Mastering StaffPad: Digital Music Notation for the Modern Composer Paperback – September 1, 2020

Hi, my name is Rey Fernandez Jr, I am a composer and orchestrator for film and tv. I must say that this book is a must-have for anyone that needs to shortcut the art of Staffpad, I wish this book was out when I got Staffpad cause I know how frustrating learning the app may be, the author is very detail about all the functionalities of staffpad and I am pretty sure that more edition will come as Staffpad is developing, Mastering Staffpad is perhaps the first professional and reliable book on this amazing software and the author is a composer and has experience in the music industry. HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK.

This large format paperback is a fairly concise guide to Staffpad music notation software for the iPad. It includes both information for those just starting out with the software, as well as some more advanced information for those that have worked with digital audio in the past. Curiously, it also includes information for those who are not familiar with music notation, and this strikes me as perhaps a bit of a filler: You should probably be able to write music on paper reasonably well before you attempt something as specialized as Staffpad! I would have very much liked if an index were included, as it is it's sometimes hard to find specific references in the text. However, the built-in help files for staff pad can fill in the gaps. Keep in mind that this book was written for a pre-2021 version of staff pad, and although it's not much different than the version currently available (September 2021), I understand that there is going to be a significant update by the end of this year. Although I anticipate most of the functionality to remain the same, this fact should be kept in mind when purchasing this book.

StaffPad is a wonderfully powerful application for recognizing musical handwriting and rendering it into convincing musical productions. However, many features are not obvious and it can be difficult to get the app to recognize notation if not entered the right way. This book is the manual that should have come with the software. It provides a clear and concise description of all the features in StaffPad and provides a great description of how to input notation so that the app is able to recognize it. I think it is indispensable for anyone who wants to make effective use of this software. Thanks for Steve Barden for providing it!

This book will save you hours of hunting for answers. If you purchase "Mastering Staffpad" this will give you tips that will help with almost every situation that occurs. It was extremely easy to understand any explanation that was given. I am using an Ipad Pro, however, I would imagine it would be at least as effective for non-Apple products. It is very helpful with the navigation between various tools.

Thorough and detailed. Great reference

As a band director and composer, I wish I had this manual when I began using StaffPad in 2015; I have at least 7 handwritten pages of notes to try to remember all of the techniques and tricks. This book is very clear with many illustrations to explain how to make the most of the StaffPad app. I don’t see a “Troubleshooting” section, but there are many Writing Tips. By switching from a 2015 Surface tablet to an iPad Pro 12.9 with an apple pencil, and with all of the new updates to StaffPad, and with the help of this book,StaffPad is a much more enjoyable and efficient tool.I have a list of tips I want to try from this book, including double tap on the Apple Pencil, Score Layout, and 3-finger pinch for copy and paste. The tips about using Versions are very important and now I have saved many versions of my latest orchestral work, just to make sure I don’t lose anything.I highly recommend this book, (and it will save you lots of frustration).

I was able to learn a few more details about StaffPad that I hadn't been able to learn before from the manual before. Very helpful.

OStaffpad es una valiosa herramienta para escribir a mano partituras de música, tanto es su versión para IPad, como para la tableta de Microsoft. En ambos se requiere un “Pencil” electrónico.Per hay un obstáculo : el programa viene sin instrucciones, y es aquí dónde este libro (en inglés) se convierte en un aliado fundamental y necesario. Su escritor Steve Barden, lo ha creado de forma sencilla, gradual y amena, y por si fuera poco lleva el visto bueno de los creadores de Staffpad.Con esto queda todo dicho.La entrega por Amazon fue rápida y sin problemas.Lo recomiendo sin lugar a dudas.

If you use the superb Staffpad app for your music notation and composing, this book is really excellent. It saves all the faffing about with videos and on-line help files. Very clearly written and comprehensive. Plus there are some very useful tips, hints and extras to add value. Well worth the money.

Très complet et intéressant

I bought the ebook version a week ago, just before buying a Surface Pro 9 and a copy of the software. I had not realised that StaffPad had updated its software, since this book was published, especially in the area covering the command line, so for some aspects relating to this you need to check the StaffPad website.The above represents really the only critical comments and is really meant just as a warning. Overall the book is very well written and easier to follow than the support information on the StaffPad website.I have no regrets in buying this book as it did mean that I could hit the ground running when I downloaded the software and hope that a new edition will be out soon that current readers can update to (for a nominal fee ;) ) . Even if I had known about the slight differences between the book and the software I would still have bought this book.

Whilst StaffPad has very good help pages. This book is logical in its approach to mastering the App.Recommend for beginners and pros alike.