MuseScore in 10 Easy Steps: Part 7, 8 and 9

OK, I have a confession to make: I’ve been very slack in keeping my poor blog updated. I have plans for a redesign and a new blogging regime (I think they’ll be part of my New Year resolutions), so stay tuned for that in 2011.  In the meantime, here is a catch-up post about the latest 3 MuseScore videos:

The 7th MuseScore video was uploaded back in mid-August and covered repeats and 1st/2nd time endings (also known as Volta brackets in MuseScore).

[Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVmXhlpOpa4%5D

Part 8 – all about creating codas – appeared at the same time as part 7:

[Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04XTa6IrzGg&feature=related%5D

I’ve had a list of possible video topics for parts 9 and 10, but the most frequently asked question via Youtube is “how do I create drum parts?”, so that became the focus of the ninth video in the series.

[Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFj7v5S4Akw%5D

I’ll be planning the next video – part 10 – in the next couple of weeks, so keep an eye out for it in the new year.

Making Effective Tutorial Videos: Behind the scenes of a Screencast

I’ve been creating “how-to” style video tutorials (“screencasts”) about music software programs for a number of months now.  Whilst I would not consider myself an expert, I do receive some lovely compliments about the clarity and style of the videos I make.  I also receive regular questions about how I go about making them and which software program/s I use.

I thought it might be useful to put this information in a blog post in case there are educators out there who would like to have a go at screencasting, but don’t know where to start.  The information here will relate to the general approach I use, and sequential steps taken to create screencasts, rather than specifics about how to use a screencasting program.

Before starting: choose your screencasting style

The first thing is to choose which style of screencast you’d like to make.  When I talk about style here, I’m referring to choosing between the following:

• planned, organised, succinct screencasts which require a decent investment of time (a couple of hours or more)

• off-the-cuff, casual screencasts which contain some “ums and ahs” and fewer effects

My own style choice is the first one: scripted and edited as tightly as possible so that’s what I’ll be discussing in this post.  The off-the-cuff style needs less explanation: think about what you’re going to explain, practise it a couple of times and record what you’re doing on the screen, talking it about it as you go.

1. Plan and practise

The first thing I do is decide the main aim of my video tutorial, and think about how best to explain that concept.  At this stage I might run through the steps on the software program that is the subject of the tutorial, taking note of the necessary sequence of events.

2. Script the tutorial

I write out my script in full, word for word, including any shortcuts I’m going to mention.  I like to stick to videos that are 5 minutes or less in length, so I make sure that the script is no longer than 1-2 pages long.

3. Record voice-over

I choose to record my voice-over in the free program Audacity, because I find there’s more flexibility in editing the audio track there than in the screencasting program itself.  I use a USB mic (a Blue Snowball) with a MacBookPro and my “recording studio” is my children’s bedroom which is located at the back of the house.  When I read the script, I make sure that I speak more slowly (with pauses) when describing menus and sub-menus (as in “go to File > Export > Export audio”) since I’ll need to match my mouse movements with the audio later on.  I also try to leave a nice amount of space between paragraphs or sections.  The extra space makes synching the audio and visuals easier within the screencasting program.

4. Edit the voice-over

Still in Audacity, I edit the voice-over removing slip-ups, ums, ahs, cars driving past and so on, but I leave in the spaces in between sections.  I also boost the sound by running the Normalize effect (go to Effect > Normalize).

5. Export the audio

The next step is to export the voice-over track from Audacity using a format that will be accepted by the screencasting program.  I’m using Screenflow on a Mac, so I export the audio as an AIFF file.  PC users would likely choose WAV.  At this point I also set up a folder on my hard drive that will contain all the necessary bits and pieces for this video tutorial, and make sure that my exported audio file goes straight into that folder.

6. Record the visuals

This is the part where I record the visual part of the tutorial – the screen recording.  I do this in the screencasting program Screenflow which is for Mac users only.  Camtasia is an excellent option for PC users (they also do a Mac version) and Jing is a good free option for both platforms.  It’s a good idea to keep mouse movements to a minimum when you record: don’t use the mouse to make repeated circles around an object or a button on the screen because it’s very distracting for the viewer!  It’s also a good idea to try to move the mouse smoothly and deliberately from one object or menu item to another so that the viewer’s eyes can track the movement.   Later in the process, you can draw attention to the mouse and other items on the screen by using some of the inbuilt video effects in your screencasting program.

7. Gather all media in the screencasting program

Gather together all the media (such as images and music) you might use in your screencast and add it to the folder you set up earlier.  Then, import your audio (voice-over) track and the other media into the screencasting program.

8. Editing #1: Synch the audio and visuals together

This is perhaps the most time-consuming step.  I play the screencast and the audio track at the same time, cutting out (or extending) sections so that they fit well together.  I aim to remove any slow parts in the action, as well as any unnecessary gaps..  It’s best not to fuss around with effects at this stage. Just make sure the timing is right.

9. Editing #2: adding effects

Once the screencast is synched to the audio, I add in some effects: transitions, fade ins/outs and zooming.  I think the key here is to act with restraint.  Too much zooming may make your viewer feel ill and just because your screencasting program is capable of a swipe-ripple-cross fade transition doesn’t mean i’s appropriate for your software tutorial.  At this time, I also add intro and outro music and all text including opening titles, credits and on-screen instructions like shortcuts.  If you’re planning on making a few video tutorials it’s a good idea to set up a template which contains the music, title text and credits which you can use again next time.

10. Export

When you’re happy with your tutorial, you’ll need to export it in a format you can share with others.  In Screenflow, I export the video as a .MOV file.   If you’re planning to upload your video to Youtube, you can refer to their list of accepted file types.  You’ll also need to make sure that your video is 10 minutes or less.

And that’s it!  If you do choose to share your videos with the wider world via Youtube or another video-sharing site, one of the pleasant side-effects is that you can expect to receive gratitude and feedback from all over the world.

MuseScore in 10 Easy Steps: Part 5

Well, I admit that it’s been a while between MuseScore videos but I’m hoping that I’ll be able to get 2 or 3 done this week (no promises though!).  Anyway, here is tutorial 5 which covers copying and pasting music, adding lyrics and adding dynamics.  Now on to tutorial 6….

[Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e55-YnhSk-s%5D

Sibelius Tutorial: Drum Parts From Scratch

For inexperienced Sibelius users, one of the more complex (and misunderstood) tasks is to create drum parts from scratch.  In a couple of earlier posts I described quick and easy ways to add drum parts to your score – by using the Ideas Hub (Sibelius 5 and 6 only), and by using the Add Drum Part plugin.  However, there are times when you need to start from scratch and the video below describes a straightforward method for doing just that.

And if you’d like to print out a copy of the instructions, they’re here: Drum Parts from Scratch.  The written instructions also describe the method for inputting drum parts using your MIDI keyboard.

[Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AsWCqx2yB8%5D

MuseScore in 10 easy steps part 4: note entry with a MIDI keyboard

Here’s the fourth installment in the 10-part video tutorial series about free music notation program MuseScore.  This tutorial covers note entry with a MIDI keyboard and looks at the basics of playing back your score.  It took me a little longer than hoped to find time to make this one.  I’m aiming for a quicker turn-around on the next few!

[Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVlKTrCcl9A%5D

MuseScore in 10 easy steps: part 2

Here is the second tutorial in the Musescore series.  In this video, we take a walk through the Musescore screen.  In case you missed part 1, you can see it here.

[Vimeo http://vimeo.com/8668551%5D

The next tutorial in this series is coming soon and will cover the basics of note entry.

Musescore in 10 easy steps: part 1

Happy New Year!  Well, one of my new year’s resolutions is to post more frequently to this blog and I thought I’d start off by sharing a series of tutorial videos about the free notation program MuseScore. MuseScore is a good cost-effective alternative to professional notation programs like Sibelius and Finale and is being adopted by many in the education sector.

This series of 10 short videos will cover the basics of using MuseScore: setting up a score, moving around the screen, note entry and sharing your scores.

[Vimeo http://vimeo.com/8668507%5D

If you’re interested in seeing other how-to videos, there are a series of Sibelius videos here.

Avoiding Snail Mail: Easy Ways To Share Audio and Video

The Summit by BombDog on Flickr

Have you ever tried to send someone audio files via email?  Or worse still, video files?  Working in the music & multimedia education field I find myself frequently needing to send or receive recordings of songs, photos, videos and presentations to a range of people that include students, attendees of my training sessions, clients and colleagues.  These sorts of files are simply too big for email and if you’re like me, you’ll do anything to avoid resorting to burning a disk, finding a padded envelope and making the long trek to the Post Office.

The easy solution is to use a file sharing website: you upload files from your computer to the site and provide the location details to your recipient or group of recipients.  They can then visit the site and download the files they need.  It’s a digital “locker”, if you like.

My own use of these sites includes:

• Distributing session notes to attendees of my training sessions or conference presentations.  Many are happy to have an electronic copy and we save a few trees in the process
• Sharing collections of loops, sound effects and videos for film scoring workshops
• Receiving audio recordings and MIDI files for transcribing or arranging jobs I’m working on
• Receiving large scores for orchestral copying work

File-sharing sites are also particularly useful for itinerant music teachers without a permanent office or computer.  They can store their own schedules, student lists and other working documents which are then accessible from any computer in any school.  I know of one teacher that uploads backing tracks so that his students can download them at home for practice purposes and another that uses a file-sharing site for student assignment submissions.

The Basics

If you’ve never used a file-sharing site before, here’s how it works:

• You go to the file-sharing website (see options below)
• Sign-in (if applicable)
• Click the upload button
• Select the files you want to send and then wait while the files upload
• When the upload process is finished there will be a link (web address) you can email to your friend.  When they click on the link, they’ll see your file/s and be able to download them to their own computer.

Most sites offer a free service for files (a single file or combination of files) up to a 100MB in size and there are a few that offer uploads of 200MB, 500MB, or even more.  There’s also a paid option if you need more space.

To give you an idea of file sizes, consider the following rough guide:

• PDFs or Word documents are usually small enough to be measured in kilobytes and are suitable to email
• A single photo at high resolution can be 5-10MB or more
• A 3-minute pop song in MP3 format (compressed) can be around 5MB
• A 3-minute pop song in WAV format can be around 50MB
• A 7-minute cartoon might be 70MB

My two favourite file-sharing websites have been drop.io and Mediafire, but there are plenty of other choices out there, like Soundcloud which was designed specifically for sharing audio files.

Drop.io is simple to use, you don’t need to sign up to use it and it includes lots of extras like the voice memo feature.  You can password-protect your “drop” and you can even opt to receive notifcations when files are downloaded from – or added to – your drop.

MediaFire is also straightforward to use, allows uploads up to 100MB and if you choose to set up a user name you can access extra features like the ability to organise your collections of files into folders.

Soundcloud is a recent discovery, but looks like a great solution for audio files.  Soundcloud supports AIFF, WAV, FLAC, OGG, MP3 and AAC files and you can choose to make your uploaded files public (for anyone to access) or private (accessible only by those you grant access).  You do need to sign up for this service, but one huge benefit is that there’s no file-size limit.

If you’re interested in reading about some of the other file-sharing options, there’s a useful comparison chart here.