Gsharp on pianoroll shows as Aflat on sheet

As you probably know, G# and Ab are enharmonic equivalents, as are Eb and D#. The computer plays them the same.

Apple may someday make sure that notes identified in one view match the exact (and not just enharmonic equivalents) of notes identified in another view. And you could leave a message for Apple feedback to let them know you'd like this to happen. But I wouldn't hold my breath.

The notation feature in GB is very rudimentary, and I don't see that changing anytime soon.

If this is something that matters to you, you might be better served using software with better notation capabilities. Like Logic. Or even better, Finale or Sibelius.

And even with a dedicated notation program like Finale, it will still make mistakes when trying to guess which enharmonic equivalent you had in mind. But there are ways to fix it, either by allowing you to change one enharmonic equivalent for another, or by letting you tell it to favor sharps or flats if you know that's what you're going to want for a passage you're about to enter into it.

But the notation feature in GB is so basic, and with so little ability to edit, the emphasis on overwhelming simplicity of use rather than flexibility and the complexity that goes along with that, that it's hard to imagine Apple adding anything like that into it.

Hi There

I am a singer, I can't play any instrument so I write out all my accompaniments in GB by hand. I love it. I can do it quickly now and you soon learn to manage the enharmonic changes. I see E Flat and write in D#.

Garageband is a wonderful midi programme for this type of work. Some experts think it is the best. I learned all about it on lynda.com. and I was amazed at just how good the mixing is.

Recently I wrote out the full orchestral score of 'September' by Richard Strauss for fun. It has 25 instruments, 64 bars, and all different that's 1650 bars in all as I always wanted to sing it. It sounds magnificent, far better than a real live full symphony orchestra as a conductor can never get the violins together.

Thanks to GB I can now sing anything I want without having to pay a pianist, I don't have to bother about wrong notes and I can chose my key and tempo. So keep on you'll soon get used to it. I am only saddened that more people do not do this.

Hi There!

It comes with practice ! Musicians just see a note and play it. They don't have to think about it. there isn't time. They can play in any key! I have never been able to do this.

I should love to be able to play but I cannot but GarageBand piano roll allows me to have brilliant accompaniments. If you want see what writing out in Garageband can do have a look at my 'Songs of the Auvergne' trailer on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUQvv_HwETk

This was the fist time I tried orchestration. Now I am really competent and can write out full orchestral orchestrations. All the accompaniments on my channel are made on GB piano roll.

So just keep on and practice. It will come naturally. You will foget ever having to do this. But learning how to write out music in Garageband is a wonderful tool as it opens up opportunities that one never thought possible.

Janette

Hi, I don't know if this will help, but have you set the key signature correctly in GB? You get the option when you create a new project, or you can change it later from the Master Track in the Track Info panel.

I think the default key is C major.

It may be that if you tell GB the key you're working in, it will show a standard key signature and use the correct notation. Here's an example of something I did, where I told GB the piece was in A major:

pianoroll:

notation:

As you'll see, it's shown the correct key signature and notation for the F-sharp and C-sharp.

That said, your sample looks like you're playing in C-sharp major since every note you play is sharp! GB doesn't support that, but it does have D-flat.

One word of warning, if you change the key signature of a GB file after capturing some MIDI it does seem to shift all your notes by the same interval as the key change (eg if you change from C major to A minor, everything gets moved by a minor third) ! It's not that hard to fix - you have to select all (cmd-A) in the track editor window, then just drag up or down till you get them back where you want them, taking care not to move anything sideways of course.

I hope this helps