wrote:
Fri Jun 03, 2022 12:38 am
+1 I'm a little amazed that ableton still haven't implemented at least a basic score visualisation. I mean its not a big deal to implement in Max https://octoechos.com/index.php?route=p ... uct_id=117

I don't understand why such a simple thing that all other DAWs have. It doesn't have to be a detailed implementation but yes its probably time at least a token Notation/Score was included .
I guess a good score editor takes alot of resources.

Being able to program as well as having someone with a good understanding of musical notation. Also a poor implementation would probably be harshly criticized. But yes this was pretty much a requirement back in the old school computer midi sequencers probably because of score writers (Compose score, print out music, give to orchestra to learn).

I would think more piano roll refinements and ARA would be bigger priorities. But at some point, Notation will be the only missing thing as Ableton now have a decent scale system. Only a matter of time before they add Chords and then maybe a guitar tab system.

jonljacobi
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Joined: Sat Dec 30, 2017 3:36 am

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by jonljacobi » Wed Jun 08, 2022 11:05 pm

Yeah, but I may be dead by the time it arrives... Not a priority for the average Live user I'd guess.

nonchai
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Joined: Tue Dec 14, 2010 5:25 pm

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by nonchai » Sat Jul 23, 2022 12:02 pm

I think a far better solution for scoring is to support export to tons and DAWs who have supported scoring etc for decades.

So adding a means to export to Pro Tools, Cubase, Sibelius etc - would achieve this.

Although I would like to see Ableotn add support for better handing of orchestra libraries and also support for Articulation maps, I think there is no need and a waste of developer resource to ad score viewing, and engraving stuff into ableton.

I made a small YouTube video summarising *my* particular list of missing features - as described in my earlier reply here.

Please like and share etc.. if you want to get something hopefully done about all this in - say - Live 12 ...

Its titled. 'Ableton: Whats missing for Orchestra/Media Composers?
5 Features and a minute of your time:'

https://youtu.be/UL_thHi6deA

mpowrie
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Joined: Tue Nov 29, 2022 5:02 am

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by mpowrie » Tue Nov 29, 2022 5:06 am

A deep integration with the free and opensource music notation software MuseScore could be great!
Both the Ableton and Musescore communities would benefit, and there could be some interesting opportunities from this.

Hooxx
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Joined: Mon Mar 16, 2020 9:24 pm

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by Hooxx » Wed Dec 28, 2022 1:35 am

Yes please!!!

Slow Hand
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Joined: Fri Nov 13, 2020 7:54 am

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by Slow Hand » Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:20 pm

It looks like I'm in the minority here, but I would expressly NOT like a notation editor in Ableton. Despite being someone who regularly notates songs in MuseScore (shoutout).

My reason is this: Adding a notation editor is likely to bloat the software and be a tradeoff against what I consider to be Ableton's unique value proposition: That it is a powerful, streamlined tool for capturing musical ideas quickly while also functioning as a live performance and improvisational tool. Ableton's power is it's (relative) simplicity for these tasks.

To add a notation system to Ableton would be like adding a TV monitor for watching movies to an F1 race car. It would burden the software and work against what makes it so compelling in the first place. If you want to watch movies while driving, perhaps what you really ought to be looking at is a minivan or at least a Rolls Royce. These vehicles/DAWs are fundamentally optimized for different tasks and I think it's in Ableton's best interest to not try and implement every possible feature. Stick to what they already do well.

Someone here did suggest better exporting and integration between Ableton and existing notation software. THAT I would encourage. No harm in having better communication/integration between two pieces of software.

It's hard enough to build a good piece of notation software by itself. In fact it's extremely complicated and most of the big commercial offerings are pretty flawed and terrible to use. I don't think people appreciate the level of complexity that they're asking Ableton to introduce into the software when they request a musical notation feature.

jonljacobi
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Joined: Sat Dec 30, 2017 3:36 am

Re: Ableton Notation / Score Editor

Post by jonljacobi » Tue Jan 03, 2023 7:24 pm

I can understand the sentiment above about bloat and being on-task. I wouldn't necessarily want a full-blown scoring application, but simply notational entry and for that matter, guitar tab, and drum-style entry.

Full notation and scoring is vastly complex and would take a lot of time and resources to implement. And no doubt bloat Live's code base which I absolutely don't want.

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