How can I lock the number of measures per page when working in a large score?

• Sep 13, 2019 - 23:50

My score only has two or three measures per page and the measures look really stretched out. I would really like to be able to control the number of measures that appear on each page. So, for this scenario, let's say that for the first page I want 6 measures. Here is what I've tried:

1) Let's say there are currently 2 measures on the first page, 2 measures on the second page and 3 measures on the third.
2) I highlight the first 6 measures spanning those 3 pages.
3) I double click the "Page break" icon.
4) The result is that the 7th measure on page 3 is now ejected to the 4th page, and I have only 2 measures on each of the first three pages (rather than 6 on one).
5) The result is the same when I try "system break."
6) I've tried highlighting ALL the measures in the score and selecting "Decrease Stretch Layout." That doesn't work.
7) I've tried using the "Add/Remove System Breaks" and selecting "Break systems every 6 measures". That does nothing.

I'm sure it's an easy fix but I greatly appreciate any help anyone could offer.

Thanks!
~Justin

Comments

• Sep 14, 2019 - 00:32

There are a number of factors that determine the number of measures that fit on a system in any score. The scaling in style->Page settings is one major factor. The other is the number of notes in a measure. You cannot fit as many measures filled with 16th notes on a system as you can whole notes, it's simple mathematics. In large scores, I urge you to not worry about individual page formatting until you are done entering the score. At this point if you want 4 measures on every system, then use tools->add/remove system breaks and set the number at 4. If you have pages with few that 4 measures you can then press ctrl+a then { about 10 times (this is the same as your #6) to remove all the stretch there is to remove. If there are still fewer than 4 measures on some systems, then you will need to adjust the scaling. There are other things you can do, like change the paper size. Other things, like making negative leading spaces in the inspector are not usually advisable but possible. I would use this to a very limited extent.

If you want 6 measures on every staff, you will need to make the paper wide and scaling small.

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