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Digital audio products including Cubase, VSTs, and USB audio interfaces.

Garritan is a virtual instrument provider often bundled with Finale Notation Software. The virtual instrument player is called Aria, and various sound collections are available for purchase. In my experience, the VST works well with Finale, however, does not work well by itself or with other DAWs. This may be due to the low memory and processing speed of my computer.

One of the original titles of music notation software. Finale was first available in the late 1980's and has been in constant development ever since. The software is available in 3 service levels: Finale, Printmusic, and Notepad. Notepad is a free version and only offers limited features. The full version of Finale has full capability to produce professional-looking scores and is also capable of exporting audio and MIDI files. Finale also comes bundled with Garritan Aria player VST and a decent-sounding instrument pack. Finale also features educational worksheets and templates which are very useful for teachers.

Digital audio workstation software for PC (or Mac with Bootcamp). The software comes in three versions: Home Studio, Recording Studio, and Pro Studio, each with increasing features. The DAW supports MIDI, digital audio and video, and has integrated VST and loop libraries. These products are highly rated in online reviews and comparisons, mainly for their combination of low cost, full features, and ease of use. The website also features a library of training videos for Mixcarft. Topics cover topics including basic software and hardware setup, virtual instruments and plugins, and software functions.

This free site includes an on-line orchestration course and a free jazz arranging course. There are sample music libraries, a virtual instrument forum, Linux Audio and music discussions related to sound software and open source initiatives, a virtual piano forum, and many more topics for students and teachers.