Would it be possible to create some template options for your users? For example sometimes I use latin percussion instruments other times drumset, etc. Maybe start a suggestion list of users with particular template needs. This would help aide in the scoring and writing process. Having a specific template map for what I am writing would be ideal.

What would you like to have? Your request is fairly broad. I'm willing to post a ";how-to"; for creating a template if that might help. In Finale it is pretty easy.

Yes - please feel free to post a ";wish list"; so we can discuss further.

Fortunately, the ";full score"; template has more to it than meets the eye. Thanks to the efforts of master template builders and VDL2 experts, David Enete, Brady Sark, Ted Wheeler, and Bill Castillo, there are a large number of mappings and staff styles (";staff types"; in Sibelius) existing in the background.

So for example, lets say you wanted to create a staff that uses the ";Conga Auto RL"; instrument in VDL2. You can create a new staff, fo to Finale's STAFF ATTRIBUTES tool, and set it to use ";percussion notation";, by assigning the ";VDL2 Congas Auto RL"; percussion map. In this percussion map list, you'll see a variety of pre-configured VDL2 mappings that will work well when using different instruments/staves.

I'm sure David can give you a more thorough walk-through than I can, but I figured it's worth mentioning that the current template already contains a lot of the mappings you may be looking for. Customizing the template may be a good topic for a future tutorial.

Thanks I'll work on it and talk to some other arrangers I know and post a list soon. A tutorial would be a great idea to customize a template. Thanks!

Is it possible to get a keymap , in particular something about the noteheads, for the Sibelius template. I know its all in there but it is difficult to find which notehead is the right, left, dreadlock...etc because they appear so crammed together in the edit Staff window ?

Thanks , I love the product! It has really envigorated the old creative juices!

The easiest solution for you would be to enter in all of the notes for a staff type using the keymap in the users manual. Many of the noteheads appear identical. For example, right and left hand dreadlock use the same notehead shape on the same space on the staff, but they are actually numbered as two different noteheads.

I will give it a try ... I think I am missing some noteheads because they are on top of each other? Does that make sense... I will share when I get it all done!