review
Progression
An old joke goes: “How do you get a guitar player to turn down? Put sheet music in front of him.” It’s no secret that many guitarists learn to play guitar without learning to read music. Since the bulk of guitar playing is accompaniment, many players simply learn to play chords. They may then pick up riffs by ear or using TAB, and later memorize the Pentatonic scale for solos. This method works fine for most popular music, but the ability to read music is a skill every musician should strive to learn. Music notation is the language of music and makes communication between musicians much easier. It makes learning unfamiliar music possible and it is vital if you plan to teach guitar.
Even if you can’t read music, music notation software can help you create music with both standard notation and TAB that other musicians can read. Progression is one such program.
Geared For Guitar
Progression is a music notation application designed with the guitar player in mind. It allows you to enter notes using standard notation, using TAB, or by clicking on a virtual guitar fretboard. It also features realistic guitar sounds, amp modeling software, and the ability to use VST plugins during playback. Once you have completed notating your music, you can save it as an audio (WAV) file for others to hear.
The Interface
Progression’s interface looks somewhat like a guitar amplifier or speaker cabinet. At the top is a volume knob and playback controls. On the left side is fretboard where you can enter notes and chords. The right side has most of the tools you will need for entering notes, guitar techniques, and other notation elements. The lower right corner has a mixer section where you can mix the parts of your song and add VST plugins. The center section contains the notation itself.
Here is a song I wrote and notated using Progression that features two acoustic guitar parts. Click here to listen to the mp3 file I created from the WAV file Progression exported.
The Progression window can be expanded to fill your computer screen, but after quitting it always opens in the default (smaller) size, forcing you to expand it every time you use the application. The notation itself can also be zoomed in or out, but it also returns to the default size when opening a file. I wish Progression would remember my size preferences after quitting.
Note Entry
Entering notes and chords into any music notation application can be tedious. The best applications provide tools to make note entry less of a chore. Progression offers two main methods: MIDI entry and mouse entry. If you have a MIDI guitar or keyboard, you can enter notes directly from those using either real time or step entry. Real time entry means Progression enters notes, including timing values, as you play to a metronome. If you can play accurately, in time to the beat, this is the quickest method. Although you will probably still need to do some cleaning up of the notation when you finish. Step entry allows you to select a note time value (quarter note for example) and then select the note using your MIDI device. This method is slower but better for difficult music or if you are using a MIDI keyboard instead of MIDI guitar.
If you don’t have a MIDI device available or just prefer to use a mouse, Progression offers keyboard shortcuts, copy and paste, and a virtual fretboard to speed things up. Let’s look at three ways to enter notes in Progression using a mouse.
If you are familiar with standard notation, you can enter notes directly on the staff. First you select a time value for the note, either by selecting one of the notes on the right column or by using a keyboard shortcut, and then click the proper place on staff to place the note. When you enter a note on the standard notation staff, the TAB staff automatically adds the same note (usually picking the fingering on the fretboard closest to the nut.) This automatic syncing between the standard notation staff and TAB staff is a very cool feature that even some of the high-end notation applications lack.
If you can’t read music, you can enter the fret number on the TAB staff by selecting the proper string and then typing in the correct fret number. Of course, you will have to experiment with timing unless you know how note values work, but this is a good way to start learning a little about standard notation. The correct note is automatically added to the standard notation staff.
Finally, you can set Progression to step entry and use the virtual fretboard (guitar or bass.) You select a note value, then simply click on the fretboard and hit enter on your computer keyboard to place the note on both the standard notation and TAB staffs. This method is surprisingly fast once you get some practice doing it.
Progression allows you to use two voices per staff. Using the two voices I was able to notate some country style licks that play secondary notes while holding a bend. Click here to hear the results.
Chords
Chords can be entered on the staffs the same way as notes. If you want to place chord symbols or chord diagrams above the staff you click the appropriate symbol on the right column and a new section opens below the notation where you can select chord symbols or common chord diagrams. You also can create your own custom diagrams by entering fingerings on the fretboard. This is an easy way to create chord diagrams. My only gripe with the chord symbols is Progression uses the longer chord type symbol “min” for minor, instead of the more common “m” symbol.
Here is the chord section that appears below the notation when you select a chord symbol or diagram. It makes selecting chords easy.
MIDI Import
Progression can also import MIDI files and turn them into notation, although much of the formatting, such as repeats, chord symbols, etc., is lost. Still, it is faster than starting from scratch. I had success converting two MIDI files, but a third always resulted in a corrupted Progression file. I have no way of telling if Progression or the imported MIDI file was at fault.
Editing
Progression allows you to copy and paste sections of music to speed up entry. To change a note, you can drag it up or down the staff until you reach the correct note. On the TAB staff you can drag from string to string. To change the time value of a note, select the correct value and click on the note again to make the change.
Playback
The beauty of using a computer to create music notation is the ability to playback your music and hear how it will sound when played by real musicians — and catch any mistakes made during entry. For the guitar player this has often been a disappointing experience due to unrealistic guitar “tones” used by standard MIDI playback devices. Not with Progression. Progression uses actual guitar audio samples for playback and then sends them through its built-in amplifier modeling software. You get three amp models, plus chorus, reverb, and delay. You have full control over the modeling software so you can dial up any tone you want. This approach works great, giving you a more realistic playback experience. As if this wasn’t enough, Progression allows you to use any VST plugins you own to further process the sound. I got great results with both Guitar Rig 3 and AmpliTube Jimi Hendrix. Way to go Progression!
Progression ships with some very basic drum loops you can use in your notations. They aren’t anything to write home about, but they sure beat playing to a metronome! You can get good bass tones out of the modeling software as well as guitar. Once you have added all your instruments, you can use the mixer section to set levels and pan and create a nice mix. Then you can save the results as an audio (WAV) file to share with others.
Here is an example of a simple metal riff that starts off with some palm muting. I used the included drum loops and bass amp modeling from Progression, and Guitar Rig 3 as a VST plugin for the guitar sound. Click here to hear the audio result. Click here to see a pdf file (which you can print out and play along.)
Page Layout
Progression allows you to enter text such as titles, lyrics, copyright, etc., and you can select a standard or Jazz notation font. You can select the number of measure per system and Progression allows you to drag some symbols up and down. But that is about the extent of your page layout control. You can’t create breaks wherever you want or change note or bar placement. To be fair, Progression does a good job of automatically laying out the notation, which makes it easier to use for notation beginners. And I really didn’t expect complete control in such an inexpensive application.
Performance
Progression worked well on my new MacBook Pro with the exception of launch time. It took Progression over a minute to launch every time I used it. This is simply unacceptable when using a fast, new model computer. My guess is the slowdown is either the result of Progression pre-loading audio samples or poor code optimization. Hopefully upgrades will improve launch time considerably.
Still Missing
Progression is obviously a version 1.0 application and is missing some features that would make it much more useful. There are no repeat endings available (ending 1, ending 2, etc.), a very common feature of printed music that saves a lot of measures when notating. It is promised in the next update. You can’t copy and paste chords or articulations without selecting the notation they are attached to, so you can’t select a chord, copy it, and then paste it where needed.
Another major omission is vibrato. This is one of the most common techniques in guitar playing and its omission is surprising. There is also no way to articulate harmonics or whammy bar effects. Another shocker was the scroll arrows didn’t work at all on the notation section forcing me to drag the scroll bars to see hidden notation.
Output
The printed output on my laser printer was crisp and clear. There is no built-in export for any other formats except MIDI. This is a disappointment. However, because I use a Mac (which has built-in pdf and eps exporting from the print dialog box), I was able to save a file as a pdf with good results. Using pdf files is a great way to put your notations on the Web. I do not know if Windows has the same ability to print to pdf files. Hopefully, pdf and eps export will be added to Progression itself in an upgrade.
Documentation
The only documentation included with Progression is a Help file. A pdf manual would be a major improvement. The Help file covers all of progressions features, but Help files require far too much clicking since each page only contains a paragraph or two. It was sometimes difficult to find what I was looking for. Also, I never got any results when using the search feature. Even a simple entry like “chords” returned no results! There are no included tutorials either. Since many guitar players are unfamiliar with notation, tutorials (especially notation basics such as note time values) would be a great help. [Notion has a few basic video tutorials online at their website.] Obviously, there is a lot of work left to do here.
Final Thoughts
Progression is off to a good start. It excels at some things like realistic playback, automatic standard notation/TAB staff syncing, and virtual fretboard note entry. It also lacks some basic things, like vibrato, repeat endings, and good documentation. Still, I love its built-in amp modeling, real guitar samples, mixer section, and ability to use VST plugins (AU would be nice also) to create great sounding playback. Overall, Progression is a solid value and a good choice for any guitar player looking to get into notation. If future upgrades provide better documentation (including tutorials), add the missing notation features, and speed up the launch time, Notion will have a real winner on their hands.
Reader Comments
Better Guitar encourages your input. Agree with this review? Think I’m crazy? If you have used Progression, email me your comments and I’ll post them below. The more opinions we have available, the better our buying decisions will be.
Mike
Just tried the software — basically quite good but can't understand why the fretboard only uses 13 frets. Anything beyond the 13th fret has to be typed in manually, which makes this first version quite disappointing for a guitarist like myself.
[Version 1.0 only went to the 13th fret. In version 1.1 (free update) the fretboard goes up to fret 21 (see image below) and works all the way up. Are you using a demo? It is probably a version 1.0 demo. Version 1.1 is better and adds some missing features such as vibrato and repeat endings. - Mark]
James Vincent
I would be very interested in this product if it becomes available in an AU format. Any hope of that ever happening?
I am guessing you mean "supports AU plugins" since Progression is an application not a plugin. Since you want AU plugin support, you must be using a Mac. I also use a Mac. Progression doesn't support AU but does supports VST plugins. Most of the plugins you buy come with both VST and UA versions on the CD-ROM. All of my IK Multimedia, Native Instruments, and PSP Audioware plugins came with both versions. So it really wasn't an issue for me. Progression uses the VST versions and the rest of my audio apps use the AU versions. If you have a plugin that is AU only, that may be a concern. I have no way of knowing what Notion will do in the future as far as plugin support. You would be better off asking them directly via email or their customer service form or their user forum. - Mark
Richard Werber
You can get vibrato in Progression [version 1.0]. You have to zoom in on the note you want, then you choose bend up and then bend down and keep on doing that. They'll link together and then you'll have to adjust the spacing. They use very little spacing.
[That technique may work for playback, but it will still show up in the standard notation as a series of bends, and it requires it a lot more work than simply dragging a vibrato line as far as you need it. I am confident Notion will add vibrato soon since they are already getting complaints on their user forum. - Mark]
stats
- • Write in tab or notation
- • Automatic updating between TAB and standard notation
- • Record and enter from a MIDI guitar or keyboard
- • Supports custom tab and alternate tunings
- • Interactive fretboard and chord library
- • Audio file export
- • Integrated audio mixer
- • 1.5 GB sample library
- • MIDI file import, export, and output
- • Built-in amp simulator and VST effects support
Positives
- Automatic updating between TAB and standard notation; realistic playback sounds; VST plugin support; virtual fretboard note entry.
Negatives
- No vibrato or hamonics articulations; no repeat endings; slow launch time; no included tutorials or manual (only "Help" files. A few basic tutorial videos are available online.) No built-in pdf or eps export.
Rating
- Performance: 7
- Sound Quality: 10
- Printed Output: 10
- User Interface: 9
- Documentation: 5
- Overall: 8.2
Ratings Key
- 0 = Worthless
- 10 = Excellent
Approximate Street Price
- $99
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Available at Guitar Center
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Notion PROGRESSION Guitar Composition Software Standard
Company
- Notion
Version
- 1.0
System Requirements
- Mac
- Minimal: 2 GHz processor; 1GB of RAM; Mac OS X 10.4.0 or later; 2 GB hard drive space.
- Suggested: 1.83 GHz Intel Core Duo processor; 1 GB of RAM, Mac OS X 10.4.6 or later; 2 GB hard drive space.
- Windows Based PC
- Minimal: Pentium 2GHz; 1 GB of RAM, 2 GB hard drive space; OS: Vista/XP/2000 (SP4).
- Suggested: Pentium 3.0 GHz /2.0 Core Duo; 1 GB of RAM; 2 GB hard drive space; OS: XP Professional.
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Audio Examples
- Copyright ©2007 Mark Starlin
- El Camino
- Metal Palm
- Pickup Truck
- Version 1.1 Update (Feb. 2008)
- Version 1.1 expands the fretboard to 21 frets and adds some missing features like vibrato and repeat endings.
- Download