Are you a voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences? I’m guessing most of you are not, and neither am I. As a result, we don’t have any control over who will win a Grammy Award this year.

On the other hand, we can impact who will win a prestigious SOS award. SOS awards are presented to the best recording technology products of the year, as voted for by the global readership of Sound On Sound magazine.

Among this year’s nominees for “Sound Library” is Garritan Personal Orchestra 4.  

Why is this Finale news?

Since the release of Finale 2006, Garritan sounds (including many from Garritan Personal Orchestra) have been included with Finale. This addition marked the beginning of the notation playback revolution. Ever since, Garritan sounds have been a part of daily life for Finale users,  and many of us have gone on to purchase the full version of GPO and other Garritan libraries. 

In the interest of full disclosure, I should mention that Gary Garritan is also a friend of many MakeMusic employees. This is, in part, a result of the great work he’s done in making everyone’s music sound even better. Paraphrasing the “About Us” text from garritan.com, Gary and his cohorts are committed to democratizing musical creativity by making high-quality tools affordable. That hits the nail on the head for me, although I’d be tempted to add that they have further democratized the process by making professional sound libraries easy to use.

Are you a fan of the Garritan sounds in Finale (or the full GPO4)? If so, join me in visiting the SOS website and casting your vote before November 30. If you need extra incentive, submitting a ballot also enters you in a drawing where you can win thousands of dollars of sE microphones.

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