Below are some useful resources, including braille music codes, organizations producing braille music and information about accessible music technologies. Some of the content below are listed in the worldwide directory (provided as the first item in the Braille Music Scores section), and I’ll give them a more detailed description.
Contents
1. Braille Music Resources
1.1 Braille Music Code Books
New International Manual Of Braille Music Notation
If you want to learn signs of braille music notation, you can download the print version of the manual here, or braille version here. The archive of braille version contains both Grade 1 and Grade 2 English braille versions of this manual.
Music Braille Code 2015
This is a new manual published by Braille Authority Of North America in 2016, including many new features and more detailed rules of braille music notation. You can download both print and braille versions of this book here. Note that this book was written using Unified English Braille, and you can learn rules of UEB here.
1.2 Braille Music Scores
Directory Of Braille Music Organizations
This list was created by Roger Firman, the founder of Golden Chord braille music transcription project in UK. It includes almost all organizations providing braille music for loan, sale and/or download. Of course, my project has been listed in it!
ABRSM Accessible Version
This page on the ABRSM site contains accessible versions of scores for all levels of the exam, including piano and flute.
RNIB – Royal National Institute For The BLind
This is perhaps the most famous organization producing braille music in the world. It contains a large collection of braille, large print and audio tuition music scores, and they can be found in the searchable online catalog. For non-UK customers, please contact the Exports Department for purchasing or loaning information.
Italian Library For The Blind – Biblioteca Italiana Per I Ciechi
This library located in Monza also has a large collection of braille music for sale and loan. The searchable catalog of braille music is in Italian only, but you can contact the music pole using English for their help. On this page there’s a form, the first field is your name, then your email, then subject, then message, and the last send button.
ONCE – Spanish National Organization For The Blind
This organization has a continuously updating catalog of braille music, but you should contact Manuel Cepero Gutiérrez in English for it. The catalog has 7 files: Accordion, Vocal, Education, Guitar, Piano, Other instruments and Other materials. They are in Spanish. Items marked with B.I. are produced by them, and can be provided for foreigners. The items can be provided as braille files free of charge, but you should change your braille display table to Spanish to correctly read the braille, or try to convert them into English mapping using some ways (if needed, I can do it for you). If you want the hardcopies, you should pay for mailing.
Braille Score Translation Group “Hoshi”
This is one of the most famous braille music transcription group in Japan, and there’s a catalog in English on their website. You can contact them in English for ordering existing scores or asking for transcription. The price for both purchasing existing scores and requesting new transcription is 5 yen per braille page.
Siloam Center of Music Braille for the Blind
This is a department of braille music transcription in the Siloam Center located in South Korea, providing free service of downloading and transcribing braille music scores (hardcopies require payment). The site has four languages (Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese) to choose. You must first register on the site, and then email the picture of your certificate of blindness or disability to them for verification. Then you can become a member and download their braille music scores or ask for transcription service.
Turkish Braille Music Resources
Thanks Koray Sazli, a Turkish blind musician and teacher! These are two websites in Turkish with some collected braille music resources:
Site 1
Site 2
2. Other Resources Of Accessible Music Technologies
2.1 Braille Music Transcription
Sao Mai Braille (SMB)
Sao Mai Braille is the newest braille translator developed for use for both professional braille transcribers and end-users. I attended its music braille translation development as a technical consultant of DAISY Music Braille Project. It has the most flexible configuration, allowing us to translate Musicxml files into high-quality braille music, largely enhances the effeciency of braille music production.
Braille Music Translation System BrailleMuse
This is a free online MusicXML to Braille translation system developed by Gotoh Toshiyuki from Yokohama University, Japan. The site contains the translation system, and a collection of MusicXML titles bought from an already-down Japanese webstore MusicSheet, for blind musicians to convert into braille to read. BrailleMuse can translate MusicXML files from simple solo to large orchestra using lots of customizable options, but with the limitation of not being able to translate lyrics well. Almost all of my transcriptions rely on this system, but with very tricky post-production process, for I have used it for 10 years, and even given many helpful improvement suggestions to Prof. Gotoh. So I’m very familiar with this system, and feel it very convenient to use.
Dancing Dots
If you just want to transcribe some easy or intermediate scores, especially songs into braille, then this is your choice. It’s a commercial package, with technologies from music scanning, music notation to braille music transcription. The braille music layout is based on American standards, and you need to use Jaws with the softwares, especially Lime. Lime is perhaps the most WYSIWYG notation software, and it’s popular mainly in schools of The US. However, you can import MusicXML files exported from other notation softwares to edit or get the braille.
2.2 Music Reading
eBrass
The Electronic Braille Score Service (eBrass) project is an old project based on the Play2 project, using a lite version of Braille Music Editor 1 to let you read and listen to braille music scores listed on the site.
MUSIC4VIP
This project is based on BMML format, and contains lots of useful resources, including braille music learning, notation and playing tutorials, and a similar library (but with different pieces) as eBrass project, powered by Braille Music Reader based on BMML and Braille Music Editor 2. It also features conversion tools among MusicXML, BMML and Lilypond formats, but their function is very basic.
MusicXML Readers
There are two MusicXML readers for blind musicians. The WhiteNote is a text-based Musicxml reader, which provides detailed description of every note and symbol in the Musicxml file. The IBOS MusicXmlReader is another interesting tool, providing both text and braille information of the MusicXML file. The braille side of the IBOS MusicXmlReader is a bit limited, because it doesn’t display continuous score, and splits all chords as individual notes.
2.3 Music Notation
Besides Lime mentioned above, there are several other choices for blind musicians to notate music in either braille or print with the help of accessibility technologies.
Braille Music Editor 2
This is perhaps currently the only way to notate music in braille and show them in print. The software lets you enter braille music, revise and listen to it, and export it as MusicXML format for importing to standard music notation softwares for further editing. It’s based on Braille Music Markup Language (BMML) format, and has a good development future. But the development is currently hanging up because of the lack of funds. Anyway, you can try it for its wonderful feature. However, the Musicxml to braille transcription side is currently very limited and a bit frustrating.
GNU Lilypond
Lilypond is the most accessible notation software made originally for sighted users, for it’s completely based on writing codes. So it’s not a WYSIWYG software, and is less used in mainstream composition and engraving industry. However, it can generate very beautifully typeset scores with minum effort on formatting and layouting. Just enter your code and compile! As a blind, you have to write the code carefully in order to get the score successfully compiled, and you have to listen to the generated MIDI file carefully to check the notes you have written. I have used it for about 8 years, and composed some works using it. It has a powerful mailinglist, and every user must use it to get himself/herself familiar with the software.
ABC Notation
The ABC Notation is another code based notation method, and is often used by song writers, for it’s not as advanced and complex as Lilypond. If you want to write songs, piano and guitar music with minor effort, please try this one instead. The EasyABC is a GUI software which can compile ABC files, and even export them as MusicXML files, though the result is a bit messy.
Avid Sibelius
Sibelius is the most accessible notation software used by mainstream music engraving industry. You can use NVDA to operate it. You can download the accessibility plugin and documentation for visually impaired users here. Its accessibility has been drastically changed since the plugin documentation was written, and now there are only a small number of limitations.
Musescore
Musescore is another choice, and it’s free. You can use NVDA and Jaws to read and write scores in it. The team is constantly improving its accessibility, and now it can be as accessible as Sibelius, and its Musicxml export quality is far beyond any other notation software. The site also contains tons of scores typed by users, mostly with medium and low quality, but lots of high-quality and advanced scores are also available recently. The currently running OpenScore project will produce some better scores for you to read, and there are lots of volunteers helping us to produce decent scores. Many sbraille scores on my site were transcribed from these collection. So if you want to listen to and navigate in the print score, you can search, download and enjoy them. Note that you need a Pro account in order to download the scores.