Rival notation software developers MakeMusic (formerly Coda, makers of Finale) and Sibelius are at again. Finale 2004 for Mac, originally scheduled for October, before that scheduled for summer, has pushed its ship date -- and long-awaited OS X compatibility -- back to December 15, as we've reported here. Sibelius has responded by trying to woo OS X customers to a competitive upgrade. (Banner: You've waited long enough.) Sibelius has been on OS X for quite some time, while Finale users continue to be stuck with Classic mode. Sibelius claims 20,000 users have switched to Finale "and haven't looked back."
The folks at MakeMusic apparently took notice of Sibelius' web campaign, as they've responded with "Our Commitment to Mac Users". Most interesting in this: the bugs of the Finale 2004 Windows release should be fixed on Finale for Mac thanks to the delayed release. (Sibelius 2.1 and 1.1, both of which shipped later on the Mac than the PC, had similar benefits for Mac users' patience, in contrast to buggy PC releases.) It's unclear why MakeMusic is pushing "Core MIDI" support which is present in virtually every Mac music app. Also, Finale users apparently took "plug-in support" to mean support for audio plug-ins -- it's not; they're referring to Finale plug-ins. Neither program supports much audio interoperability, though the new Sibelius does ship with a soft synth from Native Instruments.
Emagic released a new update to its flagship Logic audio software today. According to the release notes (English), the new release fixes an issue with the EXS24 on dual G5s (you lucky bastards), improves hardware compatibility in its drivery latency compensation, improves Panther compatibility (including an issue identified by our readers here), adds recording above track 128, finally adds true I/O label compatibility in Mac OS X 10.2.8 and later (a feature already in MOTU Digital Performer), and is better at loading samples into the EXS24. Enjoy!
Roxio has announced the version 5.2.3 update to Toast Titanium. This update is compatible with Mac OS 10.3 Panther. Toast 5.2.3 Titanium increases compatibility with DVD recorders, and now supports Burn Proof underrun protection.
Roland informs MC 909 groovebox' users that the MC-909 Editor is now available. This software enables intuitive parameter editing of the MC-909. Parameters that can be edited are; Patch, Rhythm, Part Information, and System.
MC-909 Editor is available on free download . System requirements include Mac OS 8.6 and 9.x or Mac OS x 10.2 or later
We've lost another Apple Master too young. Composer and conductor Michael Kamen died today of a heart attack at age 55. Mr. Kamen had worked on diverse projects such as arrangements for Pink Floyd's 1979 "The Wall" and other rock artists from Sting to David Bowie, numerous film scores including Grammy Award-winning Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and the Die Hard movies, and conducting the recent UK tribute to Beatle George Harrison. (See Andante's excellent article today on his acheivements, and for film music, you'll see some of your favorite movies at IMDB.) Mr. Kamen was a beloved Apple Master, as well, using Mac software like Sibelius who mourn his death today on their site. (Sadly, Apple has removed their page on Mr. Kamen along with the now-outdated Apple Masters site.)
Elemental Audio Systems announced today the availability of version 2.0 of Firium, it's linear phase equalizer. In addition to a redesigned user interface,version 2.0 brings Digidesign Pro Tools RTAS compatibility to Mac OS X. This plugin is also available in VST and Audio Unit formats for Mac OS X.
Available for $129 , Firium 2.0 will be provided as a free upgrade to registered users of version 1.
Apple today introduced the new 20-inch iMac , the largest flat-panel display
ever offered in an all-in-one desktop. The new 20-inch iMac joins the 15- and 17-inch models in the popular consumer desktop line and offers twice as much screen area as the 15-inch display model, enabling users to view more than two full pages side-by-side. The new iMac also includes Apple's latest operating system, Mac OS(R) X version 10.3 "Panther".
Apple just updated its PowerMac G5 line. New features include a new 1.8G dual G5 model replacing the mono processor version, still Superdrive on all 3 models and PCI support (instead of PCI-X) on the entry level model.
After drums and strings, a replacement for backing singers? Yamaha will soon release (planned at January 2004 NAMM) Vocaloaid, a VST plug-in designed to synthesize human voices. Planned for PC, but may we hope for a Mac version?
Discovery Sound released The Legend of China, a set of 2 discs, CD-ROM (387 files) and Audio CD (339phrases). It has overwhelming capacity of loops & shots by percussion, stringed and wind instruments plus the phantasmagoric voices by Peking Opera actors and actresses. Moreover, this library includes bonus! CD-ROM includes 36 kinds of the tone data corresponding to a multi-sampling and Audio CD does include 15 kinds of the sound effects which were caught on the street corners in Beijing, Shanghai and wherever in China.
IK Multimedia has announced that upgrade 2.0.1 R1 of Sampletank is now available. This recommended upgrade fixes multiple instances on multi processor systems (Mac OS9/OSX) and improves some SampleCell instruments conversion .
IK Multimedia has also announced that T-Racks/AudioUnits compatibility will be available at the end of the week, and that Amplitude/AudioUnits compatibility will be available at the end of the month.
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Rival notation software developers MakeMusic (formerly Coda, makers of Finale) and Sibelius are at again. Finale 2004 for Mac, originally scheduled for October, before that scheduled for summer, has pushed its 
Emagic released a new update to its flagship Logic audio software today. According to the 
Roxio has announced the version 5.2.3 update to Toast Titanium. This update is compatible with Mac OS 10.3 Panther. Toast 5.2.3 Titanium increases compatibility with DVD recorders, and now supports Burn Proof underrun protection.
Roland informs MC 909 groovebox' users that the MC-909 Editor is now available. This software enables intuitive parameter editing of the MC-909. Parameters that can be edited are; Patch, Rhythm, Part Information, and System.
Apple today introduced the new 20-inch iMac , the largest flat-panel display
Apple just updated its PowerMac G5 line. New features include a new 1.8G dual G5 model replacing the mono processor version, still Superdrive on all 3 models and PCI support (instead of PCI-X) on the entry level model.
Discovery Sound released The Legend of China, a set of 2 discs, CD-ROM (387 files) and Audio CD (339phrases). It has overwhelming capacity of loops & shots by percussion, stringed and wind instruments plus the phantasmagoric voices by Peking Opera actors and actresses. Moreover, this library includes bonus! CD-ROM includes 36 kinds of the tone data corresponding to a multi-sampling and Audio CD does include 15 kinds of the sound effects which were caught on the street corners in Beijing, Shanghai and wherever in China.
