| I can explain why I use tooling like this. I use Lilypond though, not Alda. For me, it is very much just a markup for music notation that can be tracked in version control. Just like how one would write markdown and then generate html pages, I write Lilypond to generate scores. Example workflow- I write a song, and use Ableton to capture it. I’m performing with real instruments, and creating arrangements without writing anything down. Now I want to perform it with other musicians. I have a few options. I can notate what I created by hand. I can use a proprietary graphical notation tool, which are expensive and generally have sub-par UX. Or I can use a text-based system like Lilypond, and generate it. I can create reusable blocks, code snippets, look at a diff when I make changes, print the whole arrangement, print just the scores for individual instruments, adjust arrangements as easy as you adjust prose in a text editor. And also, not have to think much about the presentation layer. Mature tools in this category like Lilypond output great looking scores. |