80 is just a symbol, so why make it the tempo?
Reported version
3.6
Type
Functional
Frequency
Once
Severity
S5 - Suggestion
Reproducibility
Always
Status
active
Regression
No
Workaround
No
Project
As discussed here, when the user enters a numeric tempo mark, such as one of the following
the "80" is just a fixed portion of an icon. But Musescore enters the value of 80 into the "just added" current tempo—and the odds of 80 being the desired tempo are quite low.
So I'm requesting:
a) an updated palette that abandons the "80":
b) a default behavior that enters a tempo mark bearing the tempo of the current measure—there are a few solid advantages to that, as discussed.
scorster
Comments
If we are talking about the odds that the default marking being correct, at least 80 is right if you want 80. Having no figure is wrong every time. And it has a confusing look in the pallet.
The linked post suggests defaulting to the "current" tempo. Again, that would be wrong every time as the point of adding a tempo marking is to indicate a change of tempo.
That linked post suggests that it would be useful to provide a reminder of the current tempo as a starting point to change tempo by x%. I think most musicians work with tempi in absolute terms rather than relative. I know what 120 or 72 or 56 BPM feels like. 10% faster or 15% slower than X BPM is not so intuitive.
In reply to If we are talking about the… by SteveBlower
The added value may be useless for you (as it would be for me I think), but it is certainly harmless. Overtyping the current tempo or overtyping 80 is the same amount of work.
In reply to The added value may be… by frfancha
And we don't need to remove the "80" from the icon, same as for grace notes where the icon contains a slur as illustration only
If you don't want to have to replace the 80, why not skip the palette and just use Alt+Shift+T?
I agree with others that I can't see any benefit to removing the number from the selection, that just forces you to have to edit it every time, even in the cases where 80 happened to be about right.
However, I could imagine a separate tempo marking that populated automatically with the current tempo, or modifying the shortcut to populate it, could be useful.
In reply to If you don't want to have to… by Marc Sabatella
I could imagine a separate tempo marking that populated automatically with the current tempo.
Yes... here's one scenario:
![Tempo_verifier.png]( "Tempo_verifier.png")
A new user opens My First Score and sucessfully enters notes. Upon playback, the default playback is internally set to 120BPM -- not apparent to the user (no tempo marking displays in the score).
The user can drag the "tempo verifier" onto the score to flat out see the (default) BPM number and directly make any changes to the tempo:
Can you guess which one is the "tempo verifier"?
In reply to I could imagine a separate… by Jm6stringer
Suppose only the "auto-compute current tempo and display" would be available in MuseScore.
And someone would come with the request: please add the same list of tempo indications (for 4th, dotted 4th, ...) but with a fix setting of 80.
What would be the added value of that?
My answer is zero. Even the tiny time won when by chance it happens that the tempo you want is 80 would be defeated by the knowledge burden (and the screen space) to have all these "80" tempi to keep next to what would be considered the "normal" ones.
In reply to If you don't want to have to… by Marc Sabatella
Marc, the idea is not to have no tempo at all when you add from the palette, but to have computed automatically according to the symbol you are adding and the current "speed".
In reply to Marc, the idea is not to… by frfancha
But if you want the same speed, why are you adding a tempo marking?
In reply to But if you want the same… by SteveBlower
I don't want the same speed.
In reply to I don't want the same speed. by frfancha
So you add tempo marking and change the number. Which is what you do now. What have you got against 80? It's quite an inoffensive number and at least stands a chance of being what you want. What is the advantage of you proposal?
In reply to So you add tempo marking and… by SteveBlower
Well it is rather the proposal of Scorster than mine, and he explained it in a separate thread.
Idea is that showing the current tempo is at least as good than a fixed 80, and sometimes better. (Not hugely better though)
In reply to Well it is rather the… by frfancha
Seems like a solution to a non-existent problem to me.
In reply to If you don't want to have to… by Marc Sabatella
Marc wrote >> If you don't want to have to replace the 80, why not skip the palette and just use Alt+Shift+T?
Here on the Mac the equilant is Option+Shift+T and indeed that enters the numeric
And, as best I can tell:
a) this keystroke it only works for
![Musescore - Mac Tempo keystroke - Option-Shift-T.png]( "Musescore - Mac Tempo keystroke - Option-Shift-T.png")
b) this option still overwrites the existing tempo of the measure where added.
Marc wrote >> I could imagine a separate tempo marking that populated automatically with the current tempo, or modifying the shortcut to populate it, could be useful.
Thanks Marc, either of my options would satisfy my needs!
It could be achieved via a modifier keystroke, and likely leave other feathers unruffled. (Or Musescore could add six additional numeric "thus functioning" tempo marks to the Tempo palette—but at the expense of a adding some real estate to the palette.)
I've restated an attempted to clarify my needs and reasoning in the original thread in this post.
I don't mean to turn Musescore's GUI/UX on its head nor obfuscate others workflows. I just want to stop bumping my head against the numeric Tempo mark and thought others might also benefit from a solution.
So Marc, thanks for your comment in consideration of supporting of "I could imagine [the usefulness of) a separate tempo marking that populate[s] automatically with the current tempo, or modifying the shortcut to populate it ..."
scorster
In reply to Marc wrote >> If you don't… by scorster
The timeline https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/timeline provides a useful way of tracking the current tempo.
My problem with the proposals is that to change tempo I would first have to insert a tempo marking that is definitely not what I want. Currently I insert a marking that is probably not what I want but sometimes it is what I want. It seems a step in the wrong direction.
Is it worth using up one of the limited key combinations to implement this? I would say there are other candidates that should be earlier in the queue, but if it is in the list of commands that can be assigned to shortcuts it wouldn't hurt.
Apology, clarifications and further discussion here.