Whats Expected of a Transcriber?
Every publishing company that prints note-for-note guitar anthologies of popular music includes all lead and background vocal parts, guitars (in standard notation and tablature), and sometimes other instruments (mandolin, banjo, piano, bass, or saxophone arranged for guitar) in their publications. The vocals are an extremely significant element in a transcription in that they often dictate the tune’s arrangement. For instance, if the first verse of a tune is 16 bars long and the second verse is only 12, chances are you’re going to need to write out both verses in their entirety without being able to use any arranging devices like repeat signs or D.S. al Coda. The song’s lyrics also need to be written out below the transcribed vocal melody, written in direct accordance to the way they are syllabically hy-phen-at-ed in a dictionary. This means you will need to look up some words! (Also, all capitalized letters need to be underlined in red pencil!) The lyrics to each song are usually incl
