The Making of An American Idol: On Stage and On Tour, Sibelius Helps Dreams Come True (Fast)

Sibelius Software chosen by Idol Arrangers to Meet Demands Unique to Show

Walnut Creek, CA, June 21, 2006 -- American Idol arrangers chose Sibelius.Software to help them meet the challenging, fast-paced musical format that is highly unique to the mega-hit series.

With five hit seasons behind it, Fox phenomenon American Idol has come to represent the ordinary Joe or Jane, who, from any background, can emerge as an international star with an extraordinary life.  And different backgrounds they have. From Taylor Hicks and his “Soul Patrol” sound, to Chris Daughtry’s alternative rock, this year’s contestants brought a huge range of musical styles to Idol, and a brand new set of challenges for arrangers and composers.

Andy Weiner, a keyboardist and arranger for American Idol, who has played keyboard for James Ingram, Chaka Khan, Pattie LaBelle and Stevie Wonder, found American Idol’s format to be a one-of-a-kind experience that required a smart set of software solutions.

Says Weiner, “In the beginning of the season, you have about a dozen female and male contestants and every one of them needs a different song arranged and composed each week. The contestants choose a song to perform on a Thursday or Friday, and you’ve got until Saturday to create a new arrangement that works for their voice, range, or style.”

Adding to the challenge are American Idol judges, like Simon Cowell, who pay close attention to unique musical arrangements, and aren’t impressed with a rehash of an original recording. The format of the show also requires shorter versions of classic tunes, which means a lot of editing on the fly.

And that, according to Weiner, means Sibelius. Its ease of use, quick learning curve, and powerful shortcuts were all critical time savers for the 4-5 writers and arrangers on the show. As for Weiner,  “I had only used Sibelius a few times before the Idol season started. But I found it so intuitive, that I was up and running immediately and I never had to open the manual once. I was able to keep pace easily with the quirky demands of a weekly television show.”

Sibelius uses set house styles and engraving rules that make set up fast and easy, and provides powerful shortcuts to keep the process moving as fast as the show. Sibelius also offers a new feature it calls Dynamic Parts. With Sibelius 4, writers can change one part and the entire score will be updated automatically – a significant time saver backstage on Idol.

While Season 5 may be over, the band is now hitting the road. The American Idol Tour takes the top 9 contestants on the road for 20,000 seat concerts that bring out all the devoted Idol fans.  Idol’s Music Director for the Tour is songwriter, arranger and keyboardist Dave Kochanski.

According to Kochanski, a concert tour of this magnitude means staying organized and adaptable. Kochanski recalls last year when he got a heart-stopping call that an artist couldn’t make the last 3 shows. “Suddenly, I needed to add 3 new performance songs and get the parts out to the musicians that night”, says Kochanski. “I fired up my laptop, Sibelius and my keyboard in the hotel, did all the transcriptions, printed the scores and distributed them within a few hours.”

And for those times when Sibelius isn’t loaded on his laptop, there’s Scorch, Sibelius’ free software that lets you view, play, customize and print Sibelius scores on the Internet, another big advantage on the road.