MusicXML import/export fairly broken (3.0a2, also some 2.3.2 issues)
Hi. I'm a Wikipedia editor, but also a MuseScore user for several years. I tested the MusicXML import/export in 3.0a2 after writing my Community Wishlist Survey proposal for allowing MuseScore or MusicXML uploads and rendering in MediaWiki (https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Community_Wishlist_Survey_2019/Multimed…). (Basically a team of Wikimedia Foundation staff developers annually take a few software requests, selected by popular vote from a pool of proposals.)
I made a score in 2.3.2, opened it in 3.0a2, saved it, closed it, reopened it, exported it to .mxl, and then opened the new file.
There are at least several issues; some of these are regressions from 2.3.2 and some of these are not. I'm not that familiar with the bug tracker which is why I'm putting this on the forum. It's not clear to me if all of them are MuseScore issues, but regardless I think at least some of them are fairly serious.
* I originally made the score in 2.3.2. After saving in 3.0a2, closing and reopening, there are six extra clefs. (This is not an issue with the export.)
* After exporting, all staves become single-line, but notes are still positioned as if they are on multi-line staves. All 13 of the clefs are gone, too. (Doesn't happen in 2.3.2.)
* The title is right-aligned and bottom-aligned. (Doesn't happen in 2.3.2.) When I deselected "Automatic placement" on that element, some of the other elements moved; for example, the notes were placed onto the lines of the single-line staves. (Not applicable to 2.3.2.)
* The pizzicato and tremolo channel changes are gone. (Also happens in 2.3.2. According to the LilyPond/MediaWiki developer who commented on the proposal, MusicXML should support MIDI instructions.)
* The fretboard diagram is gone.
* One of the custom noteheads is gone.
* The "don't break" element is gone. (Not applicable to 2.3.2.)
* The setting to hide the Hand Clap stave is gone. (Also happens in 2.3.2.)
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Test 3.0.mscz | 16.26 KB |
| Test 3.0.mxl | 3.71 KB |
Comments
(Also, how are bulleted lists made in this forum software? I can't figure it out. The Markdown documentation told me to use the HTML tags but the software just strips them out.)
In reply to (Also, how are lists made in… by jc86035
you just did. using - or * with a space after and optional space before and en empty line before the 1st
In reply to you just did. using - or *… by Jojo-Schmitz
Using an asterisk did not display correctly in the preview. What I did instead was to use the Unicode character • in place of actual formatting, as well as using ul and li tags.
In reply to Using a bullet point did not… by jc86035
list
So * works, that's what I used above
In reply to list * * * by Jojo-Schmitz
I'm not going to try editing it any more because this genuinely seems to be broken.
In reply to I'm not going to try editing… by jc86035
Looking at the page source in Chrome, you added more than one space between the asterisk and the text you want as a bulleted list. You should only use one space after the asterisk, i.e.:
HTH
EDIT: seems I am wrong. Sorry for that. All I can then say, is that sometimes another regular forum user's (Marc Sabatella's) comments which should be italicised because it is between asterisks, displays for me in Chrome both on a Windows 7 x86 machine and an Android phone as asterisks. So there seems to be a problem rendering the markdown which only affects some people's comments. Don't ask me why. Maybe you would like to open an issue about this.
In reply to Looking at the page source… by Louis Cloete
Looks all correct to me
But the empty line before the 1st * is wrong in the initial post
In reply to Looks all correct to me by Jojo-Schmitz
Yes, sorry, see my edit
In reply to Looking at the page source… by Louis Cloete
Wait, you're saying if I put text between asterisks, you don't see italics, but if you or somebody else does, it works?
In reply to Wait, you're saying if I put… by Marc Sabatella
(the above was a test, it worked for me, I see "I", "you", and "somebody else" in italics, in Chrome.
In reply to (the above was a test, it… by Marc Sabatella
I also see them in italics on Chrome, Windows 7 in this specific comment, but it is an intermittent thing. Sometimes I see your posts correctly displayed, sometimes I see normal, unitalicised text between asterisks in your posts. I also don't think you are the only one whose posts are sometimes displayed incorrectly, it is just frequently your posts.
In reply to (the above was a test, it… by Marc Sabatella
Also displaying italics as it should on my Android phone in this specific case.
In reply to (the above was a test, it… by Marc Sabatella
I'll comment on the broken markdown comment if I see it again.
In reply to I'll comment on the broken… by Louis Cloete
Maybe you've seen the broken markdown in the notification emails?
In reply to Maybe you've seen the broken… by Jojo-Schmitz
Well, the "I", "you" and "somebody else" is italics in the emails I received just now...
3.0 issues should get discussed in the Development and Technonolgy Preview forum
In reply to 3.0 issues should get… by Jojo-Schmitz
Is there a "move post" function or do I repost this there?
In reply to Is there a "move post"… by jc86035
there is none, not to mere mortals. only the website admins like @Thomas can do it
Reposing it there just causes confusion now, just remember to post the next topic there ;-)
Edit: oops too late
In reply to Is there a "move post"… by jc86035
Reposted (and then blanked) (https://musescore.org/en/node/277715)
anyway...
The main reason I tested this was because of the channel change issue, which showed up in 2.3.2 and would have been fairly irritating for the wishlist proposal. Am I doing something wrong? I searched the forums and couldn't find anyone that had found that issue.
Responding to the actual problem reports:
I am not following you. I started 3.0 alpha 2, opened your MXL file, saved as MSCZ, then loaded the resulting file. I then also exported that as MusicXML and imported the result. Nothing seemed out of place anywhere along the way. What do you mean extra clefs? Where should I be looking? Or can you give me better steps to follow?
The only staff I see with a single line is the final hand clap staff, whether loading the MXL file, the resulting MSCZ file, or the MusicXML file I exported myself. Again, if you are seeing something else, can you give precise steps to reproduce?
Title is indeed positioned interestingly in 3.0, but it doesn't display at all in 2.3.2. Looks to me like it is positioned very strangely, as per the XML (default-x="595.44" default-y="1626.67"). I assume you created the MXL by exporting from the MSCZ you provided? This much does seem an actual bug.
Not preserving playback-specific stuff like MIDI channel change messages doesn't surprise me. MusicXML might technically be able to represent MIDI somehow, but there is no guarantee any given program will turn that into the appropriate instructions on import. Eg, how would a "pitch bend" instruction be represented?
Might be nice someday, but more of a feature request.
No big surprise on the freboard diagram either, that's stretching the limits of MusicXML as well.
Ditto on custom noteheads.
"Don't break" is almost certainly not something that MusicXML has any concept of.
I have no trouble hiding the Hand Clap staff via Edit / Instruments. Were you expecting to find that somewhere else?
In reply to Responding to the actual… by Marc Sabatella
I should have mentioned that I used the macOS build (2018-10-31-1202-3.0alpha2-3abd82b).
In reply to Responding to the actual… by Marc Sabatella
More detailed reply:
* I opened the Master Palette exactly once (by pressing on the grey "???" button in the Dynamics panel), which may have caused some issues, or it may not have. I have taken a screenshot of the file as it appears by loading it immediately after opening MuseScore 3.0a2. On the first page, extra clefs appear after the time signatures in staves 2–7. On the second page, the spacing is a bit off. The third page looks normal.
* As noted in the bug, this only occurs after opening the Master Palette.
* I haven't read the MusicXML specification so I'll leave that for now.
* I was expecting the Hand Clap staff to stay hidden in the MusicXML file.
In reply to More detailed reply: * I… by jc86035
The MusicXML file you attached does not call for the staff to be hidden as far as I can tell. At least, it isn't hidden when importing into 2.3.2 either. So I don't see a regression here. If you had it hidden in the MSCZ file at the moment you exported this, then this suggests a deficiency in the export process. Not sure how well MusicXMl supports this either, but I assume there probably is a way to do it. Not sure they'd support all the different variations we have as far as hiding empty staves etc.
Anyhow, it's worth filing separate issues with explicit step by step instructions to reproduce each. Most of what you describe aren't really bugs, just limitations in either MusicXML itself or our support for it in ays that haven't changed since 2.3.2. So saying "fairly broken" seems off, except for the weird glitch where the master palette somehow clobbers staff properties. That's obviously serious. The mispositioning of the title isn't good either.
In reply to The MusicXML file you… by Marc Sabatella
Sorry about the title, I would change it but I can no longer do that.
I will file specific issues in a while (probably within a day or two).
In reply to The MusicXML file you… by Marc Sabatella
Submitted #278185: Formatting issues in 3.0a2 after opening, saving, closing and reopening 2.3.2 file.
See #277699: Staff properties corrupted on MusicXML import after Master Palette opened reg. point #2