MusicEase Traditional Songbook for Children and Adults 1.0.

MusicEase Traditional Songbook for Children and Adults 1.0, by Gary Radar. MusicEase Software (P.O. Box 9219, Grand Junction, CO 81501), 2004. $19.95. Easy.

MusicEase Traditonal Songbook for Children and Adults 1.0, created by Gary Rader, is easy-to-use software that is ideal for any kind of musician or music teacher. MusicEase prints customized sheet music for any of the 370 public domain songs that are included with the software. While the pieces are most useful for beginners, many of the songs--Christmas carols, folk tunes, nursery rhymes and hymns--we use all our life.

Customization tools in MusicEase include transposition; lyrics that can be viewed, not viewed or changed; choice of font and the number of measures in a line; optional chords; and a note editing feature. In short, one can do anything with these pieces and then print them. In a culture where the word "musician" generally implies a lean budget, MusicEase can ease the financial pain.

For first-time users of MusicEase, a few suggestions might be in order. First, the "back" button on the software is inconsistent, so it might be helpful to print the various pages of shortcuts, tools, operations and so on, and have them next to the computer for fast reference. Second, while the software is refreshingly simple and straightforward, free of cutesy characters and annoying pop-ups (but a bit of color wouldn't be so bad), some instructions would be more helpful if they were less wordy and displayed in a more organized fashion. And, finally, a bit more information would be useful. For example, when I first used MusicEase, I was dismayed to hear that the pitch emanating out of my computer was about a half step flat. To fix it, I had to change my computer's MIDI output*. Certainly, my computer's problem was not to be attributed to MusicEase, but some additional information about setting the MIDI output would be welcome.

But the next time the Christmas-caroling impulse hits my family, all I'll have to do is find my favorite carols in MusicEase, transpose them for my dad, increase the font size for my mom, write in some alternative lyrics to entertain my brothers and certain neighbors, print and we're out the door.

MusicEase Traditional Songbook also can be used with the notation editor MusicEase Professional See www.musicease.com for more information.

*I went to the control panel in my 98 Windows computer and selected Multimedia, clicked the MIDI tab and selected Microsoft's GS Wavetable SW Synth instead of Yamaha FM Synthesizer. This brought the pitch to where it should be. To do the same in Windows ME and Windows 2000, select the "Sound and Multimedia Properties" control panel; in Windows XP choose the "Sound and Audio Devices" control panel. Reviewed by Michelle Madland-Rossette, Bozeman, Montana.