Last time I wrote about StaffPad, a new Windows 8 notation program that works on pen input to allow users to handwrite a score into the computer. While StaffPad is a very exciting product, it’s not the first viable handwriting notation program, and more people are interested in mobile device solutions than ones which require a hybrid Windows 8 device. Neuratron offers NotateMe (and NotateMe Now) for iOS or Android devices as a way to write scores using finger or stylus input. I wouldn’t view these as full replacements for Sibelius or Finale, but rather as ways to make quick edits or jot musical ideas on the fly. It’s an app that has really resonated with a lot of users, but in the end my recommendation on it is somewhat lukewarm, for reasons I’ll describe. Let’s take a look at the apps and then some possible workflows using them in combination with other mobile or desktop software.
Neuratron Builds On Its Strengths
Longtime Sibelius users know Neuratron as the company behind PhotoScore (PhotoScore Lite comes packaged with Sibelius), the powerful OMR package for scanning printed music into a notation program. Optical Music Recognition (OMR) is the process of identifying a shape and comparing it to given examples within the software in order to guess what the image should translate to in the notation software. Neuratron has applied the same process in NotateMe, only the software analyzes your drawn input rather than a picture. Aside from the written input, NotateMe allows users a more traditional method of dragging noteheads or symbols into the score, which gives you a safety net if a particular note or shape just isn’t being recognized. You’ll get less of this over time–NotateMe analyzes your particular handwriting and adjusts over time. The “learning” score in the lower-left shows you how far NotateMe is in the process of analyzing your script, as you get closer to 100% the accuracy improves greatly. As with any software, though, you may have to make slight adjustments to how you notate in order to have it be recognized. A sample score of “Amazing Grace” gives you a chance to make your adjustments while letting NotateMe learn your style.
Neuratron’s OMR engine is a different approach than StaffPad uses: StaffPad tracks movements and interprets them to create a note, while OMR basically “scans” the drawn image and attempts to compare it. Of these two approaches, OMR has the longer history and thus Neuratron can build on their own expertise in the technology. On the other hand, I can see from a technical perspective how StaffPad’s approach has more potential for being faster and more accurate (while requiring more processing power and a more sophisticated input device than the iPad affords). It will be worth watching these two approaches continue to develop given the current interest in pen and touch computing devices and software. Regardless, NotateMe translates the written input very well and once you and the software have each adjusted to each other, you’ll likely find it to be a quick and fluid way to write script.
As seems to be the new standard in mobile app-space, NotateMe comes in two variants: NotateMe is the paid version ($39.99 for both iOS and Android), and NotateMe Now is free. NotateMe Now is limited to one staff, and does not have either the “Red Pen” (for annotating or making notes) or “Text Pen” (for entering lyrics, dynamics/style markings, or chord symbols) features of the paid version. As a free single-staff app, though, it’s a great option for classrooms or studios where students may be doing dictation exercises, simple melodic compositions, or writing exercises. From the export screen, files can be shared as MIDI, XML, or PDF (paid NotateMe only), and can be e-mailed, saved locally, or saved directly to Dropbox if configured on your device (paid NotateMe only). MusicXML can be transferred to Sibelius or Finale for further editing, or to use their sound libraries for playback/recording. If you use another cloud storage or LMS system, the “Open In” link will allow you to share the files out through the method of your choice. NotateMe also has a number of in-app purchases, including a PhotoScore add-in ($29.99) which uses your device camera to capture and scan printed music into NotateMe to edit. NotateMe’s website also teases that audio dictation options are “coming soon” as another in-app purchase.
Screen Size
I’ve talked to many colleagues who use NotateMe on a regular basis, and use NotateMe Now either personally or with their students to great success. Despite that, and despite my excitement about handwriting as an input mode for notation, I’ve never fully embraced NotateMe. My personal bias against phone and tablet devices as production devices always comes down to the use of screen real-estate, and there are apps which make full use of the available screen size to let you do great work on a small device. Unfortunately, I don’t think that NotateMe does a great job of this, and it’s why my experience with it has been slightly underwhelming. Whether composing or reading music, it’s helpful to be able to view measures in context of the larger musical structure, which requires seeing more of the page than just one measure at a time. On the other hand, though, drawing on a small surface such as a phone or tablet screen requires that you have a large enough workspace to write with fidelity. Fingers and large styli like the common iPad styli are, for lack of a better term, blobby enough that the writing has to be very large in order to be accurate. NotateMe has the standard pinch-and-zoom function, but I find myself constantly zooming in and out, which interrupts my thought process. There are ways around this: A stylus such as the Adonit Jot, which fools the iPad screen into letting you see a more defined point, help with this. If NotateMe took a page out of art and design apps and integrated support for an active Bluetooth stylus such as the Adonit Touch or Script, this would create even more refined input. I think the simplest option, though, would be to reconsider the app display. When pinching-and-zooming, both the input and display stay linked in size. This means that you’re always choosing to be zoomed in or out on both the input and display. If you were able to zoom each independently, you could see your output in a larger musical context while still writing in a larger input window. Similarly, being able to drag the center bar to resize the two panes would let you use more of the white space which ends up being wasted in a zoomed-out view.
Your Mileage May Vary
These are personal preference concerns, and you may not find them as much as an issue as I– again, the app has many fans who appreciate the big picture of being able to jot musical ideas down or do a quick edit of existing music and either send to Sibelius or Finale for further work, or quickly distribute to an ensemble or class. With the exceptions noted above, NotateMe Now is free and fully-functional, so I believe that it’s worth a look to see if it’s something that you find valuable. The most compelling aspect of the product, to me, is that Neuratron offers their Software Development Kit (the code which powers NotateMe) to other developers, meaning that other app designers can license the software and build upon it. I hope that future iterations of NotateMe will think more creatively about how to capitalize on the available screen space. Have you used NotateMe? How have you found the experience? Comment below!
Paul di Francesco says
Paul di Francesco says
Martin Dawe says
NotateMe Now 3 has also been updated, yes. It too is already downloadable for Android and waiting for approval by Apple for the App Store.
Jeff Tillinghast says
Martin Dawe says