I want to change the display of chord symbols in musescore to something other than the existing ones.
I usually use jazz style chord symbols in musescore, but I'm experiencing the following problems and would like to use non-existing symbols. Can I make my own or download them from somewhere and register them? How can I do this?
Problem 1
When there is more than one tension, for example, when a 7th chord has -9 and 13, the -9 and 13 are lined up horizontally, and the display shows -913. I want to arrange the -9 and 13 vertically.
Problem 2
Sometimes b or # is added to the tension. In this case, the root of the chord is sometimes misunderstood as having a b or #! For example, if you see Gb9, does it mean that Gb has a natural 9th, or does it mean that G has b9th? And so on. For this reason, I prefer to use - and + for tension b and #, but musescore doesn't allow me to do this!
Comments
For your first problem, those sorts of customizations are being worked on for a future version of MuseScore.
For the second, it is important to understand that Gb always means Gb. That is, a flat sign directly after a note name letter always means to flat the note, not what comes after. A plain triad with a b9 is a very rare thing, but if you do have some special reason to want one, you need to enclose the b9 in parentheses. Not just for MsueScore, but for human musicians as well. Because MuseScore follows the same rules humans do. So, Gb9 is a Gb ninth chord, G(b9) is a G chord with a flat nine.
Use of - and + for alterations, but it is highly discouraged by most musicians, editors, and publishers, because those symbols are much more often used to mean minor and augmented and thus will cause confusion that could more easily be avoid by use of parentheses in the rare cases where you need alterations on plain triads. But it is also possible a future version of MuseScore will allow for - and +.
In reply to For your first problem,… by Marc Sabatella
Thank you for your reply!
Isn't it common to write C9 as C7 with a 9th, rather than C triad with a 9th? Similarly, I think it is common to write C b9 for C7 with a b9.
By the way, in musescore, when I type C79, it shows exactly C79, instead of 9 being a small letter representing tension. If I omit the 7th and type C9 to avoid this display, the 9 will be displayed as a small letter representing tension.
If musescore is going to promote the omission of the 7th, why can't Cb9 be displayed in the same way! And it would be better if it was C-9, less misleading!
In reply to Thank you for your reply!… by pandamijinko
I'm not fully understanding your questions, but no, neither, C79 nor Cb9 to mean a C chord of some kind are common - pretty much unheard of (no published music would ever do that.
Regarding the chord C-E-G-Bb-D, the standard name for that is simply C9. That always means, include the seventh as well. There are *some published who might choose to notate it a C7(9) but that's really unnecessary. C79 is always just plain wrong. A C triad with no seventh but an added ninth would be C(add9). Some might notate it C2.
Regarding Cb9, that is a Cb ninth chord - Cb Eb Eb Bbb Dd. Under no circumstances does it mean a C triad with a flatted ninth. As mentioned, that would be a rare chord to begin with - people reading chord symbols generally need to understand the aquAlity of the chord in order to construct appropriate voicings or improvise effectively, and that means specifying the seventh. but if you ever do want a C triad with a flatted ninth, you need to use parentheses C(b9).
And C-9 is definitely a thing - but it means C minor ninth (C Eb G Bb D), not anything about a flatted ninth.
These are not MuseScore quirks, it's how chord symbol notation works in general - how real musicians are accustomed to reading and writing it.
In reply to I'm not fully understanding… by Marc Sabatella
Thanks for the reply!
It's official, you're right!
However, a major 7th should be written as △7, but I've seen many scores where only △ refers to a major 7th.
Personally, I'm in favor of using C△ to mean CM7, since major triads should be written as C.
Anyway, thanks for taking the time to answer my question!