Just ran across this in an article.  Scaled down Sibelius composition software MSRP $129

http://www.sibelius.com/products/sibelius_first/index.html

It [i]doesn't[/i] look like it is compatible with VDL 2.5 - no VST/AU support:

http://www.sibelius.com/products/sibelius_first/features.html

I doubt this would work the old fashioned way of virtual midi cable & standalone VDL since it is based on the Sibelius 5 ";engine";.  Just bringing this to attention as it will probably look like a great money saver for notation software to use with VDL...  If my previous assumptions are erroneous, some one please correct this post.

Thanks for posting this here Owen. As you've already mentioned, Sibelius First won't really work too well with VDL 2.5. In theory, you could run VDL in stand-alone mode, then route out of Sibelius First through virtual MIDI cables like Midi Yoke or IAC. That will feasibly ";connect"; the two programs. The problem for VDL users is that they won't be able to access or edit any of the specialized percussion mappings that are crucial to having percussion notation appear correctly on the score. If you open the Sibelius/VDL template in Sibelius First, you'll see that none of the VDL instruments are available, and you won't have the option to create your own maps.

Sibelius First will be a great way for people to dabble with all that Sibelius has to offer. But when it comes to more of the complex workings of percussion mapping (as well as AU/VST hosting), the full version of Sibelius 5 is definitely the way to go.