NOTE: THIS PROJECT IS CLOSED AS OF FEB. 22, 2015.
Grove's Dictionary has numerous music examples, which are being handled separately from the text through this Wiki. Volunteers can download page images and work off-line using music notation software, then upload the resulting music files to this Wiki. The post-processor will then review and edit the files so that midis can be included in the HTML version.
Volunteers in this part of the project won't get page stats, but they will be eligible for the illustrious Grovers Hall of Fame.
Please post any music questions to the Grovers Team Thread.
General Guidelines
The post-processor will be using the original music images in the final product. The important thing is to create an accurate midi file. So, whatever music software you choose, you need not worry about purely visual items.
Concentrate on the accuracy of:
- Clef
- Time signature
- Key signature
- Tempo (if specified in original)[1]
- Note pitches
- Note values
- Dynamics (e.g. p, f, cresc., rit., etc.)
- Articulations (e.g. staccati, accents, trills, arpeggios, slurs, etc.)
- Instrument (if specified in original)[2]
- Any other element that affects the midi output.
[1] If the tempo is not specified, use your best judgment. A moderate tempo (e.g., quarter note = 100) is usually safe. The PPer can tweak this as necessary.
[2] If an instrument is not specified, use the midi default, which is acoustic grand piano. Your notation software probably defaults to this.
Don't worry about:
- Titles, headers, captions
- Composer names, copyright notices
- Lyrics
- Visual layout and spacing (except as noted below)
- Footnotes
- Re-creating old-style notation elements (e.g. mensural clefs, rests, noteheads etc. - just use modern notation for these)
- Other elements that don't affect the midi output.
One exception: If you are using Finale or Lilypond, please lay out the music systems as closely to the original as possible, and please beam notes as they appear in the original. This will make it much easier for the post-processor to compare your output to the original image.
Printer Errors
If you come across what appears to be a printer error in the music, please do the best you can to correct it, and be sure to include a Transcriber's Note in your notation file, specifying the error and how you corrected it. If you're not sure how to handle it, please post in the Grovers Team Thread, giving a link to the page you're asking about.
Medieval (Neumes) Notation
A few of the music examples in Groves are in medieval (neumes) notation. If you can read this notation, please transcribe it into modern notation.
In case you're curious, here's an example of medieval notation:
If you can't read this notation, don't worry about it -- just choose a different page to work on. The PPer actually knows a couple of people who can read medieval notation. (Note: Lilypond does have some support for various kinds of ancient notation, but there's no need to bother with it for this project -- we're focusing on sound, not visuals.)
Useful Resources
Don't worry if your music-reading skills are a tad rusty. The resources below will help you stay on track.
What does "rit." mean? Consult the Dolmetsch Online Music Dictionary.
What's that squiggly line over the F-sharp? Dolmetsch has a comprehensive chart of musical symbols.
What key has five sharps? Here's a handy chart of key signatures.
How fast is "Allegro"? This online metronome can help.
For a good basic primer on music notation, check out Prof. Karl Gehrkens' classic book at Project Gutenberg, Music Notation and Terminology.
Tools Overview
Anyone with basic musical knowledge can participate in the Grove's Uber-Project. All you need is music notation software:
- Finale Notepad, an inexpensive ($9.95), stripped-down version of Finale music notation software
- Lilypond, a free, open-source, full-featured music notation program
- Finale, a costly but full-featured music notation program, or one of its less expensive incarnations
- Any other music notation software that can create a midi file or produce a MusicXML file.
The post-processor, LCantoni, will be using the latest version of Finale and/or Lilypond to review and edit the files you upload.
Here are some details on the different notation software:
Finale Notepad
Finale Notepad allows you to enter notes via the keyboard through a relatively simple interface that allows you to see the results on the staff as you type. Menus and buttons let you easily add dynamics, text, and other music features.
The latest version of Finale Notepad (approximately 33Mb) can be downloaded for $9.95 from the Finale site. There are versions for Windows or Mac OS X.
Finale Notepad has some limitations, outlined below, but it's easy to learn and use, and its output is perfectly acceptable for the Grove's Dictionary Uber-Project, even if it can't handle some complex detail work.
Lilypond
Lilypond is a full-featured, text-based notation program. You enter codes for the notes and other music features in any text editor, then run the resulting file to produce a pdf file with the music image and a midi file with the sound.
The latest stable version of Lilypond (approximately 17Mb) can be downloaded free from the Lilypond site. There are versions for numerous platforms.
The biggest disadvantage of Lilypond is that it is time-consuming to learn and use. Moreover, its code is continually evolving, and older Lilypond code is not always easy to convert to newer code. But it can handle just about anything in the Grove's Dictionary Uber-Project.
Finale
Finale is a full-featured notation program that works much like its younger brother, Finale Notepad, except that it can do a great deal more. It retails for about $600 ($350 academic, $120-170 upgrade from previous versions). (The post-processor, LCantoni, will be using the latest version of Finale for this uber-project.)
In addition to the $9.95 Finale Notepad, there are other less expensive alternatives to Finale, such as Finale Allegro ($199), Finale Printmusic ($100), and Finale Songwriter ($50). There is a chart comparing the features of all Finale software on the Finale site. Any of these programs will be just fine for the Grove's Dictionary Uber-Project.
Other Music Software
If your software can create a midi file or write MusicXML, it's perfectly fine to use for the Grove's project--the PPer can import midi and MusicXML files into Finale for editing. (See the Recordare MusicXML site for a list of music notation software that writes MusicXML.)
Finale Notepad Guidelines
(Thanks to danewman and his PGFinale Project Team for some of the tips in this section.)
Note: These guidelines apply to Finale Notepad 2008. The 2009 version has more features, so some of the limitations noted below may no longer exist. For example, the 2009 version now lets you create midi and MusicXML files. This page will soon be updated to reflect the features in the 2009 version.
Before you start, look over the piece for any special issues. Pay particular attention to music that repeats verbatim, as you can save time and effort by using the Mass Edit tool to copy and paste.
It's very possible that there will be things in the score that you can't add correctly with Finale Notepad. Don't worry about these, as the PPer will be able to add them. Please avoid workarounds with the text and line tools, as they won't be effective in creating the midi.
Among the limitations of Finale Notepad are:
- It has a limited set of expressions (please don't use the text tool for this).
- It can't do most special barlines (please don't try to draw them in).
- It can't hide rests.
- It can't manipulate page layout well.
- It can't add grace notes.
- It can't add pickup measures automatically (pad the first measure with rests instead).
- It can't change clefs in the middle of a piece.
Finale Notepad cannot create image or midi files, but please do check your work visually on the screen as you work (or print it out if you like), and please play back what's on the screen to check the sound.
Instructions
If you've never used Finale Notepad, take the Tutorials before you begin:
- Open Finale Notepad.
- Click Continue in the opening screen.
- Click Cancel in the Document Setup Wizard window.
- Click Help --> Tutorials.
- Tutorial 1: Simple Entry appears. Follow the instructions.
- When you're done with the first tutorial, click Next Tutorial to take Tutorial 2: Adding Details.
The instructions below assume some familiarity with Finale Notepad.
Here's how to begin notating in Finale Notepad:
1. Open Finale Notepad and click Continue in the opening Window. The Document Setup Wizard appears. No need to fill in the title etc. here; just click Next.
2. The Select Instrument window appears:
- If the music image has a dual staff (treble and bass clef together), click Keyboards, then Piano, then Add, then Next.
- If the music image has only a treble clef staff, click Chorus, then Soprano, then Add, then Next.
- If the music image has only a bass clef staff, click Chorus, then Bass, then Add, then Next.
3. The Key & Time Signature window appears. Click on the appropriate button for the time signature. In the section below that, use the arrow keys to choose the key signature (up arrow for sharps, down arrow for flats). (Note: Major or minor isn't important for our purposes; just make sure the key signature matches the music image you're working from.) When you're done, click Finish.
4. The empty music page appears. (You can ignore the "[Title]" and "[Composer]" placeholders.) Begin entering the notes, and whatever articulations or expressions Notepad allows you to add. These are limited, but please don't try to "fake" anything with the text tool or the line tool. Use the text tool to leave a transcriber's note below the music staffs to explain anything Notepad couldn't accomplish.
5. Delete any empty measures at the end of the piece.
6. Look over the notation carefully and make any corrections.
7. Use the text tool to leave a transcriber's note regarding problems or printer errors.
8. Click the playback button to listen to the piece (it should sound like a piano). Adjust the tempo as desired and make any final corrections.
9. Save the file with the volume number and the number of the page the music appeared on. For example, if the music appeared on 032.png of Volume 1A, your file should be named 1a-032.mus. If more than one piece of music appears on the original page, add a, b, and so on to the filenames to distinguish them, e.g. 1a-032a.mus, 1a-032b.mus, etc.
10. Upload the .mus file to this Wiki (use the "Upload files" link on the upper right of this page).
11. Be sure to note on the Grove Music List page that the page you claimed is done.
Here is a sample original music image, followed by correct Finale Notepad output:
Midi output for the above: 
example.midi
Tips
Multiple voices: Often, piano music (or two-staff choral music) will have multiple voices on one staff. To enter these in Finale Notepad, use layer 1 for the upper voice and layer 2 for the lower voice. The layer you are working on is indicated in the bottom left hand corner of the window. You can click on it to change layers.
Ties and slurs often look the same, but they serve different purposes. In general, slurs cover groups of notes, or a pair of notes that are on different pitches. If two notes have the same pitch, they are probably tied and not slurred. Use the Simple Entry tool for ties and the Smart Shape palette for slurs.
Lilypond Guidelines
- Note: These guidelines assume familiarity with Lilypond. See the Lilypond User Manual for more information.
1. Please use the latest STABLE version of Lilypond. You can download the latest stable version and documentation from Lilypond.
2. Open a text editor (Windows Notepad or the like) and begin entering the notation code, starting with a \version statement (see the example below).
3. Please use ENGLISH for sharps and flats, i.e., an f-sharp quarter-note would be written as fs4, a b-flat half-note as bf2, etc. This means that you must put an \include "english.ly" statement at the beginning of the code (see the example below).
4. Please lay out the music as it appears in the original, using the \break command to separate systems (see the example below). Indent each line of code two spaces and put a | at the end of each measure. Please also beam notes as in the original. (Following these guidelines will make the code a lot easier for both you and the post-processor to to compare the Lilypond output to the original.)
5. If no tempo is indicated in the original, use what seems right to you, or simply 4=100 (more or less the equivalent of "Moderato.")
6. Include a \midi block so that a midi file can be generated (see example below).
7. If an instrument is specified in the original, please specify it using the \set Staff.midiInstrument command.
8. Again, other than system layout and beaming, please don't be concerned about purely visual differences between the Lilypond output and the original.
9. Add any transcriber's notes (errors corrected, problems, etc.) in a comment at the end of the .ly file.
10. When you're done, save the file with the volume number and the number of the page the music appeared on. For example, if the music appeared on 032.png of Volume 1A, your Lilypond file should be named 1a-032.ly, and your midi file should be named 1a-032.midi. If more than one piece of music appears on a page, add a, b, and so on to the filenames to distinguish them, e.g. 1a-032a.ly, 1a-032b.ly, etc.
11. Run the .ly file. This will generate a .log file, a .pdf file, and a .midi file.
- Open the .log file to see if any errors are reported.
- Open the .pdf file and compare the image to the original.
- Open the .midi file and listen for any errors.
12. After correcting any errors in the .ly file and running it again, upload the .ly and .midi files to this Wiki (use the "Upload files" link on the upper right of this page).
13. Be sure to note on the Grove Music List page that the page you claimed is done.
Sample Lilypond code for a simple music illustration:
\version "2.10"
\include "english.ly"
melody = \relative c {
\tempo 4=120
\clef bass
\key d \major
\autoBeamOff
d4. e8 fs[ g a e] | fs d b'2 a4 | d,4 g2 fs4 \bar "|"
}
\score {
\new Staff \melody
\midi { }
\layout { }
}
%Transcriber's Note goes here.
Lilypond output from the above code:
Midi output for the above: 
example.midi
Finale Guidelines
Because Finale is a full-featured program, you should be able to reproduce just about any of the music in Grove's. Please keep in mind the general guidelines outlined above, and pay particular attention to the accuracy of the midi output.
Please also lay out the systems as they appear in the original, using Lock Systems (Ctrl+M) (also in the Utilities menu in Finale 2009, or the Mass Edit tool in earlier versions).
Use the text tool to add any transcriber's notes (errors corrected, problems etc.) below the music.
When you're done, save the file with the volume number and the number of the page the music appeared on. For example, if the music appeared on 032.png of Volume 1A, your Finale file should be named 1a-032.mus. If more than one piece of music appears on the original page, add a, b, and so on to the filenames to distinguish them, e.g. 1a-032a.mus, 1a-032b.mus, etc.
Use File-->Save As to create a midi file with the same naming convention.
Then upload the .mus and .midi files to this Wiki (use the "Upload files" link on the upper right of this page).
Be sure to note on the Grove Music List page that the page you claimed is done.
Finale Tip: Import Image
Here's a possible time-saver, though it's not perfect: import the music image into Finale. Finale uses OMR (Optical Music Recognition) to convert the image to editable notation. Here's how it works:
1. Open the music png file in an image-editing program such as Adobe Photoshop Elements. (The instructions below assume familiarity with that program.)
2. Make sure the image is in grayscale; if not, convert it to grayscale.
3. Crop and de-skew the image as appropriate. (If it's very skewed, Finale won't interpret it correctly. Also, if the scan is cropped too closely to the barlines at the margins, you may need to add canvas width.)
4. Use "Save as" to save the image as a .tif file to the desired directory.
5. If the piece continues on additional pages, repeat for each page image.
5. Open Finale.
6. In the File menu, choose "Scanning: SmartScore Lite" and then "Import Existing TIFF File."
7. In the import window, click "Add Files to List..."
8. Navigate to the directory where you saved the .tif file(s).
9. Click on the desired .tif file(s) (use control-click to choose multiple files if the piece spans multiple pages) and click "Open."
10. The .tif file(s) should appear in the import window. Click "Begin Recognition."
11. Finale will process the file(s) and open a score. You can edit the score as it is, but for better formatting, open a new document using the setup wizard or a template and copy the music from the raw score into the new document. For best results, make sure the "fill with rests" feature is turned OFF (go to the Simple Entry options and make sure the "Fill with rests at end of measure" box is unchecked).
Finale handles the OCR process very well if the original image is clear enough. It will not, however, reproduce text, lyrics, dynamics, articulations, or repeats, which will have to be added manually.
You should check to make sure all notes are correctly rendered. Some common (but not consistent) OCR errors:
- Dotted notes/rests are not dotted.
- Notes that belong in one voice are rendered in another voice (i.e. voice 1 notes are rendered as voice 2 and vice versa, or are sometimes rendered in voice 3 or 4).
- Slurs are mistaken for ties.
- Some notes in a chord are incorrectly transposed up or down.
- Missing accidentals.
- Incorrect note values.
- The second note after a tie is missing.
- After a clef change in the middle of a piece, notes are incorrectly transposed up or down.
- Missing time signature change in the middle of a piece.
- A forward-repeat bar is rendered as an empty bar. (This happens consistently. Just delete the empty bar and add the repeat barline to the next bar.)
- Where vertical brackets occur in the middle of bar, the brackets are mistaken for bar lines.
Other Software Guidelines
Please follow the General Guidelines listed above, paying particular attention to accurate sound output.
MusicXML
1. If there are any problems, printer errors, etc., please create a .txt file and note them there.
2. When you're done, save the files with the volume number and the number of the page the music appeared on. For example, if the music appeared on 032.png of Volume 1A, your MusicXML file should be named 1a-032.xml and your Transcriber's Note text file should be named 1a-032.txt. If more than one piece of music appears on the original page, add a, b, and so on to the filenames to distinguish them, e.g. 1a-032a.xml, 1a-032b.xml, etc.
3. Upload the .xml, .txt, and .midi files to this Wiki (use the "Upload files" link on the upper right of this page).
See example.xml for the MusicXML code for the following example (generated from Finale 2007).
Midi-Only Output
1. Please don't send a midi file that was created directly from a midi keyboard. You can, of course, play the music on your keyboard into your software, but please edit it and then generate the midi file.
2. If there are any problems, printer errors, etc., please create a .txt file and note them there.
3. When you're done, save the files with the volume number and the number of the page the music appeared on. For example, if the music appeared on 032.png of Volume 1A, your midi file should be named 1a-032.midi, and your transcriber's note text file should be named 1a-032.txt. If more than one piece of music appears on the original page, add a, b, and so on to the filenames to distinguish them, e.g. 1a-032a.midi, 1a-032b.midi, etc.
4. Upload the .midi and .txt files to this Wiki (use the "Upload files" link on the upper right of this page).
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