Avid has announced the release of the Sibelius for mobile iOS app, extending professional music notation workflows to iPad for the tens of thousands of composers, orchestrators and arrangers who have Sibelius subscriptions.

Available immediately for download, Sibelius for mobile lets users move seamlessly between iPad and desktop, and from studio to coffeeshop to scoring stage, and write anywhere their inspiration may strike, while taking full advantage of the Apple Pencil and iPad touch experience.

Sibelius for mobile expands the leading music notation program into a professional, cross-platform music notation solution. Almost anything concerning the heart and soul of composition and arrangement will now be available to iPad users. They can create, edit, share, and play Sibelius files everywhere via tablet, opening up new opportunities and locales in which to be creative. While Sibelius for mobile is fully featured, there are some notation and layout features only available in the desktop version, making it an integral part of a complete workflow. Sibelius for mobile comes at no additional cost with all Sibelius desktop subscriptions, enabling users to work where and how they want.

“Music composition is no longer about just sitting in front of a piano or a desktop, working on a score alone. Creators of all kinds have shifted to more remote collaboration and new workflows demanding more sharing and more flexibility,” explains Sam Butler, Director of Product Management at Avid. “Composers, arrangers, and songwriters need easy ways to share and demonstrate their work in a variety of contexts far beyond the traditional settings like studios and practice rooms. Sibelius for mobile opens up new workflows, allowing users to work on their pieces anywhere, to collaborate smoothly with others, and to showcase their work at a moment’s notice–fitting right into the new paradigm of music creation.”

While expanding their horizons, creators can keep all their work on one platform, seamlessly moving from desktop to tablet and back without ever having to import or export files. With files saved to iCloud, Dropbox, OneDrive or other iOS-supported cloud service, users have access anywhere to all their ideas and scores. They can take the world’s most powerful notation toolset and entire music portfolio with them wherever they go—ideal for those unexpected opportunities, instead of having to bring and break out a laptop when meeting with clients and collaborators.

“Sibelius on an iPad is transformational. For me, it is the single biggest advance in notation software in a decade,” said composer Simon Franglen. “I can write sketches, amend and review full orchestral scores, tweak choral charts anywhere I am. It is the beginning of a revolution.”

Sibelius for mobile reimagines the pen and paper experience for tablet with new patent pending note input workflows, taking full advantage of Apple Pencil and iPad touch capabilities so that nothing gets between the creator and the music. Enter notes with the onscreen Keypad or a keyboard, and Sibelius takes care of all note layout. Touch a note and drag up or down to change its value, or drag left or right to add a flat or sharp. With an Apple Pencil, tap a note and tilt up or down to add a flat or sharp, or tilt left or right to choose the note value.

Sibelius for mobile is available for download now at no cost from the Apple App Store, and like desktop Sibelius, offers three tiers of functionality that enable users to scale the app for their music composing and notation needs.

Customers with a current Sibelius or Sibelius | Ultimate desktop subscription or a perpetual license with an active Software Updates + Support Plan can unlock the equivalent tier of functionality at no cost—and like its desktop counterpart, Sibelius | First for mobile is free for everyone.

More information: Avid