Making editing easier - parts and movements

Submitting a new work to us?  Here are some tips to make our life and your life much easier, and to make working with your music easier to edit and produce.

Don't extract those parts!  Work in the score using dynamically linked parts.   And try not to separate out movements!  Keep them all in one score if you can.

If you extract the parts, and then make some change in the part, that change will not be reflected in the score unless you go back to the score and make the exact same change.  If we get a score file in your engraving software format (Finale or Sibelius, for example) and you send us all the parts as separate files, then we have no way to know if the parts and the score are the same or if you have changed one without fixing the other.  And, if we need to do some editorial work, then we have to do it in all the files that are affected.

Using dynamically linked scores and parts eliminates all this extra work.

Most music engraving programs have a feature that dynamically links parts to the score.  Using dynamic parts allows you to edit in the score and make adjustments in the parts without affecting the layout of the score or the part, but keeping the changes in both score and parts with one edit.  You can make the change once, and it's reflected in both.  And, you can make layout adjustments in either without affecting the other. 

Similarly, if you have multiple movements, check your software's help manual to find out how to write out your score in multiple movements.  Multiple files for movements present the same problems that multiple files for parts present.

Try to work in one score, and if necessary, edit in your dynamically linked parts.  Keep your movements all in one score if possible.