Maestro · What’s new

Maestro 0.9.11 beta

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT

A virtual piano below the score, on Mac and Windows (View → Piano, ⌥⌘J or Ctrl+Alt+J): a click plays the note and, with Speedy or Simple Entry, writes it; Shift+click adds it to the chord
The piano keys light up with the notes playing, the selected notes and the keys held on the MIDI keyboard; keys outside the instrument's range are darker
Right-click the piano for key names, written pitch for transposing instruments and the keyboard size
Tempo marks and rehearsal marks no longer run off the page: when there are many they wrap onto several lines
Text and Chord with a measure selected go on the selected staff; ⌫ clears measures only in the selected staves and keeps clef changes
Windows: Alt shortcuts work (Alt+3 for triplets, Alt+↑/↓ in Speedy Entry), and after importing a Finale or MIDI file a notice lists what was not imported

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT

A welcome screen at startup, on Mac and Windows: recent documents with a thumbnail of the first page, search, and templates to start from
The welcome screen comes back when you close the last score, and opens from Window → Welcome to Maestro on the Mac and File → Welcome Screen on Windows
Windows: the entry palette can be placed in a column left of the score, as on the Mac (Settings → Appearance)
Windows: Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T hides and shows the toolbar

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Windows: toolbar like the Mac's, next to the top palette, customizable with a right-click
Windows: the status bar shows the active layer, the visible page and a zoom slider
Windows: more polished settings, with icons on the panes, volume sliders, color swatches and tooltips
Windows: pinch to zoom on the touchpad and touch screen, around the point between the fingers, and two-finger sideways scrolling
Fixed on Windows: disabled checkboxes are easy to read in the dark appearance

Thu, 01 Oct 2026 12:00:00 GMT

New Maestro logo and icon, on Mac and Windows
Windows: several scores open at once, in tabs (Ctrl+Tab to switch, Ctrl+W to close)
Windows: dark appearance as on the Mac, automatic from Windows or chosen in the settings
Windows: print preview, M4A audio export (also for parts and setlists) and settings split into panes as on the Mac
Fixed on Windows: menus and the bar's drop-downs always open and close on the first click, and Maestro is more responsive

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Windows: playback bar like the Mac's, with recording, TAP, speed slider, swing, accompaniment and sound bank menus, follow playback, mixer and tuner
Windows: click the measure, elapsed time, tempo and speed in the bar to change them
Windows: Scroll View has a white background, follows playback and is turned on with Ctrl+E or the button at the top right

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Fixed on Windows: Finale .musx files open with all instruments and notes, as on the Mac
Fixed on Windows: menus respond to the first click even after a click on the score that opens a dialog
Windows: files open by dragging them onto the window, and become pieces when dropped on the setlist
Windows: copied music goes to the Windows clipboard and can be pasted into another copy of Maestro

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Windows: graphical mixer like the Mac's, with pan knobs, faders, mute/solo and level meters that move during playback
Windows: new interface settings: what to open at startup, recent documents, measure numbers, view and zoom, inspector and score colors
Windows: palettes, playback bar and status bar in the Windows font
Website: the Download page explains how to install Maestro for Windows when Windows warns that the program is not signed

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Windows: Maestro now updates itself: once a day it checks for a new version, shows what's new and installs it (also from Help → Check for Updates…)
Windows: autosave and backups of previous versions, in Settings → Saving
Windows: Help → What's New in Maestro with the day-by-day list of changes, and a splash screen at startup
Windows: visual metronome, with beat lights flashing in time in the playback bar
Windows: complete English interface, including chord analysis and harmonization messages and errors

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Windows: MIDI keyboard for entry and real-time recording, and the percussion map
Windows: tuner with the microphone, sound bank choice and recent documents
Windows: English interface (automatic from the Windows language or chosen in the settings) and a getting-started tour on first launch
Fixed on Windows: settings are now kept after closing Maestro
Mac: in the English interface, key signatures without accidentals are translated too

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Maestro for Windows: the first version for Windows 10 and 11, on Intel/AMD and ARM PCs, with an installer that does not ask for an administrator password
On Windows you get entry with the palettes and Speedy Entry, the inspector, menus with the Mac's commands, playback with the bundled sounds, the mixer, parts, setlists, printing and export to PDF, MusicXML, MIDI and WAV audio
Still missing on Windows: the MIDI keyboard, the percussion map, the tuner and the English interface
No changes on the Mac: this version brings Maestro to Windows

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Automatic updates: Maestro checks for a new version by itself and installs it (Maestro → Check for Updates…, and in Settings → General)
Fixed: the reverb room chosen in the settings can now be heard (before, they all sounded the same)

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 12:00:00 GMT

Maestro now runs on Intel Macs too: universal app, macOS 14 or later
Setlist audio: one file per song or the whole gig in one file, also as a backing track without your own instrument
Setlist PDF: several songs in a single PDF with a table of contents and continuous page numbers
Harmonize for section: voicings for 2–5 horns from the melody and the chord symbols
Tuner using the Mac's microphone, tap tempo and a visual metronome in the playback bar
Open MIDI files: tracks, instruments, tempo and key become a score
Guitar and bass tablature (TAB), instrument changes mid-piece and cue notes in parts
Maestro is now available in English