Dynamics again - and a test file.
I was testing the dynamics more carefully. In the attached file the dynamics are OK and pretty much as desired up to bar 5,when the level rises abruptly.
Is this perhaps because of a default level which is applied to all the instruments which enter at that measure?
If so, does this imply that we should always set dynamics, rather than allow defaults to work unassigned?
See https://musescore.com/user/31393815/scores/7051745 or the uploaded file.
I'm not sure whether this is a bug, or an unfortunate side effect of some other design decisions in MS.
Perhaps more detailed information about how to use dynamics for users would be helpful.
Comments
"Is this perhaps because of a default level which is applied to all the instruments which enter at that measure?
If so, does this imply that we should always set dynamics, rather than allow defaults to work unassigned?"
Yes. I think the default level, if no dynamics in the beginning, is mf!?
In reply to "Is this perhaps because of… by Pentatonus
The default velocity (in absence of dynamics) is the same as the default setting for mf, indeed.
Similar the default tempo (in absence of a tempo text) is 120 quarter notes per minute
The dynamics in this score are labelled "Part" so they apply to the flute but the other parts stay at the default of mf, which is louder than mp. When I solo the flute, I don't hear a dramatic change in volume.
In reply to The dynamics in this score… by underquark
I don't quite understand how you're seeing this. I thought the dynamics in this particular one did apply to all the parts. The problem here is that only the flute has an explicit ppp level right at the start, so the other instruments all start at a default, which I believe is mf. Here ppp is set at the lowest level = 1, so if the overall gain is set too high then everything will be really loud by bar 5. I think the default for mf is level = 80.
I do have other versions, and I have homed in on answers to my original query. I'm still puzzled by your comments re Parts.
I believe the default levels for quiet sounds are ppp level= 16, pp level =33, p level = 49.
Don't set the gain high if listening on headphones.
In reply to I don't quite understand how… by dave2020X
Dynamics by default apply to the part they ara attached to only. Via Inspector thex can cag changed to staff (like for piano) or system (all parts). That score doesn't do this though, so indeed they apply to the flute part only and the others are at the dynamic-less default that is equivalent to that of mf
In reply to Dynamics by default apply to… by Jojo-Schmitz
Looks as though you are right about this, but difficult for most people to find this out. This shows up in the Inspector if, for example, a crescendo is selected. Then a menu appears showing Part, Stave, System.
Presumably once set there it is fixed until any further change is made. Do changes made there apply to the whole work, or just the current page?
In reply to Looks as though you are… by dave2020X
Just for that one element, not for the next of the same sort
In reply to Looks as though you are… by dave2020X
It applies for the current symbol until another symbol instructs something else.
In reply to Looks as though you are… by dave2020X
To be clear: it's standard music notation that dynamics apply only to the current part. Because it's common for different instruments to have different dynamics, and of course, when you generate the actual parts, a dynamic added only to the flute part won't even appear on any other part - not in real life published scores, not in MuseScore. So indeed, always put dynamics on each part. And yes, they apply until further notice, although it's considered good form to restate after a long rest for example.
Sometimes copyists - especially back in the old pre-software days - got lazy and just wrote in a single dynamic for the whole score and assumed that the person who then copied out the parts would figure out to copy it to each. Never recommended, but yes, MuseScore supports this, and finding out how to do this is as simple as looking up Dynamics in the Handbook.
Yes, as already pointed out, you can apply dynamic markings to a single part or to a system. So you need to click on the 'mp' marking and apply to the system. Alternatively, if you want a different effect you have to mark each part accordingly. So why the default level is set at 'f' of 'ff' for the entry of the three lower parts is a mystery.
In reply to Yes, as already pointed out,… by glarcher
I don't know where you get the comment about the defaults for f or ff for the lower parts. I think they were probably mf or f, with levels of 80 or 96. Very loud - a lot of fs gets a value of 127.
There are ways to set the levels individually, including the defaults, but if V4.0 is coming along it would be good to have much more flexible control over these. It certainly looks as though if you want to have a decent dynamic range you should set the values low, and mark in the dynamics explicitly. Some people might be happy to have a default starting point of mf and just not exploit the dynamic range which it seems is possible with this system, but others might really want to have a much wider range.
There are also other isssues about combining instruments. I'm not sure how well the mixer handles those. In the real world having a very loud instrument combining with a quiet one makes very little difference to the overall level - since the louder instrument will dominate. Combining two loud instruments will give about a 3dB (6dB) increase in volume/power [depending what you measure ...] The sound of an orchestra playing flat out is very loud, though the organ in the Royal Albert Hall can often take everything on.
I don't know how the MS mixer is implemented.
In reply to I don't know where you get… by dave2020X
If you don't put in a dynamic marking, human musicians will need to guess what you meant, and they'll probably pick mf. So that's what MuseScore picks too, but you should not rely on that. Not for humans, not for MuseScore. If you care about dynamics, always include them explicitly, otherwise, you never really know what you'll get. You can have whatever dynamic range you want, as long as you tell the human musicians - and MuseScore - what it is that you want.
The mixer works pretty much just like any standard mixer, if you have one instrument loud and another soft, that's exactly what you get, and the overall volume is whatever two added together produce.
In reply to Yes, as already pointed out,… by glarcher
deleted spare copy