By Laurie Niles: On Monday, users of the music notation software Finale experienced an unwelcome surprise: after 35 years, its development was abruptly discontinued.
"Today, Finale is no longer the future of the notation industry a reality after 35 years," said Greg Dell'Era in a statement. He is president of the Colorado-based MakeMusic, the company that makes Finale. "Instead of releasing new versions of Finale that would offer only marginal value to our users, weve made the decision to end its development."
![Finale Discontinued]()
In the short-term, this means that Finale users are now stuck with whatever version of the software that they currently have. As of Monday, there will be no further updates to Finale or to its associated tools (PrintMusic, Notepad, Songwriter), and it is no longer possible to purchase or upgrade the software. Finale will continue to work on devices where it is currently installed - unless there is a change in operating system.
In the long-term, users must find a different solution, because in a year - August 2025 - technical support for Finale will be completely discontinued.
Composer Andrea Clearfield expressed the feelings of many musical colleagues in a Facebook post on Monday: "Like so many of my colleagues who have also been using Finale software for over three decades, my life has been turned upside down," she wrote. "This morning we got the devastating news that Finale software is bidding farewell. Sending solidarity support to my colleagues who are also fretting about, grappling with this unexpected news - with hundreds of scores/thousands of files to now export/convert/re-format/edit/proof, we know what we'll now be doing in our spare time...while also creating our current works and more."
Finale was among the first music notation software programs ever created, making its debut in the late 1980s for Apple Macintosh and then Windows. Early customers bought Finale in a box, uploading it via floppy discs and learning to use it with the help of a huge printed manual.
For a time it became the most widely-used proprietary music notation software, then the arrival of Sibelius in the late '90s created a major rivalry. In recent years, complaints grew louder about Finale's lack of reliability and complicated user interface, though the program still had a large contingent of longtime adherents.
As part of Monday's surprise announcement, Finale pointed its users to Dorico, a music notation program that was was introduced in 2016 by Steinberg Media Technologies, based in Hamburg, Germany. Finale users can move to Dorico a heavily discounted price of $149.
Dorico welcomed deserted Finale users with this message, also offering this video about switching from Finale to Dorico.
Meanwhile composers and arrangers who used Finale face the gargantuan task of converting and transferring files, adapting to a new software, and keeping current projects going while in a state of transition. Wishing all those who are affected by this discontinuation the smoothest ride possible, and I invite you to share your wisdom and helpful links (or just commiserate) in the comments.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Late Tuesday, Finale made some updates to their announcement on their Facebook page, aiming to address feedback they received; in sum:
- Finale authorization is to remain available indefinitely.
- Finale v27 is to be included with Dorico Pro Crossgrades.
- V.com weekend vote: What (software) do you use for music notation?
- Discussion: Composing Software Comparison, Sibelisu vs. Finale (2006)
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