|
Log in to post
|
Print Thread |
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,039
Veteran
|
OP
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,039 |
I’m looking for a free APP or software to convert PDF Music to a MIDI file or MusicXML?
Not necessarily for BIAB, but a general way of converting those types of files.
There are many sites that offer FREE conversion for 7 days and then they want into your 🏧.
Anyone that can help me out here?
I’m looking to convert 1 song to a Piano part.
Thanks,
Trax
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091 |
MuseScore offers an experimental converter using audiveris, but you have to log on and I haven't had much success with it myself. I don't know off-hand if one needs a MuseScore subscription for it. I usually just enter the scores manually. https://musescore.com/importhttps://github.com/Audiveris/audiveris
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11
BIAB2024 Audiophile, a bunch of other software.
Kawai MP6, Ui24R, Focusrite Saffire Pro40 and Scarletts
.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 308
Journeyman
|
|
Journeyman
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 308 |
I am only aware of payed versions and they are quite expensive. I use PDFtoMysic by Myriad Software. There are also a PRO version. The basic version can export to MIDI and the PRO version can export to both MusicXML and MIDI. Note that it only works for music that have been written to PDF by a Music score editor (i.e. not scanned PDFs). If you only have one song to export from PDF to MusicXML or MIDI maybe you can try their trail versions. Just download the software and it is in a trail version. The trial version allows you to export one page only at the time from the PDF (but as far as I can see when I testing it it is possible to go through the pages and export them one by one, I just tested with a few pages). If it works the result will be a series of Music XML pages (if using the PRO trial) building up to the complete score. So some editing to merge it all together will be necessary in the end. PDFtoMusic linkI am not aware of any software that can convert scanned versions of PDF music scores. The few versions I have tested in the past just ended up with rubbish results just takes up lot of time trying or editing.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267
Veteran
|
Veteran
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267 |
Free? No. I’ve tried them all. This is what I use at least once every week: ScanScore Pro 3 https://scan-score.com/en/?gad_source=1Price starts at $9 with a free trial. You have choices of levels and pay more to have more staves. PDF to Music works great when it works, but it’s more expensive and most of the time it aborts and claims the score is not a published score. ScanScore Pro 3 can scan from your scanner or read an PDF. It always gives me something decent to start with, although none of these programs will read everything perfectly. You have a choice of correcting scan errors in the program, or exporting with the errors that you fix in your software of choice. The license renews each year but not automatically, so you have an opportunity to use it with a reasonably low price commitment.
BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 1,388
Expert
|
|
Expert
Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 1,388 |
PDF to Music is overpriced crapware. It cannot scan annd only import font info contained in a pdf (if it knows the fonts). It is way behind the times as it cannot handle SMuFL fonts. If the PDF is a picture only, the app is useless. Published sheet music is normally graphic only and contains no font information. SmartScore by Musitek scans images and is good but rarely perfect. The MIDI only version of SmartScore is $49 while the Pro is $399. Finale and Dorico owners get a 50% discount on some versions including Pro. A major update was released a couple weeks ago, probably to compete with ScanScore — no charge to owners of the current versions of SmartScore64, myself included. Musitek also makes an iOS/Android app, Music-to-XML for $99 available from the same page.There’s no demo but you can send them a page to test. You can convert to MIDI by opening in a notation app—where you will have to do some editing most likely—and export to MIDI from there. It’s a “black box” app in that you cannot edit in the app, only the output once exported. This was supposed to be bundled with Finale 25 and was announced but was pulled at the last minute over copyright concerns. ScanScore is also a scanning app that works over iOS/Android or your scanner. There are three levels — subscription only. I have had versions of SmartScore for decades but I rarely import music anymore. If I did, I’d A/B SmartScore vs ScanScore and go with te one I liked best.
BIAB 2024 Audiophile, 24Core/60CoreGPU Core M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sonoma, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro
Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion/Overture
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 308
Journeyman
|
|
Journeyman
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 308 |
It sounds good. I was not aware of ScanScore or SmartScore
I'm rarely converting PDF music so much nowadays only occational (I might need it once a year or so), so I am not so updated.
I might check them out but I would prefere to own the software as a lifetime licence.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091 |
PDF to Music is overpriced crapware. That's rather harsh. Converting music PDFs to MIDI or MusicXML is far more complex than doing the same for ordinary text. The fact that it's complex and that there are fewer users of it is why it's less developed and why it's costly. If I'd spent three or four years developing and honing such a software I think I'd be pretty annoyed by that. Fortunately for me, I felt it was too complex and has too small a market to make a worthwhile business, so I never went near it. This is one area where AI might eventually make a decent improvement.
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11
BIAB2024 Audiophile, a bunch of other software.
Kawai MP6, Ui24R, Focusrite Saffire Pro40 and Scarletts
.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267 |
As I mentioned, PDF to Music gives the best result if it works at all, which it usually doesn’t. I prefer ScanScore to SmartScore but that’s up to you to choose. At least they will do something with any music you feed them. The decision you always have to make when doing this is whether correcting the program’s results is easier than you keying the score in manually.
BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,039
Veteran
|
|
OP
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,039 |
Thanks for great information in your post. I understand why people use “free” yada yada just for the clickbait and THEN they hit you with “try it for free for 7 days.” lol
Trax
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 21,643
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 21,643 |
Trax, is the PDF an original song? If not you may be able to find a MIDI version of the song.
Yeah, I've got O.C.D, Old, Cranky, and Dangerous.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,039
Veteran
|
|
OP
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 5,039 |
No, it’s a song by CCM Artist Clay Crosse. I have the sheet music in a song book. I could purchase a professionally made midi, but I was checking out some of my iPhone 14 new features and came across an app called PlayScore which was supposed to convert PDF to MIDI.
I just wanted the notes converted. Then I was going to run it through BIAB to make my own version with RealTracks etc.
Trax
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091 |
No, it’s a song by CCM Artist Clay Crosse. I have the sheet music in a song book. I could purchase a professionally made midi, but I was checking out some of my iPhone 14 new features and came across an app called PlayScore which was supposed to convert PDF to MIDI.
I just wanted the notes converted. Then I was going to run it through BIAB to make my own version with RealTracks etc.
Trax As Mike Halloran alluded, there are several different possible formats of the data inside a PDF. PDF is a wrapper derived from Postscript and also includes various graphical formats in vector or pixel forms, so conversion from PDF to anything has a number of hurdles. Conversion from a wrapped typesetting source will be much less difficult than converting from a scanned document using some form of OCR. Personally I tend to look for songs I want to learn/use/adapt on places like musescore.com or one of the many MIDI or karaoke sites (e.g., karaoke-version.com), then adapt them locally to match what I want. I can usually find something fairly close that way, though as most of what I want is jazz, it may be easier. Otherwise it's do it myself.
Last edited by Gordon Scott; 09/12/24 02:48 AM. Reason: Added karaoke-version.com
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11
BIAB2024 Audiophile, a bunch of other software.
Kawai MP6, Ui24R, Focusrite Saffire Pro40 and Scarletts
.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 1,388
Expert
|
|
Expert
Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 1,388 |
PDF to Music is overpriced crapware. That's rather harsh. ... Says you. I've tried it many times over the years and am fine with my opinion. It's $95 down the toilet as far as I am concerned. Absolute rubbish... unless all you want is export to MIDI and you are working with compatible files. SmartScore MIDI is a much better buy @ $49 because it converts scans. I have a much higher opinion (and a paid license for years) of PDFtoMusic Pro which has its uses. It does something that Finale and other notation apps cannot and that is open the PDFs of my Encore files with Text and Lyrics and export as MusicXML 3 (I think—may be xml 2.0 but it is good enough). The cost is $199 which is the same as SmartScore Pro 64 for me (Finale/Dorico owner 50% discount). SSP can scan graphics but for best results, you need to edit before export or edit in notation. PDF-MP cannot scan nor edit but it renders my Encore files accurately, a big time saver since I have hundreds and still work in Encore now and then on one of my old Macs. Encore's xml 1.1 (Win) or 1.3 (Mac) exports notes and some text only but no lyrics or expressions. The PDFs contain all of this info, of course, and PDF-MP can extract and export. The current version works over the latest macOS — ok, it looks like OS 8.1 or Win 3.1 but I don't care as long as it works. I’m looking for a free APP or software to convert PDF Music to a MIDI file or MusicXML?
… Both are available for evaluation. PDF to Music Pro download Interestingly, they are fully functional with the following restriction—it will only export the first page. If you have a compatible PDF file, you can save one page at a time using Print to PDF in Preview (Mac) or your PDF print engine of choice (Win), convert each page for free. Of course, there's still this: As I mentioned, PDF to Music gives the best result if it works at all, which it usually doesn’t... There's no workaround.
BIAB 2024 Audiophile, 24Core/60CoreGPU Core M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sonoma, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro
Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion/Overture
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267 |
I should clarify that my comments were about PDF to Music Pro (the expensive one). I have never even tried the non-pro version.
BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 2,091 |
PDF to Music is overpriced crapware. That's rather harsh. ... Says you. I've tried it many times over the years and am fine with my opinion. It's $95 down the toilet as far as I am concerned. Absolute rubbish... unless all you want is export to MIDI and you are working with compatible files. SmartScore MIDI is a much better buy @ $49 because it converts scans. Oh, OK, I see, I misunderstood; Sorry. I took "PDF to Music" to be a concept, not a specific product. You hadn't put it in quotes or anything, so I didn't that you were criticising a specific product. I can't comment at all on the the specific product, I know nothing about it.
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful.
AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11
BIAB2024 Audiophile, a bunch of other software.
Kawai MP6, Ui24R, Focusrite Saffire Pro40 and Scarletts
.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 1,388
Expert
|
|
Expert
Joined: Apr 2017
Posts: 1,388 |
I should clarify that my comments were about PDF to Music Pro (the expensive one). I have never even tried the non-pro version. I figured as much knowing that you are another Encore user like I. I did not want to assume, however. …
I took "PDF to Music" to be a concept, not a specific product. You hadn't put it in quotes or anything, so I didn't that you were criticising a specific product. No problem, Gordon. That's why I took the time to write a more complete comparison this morning. What I didn't mention is the raft of products pushed at Sibelius users including PhotoScore, PlayScore, SharpEye, NotateMe and lord knows what else. Not being a Sibelius user, none of the marketing for any of those has convinced me to download a demo. One never hears of them outside of Sibelius World. No, nowadays, it's ScanScore, SmartScore and PDFtoMusic Pro (with the caveat that it doesn't work with most scores one finds on the internet). Since the new Muse Group tool imports into MuseScore only, I have no use for it. Both are free but it's a fair bit of work. Speaking of which, PDFtoMusic Pro does read MuseScore pdf files one finds on musescore.com ... but those files can be downloaded as .musicxml, too so there's no point in the $200 app for that. MuseScore's current version, 4.4 does a decent job of exporting MIDI and .musicxml.
BIAB 2024 Audiophile, 24Core/60CoreGPU Core M2 MacStudioUltra/8TB/192GB Sonoma, M1 MBAir, 2012 MBP
Digital Performer11, LogicPro
Finale27/Dorico/Encore/SmartScorePro64/Notion/Overture
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Off-Topic
|
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267
Veteran
|
|
Veteran
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 26,267 |
Among all these answers (that go way beyond what was asked) would be the contents of a good article for the Tips and Tricks Forum.
BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
New! XPro Styles PAK 7 for Band-in-a-Box 2024 for Mac!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 7 with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 50 RealTracks and RealDrums that are sure to delight!
With XPro Styles PAK 7 you can expect 25 rock & pop, 25 jazz, and 25 country styles, as well as 25 of this year's wildcard genre: Celtic!
Here's a small sampling of what XPro Styles PAK 7 has to offer: energetic rock jigs, New Orleans funk, lilting jazz waltzes, fast Celtic punk, uptempo train beats, gritty grunge, intense jazz rock, groovy EDM, soulful R&B, soft singer-songwriter pop, country blues rock, and many more!
Special Pricing! Until September 30, 2024, all the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 7 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea)! Supercharge your Band-in-a-Box 2024® with XPro Styles PAK 7! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Watch the XPro Styles PAK 7 Overview & Styles Demos video.
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2024 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
New! Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box 2024 for Mac!
Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box version 2024 is here with 200 brand new styles to take for a spin!
Along with 50 new styles each for the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, we’ve put together a collection of styles using sounds from the SynthMaster plugin!
In this PAK you'll find: dubby reggae grooves, rootsy Americana, LA jazz pop, driving pop rock, mellow electronica, modern jazz fusion, spacey country ballads, Motown shuffles, energetic EDM, and plenty of synth heavy grooves! Xtra Style PAK 18 features these styles and many, many more!
Special Pricing! Until September 30, 2024, all the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 18 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea)! Expand your Band-in-a-Box 2024® library with Xtra Styles PAK 18! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 18 here.
Watch the Xtra Styles PAK 18 Overview & Styles Demos video.
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 18 requires the 2024 UltraPAK/UltraPAK+/Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
New! Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box 2024 for Windows!
Xtra Styles PAK 18 for Band-in-a-Box version 2024 is here with 200 brand new styles to take for a spin!
Along with 50 new styles each for the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, we’ve put together a collection of styles using sounds from the SynthMaster plugin!
In this PAK you'll find: dubby reggae grooves, rootsy Americana, LA jazz pop, driving pop rock, mellow electronica, modern jazz fusion, spacey country ballads, Motown shuffles, energetic EDM, and plenty of synth heavy grooves! Xtra Style PAK 18 features these styles and many, many more!
Special Pricing! Until September 30, 2024, all the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 18 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea)! Expand your Band-in-a-Box 2024® library with Xtra Styles PAK 18! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 18 here.
Watch the Xtra Styles PAK 18 Overview & Styles Demos video.
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 18 requires the 2024 UltraPAK/UltraPAK+/Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
New! XPro Styles PAK 7 for Band-in-a-Box 2024 for Windows!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 7 with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 50 RealTracks and RealDrums that are sure to delight!
With XPro Styles PAK 7 you can expect 25 rock & pop, 25 jazz, and 25 country styles, as well as 25 of this year's wildcard genre: Celtic!
Here's a small sampling of what XPro Styles PAK 7 has to offer: energetic rock jigs, New Orleans funk, lilting jazz waltzes, fast Celtic punk, uptempo train beats, gritty grunge, intense jazz rock, groovy EDM, soulful R&B, soft singer-songwriter pop, country blues rock, and many more!
Special Pricing! Until September 30, 2024, all the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 7 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea)! Supercharge your Band-in-a-Box 2024® with XPro Styles PAK 7! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Watch the XPro Styles PAK 7 Overview & Styles Demos video.
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2024 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Video - Band-in-a-Box® DAW Plugin Version 6 for Mac®: New Features for Reaper
Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Mac® - Update Today!
Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Mac® Video - Over 50 New Features and Enhancements!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Forums65
Topics82,925
Posts751,089
Members38,943
| |
Most Online2,537
Jan 19th, 2020
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dansk
Deutsch - Windows
Español
Français - Windows
Italiano - Windows
Nederlands
Polski
Português
Svenskt
русский
Japanese
Simplified Chinese
Traditional Chinese
Korean