WORLD OF MUSIC ; PORTABLE KEYBOARD - Latest Portable Music Keyboards, Synthesizers and Music News

MakeMusic has announced that, after 35 years, it’s the end of the line for Finale notation software.

The official statement from MakeMusic President Greg Dell’Era:

It’s over for Finale notation software.

“35 years ago, Coda Music Technologies, now MakeMusic, released the first version of Finale, a groundbreaking and user-centered approach to notation software. For over four decades, our engineers and product teams have passionately crafted what would quickly become the gold standard for music notation.

Four decades is a very long time in the software industry. Technology stacks change, Mac and Windows operating systems evolve, and Finale’s millions of lines of code add up. This has made the delivery of incremental value for our customers exponentially harder over time.

Today, Finale is no longer the future of the notation industry—a reality after 35 years, and I want to be candid about this. Instead of releasing new versions of Finale that would offer only marginal value to our users, we’ve made the decision to end its development.”

Effective immediately:

• There will be no further updates to Finale, or any of its associated tools (PrintMusic, Notepad, Songwriter).
• It is no longer possible to purchase or upgrade Finale in the MakeMusic eStore.
• Finale will continue to work on devices where it is currently installed (barring OS changes)
• Beginning in August 2025, it will not be possible to authorize Finale on any new devices, or reauthorize Finale.
• Technical support for Finale v27 or any other version of Finale will no longer be available

MakeMusic has partnered with Steinberg to offer a crossgrade discount for Dorico Pro. For a limited time, users of any version of Finale or PrintMusic can purchase Dorico Pro – the highest tier of the product – for $149 (retail price $579). Find out details on the MakeMusic website.

Pioneering French synthesist and composer Jean-Michel Jarre will headline the Closing Ceremony of the 2024 Paralympics, on Sunday, Sept. 8.

Jean-Michel Jarre will headline the Closing Ceremony of the 2024 Paralympics.

The event will celebrate 4,400 athletes from 168 Paralympic delegations.

The closing ceremony will bring together a cast of 24 artists representing all styles and generations of the French electronic scene. Other artists to be featured include: Agoria, Alan Braxe, Anetha, Boston Bun, Breakbot & Irfane, Busy P, Cassis, Chloe, Chloé Caillet, DJ Falcon, Étienne de Crecy, Irène Drésel, Kavinsky, Kiddy Smile, Kittin Kungs, Martin Solveig, Nathalie Duchene, Ofenbach, Polo & Pan, Tatyana Jane and The Avener.

Jarre will open and close the event.

Jean-Michel Jarre, 76, has created some of the most successful electronic music albums of all time, sold over 80 million albums and performed to audiences of a million+ people.

Organizers say that “the concert promises to be a visually and musically festive spectacle, closing the Paris 2024 Games in style.”

Details on the event are available at the Olympics website.

Knobcon – the original synth convention – returns to Chicagoland September 6-8, 2024 for its 12th incarnation.

Knobcon 12 will feature live performances, workshops, informative sessions, vendor booths and more. The event will be held at its usual location – just outside Chicago, Ill., at the Hyatt Regency Schaumburg.

Workshops and informative sessions include:

• The Basics of Synthesis with Marc Doty
• Novation Launchkey performance workshop with Novation product specialist Evan Weiss.
• Oscillator Sync – Jon Sonnenberg will explain the concepts of oscillator synchronization (hard sync, soft sync, phase sync, etc), along with 8 important sync uses for sound synthesis and sequencing.
• Tomita: Synthesis Techniques – On the 50th anniversary of Isao Tomita’s album “Snowflakes Are Dancing”, Nicholas D. Kent will look at how Tomita achieved a number of patches on his Modular Moog, as well as how those techniques can applied on more recent equipment.
• Improvised Live Performance Techniques – Eric Turner (Surco) will lead a demonstration and discussion on setting up and playing 100% improvised live performances.
• Analogue Audio? In my Ethernet? – In this talk, Michael Ashton (Ashton Research) will introduce AES72, a new standard for using Ethernet cable as four-channel analog snake.

In addition, there will be three DIY workshops, where you can learn to solder, or take your DIY skills to the next level. Workshops have varying levels of difficulty and you are guaranteed to leave with a working module with the helping guidance of the workshop hosts.

*Note: Some kits may be available for purchase on-site, however, you can secure your place in the workshop by pre-ordering your kit.

Knobcon Number Twelve is being held September 6 – 8. Admission to the three-day event is $75, and tickets are available now at the Knobcon website. View the event website for a full schedule of events and vendor list.