15 minutes could save you 15 percent on workflow

Those of us in the US are familiar with the charming gecko who, in a series of television commercials, promises that he will save us 15% on car insurance if only we would spend 15 minutes to go online and switch providers. What if, by spending 15 minutes online, you could save 15% of your work time in Sibelius?

That might just be possible if you watch the five tutorials in the new “Get Started Fast” series for Sibelius 7.5. Each video in the series is approximately 15 minutes long, and while the lessons are tailored specifically for Sibelius 7.5, most of the information is perfectly applicable to Sibelius 7 as well.

Lesson 3 in the series, “Notations and Text”, focuses on notational elements like key and time signatures, clefs, special barlines, hairpins, and slurs. The most common types of text are also discussed, like dynamics, expressions, techniques, tempo markings, lyrics, chord symbols, rehearsal marks, and title text.

Although the tutorials are intended mostly for those new to Sibelius, even experienced users might discover a thing or two. You probably know that you can type lyric text directly into your score, but did you know that you can paste lyrics from a Word document, web page, or other text file? If you use chord symbols, you may be typing each symbol out, but Sibelius just as easily interprets chord symbols played into your MIDI keyboard. Using the mouse to move items like slurs or hairpins? There are keyboard strokes that can save you clicks.

All of these topics, and more, are covered in the video. Will they add up to a time savings of 15%? Perhaps. Why not check it out, and all the others in the series, over at the Get Started Fast page on the official Avid Blogs Sibelius.

Yes, that’s my voice you’ll hear on these videos. I’ll leave it to you to determine whether or not a certain insurance salesman and I were separated at birth.