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I really like the way it is arranged it really appeals to me. It highlights the original product.

Thanks! Great to hear

Your arrangement of the "Museum (Tent)" theme from Animal Crossing New Horizons is beautifully done! The choice of instruments and the arrangement itself truly brings out the charm of the original piece. I appreciate it.

Thank you - glad you like it even though it's such a short and simple arrangement!

That's so good. 

Thanks!

The tool that helps me the most is my midi keyboard that I plug into my laptop so I can try out notes alongside the track in my headphones. I also try to match pitch by singing if I'm having trouble - I'm sure that sounds quite strange to those around me.

Audio-wise I mainly use YouTube and its slowdown options, or foobar2000 for chiptune soundtracks like Levi mentioned to split channels. However, I try to do as much as I can without splitting channels and mostly use that as a last resort for tricky spots or to check everything at the end (not that it's bad to split channels, I just want to practice hearing voices together as well). If a bass part is hard to hear, I'll import the track into Audacity and pitch it up an octave to put it in an easier range, but that's as much as I do as far as modifying the actual audio.

I definitely agree that practice makes it better. Transcribing is something I really struggled with at first and it's still not really easy for me, but it's gotten better and I can hear more complex things than I could before. Starting with some early console soundtracks with limited channels (or similarly simple pieces) can be a little less daunting than full orchestral pieces as well.

Ah, I see - thanks for all the advice! Using a MIDI keyboard (or some other instrument) to trace out the notes and using Audacity to pitch up the bass both seem like a really good ideas.

This looks really good for only starting off! Here's some feedback:

• When writing for piano, arpeggios don't need arrows on them if they have an upwards motion
• It's rare to see 8va used in bass clef (8vb is fine), maybe use the treble clef instead?
• You have 4 measures in the first system, 4 measures in the second, but only 2 in the last. To even things out a little, you could either 1) Append a horizontal frame with a width of around 40sp, or 2) redistribute the measures (for example: 3-4-3 from systems 1-3).

Wow, that was quick - thanks so much for the advice, I'll make sure to implement those things

[Here is where I'll list my few humble arrangements - I'm just starting off transcribing so far, so any feedback would be really great:]

Here is where I'll list my few humble arrangements - I'm just starting off transcribing so far, so any feedback would be really great:

Animal Crossing New Horizons:

- Museum (Tent)
PDF:https://drive.google.com/file/d/10n7Xe_RRFVJXDKQOQt2N4OFMj78x7GRW/view?usp=sharing
MP3:https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wGtRKJblwFjSaCqzmMXOn3hvC5l7rgNN/view?usp=sharing

I'm not exactly an expert, but with the pieces I've arranged thus far, I usually just use the Youtube speed adjustment to slow the track and listen to it over and over (and over and over) again until I think I've got it Every so often, I try and sync up the playback with the video and listen intently for any differences. Adjusting the volume of the video to various levels is helpful there.

Oh cool, overlaying the playback on the video sounds like a really good idea - thanks for sharing!

Oh wow, that is hard - probably VGM though, especially Nintendo tracks.

I once challenged myself to listen to every single Nintendo track from the primitive arcade tunes to the polished tracks of the Switch today - it took two whole years and drove my family insane but it's been worth it. Hopefully.

Other than that Synth Pop (Owl City), New Age (Enya), Rock (The Beatles) and Irish music (The Corrs) are all amazing...

Not sure if there are any discussion boards on this topic yet, I've had a probe around but haven't found anything yet...

But how do you all transcribe music by ear so well?

I'm looking to try and transcribe some ACNH tracks, but it's much easier said than done!

I've heard that some put the tracks into a DAW, using EQ and other tools to dissect it - or others just simply use the 0.25x speed on YouTube. Of course, the practice probably makes it all easier eventually, but are there any particular methods you use?