notation software - What's New

What's New in Version 4.0.3

Here you can find the changelog of our products. For notation composer and notation musician our Upgrade / Update Assistant can help you to find out the best option for you. To download the latest version of the free notation player please click here.

Version 3 is not supported anymore. A version 3 license can be upgraded with a discount to version 4.

Version 4.0.3		composer	musician	player
	Version 4.0.3 Enhancements and Changes

	Support of Windows 11
	Support of macOS Ventura, macOS Monterey
	Support of Mac PCs with Apple M1, M2 processor
	Mac PCs with improved font appearance
	Support of Chromebooks
	Support of Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
	Improvements of the installation of Wine on non-Windows operating systems
	Handling when Ramsonware Protection of Windows Defender is used
	Step time recording enhancements
	Improvements in MIDI export
	Serviceability improvements
	The trial version of the Band-in-a-Box® plugin is available for additional 60 days for testing. In case you may have deactivated it in previous version.
	Bug fixes

Version 4.0.2		composer	musician	player
	Version 4.0.2 is a Maintenance Release

Version 4.0.1		composer	musician	player
	User Interface enhancements for music features

Operating System Support

Newsletter

High DPI Displays

Soundfont

Font

Technology enhancements

Miscelleanous

Coexistence of version 4 with version 3

Version 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 3.1.4		composer	musician	player
	Version 3.1.2, 3.1.3, 3.1.4 are Maintenance Releases

Update 3.1.1		composer	musician	player
	MusicXML Import

Linux Ubuntu 18.04 LTS Support

Features in Version 3.1.0		composer	musician	player
	MusicXML Import, Export

Support of the Band-in-a-Box® Plugin

Compressed Audio Export

Sound

High Resolution Image Export

Translation of Online Manuals

Chord Enhancements

Quality- and Service Improvements

Miscellaneous

Changes in Version 3.0.4, 3.0.5, 3.0.6		composer	musician	player
	Version 3.0.4, 3.0.5, 3.0.6 are Maintenance Releases

Features in Version 3.0.3		composer	musician	player
	Windows 10 Support

Mac OS X El Capitan Support (please see details)

Linux Support (please see details)

Notation Software Synth

Configurable:
Integrated ASIO compatible driver

ASIO is a registered
trademark of
Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH

Soundfonts

Export of WAV Files

Miscellaneous

notation player 3

Features of Version 3.0.2		composer	musician
	MAC OS X Yosemite, Mavericks Support (please see details)

Spanish Language Variant

High Resolution PDF Export

Detection of Modern Keyboards

Chords

Installation Enhancements

Miscellaneous

Technology

Features of Version 3.0.1		composer	musician
	Sound Enhancements, Advanced Sound Tool for Keyboarders

Improved User Interface

Yamaha XF Chord Format and Chord Validation

MIDI Device Configuration Manager (DCM) Enhancements

Quality and Security Initiative

Technology

German Language Variant

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What version do you own?

That's easy to find out. Run notation composer or notation musician, and choose the About command in the Help menu. It will tell you your current version number.

Our Upgrade / Update Assistant can help you to find out what options you have for getting the latest version.

	macOS Big Sur support (Intel chip)
	Improved transcription
	Pitch-to-command enhancement for Playlist
	Serviceability improvements
	Bug fixes

	Certification on mac OS Mojave. F2 key with same functionality as INS key (because on a Mac there is no INS key)
	Update of external software libraries. Performance improvements
	Updated ASIO contract with Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH
	Bug fixes
	The trial version of the Band-in-a-Box® plugin is available for additional 60 days for testing. In case you may have deactivated it in version 3.1.1 already you can activate it again with the shortcut q!ebbt.

	Easy process for free updates
	Improved guidance for users when installing the products
	Improvements in the installation software for a faster and robust installation
	Backup saved in zip folder

	Latest libraries from FOSS Software Inc.
	Ultimate Grid 7.3
	Performance improvements
	Reduction of the executable file size by more than 50%

	Sounds of original imported MIDI files supported
	Sounds of existing saved .not and .mid files from previous versions adjusted to the sounds of the original MIDI file. This feature makes use of the original sounds automatically whilst addressing the changed sounds. When a MIDI file is exported, the best possible sound either the original or the current sound is used.
	Support of MIDI SysEx Events
	MIDI file exports for GM, GM2, GS and XG formats
	Advanced sound configuration tool for keyboarders

What's New in Version 4.0.3

What version do you own?

Home Musicians

Performing Musicians

Song Writers and Composers

	SmartMode - automatic switching between Add- and Select Mode
	Virtual Piano Keyboard for note entry

	Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7 - 64 bit support (end of support: 32 bit, Windows Vista)
	macOS Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, El Capitan 64 bit with Wine-5.4 (see here).
	Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (Focal Fossa), Ubuntu 18.04 LTS (Bionic Beaver) 64 bit with Wine >= 5.0 (see here), other Linux 64 bit distributions on request

	Instrument names imported from soundfont files including higher banks
	Loading of soundfont larger than 1 GB. No size limits

	64 bit support (end of 32 bit support)
	Latest external libraries

	Microsoft Print to PDF (for Windows only)
	Band-in-a-Box® improvements (for Windows and Linux)
	Bug fixes and other internal improvements

	Version 4 and version 3 can coexist on the same PC.
	Testing the version 4 trial version does NOT impact version 3.

	Import of MusicXML files in the formats .mxl, .musicxml, .xml
	Export of MusicXML files in the formats .mxl, .musicxml, .xml
	Export of more notation elements compared to former versions

	With the Band-in-a-Box® plugin notation composer can auto-generate accompaniment in 150 and more music styles. The Band-in-a-Box® plugin can be ordered separately and fully integrates into notation composer. For more on the Band-in-a-Box® plugin please see here.
	notation composer contains a trial version of the Band-in-a-Box® plugin with 25 styles which expires after 60 days. A purchase of the full plugin package can be done any time.
	Use of Band-in-a-Box® arrangements .not-files which are generated with the Band-in-a-Box® feature of notation composer can be used similar to all other .not files.

	Soundfont files in the sf3 format can be loaded in notation composer
	A sound quality soundfont is part of the installation package of notation composer.

	More chord types
	Chord name methodology for MIDI import, export
	Chord name methodology for Band-in-a-Box®, MusicXML import, export

	End of support of Windows XP
	Optionally enable Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth on Windows
	Open/close multiple files

	Version 3.0.6 is a maintenance release. For Composer certification of MusicXML export to Dorico. We recommend to update your version 3 to 3.0.6
	Version 3.0.5 certification on macOS Sierra and maintenance release. Please visit our forum to see the detailed changes in 3.0.5.
	Version 3.0.4 is a maintenance release. Please visit our forum to see the detailed changes in 3.0.4.

	Certification on Mac OS X El Capitan 10.11
	The concept of Notation Software uses the open source libraries of WineHQ. The libraries are for free and the installation on OS X is straight forward. For details see How to run Notation Software on MAC computers

	Certification on Ubuntu Linux 16.04 LTS, 14.04 LTS
	Certification on openSUSE 13.2, 13.1
	The concept of Notation Software uses the open source libraries of WineHQ. Once configured in the repositories of the Linux distributon, updates of WineHQ are automatically performed by Linux.

	Chord chart enhancements
	The Chord Name Verification which was introduced with 3.0.1 is now configurable.
	MusicXML export for chords

	GraphOverNotes - Enhancements for better integration with staff setup
	MIDI Thru with help guidance
	Bug fixes

	Improved User Interface for fast and effective work
	New user friendly grids using the modern grid technology of Ultimate Grid
	Enhanced information "Help" displays for more effective use, improvement of implausible configurations and more...
	Automatic mode selection (Add/Select Mode switching) based on available features set
	Enhanced Color Scheme

	Full implementation of Yamaha's XF format for chords. Chords can be edited in the software and then fully exported into MIDI files to be used on Yamaha (or compatible) keyboards.
	The inserted chords will be checked for validity and in case an implausible chord name is detected, the chords are marked accordingly. This feature works with the chord toolbox for consistent use of chord names, and to assure that the chords meet the XF specification when exported into a MIDI file.

	Improved DCM interface for easier and more effective use
	New folder structure for saving and restoring of backup configuration files

	QuickStartGuide to immediately get started
	Free user-friendly Support Desk
	Security enhancements to support license structure and to protect users who purchased a license.
	Installation procedure supported with 'Readme' guidelines
	Easy backup of the installation files for quick restoration in case of a PC problem
	Real time logging of issues for better fault diagnosis for the Notation Software Service staff, which results in better customer service.
	Many software bugs were corrected in version 3

	Enhanced User Interface libraries from Microsoft, Inc. and FOSS Software, Inc.
	New user friendly grids using the modern grid technology of Ultimate Grid
	Version 3 has been developed with Microsoft's modern development environment to provide long term support for future operating systems.

	Language variants for user interfaces in English and German
	German style of notation
	German webpages to support German speaking customers
	Flexible upgrade path to switch language variants when upgrading a version