writing for guitar
Hi support folks,
I have a score I want to add rhythm guitar to. Can I do that with chordchart diagrams or do I have to write out the chords in tab or notes? Will MuseScore play back chordchart? How do I assign an instrument to a chordchart?
Comments
MuseScore won't play fretboard diagrams, but will play chord symbols
You can use slash notation:
https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/tools#fill-with-slashes
and add chord symbols:
https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/chord-symbols
For chord symbol playback:
https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/playback-chord-symbols-nashville-nu…
To add the instrument, use Edit / Instruments.
To add the diagrams, use the Fretboard Diagrams palette, and you can also customize them in the Inspector. Playback isn't based on the specific voicing shown in the diagram, but on the chord symbol attached to it. To select which instrument to use for the chord symbols, use View / Mixer, then open up the channel strip for the instrument using the arrow at the top of the strip, then select the right-most subchannel, which is the chord symbols subchannel, and change the sound in the top of the mixer.
If you attach your score and explain in more detail what you want to do, we can understand and assist better.
Thanks guys, for your suggestions. I tried them all without success. I noted in the handbook notes that these were for Musescore 3.5 and above. I checked my version and saw I have 3.3.4.9149. I thought ahaaa. That's my problem. So I downloaded the newest version and checked. I still have version 3.3.4.9149. Is that the hangup?
In reply to Thanks guys, for your… by BobbertB
It’s definitely worth updating, probably you are getting MuseScore from some third party site like the Microsoft store or Linux distribution repository. Don’t; get it directly from here.
But more likely whatever problem you are having is just a matter of unfamiliarity. Again, if you attach your score and describe more precisely what you are trying to do, and what goes when you try, we can understand and assist better.
Oh - except for chord symbol playback, which definitely requires a more recent version.
In reply to It’s definitely worth… by Marc Sabatella
Thanks for your help Mark. I appreciate you guidance. Here's the score I'm trying to work with. I'd like to add a rhythm guitar part for playback. I'll try updating again to 3.6 which might solve the playback. I did this twice from what appears to be an official musescore site that says free download MuseScore 3.6.2 64-bit - Windows 10 but still got 3.3.4
I'll give it a go again. thanks,
Bob
In reply to Thanks for your help Mark. … by BobbertB
See #313298: MuseScore in Microsoft Store is outdated, still at 3.3.4; remove link on Download page, uninstall that 3.3.4 and download and install the latest version from the download page of this site here
In reply to Thanks for your help Mark. … by BobbertB
The official download page for 3.6.2 is here:
https://musescore.org/en/download
In reply to Thanks for your help Mark. … by BobbertB
Thanks for everyone who sent me help. I finally got it going except for one little hitch. Someone sent me the real musescore download page and I was able to download 3.6.2.548021803. I cleaned off everything else . This gave me all the features others had told me I should have. So I was able to apply all my fret charts with chord symbols, tick the "Play" box on the Inspector and they now play back. The only hitch is that I have to go to every chord symbol and tick the play box. Is there a way to activate Play for all of the symbols without having to go to every one separately?
THANKS!! for all your help.
Bob
In reply to Thanks for everyone who sent… by BobbertB
Yes, there is.
And it is described in one of the handbook links above
In reply to Thanks for everyone who sent… by BobbertB
Select a chord symbol
In the "Chord Symbol" section of the Inspector check/uncheck the "Play" box.
Click on the associated "Set as style" button (to the right of that box, you may need to scroll a bit)
(The button shows the letter 'S')
Boy!! you have all been so helpful. I've made strides with my scores. One more thing I'm trying to do is add a Mandolin line. I'm trying to find something that will sustain a Mandolin note. Mandolin players do it all the time and call it a tremolo but the tremolo icons I find in the pallets only trill the note. That is, trill between a step up or step down. I would like to sustaining the same note with a rapid repeating. Anybody know about this?
In reply to Boy!! you have all been so… by BobbertB
If it's the same as for guitar then you could do it like this:
https://musescore.com/user/28842914/scores/7342763
In reply to Boy!! you have all been so… by BobbertB
Are you sure you are using the actual tremolo symbols, in the tremolo palette? The ones with the slashes through the stem definitely just repeat a note; they don’t trill.
In reply to Boy!! you have all been so… by BobbertB
You wrote:
I would like to sustaining the same note with a rapid repeating.
If you hover the mouse pointer over a tremolo symbol in the palette, a helpful 'tooltip' will appear.
N.B.: The 'through stem' tremolo will work on (stemless) whole notes.
Single note mandolin tremolo: Tremolo.mscz
In reply to You wrote: I would like to… by Jm6stringer
You guys are great. I solved the tremolo thing with the 'through stem' tremolo marks in the Pallets.
Can anyone help me with Playback. I'd like to get repeat strumming on a guitar line. Do I have to insert a Chord every where I'd like a strum? I'm not able to do it with a hash mark.
In reply to You guys are great. I… by BobbertB
If you mean chord symbols, yes, they play only where notated, so if you wish them to repeat, you need multiple copies. They can be made invisible, or placed on an invisible staff, or you can use the Realize Chord Symbols command to convert them to notes and edit those as desired.