Need help to work with MuseScore and a DAW (Ubuntu Studio)

• Apr 2, 2016 - 14:43

Hello everyone,

I'm not new to MS, but i am a complete beginner regarding MIDI export and how to work things with a DAW.

My purpose is quite simple: I want to write for an orchestra and to be able to get as good a result as I can with a free sound bank (the best I've found so far is Sonatina) or a not-too-expensive one.

I'm working with Ubuntu Studio, and I've understood it has at least one pretty good integrated DAW: Ardour.

Am I right? Is the music created with MS compatible with it?

If someone would be kind enough to walk me through a step-by-step process I'd be really grateful, for it appears to me as a very complicated thing for now.

Thanks a lot.

Comments

• Apr 2, 2016 - 17:02

MuseScore integrates seamlessly with Ardour via JACK, both in Ubuntu and on Windows.

Be prepared for a steep learning curve learning to drive Ardour, however.

You also might like to look at KXStudio's Carla which again will integrate seamlessly with MuseScore, but acts as a VST rack which you stream MuseScore's MIDI output to VST instruments, and can also add further processing.

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• Apr 2, 2016 - 18:54

Thanks a lot. I'll take a look at Carla, then. My question however was more about a how-to procedure. I suppose you export a MIDI file from MuseScore and inject it in the DAW, all right. But what then? I'm not very familiar with even the most basic notions (such as curve, gain, pan, and so on). Do you think this is the kind of thing I can find in the help files of the software, or should I look for some other guide somewhere else?

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• Apr 2, 2016 - 23:02

No, exporting a MIDI file isn't the way to go - JACK is. JACK is a program that allows different programs to talk each other, so MuseScore can drive Carla directly in real time. You need to install it (if not already part of your distribution) and configure it. Then you need to read up on how to use Carla. The buzzwords you mention are not things you'd ordinarily have any need to deal with.

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• Apr 3, 2016 - 17:26

Ok, I have installed Carla. Now I don't know how to configure it, how to load up a soundfont in it, or even how to use it with Musescore.

How do you configure it as well as Musescore to make both work together? I've looked at the I/O tab in the preferences, but I don't understand which box I should tick in the JACK section.

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• Apr 4, 2016 - 00:12

For help with Carla, you'll need to consult the documentation for that program (or maybe they have a forum).

As for JACK, you need to install it and consult the documentation for that program to learn how to use it.

Once you have all that set up, getting MuseScore to use JACK should be as simple as checking the "JACK audio server" button. As far as I know the settings under that should work well by default, although someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

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