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See the music world through the eyes of the blind.
In 2025 I made important changes to musicalescapism.com, overhauling of the way information is presented by sorting content into tabs, making it clearer how to filter scores in different ways.
I also introduced direct access to MuseScore files of every original and creative commons licenced score. This big change came about after I was asked about providing Musescore files on Reddit to a vision-impaired user.
This seemed a fair request so after some thought I decided to go ahead with this, especially given that users of all stripes can use the latter to perform with, muting whatever instrument they are playing while letting the other voices play aloud.
In addition to playing the music for you so blind users can learn by ear, MuseScore files can be exported as XML files which makes them compatible for use with Braille music software. Braille music programs create a file that can be printed onto heavy paper by braille embossers to create the raised bumps that blind users read.
Additionally, MuseScore 4.1+ offers native Braille support, allowing users to view, export, and input music in Braille format.
The following video demonstrates how blind musicians read braille scores.
As a (lapsed) member of the Amateur Chamber Music Society, I still get 'Tutti', the organisation's magazine. Through this I've learned there is an annual music camp for braille users held at Frensham in Mittagong. Founder of these camps, Roma Dix talks about why she and husband Ian Cooper founded these extraordinary camps nearly forty years ago:
You can also watch the Australian Story episode, 'Blind leading the blind' about two remarkable blind musicians who grew up attending Braille Music Camp and went on to creat the world's first open source screen reader.
In addition to providing direct download of each MuseScore file individually, I've also combined all the MuseScore files into a single folder and provided a link to the zip file.
I should include a qualification about the quality of the MuseScore virtual instruments. I noticed a large difference in quality between MuseScore 3 and MuseScore 4 versions. I found the MuseScore 4 virtual instruments were so quiet I had to put ff (double forte) on each one and the quality was nothing like the rich tones that I had relied on with Musescore 3. When these scores were opened in another version the dynamics were obviously off because of this. As a result of this I went back to using MuseScore 3. I can't guarantee the quality of instrument outputs if the files are opened in a version other than MuseScore 3 and please take dynamic markings as only suggestions as they are for what suits MuseScore not real instruments.
Visitors to my site may notice that I have had a very bad experience as a MuseScore.com user where I was overcharged hundreds of dollars! To clarify, the site hosting scores [MuseScore.com] is a different entity than the project [MuseScore.org] that makes the software by the same name free to use. My comments here apply only to the score-sharing site and not the software itself. While I did eventually get most of what I was erroneously charged refunded to me, I am no longer willing to give MuseScore.com access to my card information for any reason.
All files are free and there is no sign up or other requirements for download. There are however, licence terms which apply to both my MuseScore files and PDF files.
The government has been lying to us about AI and copyrightThemes:When machines rule the world!
Published 26th Jun 2026Tech bros want us to pay for their free lunch This post (originally published on August 30 ,2025) has been re-dated & published with updates due to changes in government policy revealed by a whistleblower. The first notion I had that the music ... |
What life is really like for living composersThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 23rd Jun 2026Here's what I learned from analysing my visitor data Getting positive feedback as a living composer is not easy. Most avenues for sharing new compositions or arrangements are closed to us, buttressed with stern warnings against self-promotion. Sharing o ... |
Introducing Free Piano Solo BookletsThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 25th May 2026I'm introducing booklets to make my piano music easier to find and use. If you're here for the first time, I'd like to welcome you to my site and my music. During the lockdowns, I wrote a large number of original compositions, many of them for solo piano. My int ... |
Introducing New Trumpet ArrangementsThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 12th May 2026Check out my growing list of new trumpet arrangements The aim of these arrangements is to extend the repertoire for trumpet at a rate of one every week or so (and play my favourite music!). These arrangements are divided between public domain classics an ... |
My debut trumpet EP - what went right, what went wrongThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 29th Jan 2026The adventure of my first cover song EP, from recording to getting them onto the streaming platforms. Today marks a huge milestone in my musical endeavours. I have released my first trumpet recordings. I've also published the backing tracks created for each track on YouTube so other musicians can ... |
Interview with Music Industry ProThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 23rd Oct 2025Find out what it takes to break into and survive in the Australian music industry As a requirement of my TAFE course in music performance I have interviewed industry professional, Michael Chambers to share knowledge of what is important to get right when you're entering or survi ... |
Musescore has been emptying my bank accountThemes:When machines rule the world!
Published 4th Sep 2025Crazy charges from Musescore have cost me a fortune
Musescore is a website built for storing and sharing musical scores created with the free software of the same name. The software makers have no ties to the score-sharing site apart from sharin ... |
Going viral on TikTok and no idea whyThemes:When machines rule the world!
Published 26th Jul 2025A look at what happens when you go viral on TikTok I've only recently gone back into doing my music. A couple of years into my composing efforts, I'd gotten distracted by other things. A few weeks ago I decided to check back into my distributor's das ... |
The Story Behind Bin Chicken BanterThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 16th Jul 2025The Bin Chicken is as Australian as Bluey. I wrote a piece to honour their place in Australian culture. I recently released an album of brass band/ensemble pieces, including the track titled 'Bin Chicken Banter. Considering much of my audience is from outside Australia, I thought I should explain what a ... |
The Story Behind AntarcticaThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 10th Jul 2025This blog post follows the story of my piece Antarctica from duet to chamber orchestra. If you are at all familiar with my scores you may have noticed that there are usually several arrangements of the same piece. Writing for the general public chamber groups is very much a hit and mis ... |
The difference between mixing and masteringThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 5th Nov 2023An overview of the different roles in making music I haven't blogged for a while so I thought I'd get back into things with a blog post about the difference between music composition, production, mixing and mastering. These terms are closely related b ... |
A look at the benefits and questions raised by composition competitionsThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 30th Jun 2022Composition competitions, are they worth it? As a fledgling composer I have had the joy of experiencing many things for the first time over the past 18 months. One of those things is entering composition competitions. Not long after I beg ... |
How realistic orchestral tracks are madeThemes:Learning new skills: performing, recording, composing, engaging!
Published 10th Aug 2021A basic intro to how composers create realistic orchestral music without an orchestra. Since I published this blog post, I have gone on to write and produce multiple tracks for orchestra as well as several commissions for chamber groups for members of the local Amateur Chamber Music ... |
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[22] Cheerful
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[18] Dramatic
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[96] Gentle
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[16] Invigorating
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[16] Sad
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