Do you still offer Music Lessons?
David does still provide music lessons (guitar, bass and music theory) but, sadly, none of the limited number of places are available at the moment. If you’re looking for music lessons in the Cranbourne/Langwarrin/Carrum Downs/Skye/Frankston/Mt Eliza area, we recommend you contact our good friends at Sounds Like This. Sounds Like This offer vocal, instrumental and music theory lessons taught by a team with a real passion for music and teaching.
Why is transcription an expensive service?
Transcription costs a lot simply because of the huge amount of time it takes. It is often a slow, tedious process, particularly if the transcribers primary goal is accuracy and high-quality, professional output. Most other professional transcribers will tell you the same thing.
A typical piano-vocal pop song often takes a full day to transcribe and engrave; a complex piano concerto or classical guitar piece may take as much as three days of work. Sure, if you want something that’s an approximation of the piece, it can be done in less time. But a precise transcription will take most transcribers a fair amount of time.
How long will my transcription take to do?
The time required to do a transcription varies depending on the length of the piece and the complexity. A piano-vocal transcription of an average four-minute pop song can take several hours, or a full day if it involves complex sections or jazz chords. A short guitar solo may take an hour. A full score for a band might take several days.
But it’s not as simple as that.
How accurate are your transcriptions?
We pride ourselves on producing transcriptions of the highest accuracy humanly possible. But how accurate a transcription is on a number of factors: Continue reading
Do you transcribe music that is already available in print?
We generally do not transcribe music that is available as a commercial publication (electronic or hard-copy). If the music you require is available commercially, you are better off buying from the licensed publisher, because it will (1) be much cheaper, (2) save you the bother of obtaining permission, and (3) you are likely to get it quicker!
Can you transcribe music from video?
Yes! But…
Whether we can use a video depends on the sound quality on that video.
The sound quality of YouTube videos is highly variable. Some video authors use an audio source that is in mono and highly compressed. Such videos can be harder to transcribe from.
Are your transcriptions better than free TAB?
Much of the free TAB you’ll find on the Internet is created by hobbyists transcribing music for their own use, or for anyone who is interested. As a result, the quality and accuracy of free text-based TAB varies considerably.
In our experience, free ASCII TAB can be a very useful starting point for learning a song. And It may be all you need to play along with your favourite songs.
But to be honest, it’s often hard to find ASCII TAB that is very accurate. We recently found nine pieces of TAB for the same song that were all different to each other, and which all contained errors! You get what you pay for.
Are your transcriptions as good as commercially printed sheet music?
You’d need to ask our customers to get an objective opinion, but we believe they are every bit as good as commercial publications, and sometimes better.
Music sold by commercial publishers is sometimes simplified to make it playable by the average hobbyist musician. And sometimes the publishers need to adapt a complex multi-instrument arrangement into a simple piano format. This is a very deliberate and understandable strategy to make the music accessible to a very wide range of customers. But as a result, a lot of detail gets thrown away.
What is the difference between “Sequencing” and “Rendering”?
MIDI sequencing and rendering are closely related.
- Sequencing is the process of determining what notes a MIDI sequence (or file) should play, including what dynamics and articulations are to be used on playback.
- Rendering is the process of taking sequenced MIDI data, and producing an audio file from it.
What is MIDI “Rendering”
MIDI rendering is the process of “converting” MIDI music into an audio format that can be played on any audio device, such as a CD or MP3 player, or mixed in with other audio sources.
Actually, it’s not really a “conversion”. A MIDI sequencer plays the music on a MIDI device (like synth or sampler), and the output from that device is captured as audio.
Why haven’t you responded to me? Where’s my music?
Email isn’t a perfect means of communication, and on rare occasions, an email can “go astray”. When our email goes astray, it’s nearly always because the recipient’s email program has put our message in the Junk Email folder. In other cases, the mail server has “greylisted” our email address. Perhaps it’s having the word “graffiti” in our name makes our email address look suspicious!
If you are expecting us to reply to an inquiry, or you are expecting to receive a product you have paid for, it’s quite possible we have replied! The reply just hasn’t got to you.
When will my job be started?
Audio Graffiti receives many requests for transcription, music copying and our other services. There’s almost always something on the go, and as a result, sometimes a queue develops.
So, when it comes to the answer of how quickly can we do your work, it is really a case of how many other jobs are on the waiting list, and how long each of those other jobs is likely to take.
My file is too big to send using email. How can I get it to you?
There are a number of free services around that allow you to upload very large files and then send us the link to those files. Do a Google search using the words send large files free. For example, SendSpace or TransferBigFiles.com are two such services.
Is it legal to have music transcribed if I don’t own/control the copyright?
Copyright laws, particularly those relating to music, can be complicated, and even some solicitors tremble at the very mention! The following does not constitute professional legal advise, but gives you our current understanding:
Copyright laws in most countries say that if you want a piece of music transcribed, and do not control the copyright yourself, then you are required to obtain the permission of the person(s) or body that does control the copyright
Are you a member of any music professional associations?
Yes! The director, David, is a full member of the Music Arrangers’ Guild of Australia, registered as a Copyist.
Can I sell music that you have transcribed for me?
That depends on whether or not you are the copyright controller.
If you control the copyright, it’s entirely up to you what you do with the transcription we have prepared for you. Because you have paid us to do the transcription, we have no entitlement in relation to copyright of the transcription, and will make no claim.
Can I pay extra to have my job pushed to the front of the queue?
We’ve discussed this with some of our regular customers, and they have said they would prefer us to stick with our first-come, first-served policy. This seems fairest.
Our transcription service in particular is extremely popular. Some customers wait weeks to have their transcription started. It would be unfair for these people to wait even longer.
Can I buy music that you have transcribed for someone else?
Sorry, but no.
Transcription is an expensive service. It’s not fair for one person to spend a considerable amount of money to have a piece transcribed, and then have another person get the exact same thing for a fraction of the price. We wouldn’t feel right about doing that.
Can you give me the Sibelius files you use to prepare my music?
Absolutely! Just ask when you place your order. In fact, if you realise that you need the Sibelius files some time after your order is complete, send us an email and we’ll extract a copy from our archives. Be sure to let us know which version of Sibelius you are using so we can provide the Sibelius file in the correct format.
Do you offer employment? Can I get a job with you?
Unfortunately, we are not able to offer full or part-time employment. We are a small family business and do not have the capacity to employ staff. This applies to both music related roles and administrative roles.