MusicXML Improvements for Finale 2014
November 4, 2013 | by Michael Good
Today’s launch of Finale 2014 includes numerous improvements in MusicXML support. We have released new updates of our Dolet 6 for Finale and Dolet 6 for Sibelius MusicXML plug-ins that add support for this new release. The improvements come in four main areas:
- Support for new Finale 2014 features
- Usability improvements for working with MusicXML files in Finale 2014
- Additional features and fixes
- MusicXML and Finale’s new forward- and backward-compatible file format.
The main Finale 2014 feature improvement that affects MusicXML import and export is the addition of keyless scores. MusicXML in Finale 2014 supports the different aspects of this feature: music that is in no key signature; music that is tonal but with no displayed key signature; and parts in tonal music that are displayed by hiding the key signatures and showing accidentals. The Dolet 6 for Sibelius plug-in has been updated to improve the transfer of keyless scores from Sibelius to Finale 2014.
Finale 2014 makes it easier to work with MusicXML files. MusicXML files can be dragged and dropped into Finale, or opened from the Windows Explorer or Mac Finder. These have been longstanding requests for improving MusicXML workflows with Finale.
The MusicXML support in Finale 2014, the Dolet 6.4 for Finale update, and the Dolet 6.3 for Sibelius update all include other improvements to improve MusicXML transfers. As in Finale 2012b and Dolet 6.3 for Finale, MusicXML support in Finale is now at parity with the Dolet for Finale plug-in; the remaining differences are in additional features like batch import/export and Open Score Format support. Both Finale 2014 and Dolet 6.4 for Finale contain enhancements for expressions, braces and brackets, and lyrics. The Dolet 6.3 for Sibelius plug-in now exports the information about accidentals that was added to the ManuScript language in the Sibelius 7.1.3 release. You can see the full details of what’s new in the release notes for both the Dolet 6 for Finale and Dolet 6 for Sibelius plug-ins.
One of the most notable changes with MusicXML in Finale 2014 is where you no longer need to use it. In the past, older versions of Finale could not read files created by newer versions of Finale. MusicXML was thus the best way to share a Finale 2012 file with somebody using Finale 2011. Finale 2014 introduces a new file format that is both forward- and backward-compatible, and includes the ability to export back into the old Finale 2012 format. You no longer need MusicXML to share files between Finale 2014 and Finale 2012. MusicXML is still available to share Finale 2014 files with older versions of Finale – back to Finale 2000 on Windows, Finale 2004 on Power PC Macs, and Finale 2007 on Intel Macs.
We hope that Finale 2014 and our updated MusicXML support will make things faster and easier for you, whether you are bringing files from other programs into Finale, or sharing your Finale files with someone using another program.
