Changing number of lines in staff

• Aug 31, 2021 - 14:26

I'm wanting to do percussion 1 line notation, and I know to R-click the staff > Staff/Part Properties and then reduce the 'Lines' from 5 to 1...but the issue is that it removes the lines from bottom to top.

Effectively it shows 1 line, but the notation is now beneath the line. The notation doesn't adjust with the removal of lines.

Is there a way to remove the outside lines and leave the center line? e.g. in Treble clef, remove the E, G, _, D, F lines, leaving the conspicuous B line. (Right now the program defaults to removing the E, G, B, D lines)


Comments

What percussion instrument(s) are you attempting to notate on 1 line?
MuseScore has some instruments (like snare, tambourine, claves...) selectable as 1 line percussion.

If you have a drumset definition designed for use on a five-line staff, most likely it is using all five lines, so no matter which lines are removed, 80% of the notes will now be on non-existent lines. You need to edit your drumset definition for the staff to use the top line (line 0) instead of whatever line your original drumset was trying to use. Or simply use a staff that was designed for this in the first place as mentioned above, instead of starting with five lines then changing to one. What instrument are you writing for?

In reply to by Marc Sabatella

Marching Snare. I started with 1 line notation in the score setup window. But when I started entering notes, they were added 2 ledger lines down (Treble clef B line).

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by 'edit your [instrument] definition for the staff to use the top line". That phrasing sounds promising, but I would need steps. Thanks for the quick reply.

In reply to by KirkHensley

Have you read the Handbook section on percussion input? It explains how to edit drumset definitions. Basically, use the "Edit drumset" button or command in the right-click menu, and then follow the procedure described in the documentation.

Marching snare is indeed set up to use a five-line staff, because it's assumed you will be using enough different sounds & effects to need more than one, and the default drumset is set up to do exactly that (while still leaving you lines free for your own customizations). If you don't really plan on using all those different sounds, consider just using the standard snare, which is set up to be one-line to begin with, and its drumset definition is optimized for that usage (eg, just the two sounds available). You can still customize it to add more, however you like.

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