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How do I…

Below you see a list of "how-to" instructions arranged alphabetically by musical situation. This section is a musical cookbook. You won't find Staff tool, Page Layout dialog box, or HyperScribe listed here because they are all terms you encounter only in Finale. (To learn about those and other Finale-specific topics, consult the "What does this do…" section of the Table of Contents or choose the "Search What does this do…" filter located next to the Search field above.)

Instead, this section contains entries for musical elements and situations, such as beaming, copying music, rehearsal marks and so on. After a brief introduction, each entry includes at least one step-by-step tutorial; broader topics, like rests, have several such tutorials. Following each instruction is an explanation of the step you just took, a description of Finale's response to it, or a description of an available detour to another feature. The "how-tos" are devised so that, if you are in a hurry, you can skip the editorial material and just follow the bulleted instructions step-by-step.

These steps assume some familiarity with Finale. In particular, they assume you have worked through most of the Finale Tutorials. Some of the tutorials in this section are, in fact, pared-down versions of the tutorials in the Installation and Tutorials manual. In some circumstances, then, you may learn the most by reviewing the same topic in both resources.

This section of the User Manual is not meant to be a complete guide to Finale itself. Finale's flexibility allows for many approaches to a vast universe of musical styles. Although we can't cover every possibility, we've tried to anticipate as many musical situations as we could. The most common questions are also covered in our "How Do I" Directory.

You will find many links to reference material, the Visual Index, and other sources. Use the Back button on your browser to return to previously viewed topics. Also note that all topics can be reached using the Table of Contents to your left, or by using the Search or Index functions. Use the "Search How do I…" filter to display only entries from this encyclopedia of topics.

Here's hoping that this musical cookbook will yield some delicious results!

 

Numerics

8va

3-staff piano

A

Accelerando

Placing the word "Accelerando" into the score

Assigning an expression for playback

Accents

Accidentals (Simple Entry)

Adding a sharped or flatted note

Raising or lowering a note

Adding parentheses around accidentals

Hiding and showing accidentals

Accidentals (Speedy Entry)

Hiding and showing accidentals

Adding or changing an accidental

Correcting accidentals on tied notes

Moving an accidental

Adobe PDF Documents

Creating a PDF document from a Finale file

Troubleshooting PDF documents

Arrows

Articulations

Adding one articulation mark in the score

Moving or deleting an articulation

Changing the articulation character

Designing an articulation

Defining an articulation for playback

Applying an articulation to every note in a region

Erasing articulations from a region

Centering and repositioning existing articulations

Quickly changing an articulation

Copying articulations

Copying markings based on a rhythmic match

Creating an articulation metatool

Removing an articulation from the list

Attack and release

Audio

Importing an audio file

Locating an imported audio file on your computer

Exporting an audio file

Augmentation

B

Backbeats

Altering the key velocity of backbeats

Copying or erase MIDI Tool editing

Barlines

Drawing the barline on a group

Breaking a barline between grouped staves

Creating one double, dotted, final, or other barline

Changing barlines for groups

Changing barlines in a selected region (or at regular intervals)

Hiding one barline

Hiding all barlines (no barline music)

Moving a barline

Inserting a false or custom barline

Changing the thickness of barlines in a document

Correcting barline display

Creating a double left barline

Batch Printing

Beam Angles

Setting the beam angle style globally

Changing or restoring the angle of a beam (Special Tools)

Removing angle modifications from a selected region

Changing the angle of secondary beams

Limiting the steepness of beams

Allowing only flat beams on a single staff

Changing a beam from the default angle to flat

Beam thickness

Beaming

Breaking (or creating) a beam

Rebeaming a selected region

Creating custom beaming patterns

Preventing Finale from beaming automatically (Speedy Entry)

Beaming eighth notes in quarter note groups

Beaming across barlines

Beaming over rests

Beaming: feathered beaming

Beaming:Secondary beams

Breaking secondary beams

Changing a broken beam’s direction

Changing the distance between beams

Changing the angles of secondary beams

Changing the height of stems in secondary beams

Beat positions

Creating a beat chart in one measure

Moving a beat

Bend hats

Blank pages

Adding a blank page anywhere in your document

Deleting a blank page anywhere in your document

Booklets

Boomwhackers® Tuned Percussion Tubes / Chroma-Notes™ Instruments

Creating a new Boomwhackers® Percussion Tubes or Chroma-Notes™ Instruments score

Applying colored noteheads to an existing score

Brackets: Horizontal lines

Brackets: Notes

Brackets:Staves

Placing a bracket on grouped staves

Moving or stretching a bracket

Correcting bracket display

Deleting a bracket from a group

Creating additional (nested) brackets

Modifying brackets on a system-by-system basis

Creating “floating” brackets

Moving, stretching, or deleting a floating bracket

Breath marks

C

Cadenzas

Permitting unlimited notes in one measure (Time Signature method)

Permitting unlimited notes in one measure (Position Notes Evenly method)

Cesuras

Channel Pressure

Retaining channel pressure data for score playback

Editing channel pressure data

Copying or erasing controller data

Character names

Choral music

Chord symbols

Entering chord symbols automatically

Typing-in chord symbols

Playing-in chord symbols (MIDI data input)

Editing chords directly in the score

Entering a chord symbol manually

Entering a chord symbol between beats

Editing chords

Editing a chord suffix

Teaching Finale “learned chords”

Editing or deleting a learned chord

Moving chord symbols up and down

Transposing chord symbols

Erasing chords from a region

Copying chords from one region to another

Changing the display or position of all chord symbols in a region

Preventing chord symbols from playing back

Programming a chord symbol Metatool

Entering a chord using a Metatool

Creating or load a Chord Suffix Library

Creating a chord chart with lyrics

Changing chord symbol fonts

Left-justifying chord symbols above the notes

Moving chord symbols individually

Defining a chord symbol manually with MIDI data input

Chords

Adding notes to (or remove notes from) a chord

Changing the pitch of a chord

Changing the enharmonic spelling of a chord

Rearranging the noteheads of a cluster chord

Clefs

Setting the starting clef for a staff

Inserting a clef change at the beginning of a measure

Applying a clef change to a region of measures

Inserting a mid-measure clef change

Changing a clef you’ve inserted in mid-measure

Changing the default clef

Hiding a clef

Designing a new clef

Designing a shape clef

Changing the horizontal positioning of starting clefs

Globally changing the position and size of inserted clefs

Specifying the location of key-signature accidentals in a nonstandard clef

Click and Countoff

Setting up countoff measures and the metronome click (for Playback and HyperScribe recording)

Setting up a click with a non-percussion playback device

Closed symbols

Coda

Common time

Composite time signatures

Creating a composite meter

Removing a composite meter

Compound meters

Continuous data

Specifying which continuous data you want to record with HyperScribe

Editing continuous data

Copying or erasing continuous data

Copying music

Copying and pasting using the clipboard

Copying and pasting by dragging

Copying and pasting/inserting stacks

Copying and inserting using the clipboard

Copying and inserting by dragging

Copying and inserting stacks

Specifying what you want to copy

Copying time signatures

Copying tempo changes

Copying across documents

Making a copy of a document

Copying multiple passages of music to another document (using Clip Files)

Combining files with Score Merger

Merging part files into a score with Score Merger

Copying markings based on a rhythmic match

Copying between instruments of different registers

Copyright notices

Counting measures

Courtesy accidentals

Courtesy clef changes

Globally preventing courtesy clefs from displaying

Preventing courtesy clefs from displaying in a single measure.

Courtesy key signatures

Forcing the display of the key signature in a measure

Hiding the end-of-line courtesy key change (globally)

Hiding the end-of-line courtesy key change (in one place)

Altering the key signature of the courtesy key signature

Courtesy time signatures

Crescendo/Decrescendo

Creating a Smart Shape (graphic) crescendo or decrescendo marking

Moving, reshaping, or deleting a Smart Shape crescendo

Aligning multiple Smart Shape hairpins

Changing the default opening and thickness of Smart Shape hairpins

Creating a playback crescendo or decrescendo with the MIDI Tool

Creating a Text Expression (such as “cresc.” or “decresc.”)

Moving or delete a crescendo (Text or Shape Expression)

Crossed hands

Cross-staff notes

Creating cross-staff notation with the Cross-staff Plug-in

Creating cross-staff notation

Restoring cross-staff notes to their source staff

Restoring cross-staff notes to their source staff temporarily

Cue notes

Creating cue notes on a full-size staff

Creating a cue staff

Restoring a cue staff to full size

Preventing attached lyrics and chord symbols from shrinking

Custom lines

Placing a custom line

Changing which custom line is assigned to the palette icon

Cut time

Changing the cut-time display

Mixing abbreviated and non-abbreviated cut and common time signatures

Cutaway scores

D

Dashed lines

Drawing a Smart Shape dashed line

Moving, reshaping, or deleting a Smart Shape dashed line

Date stamps

D.C.

Diminution

Distances

Changing the distance between staves

Making all staves equidistant

Changing the distance between staff lines

Changing the distance between notes

Changing the clef, key, and meter distances

Divisi

Document Styles

Doits

Dotted notes

Removing a dot from a note

Changing the position of all dots

Changing the position of a single dot

Undoing individual dot positioning

Double barlines

Double whole notes

Downbeats

Moving all downbeats graphically

Altering the key velocity of downbeats

Altering the attack points of downbeats

D.S., D.S. al Coda

Placing a (sign) marking into the score

Placing a “D.S.” marking into the score

Dynamics

Designing a dynamic marking

Inserting a dynamic marking into the score

Moving or delete a dynamic marking

Defining a dynamic marking for playback

E

8va/8vb

Elapsed Time

Elisions

Creating invisible syllables when typing lyrics

Creating an elision slur between lyrics

Encapsulated PostScript (EPS)

Enharmonics

Changing a note to its enharmonic equivalent (Speedy Entry)

Changing a note to its enharmonic equivalent (Simple Entry)

Changing a chord’s enharmonic spelling (Speedy Entry)

Changing all occurrences of a note (search and replace)

Engraver slurs

Editing engraver slurs

Defining engraver slurs

Ensembles

Erasing

Erasing everything from a selected region

Erasing a note, rest, or chord (Simple Entry)

Erasing a note from a chord

Erasing selected elements from a selected region

Exploding music

Expressions

Assigning an expression to a staff

Adding an expression to multiple staves (Score Lists)

Assigning expressions to multiple staves (Assignment Lists)

Adding an expression using metatools

Moving or delete an expression

Creating an expression

Erasing expressions from a region

Copying expressions

Moving expressions assigned to score lists

Defining an expression for playback

Changing the default positioning for an expression category

Adjusting the vertical positioning of expressions on a baseline

Creating expression Metatools

Extracting parts

F

Fall-offs

Fermatas

Figured bass

Final barline

Fingering numbers

First and second endings

Creating a repeat with first and second endings

Adjusting the brackets on a repeat ending

Changing the default bracket height for repeats (and set the number font)

Moving, hiding, or deleting a text repeat

Changing a backward repeat’s playback definition

Hiding the ending brackets and text repeats for a specified staff

Flags

Changing the character assignment for a flag

Using Straight Flags

Adjusting the placement of Horizontal and Angled Straight Flags

Flutter-tongue

Font Annotation

Fonts

PostScript and TrueType

Where are the fonts installed?

Globally changing a musical element’s font

Changing music fonts

Changing every occurrence of one font to another

Changing every occurrence of a font to a different size or style

Changing the music font of noteheads on a staff by staff basis

Eliminating dimmed font names from a document’s font lists

Transporting files across platforms

Engraver Font: The Alternate Notehead Sets

Fretboard diagrams

Creating or showing fretboard diagrams globally

Showing and hiding fretboards for a region

Showing and hiding fretboards on individual chords (Manual Input)

Removing all fretboard diagrams

Moving the fretboard diagrams up or down

Moving fretboards indivudually

Custom fretboards

Creating a chord chart with lyrics

Fugues

G

Garritan Instruments for Finale

Configuring instrument playback

Choosing the appropriate Garritan sound (Player vs. Solo instruments)

Adding keyswitches as expressions

Glissandos

Moving, reshaping, or deleting a Smart Shape glissando

Defining glissando placement settings

Changing which glissando is assigned to the palette icon

Creating a playback glissando

Grace notes

Creating a grace note (Speedy Entry)

Creating a grace note (Simple Entry)

Beaming grace notes

Changing the size of grace notes

Adding or remove the slashes from grace notes globally

Adding or remove the slashes from individual grace notes

Adding a slash to beamed grace notes

Eliminating grace notes from a transcription

Creating a graphic only “slashed” grace note

Grand pause

Creating a G.P. marking

Moving or deleting the G.P. marking

Forcing a break in a multimeasure rest

Graphics

Exporting a region of music as a graphic

Exporting full pages of music as graphics (Page View)

Placing graphics into the score

Placing graphics into the Shape Designer

Assigning a graphic to one or more pages

Assigning a graphic to a measure

Scaling a placed graphic proportionally

Positioning placed graphics on-screen

Positioning page-assigned graphics (Graphics Menu)

Positioning page-assigned graphics (Graphic Attributes dialog box)

Positioning measure-assigned graphics (Graphic Attributes dialog box)

Positioning page-assigned graphics on left- and right-facing pages (Graphic Attributes dialog box)

Locating a linked graphic on your computer

Grids and Guides

Showing the grid

Creating a guide

Snapping to grids and guides

Group names

Creating or edit a group name

Positioning group names (globally)

Repositioning group names (individually)

Setting the initial font for group names

Hiding a group name (full score)

Groups

Grouping staves

Removing a group

Changing the attributes of a group

Adding staves to a group

Removing staves from a group

Configuring a multiple-staff part to collapse

Guitar

Adding hammer-ons, pull-offs and other guitar-specific markings

Adding guitar markings

Adding guitar bends

Combining notes with rhythmic notation slashes on one staff

Creating pitched slashes (note-by-note method)

Using a MIDI guitar for entry

H

Harmonics

Harmonic analysis

Harp pedal diagrams

Headless notes

Removing the head of a single note

Removing all noteheads

Removing all noteheads in a region

Hiding key signatures

Hiding notes and rests

Hiding staves

Hiding staves for editing (Scroll View)

Hiding staves for ossia measures or special playback

Hiding staves with music from specific systems

Hiding empty staves

Showing empty staves

"Force hiding" staves (with music)

Showing "force hidden" staves

Hiding time signatures

Hiding the time signature in a measure

Hiding automatic courtesy time signatures

Human Playback

GPO and Human Playback

Human Playback Dictionary

Instrument Techniques and Effects

House styles

Hymns

Hyphens

HyperScribe

I

Imploding music

Importing

Importing text

Opening files from earlier versions of Finale or other MakeMusic products

Inserts

Instruments

Adding or inserting a new Instrument

Deleting Instrument staves

Reordering Instrument staves

Adding mid-score instrument changes

Removing mid-score instrument changes

Configuring instrument playback

K

Key signatures

Key velocity

Editing key velocity with the MIDI Tool

Recording key velocity information

Keyless scores

L

Landscape and Portrait orientation

Lead sheets

Ledger lines

Left barlines

Legal-size paper

Limiting MIDI data

Linked parts (see Parts)

Lyrics

Typing lyrics directly into the score

Preparing lyrics in a separate window

Placing lyrics into the score (click assignment)

Editing lyrics already in the score

Correcting misaligned lyrics

Correcting overlapping lyrics

Setting the font for lyrics globally

Changing fonts within a lyric

Preventing changing the type size for lyrics attached to cue notes

Setting the baseline (vertical position) for lyrics numerically

Setting the baseline (vertical position) for lyrics graphically

Moving or delete a syllable

Erasing lyrics

Copying lyrics

Cloning lyrics

Changing alignment and justification of syllables for individual notes

Setting alignment and justification of syllables globally

Drawing “word extension” underlines

Adding “word extensions” on specific syllables only

Adjusting the position of “word extension” underlines

Numbering lyrics

Aligning syllables at the beginning of measures

M

Macros

Major seconds (in different voices and layers)

Manuscript paper

Margins

Changing page margins

Changing default page margins numerically

Masks

Masking a portion of a staff

Moving, reshaping, or deleting a Shape Expression mask

Masking a portion of the score using the Graphics Tool

Moving, reshaping or deleting a Graphics Tool mask

Measure layout

Moving a measure to the previous (or next) system

Forcing selected measures into one system

Removing measure groups through the end of the piece

Removing measure groups for individual systems

Creating a system break

Measure numbers

Creating measure numbers

Removing measure numbers from a single staff

Moving a single measure number

Adding a measure number to an existing region

Reshaping or removing a measure number’s enclosure

Measure repeat signs

Measures

Adding blank measures at the end of the document

Inserting blank measures within a document

Erasing or removing measures

Deleting a measure from a single staff

Changing one measure’s width

Adjusting measure widths in a system

Changing the widths of many measures

Specifying minimum or maximum measure widths

Splitting a measure across a system break

Hiding measures

Measures per line

Specifying a number of measures per line (within a region)

Removing measure groups from the current page to the end

Removing measure groups from a selected region

Melismas

Creating invisible syllables when typing lyrics

Shifting lyrics to the right or left

Metatools

Metronome markings

Creating a metronome marking

Moving or deleting the marking

Defining the metronome marking for playback

Creating complex metronome markings

MicNotator

Setting up MicNotator

Using MicNotator with Speedy Entry

Using MicNotator with Simple Entry

Using MicNotator with HyperScribe

MIDI

Recorded MIDI data

Copying or erasing captured (or edited) MIDI data

Sending an All Notes Off message

Correcting erratic MIDI playback

Specifying the MIDI device

Changing a MIDI channel in mid-staff

Moving or deleting the channel-change expression

Assigning a staff to more than one MIDI channel

Editing note durations

Removing and copying MIDI data

Editing continuous MIDI data

Editing key velocities

More uses for key velocities and note duration commands

MIDI files

Importing a MIDI file

Exporting a MIDI file

MIDI Sync

Transmitting MIDI Sync data while playing back a Finale document

Receiving MIDI Sync data while playing back a Finale document

Using the MIDI Sync signal to provide the “tap” in HyperScribe

Transmitting Song Pointer data during playback

Minor keys

Mixer

Mirroring

Creating a mirror (intelligent copy)

Identifying mirrored measures in the score

Converting mirrored measures into “normal” measures

Creating a composite mirror

Rebeaming or edit an existing mirror

Mordents

Multimeasure rests

Setting up the appearance of multimeasure rests

Displaying symbols for multimeasure rests

Creating a multimeasure rest

Breaking a multimeasure rest

Editing the appearance of a multimeasure rest

Displaying a measure number range for a multimeasure rest

Multiple key signatures

Multiple Movements

Multiple Passes and Endings

Creating multiple passes for a repeat ending

Creating multiple endings

Multiple time signatures

Multiple voices

Entering multiple voices using layers

Moving music from one layer to another

Entering multiple voices using V1/V2

Entering additional voices by superimposing staves

Music spacing

Turning off Automatic Music Spacing

Loading a Music Spacing library into an open document

Reapplying music spacing over a region

Editing an existing Music Spacing library

Restoring a region to proportional spacing

Creating a new Music Spacing library from scratch

Saving your edited or newly created Music Spacing library

Specifying minimum or maximum measure widths

Mutes

N

Neutral key

Nonstandard key signatures

Creating nonstandard key signatures

Creating a quarter-tone scale or key signature

Note positioning

Note shapes

Changing the shape of a notehead

Copying individual notehead changes to other measures

Changing all notehead shapes of a specified duration and pitch

Note size

Reducing or enlarging the notes (but retain staff size)

Reducing or enlarging selected notes (or noteheads)

Restoring a region of modified notes to their original size

Noteheads

Note values (durations)

O

Ossia

Creating a floating (ossia) measure

Hiding the scratch staff

Moving, editing, or deleting a floating measure

P

Page layout

Changing the distance between systems

Specifying a number of systems per page

Changing the page margins

Setting the page size

Changing the page layout

Changing the default page layout (Page Format for Score dialog box)

Applying a different page layout to selected pages

Page numbers

Page size

Page turns

Page View

Parentheses

Part names

Parts

Special mouse clicks and keyboard shortcuts

Creating linked parts

Navigating linked parts

Hiding an item in the score (and leave it showing in parts)

Showing an item in the score (and hide it in all Parts)

Showing an item in one part only (and hide it in other parts and the score)

Repositioning an item in the score without moving it in parts

Repositioning an item in all parts while viewing a part

Expressions in linked parts

Repositioning expressions in linked parts

Show/hide setting for expressions in linked parts

Articulations in linked parts

Measure-attached text in linked parts

Page-attached text in linked parts

Single-page-attached text blocks

Multiple-page-attached text blocks

Page-attached graphics and in linked parts

Single page-attached graphics

Multiple page-attached graphics

Measure-attached graphics in linked parts

Tuplets in linked parts

Smart Shapes in linked parts

Note and notehead-attached Smart Shapes

Measure-attached smart shapes

Repeats in linked parts

Repositioning text repeats

Repositioning ending brackets

Show/hide setting for text repeats and ending brackets

Staff attributes in linked parts

Groups in linked parts

Staff Styles in linked parts

Chords, fretboards, and lyrics in linked parts

Hiding chords/fretboards

Hiding lyrics

Lead sheets in linked parts

Clefs in linked parts

Staff Lists in linked parts

Measure numbers in linked parts

Page-attached ossia measures in linked parts

Measure attributes in linked parts

Page layout in linked parts

Applying page layout settings to multiple parts

Music spacing in linked parts

Multimeasure rests in linked parts

Baseline positioning in linked parts

Adjusting baselines in the score

Adjusting baselines in a part

Baseline context menus

Enharmonics in linked parts

Time signatures in linked parts

Relinking part items to the score

Part names in linked parts

Printing linked parts

Tacet parts

Staff properties (ScoreManager) in linked parts

Part Voicing

Patches

Establishing the initial program settings for each staff

Setting up a patch change on playback

“Chasing” patch changes before playback

Setting up patch changes using the MIDI Tool

Pedal markings

Creating pedal down and pedal up markings (Smart Shape method)

Drawing a pedal on/off diagram (Smart Shape method)

Creating playback pedaling using the MIDI Tool

Percussion

Percussion note entry

Loading a percussion layout library

Saving a percussion layout library

Creating a percussion staff

Editing percussion layouts

Creating a percussion staff with a customized percussion layout

Adjusting stem connections on noteheads

Creating slashes-with-cues drum notation

Importing a MIDI file with a standard percussion track

Assigning Note Types for regions of percussion notation

Identifying MIDI Note numbers for percussion notation

Changing Percussion MIDI Maps mid-score

Configuring Percussion Playback

Creating Output Maps for playback to an external MIDI device

Changing the percussion font

Piano reductions

Pickup measures

Pitch wheel

Editing pitch wheel data

Creating a pitch bend (as an expression)

Pizzicato

Playback

Playing back a score

Using the Playback Controls

Using real-time mixer controls

Playing back selected staves

Sending an All Notes Off message

Correcting erratic MIDI playback

Specifying playback parameters

Making the music scroll during playback

“Audio spot-checking” music

Configuring instrument playback

Portrait orientation

PostScript

Printing

Q

Quantization Guide

R

Rallentando

Placing a Rall. marking into a score

Moving or deleting a Rall. marking

Defining a Rall. marking for playback

Returning to the original tempo after a rallentando (a tempo)

Ranges

Recording with HyperScribe

Recording into one or two staves

Using multitrack recording (HyperScribe)

Using a metronome click with VST

Recording an audio track

Correcting audio recording latency

Rebarring music

Redraw

Reducing/enlarging

Reducing or enlarging a staff or system

Reducing or enlarging all the music on a page (or the entire piece)

Preventing certain items from shrinking

Rehearsal marks

Adding rehearsal marks

Defining and adding custom rehearsal marks

Moving or deleting a rehearsal mark

Restarting rehearsal mark numbering

Repeats (barlines and text indications)

Placing a basic repeat in your score

Deleting a repeat barline

Breaking a repeat barline that connects staves

Placing a text repeat in your score

Rests (Simple Entry)

Moving a rest vertically

Adding a rest

Changing a rest’s duration

Changing a rest to a note

Changing a note to a rest

Hiding a rest

Rests (Speedy Entry)

Moving a rest vertically or horizontally

Adding a rest

Changing a rest’s duration

Changing a rest to a note

Changing a single note to a rest

Hiding a rest

Retranscription

Reverse stems

Creating a reverse stem

Temporarily displaying reverse-stemmed notes with normal stems

Rolled chords

Creating the rolled chord marking

Adjusting, moving, or deleting the rolled chord marking

Defining a rolled chord marking for playback

Running headers

S

Scanning

Choosing the best scanner for SmartScore

Scanning and importing sheet music

Using your scanner's software to scan sheet music for Finale import

Third-party scanning software (ScanVue)

Importing scanned TIFF files

Scroll View

Search and replace

Selecting music

Selecting a region of measures

Selecting a large region without scrolling

Shape Designer

Entering the Shape Designer

Creating a shape

Shape note music

Simple Entry

Using a mouse to enter music

Using your computer keyboard to enter music (Simple Entry)

Slashes

Slurs

Creating a note-attached slur

Moving, reshaping, or deleting Smart Shape slurs

Changing a note-attached slur’s direction

Defining Slur Contour (height and shape) settings for note-attached slurs

Defining Slur Placement settings for note-attached slurs

Defining Slur System Break settings

Defining Slur Thickness

Copying Smart Shape slurs

SmartMusic

Creating a solo assessment file without accompaniment

Creating a solo assessment file with accompaniment

Creating a new SmartMusic ensemble file

Creating a new SmartMusic solo with accompaniment

Creating a solo assessment file from a Finale exercise

Preparing a file for SmartMusic

Assigning instruments for SmartMusic accompaniments

SmartMusic Compatibility Guidelines

SmartMusic Performance Markers

Adding SmartMusic performance markers

Adding SmartMusic performance markers as expressions

Adding pause markers for a SmartMusic Accompaniment

Defining and add pause markers manually with the Expression Tool

Adding pause markers for ritardandos or rallentandos

Pausing for accompaniment rests or held notes

Adding pause markers for fermatas

Adding pause markers for cadenzas

SMPTE and MIDI Time Code

Snapping to grids and guides

Snapping items to a grid or guide

Setting up a grid

Setting up guides

SoundFonts

Sound Maps

Speedy Entry

Split points

Specifying a fixed split point

Correcting split point errors

Spacing

Special Tools

Staccato marks

Defining a staccato mark for playback

Creating staccato playback with the MIDI Tool

Staff groups

Staff handles

Staff Tool: Staff handles in page view

Selecting staves

Working with staff groups

Staff lines

Specifying the number of lines for a staff

Setting the staff line thickness

Staff names

Creating or edit a staff name

Repositioning staff names (globally)

Repositioning staff names (individually)

Setting the initial font for staff names

Hiding a staff name (full score)

Staff size

Staff styles

Creating a staff style

Editing a staff style

Applying a staff style

Clearing staff styles from a measure region

Clearing a staff style

Deleting a staff style definition

Creating a staff style metatool

Applying a staff style metatool

Loading a staff style library

Saving a staff style library

Displaying a staff differently in one part than another

Start and stop times

Editing the start and stop times of selected notes

Erasing Start and Stop Time editing done with the MIDI Tool

Copying Start and Stop Time editing done with the MIDI Tool

Creating a legato playback

Staves

Adding or insert a single staff

Moving staves

Deleting staves

Adding evenly spaced staves

Spacing existing staves evenly

Hiding empty staves

Hiding (or showing) staff-related items

Recovering deleted staves

Setting the attributes for a staff

Reordering Instrument staves

Stemless notes

Creating stemless notes globally

Creating stemless notes, note-by-note

Stems

Flipping a stem (Speedy Entry)

Flipping a stem (Simple Entry)

Flipping all stems in a region in one direction

Changing “frozen” stems back to variable-direction stems

Changing stem lengths, note by note

Changing stem lengths globally

Changing the position of the stem relative to its notehead

Changing the thickness of stems

Drawing completely new shapes for stems

Creating a double or split stem

Creating reverse stems

Copying custom stemming to other measures

Removing custom stemming from a region

Studio View

Swing

Notating swing performances (HyperScribe)

Defining swing playback manually with expressions

Creating swing playback globally or in a region

Syncopation

System (line) break

Systems

Indenting or move a system

Forcing a system onto the next page

Reducing or enlarge a system

T

Tab slides

Creating a tab slide

Defining tab slide placement settings

Changing which tab slide is assigned to the palette icon

Tablature

Creating tablature notation

Entering directly into a tablature staff (Simple Entry)

Entering tablature with Speedy Entry

Editing guitar tablature

Creating a tablature staff manually

Adding stems and beams to tablature

Changing the lowest fret of a region

Time signatures on tablature staves

Templates

Tempo (for playback)

Setting the initial playback tempo

Modifying the playback tempo

Tempo markings

Placing a tempo marking in the score

Modifying the playback tempo

Defining a tempo marking for playback

Tempo Tap

Text

Text blocks

Creating text in a frame that automatically expands as you type

Creating text within a fixed-size frame

Editing text on-screen

Resizing a text block on-screen

Resizing a custom frame

Assigning a text block to one or more pages

Assigning a text block to a measure

Positioning text blocks on-screen

Positioning page-assigned text blocks (Text Menu)

Positioning page-assigned text blocks (Frame Attributes dialog box)

Positioning measure-assigned text blocks (Frame Attributes dialog box)

Positioning page-assigned text blocks on left- and right-facing pages (Frame Attributes dialog box)

Deleting a text block

Specifying a default font for text blocks

Text inserts

Ties

Adding or removing a tie (Simple Entry Tool)

Adding or removing a tie (Speedy Entry Tool)

Adding a tie backwards (Speedy Entry Tool)

Changing the direction of a tie (Simple Entry or Speedy Entry Tool)

Changing the direction of a tie (Special Tools Tool)

Adjusting the direction of ties on chords globally

Adjusting the direction of ties on opposing seconds globally

Adjusting the direction of ties with mixed stems globally

Adjusting the direction of ties in a region

Changing an individual tie’s shape and placement by dragging it on the score

Adjusting placement of ties globally

Adjusting the placement of an individual tie

Adjusting the shape of ties globally

Adjusting the shape of an individual tie

Using outer placement setting for outer ties on chords and single tied notes globally

Changing the outer placement setting for an individual tie

Avoiding staff lines with ties over a region

Breaking ties across time and key signature changes globally

Breaking ties in a region at time or key signature changes

Breaking an individual tie at a time or key signature change

Adjusting ties for augmentation dots

Shifting ties for intervals of a second

Avoiding accidentals for single ties

Removing manual positioning over a region

Setting a minimum space between tied notes

Tiling pages for printing

Tiling pages with the Print dialog box

Tiling pages (with Compile Postscript Listing)

Time signatures

Title page

Titles

Creating extra room at the top of the page

Adding a title

Moving or deleting a title

Specifying a default font for titles

Transposing: by interval

Transposing: changing key

Transposing instruments

Defining a staff transposition

Transposing a staff chromatically

Displaying a score in concert pitch (or in transposed form)

Adding mid-score instrument changes

Tremolos

Placing a tremolo marking

Creating a measured or unmeasured tremolo marking

Trills

Creating a trill or trill extension line (wavy line)

Creating a small accidental on a trill marking

Defining a trill marking for playback

Tuplets

Turning “normal” notes into a tuplet group

Adjusting, moving, or deleting a tuplet

Entering tuplets with the Simple Entry Tool

Entering tuplets with the Speedy Entry Tool

Creating a nested tuplet

Transcribing tuplets from a real-time performance

Predefining the appearance of tuplets

Tuplets (Simple Entry)

U

Undo

Undoing the last change or a series of changes to your document

Undoing a series of changes up to a specified point

Re-applying changes to your document using redo

Redoing a series of changes up to a specified point

Allowing undo actions previous to saving a file

Unicode fonts

V

Video

Vocal music

Volume

VST

W

Whole rests

Adding a real whole rest

Moving a real whole rest

Turning off the default whole rests for a staff

Filling measures with rests

Changing the character for default measure rests

Z

Zoom in /Zoom out

 

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Finale 2014 for Windows

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