Avid has released an update to Sibelius for Mobile, its version of the software that runs on iPad and iPhone. The latest update supports dynamic parts for the first time. Parts can be viewed by anyone with Sibelius including the free tier (Sibelius First); editing capabilities are enabled for all parts if you are on one of the paid tiers, and on Sibelius First if the score has four or fewer staves.
The update also makes it possible to place the keypad anywhere on the screen instead of just anchored to one of two positions, and also includes a few usability enhancements.
Dynamic parts
Until today’s update, parts had been missing from Sibelius for Mobile — an important component of a mobile app for music notation software. This means it’s now possible to send a Sibelius file to anyone with the app and allow them to view and play a specific part.
(At the moment, Bluetooth pedal support for page turning is not supported, so you while you can view a part in Sibelius for Mobile, you can’t quite use this as a performance document in the same way you might be able to in other apps like StaffPad Reader, forScore, or Newzik.)
Parts are accessed similarly to the way they are within desktop Sibelius, via a drop-down list (the Score / Parts tab contained within the More menu), or via part navigation commands (available via Command Search).
If you have a keyboard connected, you can use the same default shortcuts you’d use on desktop to navigate parts:
- Next Part (Cmd+Opt+`)
- Previous Part (Cmd+Opt+Shift+`)
- Switch Between Full Score and Part (W)
You can perform many of the same editing and layout functions you would be accustomed to on desktop. Keep in mind that some edits only apply to the part (generally those that affect design, position, and layout, while others may affect both the part and score (those affecting musical content).
More sophisticated part layout and formatting options like those you’d find in Multiple Part Appearance are still desktop-only, although you do have access to page size via Document Setup in the More menu, and the Reset to Score Design (Cmd+Opt+Shift+D) and Reset to Score Position (Cmd+Opt+Shift+P) commands.
The Sibelius for Mobile version also introduces a way of navigating through parts by touching and holding the name of the score in the top toolbar and dragging left or right to navigate though the parts. This can be done by touch or with the Apple Pencil, or, with a mouse or trackpad, if one is connected.
Other improvements
It’s now possible to place the keypad anywhere on the screen instead of just anchored to one of two positions.
Sibelius for mobile now tokenizes your queries to provide better search results in both the Create menu and within Command Search. This means you no longer need to know the exact name for finding commands or adding score items; you might get more results when typing in Command Search as a result, but it won’t eliminate the command you might be looking for just because you didn’t search for it in exactly the same way it’s stored in Sibelius.
