Sibelius to import Cakewalk files

robrn@yahoo.com · Post by **robrn@yahoo.com** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 6:32 pm

I have tons of Midi files that I have in Cakewalk with my chord progressions and lyrics entered into the score, but to import them into Sibelius I have to save them as a MIDI file. However, none of the midi formats support the transfer of the guitar chord progressions and the lyrics.
My wish is that Sibelius would import Cakewalk files without having to change the file format.

bryanbutler · Post by **bryanbutler** » Tue Oct 23, 2007 6:38 pm

robrn@yahoo.com wrote:I have tons of Midi files that I have in Cakewalk with my chord progressions and lyrics entered into the score, but to import them into Sibelius I have to save them as a MIDI file. However, none of the midi formats support the transfer of the guitar chord progressions and the lyrics.
My wish is that Sibelius would import Cakewalk files without having to change the file format.

me too! i just started using Sibelius, after a decade of using Scorewriter/Cakewalk, and was dismayed that the only way to import is to either convert to MIDI (which is never perfect, and misses markup) or to print and scan (also error-prone).

please make it so that .scw files can be directly imported into Sibelius...

andyg · Post by **andyg** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 7:49 am

You have to get real here guys.

Cakewalk/Sonar/Cubase/Sibelius/Logic/Finale or whatever, these files are in their native format for one reason, to make it impossible to do what you're asking for. Can you open a Cubase file directly in Logic or vice versa? And it would be totally illegal for Sibelius or anyone else to attempt reverse-engineer the other company's code to allow their programs to do so.

So scanning, MIDI and XML are the ways to go. Not perfect, but the only ways.

As for those guitar chord symbols, unless you've realised them into MIDI tracks, how are they going to appear in a MIDI file?

bryanbutler · Post by **bryanbutler** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 10:51 pm

these formats are generally not terrifically difficult to reverse engineer. M$Word, WordPerfect, and OpenOffice do it just fine.

and it's already possible to directly import Finale files into Sibelius 5. so i don't agree with your classification of "impossible" for this.

is it trivial? no. is it possible? yes. so, it makes it onto my wishlist, which i thought is what this particular forum was for...

marcschonbrun · Post by **marcschonbrun** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 1:47 pm

It's also illegal to reverse engineer files. The best hope is for the adoption of the *free* MusicXML standard among sequencers (Cubase 4.1 has it now) which could provide the same functionally that OMF has had for sharing audio.

bryanbutler · Post by **bryanbutler** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 2:12 pm

you are right that without an agreement between the two companies it would be illegal. i would reiterate that this problem was solved in the world of document editors long ago, so it's not insurmountable.

i agree that adoption of MusicXML would be a tremendous help. i believe it is the fact that both Finale & Sibelius are using MusicXML that allows direct import of Finale into Sibelius...

marcschonbrun · Post by **marcschonbrun** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 4:58 pm

Yes, but here is the clarification:

Finale imports and exports MusicXML for Free.
Sibelius imports MusicXML for free. If you want to export it, you have to buy "Dolet" by Recordare (well worth it).

The list of software that accept MusicXML is growing daily, and I think that we (as musicians) will come to rely on it more and more as the years progress. Michael Good (who wrote the standard) should be commended for his work.

bryanbutler · Post by **bryanbutler** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 5:01 pm

interesting. OK then, add to my wishlist that Sibelius should export MusicXML for free

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Sibelius to import Cakewalk files

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