Easy enharmonics

• Sep 16, 2009 - 22:31

As I have been working with MuseScore, the one feature that would make my life easier is a keyboard shortcut for enharmonics. When adjusting a note with the arrow keys, the accidentals used are not always logical in context. It requires you to go up or down a note, and then add an accidental..

What this would involve is a key sequence that, when pressed, would replace a note with its enharmonic. So if you enter an "D" and then hit "Down" to go down to D♭, this key sequence would replace the D♭ with C♯.

Maybe this would be easier as a plugin with a keyboard shortcut?

Thank you so much for your help, and for your work on this wonderful piece of libre software!


Comments

I agree that would be helpful. Although for me it would be easiest if the spelling was just consistent with the direction of the arrow key. So that pressing C and arrow up would always give you a C# and D arrow down would always give you a Db.

The other option is to add your own shortcuts for sharp or flat. I use - for flat and = for sharp. The equals sign makes seen on the US keyboard layout because it is on the same key as the plus sign.

Do you have other suggestions for logical choices for flat and sharp keys that are not already taken?

To customize your shortcuts go to Edit > Preferences > Shortcuts

In reply to by David Bolton

I like to use Q for sharp. The reason is that I only rarely need a flat, as most notes are automaticaly flat anyway. Using this key allows me to keep my left hand on the left side of the keyboard for entering notes, and my right hand on the number pad for entering durations, and my right thumb on the arrow keys. So when I need a sharp, it's already in my hands, instead of having to move. I have used W as double-sharp and V as flat, but these get lost when I upgrade and I don't bother to replace them.
Maybe they're not logical based on what is on the key, but I use them so often that I think being under your hand is more important as the key position is quickly memorized.

I would simply like to have a default keystroke to switch any selected note to its enharmonic equivalent, instead of having to go to the menu. In Finale, you can press either 9 or / to change the note. I have not found an equivalent in MuseScore.

Gus

In reply to by LostHoosier

using 9 or 8 wouldn't be a bad idea I guess. Some might object that the shortcut is taken, but do we really need a shortcut for the longa note? Until I started using this program, I'd never even seen one. I have seen double whole notes, but very rarely. It wouldn't be a bother if this note lost it's key and we had to use the mouse to click it.

In reply to by MDMilford

I would certainly agree that using 9 for an enharmonic shift would be very useful. It does work well this way in Finale.

In terms of amount of use, one would imagine that applying enharmonics would be used more than entering longa notes.

(Breves on the other hand are much more common).

In reply to by mhindson

NO NO, MuseScore team, please do NOT abandon the longua !
BTW, is there any logical connection between 9 and enharmonics ?
Why not e or crtl-e or anything but not an already used shortcut !

Let's not reduce universe to our own experience. If you get the *modern* edition "Philarmonia" n°470 of Monteverdi's Vespers, you'll find a lot of longuas.

In reply to by Alain Naigeon

Alain Naigeon, The above discussion was not about abandoning or removing the capabilities of MuseScore to write longa notes. The above discussion was about reassigning the keyboard shortcut for longua to something that many users encounter frequently (wrong enharmonic spelling). If the shortcut did change in future versions of MuseScore and you preferred to use the old shortcut because of the particular scores you work with then there is nothing stopping you from changing the shortcuts for your own computer via Edit > Preferences > Shortcuts.

In reply to by David Bolton

Ok David, however having 1 -8 for note values, and 9 meaning something quite different, still sounds strange to me.
Is 9 the only available shortcut left ?
Why not something like control+exclamation mark, for instance, or any such idea ?

(and, BTW, I do support this request of a enharmonics toggle - but not with 9 as a default shortcut)

In reply to by antoniomarchionne

As per the discussion above. It is not possible to change a selected note to its enharmonic equivalent in current versions of MuseScore. You can change a note by dragging or using the arrow keys and adding accidentals as needed to achieve the same effect.

Seems like a lot of discussion for a simple solution that already exists. To change a B# to a C press the "up" arrow, then the "down" arrow. To change a Cb to a B press the "down" arrow, then the "up" arrow. No need to remember (or look up) yet another short cut key.

In reply to by trombonechamp

Note this discussion is from several years ago. A lot has changed since then. I think at that time things may not have worked as well as they do now.

Currently, B# can be entered simply enough as B followed by the shortcut for "#", assuming you have defined one. Or if you already have a C, then down arrow followed by whatever shortcut you have defined for sharp. So it's never more than two keystrokes to change any note to its enharmonic equivalent. But in 2.0, it gets even easier - "J" will toggle the enharmonic spelling of any note.

In reply to by MDMilford

Fwiw, that much goes better if you add the double sharps in rervse order. That is, enter F's first for them all' then go back right to left and add the double sharps. Same for E# et al. The algorithm has changed for 2.0 so if you enter a note with an acceental, notes later in the measure automatically inherit that accidentl, so this shouldn't be an issue any more.

In reply to by Marc Sabatella

In current (pre-launch) versions of 2.0, MuseScore inherits the accidental for the remainder of the measure if you enter the note by mouse or alpha keyboard, but not if you enter the note by MIDI keyboard.

For example to create a measure of E-sharps, press the MIDI key then press J twice, and repeat for each instance. Finale has the same annoyance for MIDI entry. Only Sibelius gets this right; it continues the E-sharps through the measure during MIDI note entry.

Relevant bug report: #20890: Continue accidentals through measure for MIDI entry

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