Change needed for Tie function in "Input by duration" mode

• Mar 15, 2025 - 09:19

The recent addition of "Input by duration mode" in MuseScore 4.5 is very welcome, especially for those who have worked with Finale for years. However, there is a problem with the Tie function (shortcut T) when writing notes in this mode: when you press T to create a tie, a new tied note appears, which has the same duration as the previous one. The problem is when you need to create a tied note with a different duration (e.g. a half-note tied with an eighth-note), because you cannot select the needed duration before pressing the T key, since if you press one of the keys 1-7 a new untied note will be added in this mode (whereas in "Input by note name" mode you could select the new duration before pressing the note name shortcut key).
The solution would be to change the function of shortcut T for the "Input by duration" mode, and make it similar to Finale Speedy Entry mode: pressing T creates a tie, but no new note is entered until you press a duration shortcut key (keys 1-7) to add a new note.
Thanks in advance for considering this issue!


Comments

I agree, the "Input by duration" is unusable for me until there is a way to tie a note of different duration. Thank you for fixing this issue.

I must be doing something wrong because I can't reproduce this. And maybe that's because I don't have a data pad. I enter note input mode. I hit 6 followed by G. A half note G appears. Then I hit 4 followed by T. An 1/8th note G appears tied to the previous half note.

In reply to by bobjp

You have to be in "Input by duration" mode in order to reproduce this issue. The problem is that you cannot preselect the duration of the added note before pressing T. The solution would be to change the function of the T shortcut to just add the slur and then wait for another keypress (1-7) to enter the new tied note.

In reply to by bobjp

Based on your description, you are in "Input by note name", the mode that used to be called "step-wise". "Input by duration" would respond differently to those inputs.

And, I must say, that mode feels entirely non-intuitive and confusing. I cannot think of any reason to ever use it. But maybe it's just because I'm not used to it. I've been using "step-wise" (now "Input by note name") for many years.

In reply to by TheHutch

It turns out I was in "Input by duration" in Preferences, not from the tool bar. I never use the tool bar input settings.
So I switched to actual duration input and added a few notes. The I added a half note. I want it to be tied to an 1/8th note. So I hit "N", 4, "T" and then "M" (to get back to duration input).

So I learned something, I came it this from the standpoint of a mouser. And even though "N" means input by note name, you still have to pick a duration first.

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