Your score is ready for production? Let’s look for the best way to prepare your Finale file for use in Logic Pro X.
Summary
► Is your score more than 16 staves? You’ll need to export your Finale file while in VST or Audio Units playback mode. Give your Logic operator a track list.
► If your score is less than 16 instruments, exporting from Midi Playback mode has real advantages for your Logic operator.
► Use Human Playback in Finale. It creates useful controller data in the midi

Logic’s Default Behavior when Importing MIDI
Midi Playback
When using Midi playback (MIDI/Audio>Play Finale through MIDI), your exported MIDI file meets the General MIDI (“GM”) standard, which includes patch numbers. Logic uses them to create instrument tracks automatically assigned to equivalent sounds, giving the Logic operator a complete picture of your score. The GM standard supports 16 channels maximum.
VST/AU Playback
If your score is more than 16 channels, (one bank in Finale), then you need to export using VST or AU playback (MIDI/Audio>Play Finale Through VST (PC) or Audio Units (Mac). All of your instruments will show up in Logic, assigned to piano tracks.
Alternate techniques in Finale’s VST/AU playback
In VST or Audio Units playback, your instrument technique changes are embedded in your exported midi as “Keyswitches” (midi notes out of the range of the instrument that are interpreted by the sample player to trigger a different sample). The Logic operator may or may not notice that the midi contains them. Let the operator know they’re present by providing a score or staff list, showing channel number and instrument name – bearing in mind that Bank 2 in Finale starts with Channel 17.
Alternate Techniques in Finale’s MIDI playback
According to Finale’s online manual, in a MIDI playback session you should use “patch changes” for articulations such as pizzicato or mutes for a particular staff. These changes won’t be interpreted by Logic automatically. The Logic operator will either need to create a new track with the correct sample for the passage, or use a keyswitch-enabled sound library to assign the sounds. There is a way to make alternate techniques show up automatically in Logic…
Getting your alternate techniques to show up automatically in Logic
► If your score is less than 16 channels, you can put your alternate techniques on a different layer in the score. They’ll each get their own channel in Finale, and show up in Logic on their own track with the correct sound assigned.

Continuous Controller Data
Finale’s Human Playback writes Continuous Controller (“CC”) data while it interprets score markings such as dynamic changes. The data will show up in automation lanes in Logic. Finale writes to CC#1 (Mod Wheel) by default for dynamic changes such as crescendos and decrescendos for sustaining instruments (except percussion, piano, harp, guitar and pizzicato strings, where velocity is used instead).
Finale offers the option to write dynamic data to CC#11, but ! – its own libraries use CC#1 by default.
Use Human Playback ?
Some users have suggested turning off Human Playback when exporting Finale midi for use in a Digital Audio Workstation (“DAW”) like Logic. We’ve found that Human Playback adds useful performance data, saving a lot of time for the Logic operator in editing velocity, controller, and duration data.
Don’t Fuss about Sound Libraries for MIDI Export
Making a good-sounding mockup in Finale is essential, but so is creating the most usable midi when working with downstream production people – or your own Logic project. You could give your Logic operator a list of libraries you used, and maybe they have them. In any case, before delivering your file, try to create the most useful possible midi file. Save-as your original, then edit your copy for midi-friendly export.
See our related article about preparing Logic files for import into Finale
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