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01. Create a Musical Incipit

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Anna Kijas edited this page Mar 16, 2023 · 24 revisions

We are going to use MuseScore (open-source notation software).

  1. Open MuseScore and create a new score
  • Enter in the score information:
    • Title of the composition
    • Composer
    • Lyricist, if this is a vocal piece (if known)
  • Choose a template file:
    • Look at the score. Is it for solo piano, voice and piano, multiple instruments?
    • For solo piano works, include both clefs. For voice and piano, you can choose the voice melody line, unless it would be clearer to transcribe voice and piano together
    • For other instrumentation, identify the clef or instrument from which you’ll be transcribing
  • Choose the key signature:
    • Look at the score and identify the key signature at the beginning of the piece
  • Choose the time signature:
    • Look at the score and identify the time signature at the beginning of the piece
  • Enter in the number of measures, 5 or 6 will work. You can always add more in the score
    • Select done
    • If your composition has multiple movements or pieces, you will need to create a new score for each one

Important Note: you should use the default font (Freeserif) in order for the content to export exactly as you inputted it in MuseScore. If you don’t then the placement of text or other elements may appear differently. Scroll down to the “helpful tips” section to see how you can change the font. If you are using MuseScore version 3.6 - you will need to download this style file (FreeSerif.mss) and load it in your MuseScore software, so it applies the correct font.

"MuseScore does not embed text fonts in saved or exported native format files. If you want your MuseScore file to be viewed by other MuseScore users, make sure you are using the built-in FreeSerif or FreeSans font families for your text, or a font that the other parties have installed too. If a system does not have the fonts specified in your original file, MuseScore will use a fallback option, which may cause your score to appear differently.” Details are here: https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/file-formats#musicxml.

  1. Enter the music notation of each piece for the first few measures on a single staff.
  • If there are rests in the beginning of the piece, even for an entire measure, include this.
  • Transcribe exactly what you see in the score.
    • Include the dynamics, crescendos, and other attributes.
    • Include lyrics, if it is a vocal work.
    • If the piece is for voice and piano or multiple instruments, you can transcribe the single melodic line if it appears in the voice or one instrument, such as the violin.
  • Pay attention to the title information, spellings, and lower/upper-case as written in score. This is especially important for titles in foreign languages, such as German or French.
  • Do not use double bar lines to close the incipit. Use a single bar-line if you end on a full measure or do not close (no bar-line) if you end on a partial measure.

Example of single bar-line

Screen Shot 2023-02-09 at 7 59 17 PM

Example of no bar-line

Screen Shot 2023-02-09 at 7 59 24 PM
  • When you are finished, compare your notation to the score to make sure there are no errors.
  • Save your file as a .mscz Musescore file
    • last name of composer_title_mvt [Write using lower case and no punctuation, no diacritics]
    • Example: andree_piano_trio_g_minor_mvt1
  • Then go to File --> Export
    • Export your file as a MusicXML uncompressed file (MuseScore format) with the same filename as above
  • Upload both the .mscz and MusicXML files to the "for-review" folder in the "incipits-in_progress" Github folder
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