COPYIST
& TRANSCRIPTION
page last updated 2026
Professional Music Engraving - based in NYC
My music engraving work focuses on clarity, elegance, and real-world usability—producing parts that musicians can read instantly.
I approach engraving as an art of spacing and balance, shaping each page through careful control of measure spacing, staff alignment, and the flow of page turns, rests, and cues.
Each chart is formatted with the player in mind, ensuring logical page turns, clean phrasing, and intuitive visual hierarchy.
I work extensively in Avid Sibelius, with fully customized engraving rules and key commands, allowing for fast, precise control over every visual element of the score/parts. This includes:
-
a custom library of fonts and house styles. I can craft parts that look convincingly handwritten (inkpen) on notation software using custom fonts
-
advanced chord-symbol engraving (including bracketed extensions not natively supported by most notation software)
-
chord symbols, page numbers, boxed text, rehearsal markings, dynamics, and time signatures that are the ideal size and big enough to read
-
the absolute control of headers on each page
-
selective use of color (e.g., red markings for rehearsal cues, warnings, or structural emphasis)
-
consistent articulation, dynamics, and notation standards across full scores and parts
Don't believe me?.... here's proof.
- Rehearsal marks and multi-bar rest's font is big enough to read easily
- There is nuanced articulation on every note
- Measure number are italicized
and not obstructive to expression
- The music is clear and detailed and is the right amount of information to read
This piano part is engraved with careful control of measure spacing, grand-staff alignment, and harmonic clarity.
The part itself was initially crafted as a Master Rhythm Section part. The bass part is provided in the bottom clef as cues, giving the pianist.
As it is a big band transcription, the comping on the first page is transcribed and reduced for reading efficiency, but gives the performer an idea of what the comping is like. Later in the chart, slash notation reflects important hits within the rhythm section and full ensemble.
("Lyrics") cues are given at the beginning of each rehearsal marking to keep the musicians together. In this instance, chord symbols appear in between staves to negate top line clutter. Many times, I give the piano melody cues in the top line in case a vocalist needs to hear their pitches.
This trombone part demonstrates section-specific engraving, with clean spacing.
The articulation is written very clearly in this part. Open/closed mute notation is enlarged to reduce performance errors.
Notice the stylistic nuance of the custom borders for rehearsal marks and boxed text.
Below are a few "house fonts" I work with.
Transferring files
I accept scans of manuscript scores/parts, Sibelius files, or music xml. I will email the finished score/parts as PDFs. Please feel free to reach out for my prices.
Professional Music Transcription Services
(specialization in big band, lead sheets, and jazz solos)
I offer premier music transcription services with a specialization in large ensemble big band and studio orchestra transcription, informed by over a decade of focused practice, study of scoring, advanced harmony, instrument doublings, and orchestration. With a tool belt of "perfect pitch" that I continuously train, a 31-channel equalizer, and last-resort high-resolution spectral analysis tools, I can identify harmony and part movement - even in the most dense writing and orchestration.
Transcription requests are accepted with attention to copyright considerations and intended use.
Below are demo big band transcriptions of "Let It Snow" and "Bebop." Also included is a jazz songbook style lead sheet of "When Will My Life Begin" from Disney's Tangled.