Two works scored in Sibelius win 2011 Paul Revere Awards

Every year, the Music Publishers’ Association of the United States holds a gala lunch to hand out its prestigious Paul Revere Awards. These awards are bestowed in recognition of outstanding examples of overall music publishing, acknowledging publishers for their efforts in all aspects of the publishing process, which includes music typesetting, printing and materials in printing, art and typography, and overall use and practicality. The MPA creates an exhibit of all of the winning publications, and then tours it over the following year to libraries, schools, and other institutions around the country.

The 2011 awards were presented this past Friday, and I am delighted to report that at least two of the winners were prepared in Sibelius by expert engraver Bill Holab, adding to his astonishing personal tally of 57 previous Paul Revere Awards!

The two winning scores were Mosaic by Elliott Carter, published by Boosey & Hawkes, and Richard Danielpour’s Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, published by Associated Music Publishers, Inc. What is all the more impressive is that these scores were prepared several years ago, using earlier versions of Sibelius without all of the sophisticated tools and engraving features that have been added in the intervening time.

But for Bill this is nothing new: he has decades of experience working as a music engraver, and began when music engraving was still done the way it had been done for centuries, using plate engraving. Over the years he has transitioned his work through various computer engraving systems, and is now fluent in SCORE, Finale and Sibelius, among others. But when he has the choice, he works in Sibelius.

Bill is happy for the world to know that these beautiful scores were prepared in Sibelius. He told me, “I grow weary of people thinking Finale is the only ‘power user’ program, and you have to use it to do high-quality work. It’s the user, not the program, that makes the difference, of course.”

And Bill is absolutely right, of course. The quality of the finished product is limited only by the skill of person wielding the tool, rather than the tool itself. And Sibelius is a tool capable of producing output of the highest quality, in the right hands.

“Perhaps we can change the perception out there,” says Bill. “It’s really your fault, since you guys make the program quick and easy to use so people think that limits it somehow!”

With Sibelius you really can have it all: a program that’s fast, smart and easy, and capable of producing the most beautiful, award-winning output.