Decide what kind of music you wish to score. Styles might include classical, contemporary, jazz or rock music. Because you are dealing with a creative art, the possibilities are almost limitless.
Write down or record your basic musical ideas, which might include solos, instruments used and the kinds of musical textures you wish to score. Some composers keep five-lined music staff notebooks, and sketch their ideas by hand. Others record themselves or others playing a melody, chord progression or rhythmic pattern using a computer with MIDI or an audio recording device.
Select the best formal representation to express your musical ideas. Possibilities include songs with verses and a refrain, more or less improvisatory instrumental pieces, or any of several formal music structures such as sonata, theme and variations, fantasy, or musical drama.
Be sure you understand the instruments for which you are scoring music. Research the instruments you wish to use, and know the attributes, range and technical limitations of each.
Consider instruments that transpose, and obtain information about how notated pitch might differ from actual pitch sounded when the instrument is played by a live performer. For example, written pitches played on a B-flat trumpet sound one whole step lower in reality. Transposing instruments include clarinets, saxophones, French horns and most trumpets.
Combine groups of instruments in order to achieve the texture you want for your music. Listen to recordings of music played by a variety of ensembles or bands for ideas. Consider using brass instruments playing together for dramatic or exciting musical moments, or soft muted strings for tender, reflective or mysterious passages.
Select a method for scoring your music. By now, your ideas have matured, and you have solved most of the musical problems concerning effective use of available instruments, structuring your music and assignment of solo and ensemble passages.
Obtain standard scoring paper if you plan on writing out your score by hand. You can purchase score paper at music shops or print out templates for free from several websites on the Internet.
Select a software music scoring program that meets your needs. Consider price, ease of use and range of features. If you wish to have a hard copy of your score, be sure your software is able to create a professional-looking score using your printer. See the Tips section for some suggestions.
Lay out your score before entering notes. There is a standard order for listing multiple instruments, usually beginning with winds at the top, piano and percussion somewhere in the middle, and strings at the bottom. Have a look at published music scores, many of which can be viewed online, for ideas. Many scoring software programs include ready-made templates, which make the layout process easier.
Enter key signatures, meter signatures, tempo and clefs at the beginning of each line in the score.
Begin entering notes, articulations, including legato, staccato, and phrasing, as well as dynamics and expression markings one section at a time. Apply automatic measure numbering if your software allows it. This helps keep track of your music, especially in lengthy scores.
Be sure each musical passage you enter synchronizes with the others. Stop and listen frequently to make sure it sounds the way you want it to sound. Most software allows playback over your computer's speaker.
Print out your music score. Follow the directions for your scoring software and printer to refine the look of your score by making spatial adjustments, deciding between portrait or landscape orientation, and adding titles, composer and arranger names, and copyright information.