Pizzicato Professional 3.5 can take you from being a complete musical novice to creating scores for a full orchestra. It is the only premium music notation software we tested that includes tutorials about the basic building blocks of music such as notes, chords and time signatures. This premium music notation software application is also a good fit for classically trained performers and composers with little understanding of computers. Regardless of what you bring to the keyboard, Pizzicato Pro can take you all the way from a beautiful opening motive to a final perfect cadence.
In the world of classical music, a pizzicato marking instructs string players to pluck their strings like a guitar instead of using horsehair bows to create a tone. The result is short, sharp notes like rain falling on wet pavement or elves tiptoeing through the snow, but with resonance that only a full orchestra can provide. Pizzicato Composition Pro draws its name from this technique. It is part of the Arpege sprl music software family, which also includes notation applications for beginners and for specific solo instruments such as the guitar and keyboard.
Pizzicato Professional has many of the attributes we looked for in premium music notation software. You can use it to create audio files alongside traditionally notated scores using sounds recorded by professional musicians. You can also use Pizzicato to create lead sheets, guitar tabs and percussion notation for a casual rock band. At any point, you can transpose the notes in your music to accommodate various performers.
Other winning features of Pizzicato Professional music software include the ability to record your own voice or instrument alongside your score. Then, you can adjust the tempo and volume on your recording using a simple sound mixer.
Pizzicato Professional music software lacks the technology to clean up your score automatically, so you'll have to carefully align your dynamic markings, tempos, rests and bar lines before you publish. The software also lacks the ability to create harmonies for your melodies automatically. However, it features extensive Intuitive Composition tools to help you find the best harmonic and rhythmic options.
The tutorials and videos included with Pizzicato Professional are the best available. You can use them to better understand everything from dotted eighth notes to harmonic progression. The premium version of this music notation software from Arpege also includes ear-training exercises and composition worksheets.
Pizzicato Pro handles MIDI files like a champ, turning them into the black dots and lined staves of traditional music notation within just a few minutes. You can also input notes by scanning sheet music, using your mouse and QWERTY keyboard, using a MIDI keyboard or by clicking on the notes of a virtual piano within the Pizzicato interface.
When your musical masterpiece is complete, you can export the audio as a MIDI file or as a standard audio file. You can also print your parts and scores on paper or export your music as a graphic to use in lectures and books.
It's possible to create just about every kind of professional music notation using Pizzicato Professional. Before you begin, realize that the job may require a significant amount of time and a lot of patience. It starts with a slow download speed and a slow processing speed. Pizzicato can notate information from MIDI files perfectly, but it takes about three times longer than other music notation software applications we tested.
Other basic processes are difficult to use and hard to find. We couldn't extract a part for a single instrument from the score without directing the application to do the job twice, for example. We also struggled to find options for inputting dynamic expression. When we did find the right tool, we noticed that some options for dynamics are missing. We could tell players to speed up with the accelerando command, for example, but we could not tell them to slow down the tempo with a ritardando command.
Pizzicato comes with a book-length user guide and video tutorials. This music notation software's developers also provide phone and email support and a user forum.
Pizzicato Professional is relatively inexpensive music notation software that includes dozens of lessons on the basics of music theory and composition. You can also use Pizzicato Professional for recording, sound mixing and performing. We recommend it if you have little musical or computer knowledge, but the application might be too amateurish for the most demanding professional notation jobs.
