A comprehensive set of symbols can be found in the Articulations and Ornaments palette in the Advanced workspace:
There is also an abbreviated version in the Basic workspace.
Articulations are the symbols added to the score to show how a note or chord is to be played. The principal symbols in this group are:
Specialist articulations are also included for bowed and plucked strings, wind instruments etc.
Ornaments include:
Note: Appoggiaturas and acciaccaturas can be found in the Grace Notes palette.
Use either of the following methods:
To apply an accidental to an existing ornament, such as a trill:
A fermata can be applied directly to a barline by selecting the barline and double-clicking the fermata from a palette.
Keyboard shortcuts can be customized in MuseScore's Preferences.
Immediately after adding an articulation or ornament from a palette, the symbol is automatically selected: It can then be moved up or down from the keyboard as follows:
To enable adjustments in all directions from the keyboard:
You can also change the horizontal and vertical offset values in the Inspector. To position more than one symbol at a time, select the desired symbols and adjust the offset values in the Inspector.
Note: The symbol can also be repositioned by clicking and dragging, but for more precise control, use the methods above.
Most properties of articulations/ornaments can be edited from the Inspector. Other properties (i.e. direction and anchor position) can also be accessed by right-clicking on the symbol and selecting Articulation Properties….
You can also make global adjustments to all existing and subsequently-applied articulations by selecting Style… → General… → Articulations, Ornaments.
A variety of simple and complex (multi-stage) bends can be created with the Bend Tool , located in the Articulations and Ornaments palette of the Advanced workspace.
To apply one or more bends to the score, use one of the following options:
To edit a bend, use one of the following:
Select a bend symbol in the score and press "Properties" in the "Bend" section of the Inspector.
Preset options are available, if needed, on the left hand side of the Bend properties window. The current bend is represented by a graph consisting of gray lines connected by square, blue nodes (see image above). The slope of the line indicates the type of bend:
The vertical axis of the graph represents the amount by which the pitch is bent up or down: one unit equals a quarter-tone: 2 units a semitone, 4 units a whole-tone, and so on. The horizontal axis of the graph indicates the length of the bend: each gray line segment extends for 1 space (sp) in the score.
A bend is modified by adding or deleting nodes in the graph:
Adding a node lengthens the bend by 1 sp; deleting a node shortens the bend by 1 sp. The Start and End points of the bend can be moved up and down only.
The height of the bend symbol is automatically adjusted so that it appears just above the staff. This height can be reduced, if necessary, with a workaround:
To adjust position use one of the following:
After a bend has been created in the score it can be saved for future use by dragging and dropping the symbol to a palette while holding down Ctrl+Shift (Mac: Cmd+Shift). See Custom Workspace