Optimization for Inserting Information into Musescore
I have been getting back into using music software (I usually write out the music I need to by hand) and I think I would be more inclined to write within notation software if I was faster at it. Beyond setting up a keyboard and memorizing the hotkeys, does anyone have any tips for getting faster within the software?
Comments
My workflow is to concentrate first on rhythms and notes. Composing original music I will actually often start in the rhythm input mode (which puts all notes on the middle line of the staff), then use the re-pitch mode for the melody. You may decide you want to enter notes and rhythms at the same time. I'm not afraid to copy my song to another staff if I decide I want a major revision of the rhythm and retype it on the correct staff. It's possible but at times difficult to make major changes to the rhythm.
One trick that takes a little getting used to. On desktops except linux, the note durations are on the keypad and you can use your right hand for that while your left hand is on the notes a-g. You can keep your left hand in normal typing position for this.
After this I'm concerned with entering tempos and dynamics and other non-note items.
I don't get concerned with page layout until a large section of the song is finalized. I then look at all page layout at once for that section.
In reply to My workflow is to… by mike320
The main (maybe the only) advantage to using a midi piano keyboard is being able to enter all the notes of a chord in one “keystroke”. If I don’t need this functionality I tend to stick with the computer keyboard.
Customizing the F9 palette to be optimized for different types of music can improve efficiency. For instance you can have a Voice/Piano palette, a Choral palette, and an Orchestra palette. This allows minimizing clutter when the F9 palette is open. Although I’ve never tried it I assume you could (for instance) remove articulations that only apply to stringed instruments from the Articulations palette, reducing visual clutter if your intent is to make piano or voice music.
The flexibility of MuseScore is, I think, one of its strengths. Over time you will develop a workflow that matches your personality and needs and you can optimize MS to enhance your speed and efficiency.
If you come to realize there is a workflow you would like to try but MS doesn’t seem to have the capability, just ask! There is a vast breadth of experience in this forum, with people eager to share.
In reply to The main (maybe the only)… by marty strasinger
One more advantage to using midi is that you can select the octave which is occasionally a problem when you have notes jumping between octaves in your score. One disadvantage is that an F#/G-flat key will always give you a note with the same spelling according to the key signature. If you want it to be the other note you have to press j to respell it.
In reply to One more advantage to using… by mike320
Personally, I find it easier to predict and thus immediately make the octave correction with computer keyboard entry as compared to predicting the spelling, plus I can hear that the initial guess was wrong, so I don't need to look at the screen so much. That plus the fact I do a lot of work away from home and don't have a MIDI keyboard with me, makes computer keyboard entry the win for me overall. But it's probably a wash overall really.
That said, to answer the more general issue, you will find your efficiency gets better and better with more experience in general - you know where things are, so less hunting for them or stopping to look up information.