This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
MuseScore provides a number of learning resources to help the new user get started.
When you run MuseScore for the first time, the Startup Wizard appears to help you set up some basic features of the software. One of these features is called Tours, and, as the name suggests, gives you a guided tour of the program.
This will allow the Tour to run when the program opens, introducing you to the main features of the user interface.
Currently offered tours:
The interactive Getting Started score is a practical introduction to the basics of entering a score. When you open MuseScore for the first time, it will be displayed in the main window of the Start Center: just click to open it. Follow the instructions written in blue, and you will be led through the basic steps of score writing.
Note: If you don't see the Getting Started score, you can find it in the right hand panel of the Start Center. Click the right or left arrows to browse through the options until it appears.
In the Tutorials and How-to section you will find tutorials on specific topics (e.g. MuseScore Drumline).
Musescore 3 video tutorials created by musescore.org on Youtube are broken / unacessable due to private sharing restriction as of Jan 2023
Try the comprehensive Musescore3 tutorial videos on masteringmusescore.com created by Marc Sabatella instead. While Marc Sabatella contributed heavily to MuseScore codebase, his masteringmusescore.com is not affiliated with Muse Group or any of its subsidiary companies.
MuseScore offers a full set of instructions videos, each covering a specific subject. You can access these videos in several ways.
If you experience a problem while working with MuseScore, there are several ways to get help and support.
To access the Handbook:
You can browse through the Handbook using the menus, or do a search.
If you select an element in your score and press F1, a webpage opens displaying a list of links associated with that element in the Handbook.
MuseScore offers a number of on-line Forums for user collaboration. You may be able to find an answer here to your problem among the existing posts. A general search of the website will return a list of relevant hits to all forums and the Handbook.
Some tasks require the use of several different techniques. These can be difficult to find an answer for in the Handbook. Solutions for these may be found in the How To's
If you cannot find the answer to your problem, you can ask a question in the Support and bug reports forum.
When you post your question:
If you encounter something you think is a bug, the first step is to post it in the Support and bug reports forum. This will allow others to help check if it is a genuine bug, and to advise workarounds, so you can continue your scorewriting. You will find more details on this in Bug reports and Feature requests.
MuseScore Studio exists for various different operating systems, including Windows, macOS, Linux distributions and BSD variants. "Musescore Studio" was previously named "MuseScore", see online announcement.
More on MuseScore and versions so that you can choose one that best suit your needs.
Windows
Windows 7 or higher.
At least 300MB hard disk space
1024x600 pixel resolution
Mac
macOS 10.10 or higher
1024x600 monitor resolution
MuseScore Studio is completely free. Users do not need any PRO or PLUS account subscription service to use Musescore Studio. Musescore Studio 3 is released under the GNU General Public License version 2, see details of GPLv2 on http://www.gnu.org.
Additionally, the right to redistribute (the unmodified binary) to friends and students is granted to all - see "you may give any of the versions of MuseScore on musescore.org to other people, or share it internally via a server." on https://musescore.org/en/faq#faq-20204 . To impose an additional service charge or fee legally, read the GPLv2 terms.
The first time you start MuseScore after the installation, you will be asked to confirm your basic preferences:
First, you can choose to authorize MuseScore (3.4 or later) to collect usage data, click on Yes, send anonymous reports or Don't send to continue:
The settings for language is retrieved from your installation, and should normally not need to be changed. Just click Next to continue:
followed by:
Select your keyboard layout in the drop down list, click Next to continue:
You will now be asked if you wish to take the Tours. If you are new to MuseScore keep the 'Yes' option checked, and click Next to continue:
Finally click Finish to start MuseScore.
If you're on Windows 10, a (rather outdated) 32-bit version of MuseScore can be installed from the Windows Store. Clicking here will open MuseScore's page in the Store app. There you will only have to click Get the app > and MuseScore will be downloaded, installed and subsequently automatically updated.
Otherwise you can get the Windows installer from the download page of the MuseScore website. Click on the link to start the download (pick your choice of 64-bit or 32-bit). Your Internet browser will ask you to confirm that you want to download this file. Click Save File.
When the download finishes, double-click on the file to start the installation. Windows may prompt you with a security window to confirm this before running the software. Click Run to continue.
The installation process will now start
If you click Cancel, here or later, you'll see:
If instead you click Next to continue, the setup wizard displays the terms of the free software license.
Read the terms of the license, make sure the box next to "I accept the terms in the License Agreement" is checked, and click Next to continue. Next the installer will ask you to confirm the location in which to install MuseScore.
If you are installing a newer version of MuseScore but still want to keep the old version on your computer, then you should change the folder (note that MuseScore 3 can coexist with MuseScore 2 and 1 with no changes needed). Otherwise click Next to continue.
Click Install to continue.
Give the setup wizard a few minutes to install the necessary files and configurations. You'll see
and finally
Click Finish to exit the installer. You may delete the installer file you downloaded.
To start MuseScore, from the menu, select Start→All Programs→MuseScore 3→MuseScore 3.
You can install MuseScore silently with the following command
msiexec /i MuseScore-X.Y.msi /qb-
Append ALLUSERS=1
if you want to install it for all users of the system rather than just the current one.
You can uninstall MuseScore from the menu by selecting Start→All Programs→MuseScore 3→Uninstall MuseScore; or via Windows' Control Panel. Note that this will not remove your scores, templates, extensions and plugins nor your MuseScore settings.
The installer might be blocked by the system. If you don't manage to install MuseScore, right-click the downloaded file and click Properties. If there is a message "This file came from another computer and might be blocked to help protect this computer", click on "Unblock", "OK" and double-click on the downloaded file again.
This handbook describes features of MuseScore Studio, the music notation program for Windows, macOS, and Linux supporting a wide variety of file formats and input methods. MuseScore Studio features an easy to use WYSIWYG editor with audio score playback for results that look and sound beautiful, rivaling commercial offerings like Finale and Sibelius. "Musescore Studio" was previously named "MuseScore", see online announcement.
MuseScore Studio is released as a free and open-source software. Musescore Studio 3 is released under the GNU General Public License version 2. Musescore Studio 4 is released under the GNU General Public License version 3. To learn more about the GPL license, visit http://www.gnu.org or http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-faq.html. To download MuseScore Studio 3.6.2, see Installation: Download and installation chapter.
MuseScore Studio is developed and supported by non paid volunteers and managed by Muse Group employees. MuseScore BVBA is a subsidiary of Muse Group. Source: wikipedia, forum discussion.
The following items are often referred to as "MuseScore". However, as explained above, this handbook uses "MuseScore" to refer to "MuseScore Studio" only, "MuseScore" is not used to refer to any of the following unless otherwise specified.
See How and where to ask for support
MuseScore Studio is open-source. Its source code is available at github.
MuseScore Studio 3.6.2 is the last official release of MuseScore Studio 3, see Version information. For forks (wikipedia), see "External Link" section.
MuseScore Studio 4 is a result of continuous development from MuseScore Studio 3.6.2. It has huge playback and countless engraving improvements. After MuseScore Studio 3.6.2 was released, most of the software development moved on to MuseScore Studio 4. Muse Group employees no longer work on bug fixing of Musescore Studio 3.6.2. Due to the substantial change in programming framework and library, some proposed improvements of Musescore Studio 3.6.2 are impossible to be merged into MuseScore Studio 4. Reimplementation of important features is not yet complete, see also discussion1, discussion2, discussion3.
When choosing a MuseScore Studio version to create scores, users should take note of the company's distribution versioning and feature implementation philosophy, and consider production needs. For example MuseScore Studio 3.6.2 Linux supports audio and MIDI routing with JACK, which has implications for automation and video synchronization. Source: https://github.com/orgs/musescore/discussions/13745
MuseScore Studio 3 and MuseScore Studio 4 can be installed and opened side by side on the same OS, see Version 3 and 4 installations side-by-side. Score files are opened by default with the last installed Musescore Studio version, see Change default programs in Windows and Problem with Shortcuts to MuseScore 4 files. You can always choose manually with "Right-click > Open with". Note that MuseScore Studio native format (*.mscz and *.mscx) are backward compatible - MuseScore Studio 4 opens MuseScore Studio 3's *.mscz without error, see Native format compatibility
Notable forks (wikipedia):
You will find the DMG (disk image) file on the download page of the MuseScore website. Click on the macOS link to start the download. When the download is complete, double-click the DMG file to mount the disk image.
Drag and drop the MuseScore icon to the Applications folder icon.
If you are not logged in as administrator, macOS may ask for a password: click Authenticate and enter your password to proceed.
When the application has finished copying, eject the disk image. You can now launch MuseScore from the Applications folder, Spotlight, or Launchpad.
Note: As of macOS 10.15 "Catalina", the system has to be told to permit MuseScore to be allowed to access user parts of the file system. The first time you use it on Catalina, it will ask you if you wish to permit it; of course, answer "yes", but if you bypass this by accident, you can set it via System Preferences > Security and Privacy > Privacy > Files and Folders. Unlock with your Admin credentials, then navigate to MuseScore (whichever version(s) you have and want), add it or them to the list of apps, and select "Documents" and "Downloads" folders, or as you prefer.
Simply delete MuseScore from Applications folder (Admin access will be required to do that, however). Note that this will not remove your scores, templates, extensions and plugins nor your MuseScore settings.
You can deploy MuseScore to multiple computers with the "Copy" feature of ARD. Since MuseScore is a self-contained application you can simply copy the application to the '/Application' folder on the target machines. It is also possible to install multiple versions of the application as long as their names differ.
Distribution packages for various Linux and BSD variants are available. Building from source is another possibility.
Consider your production needs to choose a MuseScore version that best suits you. For example MuseScore 3.6.2 support JACK, which has implications for automation and video synchronization, JACK support is missing from MuseScore 4.0.2.
The Download page contains basic info on how to download, install and use MuseScore.
musescore-$(your system architecture).AppImage
, what is my system architecture?)AppImage is the recommended way to use Musescore. An AppImage is a software that runs on all Linux (see https://appimage.org). It works like a portable app, all the files needed are contained within the AppImage itself.
Watch the how-to video, or follow these steps:
AppImages come in different versions. Make sure you download the right one for your system. To check the architecture of your system:
arch
or
uname -m
The output will be something like "i686
", "x86_64
" or "armv7
":
i686
(or similar) - 32-bit Intel/AMD processor (found on older machines).x86_64
(or similar) - 64-bit Intel/AMD processor (modern laptop and desktop computers, most Chromebooks).armv7
(or later) - ARM processor (phones & tablets, Raspberry Pi 2/3 running Ubuntu Mate, some Chromebooks, usually 32-bit at present).Download (jump to) a suitable version.
There are two ways to do this:
From the File Manager:
The process may be slightly different in other file managers.
From the Terminal:
This command works on all Linux systems (Note: The code below assumes that the AppImage is in the Downloads folder. If not the case then amend the file path accordingly):
cd ~/Downloads chmod u+x MuseScore*.AppImage
Note: You can move the AppImage to wherever it is most convenient. And to "uninstall" it, just delete it.
The above procedure allows you to run the MuseScore AppImage but doesn't integrate it with the rest of your system: it doesn't appear in your App menu, and MuseScore files are neither associated with the program nor do they have the correct icon on them.
To remedy this, you need to actually install the program as follows:
cd ~/Downloads ./MuseScore*.AppImage install
Or, alternatively, you can combine the operation into one command:
~/Downloads/MuseScore*.AppImage install
Use the "--help" and "man" options to get more information about the available command line options:
./MuseScore*.AppImage --help # displays a complete list of command line options ./MuseScore*.AppImage man # displays the manual page (explains what the options do)
(Ideally before, otherwise while or after) installing MuseScore itself, you can install one or more soundfont packages (if none is installed, the dependencies will pull in a suitable soundfont automatically):
musescore-general-soundfont-small
: the standard MuseScore_General soundfont in SF3 format, as shipped with MuseScore for other operating systemsmusescore-general-soundfont
: the MuseScore_General HQ soundfont in SF3 format, as available via the Extensions managermusescore-general-soundfont-lossless
: the MuseScore_General HQ soundfont in uncompressed SF2 format: takes up a lot more space on your hard disc, but offers the highest sound quality and extremely fast startup timesfluidr3mono-gm-soundfont
: the old soundfont shipped with MuseScore 2.0 (antecessor of MuseScore_General), use only if resources are very tight or you need ittimgm6mb-soundfont
: the old soundfont shipped with MuseScore 1.3; cannot substitute the others; use only if you need it; extremely tinyNote: only the MuseScore_General soundfont (HQ or regular) supports single-note dynamics (SND), and you need at least version 0.1.6 of those soundfonts (from unstable or backports) for SND support!
The command sudo update-alternatives --config MuseScore_General.sf3
can be used at any time to select the default soundfont used by MuseScore if you install more than one (note timgm6mb-soundfont
cannot be selected here).
Then, install the musescore3
package for MuseScore 3.x (the current stable version) or musescore
for MuseScore 2.x (there’s also musescore-snapshot
for the unstable developer preview). The packages are available in the following distributions:
musescore3
: sid (unstable), bullseye (testing/Debian 11), buster-backports (stable/Debian 10), stretch-backports-sloppy (oldstable/Debian 9)musescore
: buster (stable/Debian 10), stretch-backports (oldstable/Debian 9), jessie-backports-sloppy (oldoldstable/Debian 8)musescore-snapshot
: experimental (usable on unstable)See https://backports.debian.org/Instructions/ for instructions on how to add an official Debian backports repository to your system and install packages from there.
Note: without the appropriate backports, older versions may be available: MuseScore 2.0.3 on stretch, MuseScore 1.3 on jessie. Using the latest 2.3.2 version for 2.x-format scores instead (or conversion to 3.x) is strongly recommended!
Import the GPG key:
su rpm --import http://prereleases.musescore.org/linux/Fedora/RPM-GPG-KEY-Seve
Go to the download page of the MuseScore website. Click on the link for the stable Fedora download and choose the correct rpm package for your architecture.
Depending on your architecture, use one of the two sets of commands to install MuseScore
for arch i386
su yum localinstall musescore-X.Y-1.fc10.i386.rpm
for arch x86_64
su yum localinstall musescore-X.Y-1.fc10.x86_64.rpm
If you have difficulty with sound, see Fedora 11 and sound.
Message https://musescore.com/mirabilos if the regular or PPA packages don’t work.
KDE neon switched from bionic to focal in 2021, so the following should not be necessary any more, but keeping it for now for reference:
The KDE bionic-neon packages are built on a different repository than the normal Ubuntu PPAs, as this is the only way for us to build packages for KDE neon. Due to limitations of the OpenSuSE Buildservice used, this currently only provides amd64 (64-bit PC) packages, no ARM packages (Slimbook or Pinebook remix).
All commands listed below must be entered in a terminal, in one line each.
Remove the Ubuntu PPAs (all three of them) from your system if you’ve ever configured it before. This is generally in /etc/apt/sources.list
or one of the files below /etc/apt/sources.list.d/
; if you used add-apt-repository
(the recommended way) to enable the PPA, you can remove them with: sudo rm -f /etc/apt/sources.list.d/mscore-ubuntu-ubuntu-mscore*
KDE bionic-neon is not compatible with the Ubuntu PPAs!
Install a few standard packages (usually they are already there, but just in case they aren’t) to be able to securely download the repository signature key:
sudo apt-get install wget ca-certificates
wget -O - https://download.opensuse.org/repositories/home:/mirabile:/mscore/bionic-neon/Release.key | sudo apt-key add -
echo deb https://download.opensuse.org/repositories/home:/mirabile:/mscore/bionic-neon ./ | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/mscore.list
sudo apt-get update
Now, it’s time to install one or more soundfont packages (ideally install the one you want before installing MuseScore):
musescore-general-soundfont-small
: the standard MuseScore_General soundfont in SF3 format, as shipped with MuseScore for other operating systemsmusescore-general-soundfont
: the MuseScore_General HQ soundfont in SF3 format, as available via the Extensions managermusescore-general-soundfont-lossless
: the MuseScore_General HQ soundfont in uncompressed SF2 format: takes up a lot more space on your hard disc, but offers the highest sound quality and extremely fast startup timesfluidr3mono-gm-soundfont
: the old soundfont shipped with MuseScore 2.0 (antecessor of MuseScore_General), use only if resources are very tight or you need ittimgm6mb-soundfont
: the old soundfont shipped with MuseScore 1.3; cannot substitute the others; use only if you need it; extremely tinyIf you skip this step, a suitable soundfont will be automatically installed when you install MuseScore itself in the final step.
Note: only the MuseScore_General soundfont (HQ or regular) supports single-note dynamics (SND), and you need at least version 0.1.6 of those soundfonts (from our repository) for SND support!
The command sudo update-alternatives --config MuseScore_General.sf3
can be used at any time to select the default soundfont used by MuseScore if you install more than one (note timgm6mb-soundfont
cannot be selected here).
Finally, you can install the latest stable version of MuseScore with sudo apt-get install musescore3
and the old 2.x version with sudo apt-get install musescore
(the musescore-snapshot
package with an instable developer preview is also available).
WARNING: these instructions are not for KDE neon 18.04 (bionic) users (see above)! Later versions, such as KDE neon 20.04 (focal), should work though.
MuseScore 2.x (the old version) is available from 18.10 (cosmic) to 19.10 (eoan) out of the box. Older Ubuntu releases carry older versions (18.04 (bionic) has 2.1, 16.04 (xenial) has 2.0, 14.04 (trusty) and 12.04 (precise) have 1.3 and 1.2, respectively). Similar to the Debian instructions, we recommend using the latest 2.3.2 version for old 2.x scores instead, or migrating those scores to MuseScore 3.
Besides the versions supplied by the distribution itself, the MuseScore Debian packager provides newer versions of MuseScore for older Ubuntu releases in official PPAs (package archives).
Please activate the Stable releases of MuseScore 3 repository on your system and then install the musescore3
package, available for all releases from 18.04 (bionic) onwards. (It is not feasible to provide MuseScore 3 for older Ubuntu releases, as those lack the minimum Qt version required by MuseScore 3.)
If you wish to install the older MuseScore 2, activate the Stable releases of MuseScore 2 PPA and install the musescore
package, available for 12.04 (precise), 14.04 (trusty), 16.04 (xenial), and 18.04 (bionic) onwards. (Some intermediate releases may have slightly older MuseScore versions still available, but it’s best to update to the next LTS.) On the ancient 12.04 (precise) and 14.04 (trusty) releases, this will upgrade the Qt library in your system, which may break unrelated software (and on 12.04 even the C++ libraries are upgraded), mind you; best to upgrade to a newer LTS.
There’s also a MuseScore Nightly Builds (unstable development builds) PPA, from which the daring can install the musescore-snapshot
package, for LTS, that is, 18.04 (bionic) only.
WARNING: these PPAs are only suitable for Ubuntu/Kubuntu/Xubuntu/… but not for Debian or KDE bionic-neon!
As with Debian, you can install one or more soundfont packages (ideally install the one you want before installing MuseScore, but if you don’t, a suitable one will be installed alongside MuseScore):
musescore-general-soundfont-small
: the standard MuseScore_General soundfont in SF3 format, as shipped with MuseScore for other operating systemsmusescore-general-soundfont
: the MuseScore_General HQ soundfont in SF3 format, as available via the Extensions managermusescore-general-soundfont-lossless
: the MuseScore_General HQ soundfont in uncompressed SF2 format: takes up a lot more space on your hard disc, but offers the highest sound quality and extremely fast startup timesfluidr3mono-gm-soundfont
: the old soundfont shipped with MuseScore 2.0 (antecessor of MuseScore_General), use only if resources are very tight or you need ittimgm6mb-soundfont
: the old soundfont shipped with MuseScore 1.3; cannot substitute the others; use only if you need it; extremely tinyNote: only the MuseScore_General soundfont (HQ or regular) supports single-note dynamics (SND), and you need at least version 0.1.6 of those soundfonts (possibly from the PPA) for SND support!
The command sudo update-alternatives --config MuseScore_General.sf3
can be used at any time to select the default soundfont used by MuseScore if you install more than one (note timgm6mb-soundfont
cannot be selected here).
See also the hints for the various distributions on the download page.
MuseScore runs on Chrome OS within a Linux container (also known as Crostini). There is a special procedure you can use to install MuseScore on a Chromebook if you are not already comfortable with running Linux apps. See the article Install MuseScore on Chromebook for more information. You can also get a special build of MuseScore 3 for ARM processors via that link (the official builds are only for Intel).
Alternatively, if you prefer to use the plain Linux commands, follow the steps described in the video linked below:
chmod +x
for the AppImage file./
followed by the Musescore package file nameInstall required libraries if necessary, e.g.:
sudo apt-get install libvorbisfile3
sudo apt-get install libnss3
Install AppImage (using the install
command line option) to avoid running it from Linux command line each time
MuseScore works with your "System" language (the one used for most programs, and generally depending on your country and the language settings of the PC, or account).
In the General tab, select the desired language from the drop-down list in the Language section:
The Resource Manager is used to install and uninstall extensions, and to handle the update of translations. To access the menu use one of the following options:
From the menu bar, select Edit→Preferences... (Mac: MuseScore→Preferences...), open the General tab, and click on the Update translations button.
To install or uninstall an extension:
Note: Extensions currently include the MuseScore Drumline (MDL) (as of version 3.0) and the MuseScore General HQ soundfont (as of version 3.1).
To update translation(s):
Note: Almost all menus and dialogs will switch to the changed/updated translations immediately, but some won't use them until the program is restarted.
Note: These options are only available in the Mac and Windows versions of MuseScore (except the version from the Windows Store), as only those can be updated directly from MuseScore.org. Linux distributions (and the Windows Store) have different mechanisms to make updates available.
For the versions of MuseScore that can be directly updated, there are two ways to check for updates.
MuseScore's synthesizer creates audio using the sample-based synthesis(wikipedia) and virtual instrument technology. MuseScore 3 comes with the free MuseScore_General.sf3 sound library (sample library) file, see the SoundFonts and SFZ files chapter.
Clicking on top toolbar's play button, or exporting an audio file etc instructs Musescore 3.6.2 to uses the current program session synthesizer settings. The Synthesizer window contains these settings, they include:
To display the Synthesizer window, select View→Synthesizer. It has the following tabs:
The Synthesizer window contains settings that Musescore uses during the current program session. Settings can be saved into and loaded from two types of places:
Clicking on top toolbar's play button, or exporting an audio file etc instructs Musescore 3.6.2 to uses these current program session synthesizer settings. The synthesizer settings data existed in the score file (if any) are not used.
The only time any synthesizer settings are automatically loaded is when the user opens the Musescore program. During program startup, the synthesizer settings saved on the operating system (the "default" profile) are loaded.
Opening a score file does not automatically load its synthesizer settings data inside into the current session. Also, in the case of multiple opened score files in one program session, switching to view another score does not automatically update the current session synthesizer settings to those data saved inside the score file.
Changed settings are never automatically saved. User must uses the buttons at the bottom of the Synthesizer window.
Use the buttons at the bottom of the Synthesizer window to manage settings under all tabs (see overview):
Button | Function |
---|---|
Set as Default | Saves the current synthesizer settings into the operating system (the "default" profile). The "default" profile will be automatically loaded during MuseScore startup next time. Subsequent changes in the synthesizer window are not automatically saved into the operating system (the "default" profile). |
Load Default | Loads the last saved synthesizer settings inside the operating system (the "default" profile) into the current session. |
Save to Score | Saves the current synthesizer settings into the score file that the user is currently viewing only, but not into other opened score files. The score file synthesizer setting data is never automatically loaded or utilized directly. |
Load from Score | Loads the synthesizer settings data existed inside the score file (if any) into the current session. |
When arranging the sound libraries to the list under Fluid tab or Zerberus tab, keep in mind that the order of sound libraries affects audio generation:
The Fluid tab allows users to load, rearrange or disable SF2 and SF3 files for the current session for playback and audio export purpose. By default, the list shown one and only one item, the built-in MuseScore_General.sf3
. To use a custom sound library, it must be installed onto the machine first, see the SoundFonts and SFZ files chapter.
NOTE: Reordering SF2/SF3 is usually unneccessary, as explained in the "Ordering of the sound libraries" session.
NOTE: Disabling SF2/SF3 is usually unneccessary. Disabling a higher ordered item changes the list's ordering and affects playback of Musescore instruments that utilize lower ordered items, as explained in the "Ordering of the sound libraries" session.
The Zerberus tab allows users to load, rearrange or disable SFZ files for the current session in a similar way to SF2/SF3 in the Fluid tab.
The Master Effects tab allows user to add and adjust reverb and compression post-processing effect.
Master Effects with Zita1 Reverb and SC4 Compressor.
To turn an effect on or off:
To store and load effects configurations, use the buttons at the bottom of the Synthesizer window. See Synthesizer settings (above) for details.
The Zita 1 stereo reverb module allows you to simulate the ambience of anything from a small room to a large hall. The pre-delay, reverb time and tone of the reverb can be finely tuned using the controls provided:
Note: EQ1 and EQ2 affect the tone of the reverb only, not the dry (unprocessed) signal.
To quickly set up an effects patch, set "Output" to "Mix" and adjust the "Mid RT60" control to the desired reverb time. Then fine tune the effect as explained above.
The SC4 stereo compressor gives you fine control over the playback's dynamic range, reducing the volume variation between loud and soft sounds. It offers the following controls:
To quickly set-up, try setting RMS = 1, Threshold = -20 db, Ratio = 6. Increase Gain to restore the lost volume. Then fine-tune as explained above.
The Tuning tab allows user to adjust the current session's synthesizer master tuning. To use a custom tuning system, see the Tuning systems, microtonal notation system, and playback chapter.
To change the Master tuning:
Some dynamics symbols have a non-zero "Velocity change" property. When set up properly, it creates an Attack envelope simulation effect on note playback on certain instruments, eg sfz symbol on violins, see Dynamics for more information.
MuseScore also utilizes the same audio creation mechanism to simulate a variation of loudness effect on certain instruments eg crescendo on one violin long note, more info see Hairpins
This mechanism utilizes the MIDI Continuous Controller / Control Change (MIDI CC) Messages (wikipedia) technology
This tab contains settings for this audio creation mechanism. See also Different meanings of SNDs
To ensure all dynamics symbols (eg. sfz) and hairpins create correct audio on a score using the built-in MuseScore_General.sf3, use the default options.
The slider on the right of the Synthesizer controls the master playback volume (gain). Tread lightly, as the output volume changes dramatically with small adjustment.
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
To create a new score, open the New Score Wizard (see Create new score below): this can also be accessed via the Start Center.
This is the window that is displayed when you open MuseScore for the very first time:
To open the Start Center (if not already visible), use any of the following options:
To stop the Start Center from showing up when you open MuseScore:
From the Start Center you can:
To open the New Score Wizard when the Start Center is not open, use one of the following options:
This opens a step-by-step wizard:
Step 1: Enter score information.
Enter the title, composer or any other information as shown above, then click on Next >. This step is optional: you can also add this information after the score has been created (see Vertical frame).
Step 2: Choose template file.
In the left column is a list of pre-defined solo, ensemble and orchestral templates, divided into categories according to musical styles, and custom template.
To choose a pre-defined score template:
1 Browse or use the Search bar (top left) to find specific templates.
2 Click a score template name to select it.
3 Click either: Next > (or just double-click the score template name in the previous step), or Finish.
To choose a custom score template:
To add individual staffs (Musescore instruments):
Step 3: Choose key signature (and tempo).
Step 4: Choose time signature etc.
Here, you can set:
Click Finish to end the wizard and create your new score.
All settings you have made when you create a new score can be changed afterwards, browse the handbook, some relevant chapters:
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This chapter explains music creation on standard staves only, see also tablature and drum notation chapters.
Musescore supports inputting music via any of four input devices: computer keyboard, mouse, MIDI keyboard, or virtual piano keyboard.
This chapter explains the default input mode, step-time, where notes and rests are entered one at a time. It is based on the logic that, when a new note or rest is added by the user, the subsequent notes and rests adjust their duration ( note value or length ) automatically without affecting the total number of beats in any measures. See also Note input modes chapter.
After exiting the New Score Wizard, your new score will consist of a series of measures filled with measure rests:
As you enter notes in a measure, the measure rests are changed to appropriate rests to fill the remainder of the measure:
Notes of different durations on the same beat are entered by using voices:
Select a starting position for note input by clicking on a note or rest, or selecting a measure, with the mouse. If you don't select a starting point, the cursor automatically defaults to the beginning of the score when you enter Note Input mode ("Step 2" below).
To enter Note Input mode, use either of the following options:
To exit Note Input mode, use any of the following options:
Still in Note Input mode, select a note duration using either of the following:
This method of entry also works if you are not in Note Input mode—as long as you have a note/rest selected, or the score is newly-created (in which case note entry will default to the beginning).
The following keyboard shortcuts are used to select note/rest duration in Note Input mode:
See also: Tuplets.
Music notation can be entered by:
This section expands on "Basic note entry" (see above) and introduces you to the full range of commands available for entering notes or rests from the computer keyboard.
Here is a list of useful editing shortcuts available in Note input mode:
Note : (1) Q and W change the duration of the last entered note. The similar shortcuts "Increase active duration" and "Decrease active duration" do not change the last entered note, they are configurable in Preferences window. (2) Shift+Q and Shift+W change the duration of the last entered note by dot. Pressing . (dot) while in Note input mode does not change the last entered note.
You can enter a note by typing the corresponding letter on your keyboard. After entering Note Input mode, type 5 C D E F G A B C to get the following result:
Note: When you enter a note using the keyboard, MuseScore places it closest to the previous note entered (above or below).
To enter a rest, type "0" (zero). To get the following, type 5 C D 0 E after entering Note Input mode.
Note: The duration selected in the toolbar applies to both notes and rests.
If you want to enter a dotted note, press . (period/full stop) after selecting the duration.
For example, after entering Note Input mode, type: 5 . C 4 D E F G A.
If you want to enter a tuplet (such as a triplet): see Tuplets.
If you want to write music with two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody on the same staff, see Voices.
To move a note up or down by a semitone:
To move a note up or down diatonically:
To move a note up or down by one octave:
When a note is moved up or down with an arrow key (see above), any accidental required is automatically generated by the program. Accidentals can also be added manually—see Accidentals.
If you want to add a chord note to your previous entry:
Thus, typing C, D, Shift+F, Shift+A, E, F results in:
To add a note at a specific interval above or below one or more notes:
Note: To create chords with notes of different durations, you will need to use more than one Voice.
Normally, when you enter music in MuseScore, any existing notes or rests are overwritten. There are, however, several ways to insert notes:
To delete a single note:
To delete a chord:
The delete command can also be applied to a range of notes/chords.
It's easy to enter notes with the mouse, but it is not the fastest way to enter lots of notes.
Note: If you hover the cursor over the score in Note Input Mode it will show you a preview of the note or rest you are about to add.
You can also insert pitches using a MIDI keyboard.
note input mode
The pitch should be added to your score. If the pitch does not appear, either use the toolbar and click 'Toggle MIDI Input' or follow these steps:
Note: The default method of entry, Step-time allows you to enter one note at a time. Other note input modes are also available: see Note input modes.
If you have multiple MIDI devices connected to your computer, you may need to inform MuseScore which is the MIDI keyboard:
You can also input notes using the on-screen piano keyboard.
The method of note entry is similar to that for a midi keyboard:
See Note Input modes main chapter.
MuseScore offers a variety of note input modes in addition to Step-time. All can be accessed by clicking the small arrow next to the "N" button on the left of the Note Input toolbar:
Depending on the skill of the musician, certain notes are considered beyond the range of a particular instrument. For informational purposes, MuseScore optionally colors notes red if they are outside the range of a "professional" player, and olive green/dark yellow if outside the range of an "early amateur." The colors appear on the computer screen, but not on printed copies.
To enable/disable note coloration and to set "professional" and "amateur" ranges, see Usable pitch range (Staff properties: all staves).
Note
section is used to only change the size of the individual notehead; the one in the Chord
section will change the note head, stem, beam, and flag sizes all together.By default, the small size is 70% of the normal size. You can change that setting in Format → Style…→Sizes.
Version 3.3.3 and above
Prior to version 3.3.3
For example, to change three sixteenth rests into a single dotted eighth rest:
Note that increasing duration overwrites the notes or rests that follow the selected phrase; decreasing duration adds rests between it and the notes or rests following.
See also Paste half/double duration
Use the Note duration actions plugin to batch adjust notes length while keeping starting positions intact.
To change the pitch of a single note:
To change the enharmonic spelling of a note, select it and use the J command. For more information, see Accidentals.
To change the pitches of a passage of music by a constant interval, you can use Transposition.
To change the pitches of a passage of music to a different melody, while keeping the rhythm unchanged, use Re-pitch mode.
If your score contains a lot of misspelled accidentals, you might try the Respell Pitches command (see Accidentals: Respell pitches).
To change one or more notes to a different voice, see Voices.
To change a rest to a note of the same duration:
To change a note to a rest of the same duration:
Edit mode allows you to perform a wide range of editing operations on individual score elements, such as:
For lines, hairpins, slurs, note-stems, note-beams, and barlines, use one of the following methods:
For other elements, use one of the following methods:
Use one of the following methods:
To exit Edit mode use any of the following:
For text edit mode, see Text editing.
See Lines: Change length, and Adjust slur.
Sometimes it is necessary to shift a note to the right or left—to avoid a collision with another element or to override automatic notehead sharing for example:
Alternatively, you can select the notehead and change the "Horizontal offset" (under "Chord") in the Inspector.
Alternatively, you can select the stem and change the "Length Offset" (under "Stem") in the Inspector.
To reposition a note stem, you should select it and adjust the "X" or "Y" setting for the "Offset" under "Automatic placement" in the "Element" section of the Inspector.
In Edit mode the following keyboard commands can be used to change the position of either (1) a score element (e.g. ornament, accidental etc.) or (2) an adjustment handle (e.g. slur, line etc.):
The following commands only apply to adjustment handles:
To undo all edits, ensure you are not in edit mode and press Ctrl+R.
Using the Palettes Area is the recommended way to apply musical symbols and text to your score, second to keyboard shortcut.
MuseScore is shipped with predefined palettes that organize items by nature, click on hyperlink to jump to their main chapter.
All palettes can be unhide in any workspace (see below (jump to).) The current visibility setting and expand/collapse status palettes are automatically saved to the current in-use workspace profile. No further action is needed.
Palette contents can be edited, you can also create an empty custom palette and populate it, see below (jump to). Visit https://musescore.org/en/node/355834 for palettes shared by other musicians.
Alternative ways to apply musical symbols and text:
The default position of the Palette Area is to the left of the document window. To view or hide it:
To undock the Palette area:
To re-attach the panel, double-click on the top bar again. See Side panels for more information.
Versions 3.4 or above
Versions prior to 3.4
If you are dragging a symbol to the score and decide you don't want to apply it, press Esc.
Tip: To prevent accidental rearrangement of contents during use, right-click a palette name and uncheck Enable Editing.
MuseScore does not offer keyboard shortcut bindings to palette items, but you can configure a shortcut to apply the same symbol multiple times consecutively to improve efficiency. Some users find this method handy when applying piano pedal marks. (N.B. piano pedal mark symbol is under Lines palette)
See also Dynamics actions, a MuseScore plugin that you can assign keyboard shortcut to add individual dynamics symbol.
Search by symbol name to locate a symbol without visually searching through palettes. All symbols are searched regardless of palettes' visible / hidden status and expand / collapse status.
Use the Search box at the top of the Palette Area. As you type, symbols and/or palettes with names matching your keystrokes are displayed below, updating continuously as your typed input changes.
To show all palettes, some of which may be temporarily hidden because it does not match the search string, click X in the search box.
Items added to the score can be copied, pasted, and duplicated: see Copy and paste.
If the symbol you are adding to the score from a palette contains or belongs to a Text element (e.g. staff text, dynamic, fingering, volta etc.), then properties such as font type, font size, text color and alignment will adapt according to the following rules:
By contrast, the line properties of Lines applied from a palette as is.
To hide a predefined palette:
To hide a custom palette you created:
Only custom palettes can be deleted, you can hide all palettes though.
Symbols may be added or deleted and layouts can be rearranged. (in version prior to 3.3, only new workspace is capable of customizations).
Before customizing a palette:
Score items, when added to a palette, are saved with their custom properties.
Note: Changing these values only affects the appearance of symbols within the palette. It does not change their sizes or offsets on the score page.
Items removed from predefined palettes are moved under More.
In custom palettes, the More button offers browsing predefined palettes ( Use < and > ) and adding their items ( Use drag-and-drop, or selecting and clicking Add to)
The following menu options may appear either by right-clicking the name of a palette or by clicking the ... to the right of the name:
Workspace is the visual settings, also known as graphical user interface (GUI), of the Musescore program itself. An analogy to the position of the pen, ruler etc on a composer's desk. It includes:
Note that the followings do not count as workspace:
Workspace presets are setting profiles for workspace, user can choose the options a preset contains so that only those options are loaded and saved when the preset is applied. There are two default presets: Basic and Advanced, you can create your own custom workspaces.
Use either one of the following methods:
To create a new preset:
To change what settings a preset contains, select View→Workspace→Edit. In versions prior to MuseScore 3.3, you must create a new preset and then edit it, you cannot edit the Basic preset or the Advanced preset, see Create new workspace preset.
Changes made to the current workspace are automatically saved to the current preset, no further action is required, see Edit the workspace below.
Any changes you make to the current workspace are automatically saved to the current preset, no further action is required.
See the main chapter Viewing and navigation, these are some popular ways:
Each preset is saved as a separate file under:
C:\Users\[USERNAME]\AppData\Local\MuseScore\MuseScore3\
(actually %LOCALAPPDATA%\MuseScore\MuseScore3
)~/Library/Application\ Support/MuseScore/MuseScore3/
.${XDG_DATA_HOME:-~/.local/share}/MuseScore/MuseScore3/
.The Inspector shows layout and playback properties of the selected objects.
When the current selection of objects consist of several different object types, the Inspector shows and allows adjustment of color, visibility, and automatic placement, see "Element" section. Press any of Notes, Grace Notes, Rests buttons at the bottom to to narrow to that object type only, as shown in image below. See also "Select all similar" and "Selection Filter" sections in the Selection modes chapter.
When multiple objects are selected, if a single property has diverse values for each object, that particular property is displayed in the color blue.
The Inspector appears by default on the right. To show or hide it:
Click the double-chevron symbol or double-click the top bar of the panel. To re-attach the panel double-click on the top bar again. See also: Side panels.
Two buttons may be displayed to the right of a property:
Shown below is the Reset to style default button, it looks like an unclosed circular loop with a letter x inside
Shown below is the Set as style button, it looks like a bold capitalized S
Properties are conveniently listed under bold categories in the Inspector. For example, when barline(s) are selected, the following is displayed at the top:
For details of the various categories and their properties, see below:
All score elements—except frames, breaks and spacers—display this category in the Inspector when selected. The options are as follows:
This category is displayed only when you have selected a mixture of different types of elements, and allows editing of color, visibility, and automatic placement only.
This category allows you to make changes to selected notes (but for note position—see Element). It contains the following properties:
See Dynamics
See Text styles and properties
See Tempo
This category appears differently according to the selection you have made:
This section is displayed in the Inspector when you select one or more note beams, and allows you to make fine adjustments to beam position and angle, and also change the spacing of beamed notes.
This section appears when you select a clef: the tick box allows you to turn on/off the display of a preceding courtesy clef.
This category appears when you select an articulation or ornament. The following options are available:
See Fretboard diagrams.
This category is displayed when a line is selected. Here, you can set various general properties.
This category is displayed when a line is selected. It allows you to set the wording of a line, edit text properties, set line hooks, and align the text in relation to the line.
Some object types have additional properties. These are accessed by right-clicking on the object and choosing a "... properties" option from the context menu. The settings available in these dialogs are explained in the description of the object type in Notation or Advanced topics.
See:
This chapter discuss real world instruments and vocals, Musescore Instruments, score instrument setup and score template files.
An instrument in Musescore is an abstraction that contains the tablature(s) or staff(s) (the most useful aspect, see Layout and formatting), notation styles (clefs, noteheads etc), the musical behaviors (transposition, playable range) and settings related to playback audio created by the Musescore synthesizer.
An Musescore instrument contains staff(s) that can represent a single or multiple real world instrument(s), for example in Beethoven's Symphony No.3, Op.55 First edition published by Cianchettini & Sperati, n.d.[1809] London, the third staff Corni 1 & 2 in Eb represents two French horn players:
To transcribe this, you should add one Musescore instrument "Horn in Eb", and rename it, playback is not affected by naming.
Real world instrument, instrument section, vocals, and choir, are supported in Musescore in several ways:
You can manage instruments and staffs individually in any score, or use pre-configured template when you create a new score.
Instruments supported by Musescore 3.6.2 (archived https://musescore.org/en/instruments page December 2022). To suggest adding a missing instrument, see https://musescore.org/en/contribute
Two ways to open this window to manage setup:
The Choose Instruments window contains the following items:
The main actions available in this window are :
Understand the main actions available first.
To manage instruments of "Drumset" Musescore instrument, see Drum notation
To add a new Musescore instrument to the score, use any of the following options:
The instrument names, and their associated staff lines, now appear in the list of instruments in the right column.
Understand the main actions available first.
To add an editable staff to an existing instrument in the score:
Understand the main actions available first.
To add a non-editable ready-only staff to an existing instrument in the score:
See also, Combine pitched staff with tablature.
Function of this button is explained in Choose instruments window above.
To make an existing instrument soloist, or to undo it:
Not to be confused with Staff / Part properties : staff type template
Score template can be used to quickly set up a new score. A template contains:
Everything else are not re-used (Title frames, all text, or any layout and formatting information of any of its Parts).
A template file is a score file under certain directory that Musescore uses. You can create a score from scratch and save it as template, or copy any existing .mscz file to that directory to use it as template. There are two kinds of templates:
Check out the Score from Template plugin by parkingb which improves template function.
Click File > Save as and save the score file as .mscz format into the template directory Musescore uses. File name is used as the template name.
Not recommended to use this folder for custom templates
This folder contains the pre-defined templates. It can be found in the following directory:
C:\Program Files\MuseScore 3\templates
or C:\Program Files (x86)\MuseScore 3\templates
(Actually %ProgramFiles%\MuseScore 3\templates
or %ProgramFiles(x86)%\MuseScore 3\templates
, respectively) ./usr/share/mscore-xxx
if you installed from the package manager. If you compiled MuseScore on Linux yourself, then look under /usr/local/share/mscore-xxx
(with xxx
being the version you are using)./Applications/MuseScore 3.app/Contents/Resources/templates
.Custom template files must be stored here. The default directory of the custom templates folder is as follows (The folder name "Templates" varies with the language version of Musescore installed):
%HOMEPATH%\Documents\MuseScore3\Templates
.~/Documents/MuseScore3/Templates
.To configure the directory of custom templates folder: From the menu, select Edit→Preferences...→General.
Note: To ensure that inserted or appended measures display correctly, multimeasure rests should be set to off (toggle M).
Use one of the following options:
Use one of the following options:
Use one of the following options:
Use one of the following options:
Note: In multistaff scores, measure deletion also removes all corresponding measures in the other staves of the system;
To automatically remove any blank measures from the end of the score:
To delete only the measure contents (and not the measure itself):
To edit the properties of a measure, right-click an empty part of the measure and select Measure Properties...:
You can use the buttons, at the bottom left of the dialog, to navigate to the previous or next measure.
This section of the dialog allows you to adjust the duration of a single measure independently of the displayed time signature. Use it to create a pickup measure (also known as anacrusis or upbeat), cadenza, ad lib section etc.
Example: In the image below, the quarter note pickup measure has a nominal time signature of 4/4, but an actual time sig. of 1/4. The measures in the middle are in normal 4/4 time. The complementary measure at the end of the staff, with a dotted half note, has an actual time sig. of 3/4.
Note: A small - or + sign appears above the measure when its duration is different than indicated by the time signature (see image below). This does not appear in any printed or PDF copy. You can turn off these marks by unchecking "Mark Irregular Measures" in the View menu.
Pressing Ctrl+Del on a note or pause also reduces the duration of the measure, while via insert mode you can increase the duration of the measure.
Note: Multimeasure rests are broken, by default, at important breaks—such as rehearsal marks, time signature changes, double barlines, irregular measures, etc.
This allows you to control whether and how measure numbers display on the selected measure:
This setting allows a more precise degree of control than offered by the Increase/Decrease Stretch ({ and }) commands.
See Barlines:Vertical alignment
By default, MuseScore numbers the first measure of each System (except for the first measure in a section), but other numbering options are available: see Format→Style...→Measure Numbers.
To make a measure longer or shorter in duration—without changing the time signature—you can adjust its Measure Properties (above). But it is also possible to join or split measures.
Method A. To join two measures only:
Method B. To join any number of measures:
Notes: (1) If you select measures on only one staff in a score with multiple staves, the same measures will be joined in each staff of the system. (2) Beaming may be automatically modified. (3) If you have generated parts already, this option is disabled.
Choose one of the following methods:
Note: If you select only one note from one staff, each staff of the system will be split at the same place.
Not to be confused with MuseScore Parts feature, see also Glossary: Part
Daily usage of the term voice refers to a musical line or part which can have its own rhythm. Musescore Voices is different, it refers to the software feature that provides automatic stem direction function, allows individual stem direction within a chord, and allows easier playback control. It has nothing to do with pitch range. Voices is also known as "layers" in other notation software.
For each staff that contains a clef symbol, Musescore offers exactly 4 Voices for composers to assign notes to.
To demonstrate the Voice feature better, this article use:
Read on to learn about this feature, or jump to section below to see tips on writing SATB scores and common pitfalls.
Selecting a section of the score highlights each Voice in a different color: Voice 1 blue, Voice 2 green, Voice 3 orange and Voice 4 purple.
If you are not sure, use Voice 1 only.
The following instructions show you how to notate a passage of music using Voice 1 and Voice 2:
Enter Voice 1 notes first: Make sure you are in note input mode : the Voice 1 button becomes highlighted in blue in the toolbar. Always enter lower numbered Voice first, in this example Voice 1. On inputting, some notes may have down-stems, but these will flip automatically when the Voice 2 is added.
The following excerpt shows a treble staff with just the Voice 1 notes entered:
Move cursor back to start of section: When you have finished entering a section of Voice 1 notes, press the ← key repeatedly to move the cursor, note-by-note, back to the first note of the section; or alternatively use Ctrl+← (Mac:Cmd+←) to move the cursor back one measure at a time. Or else you can simply exit note input mode (press Esc) and click directly on the first note.
Enter Voice 2 notes: Make sure you are in note-input mode and that the Voice 1 note at the beginning of the section is selected. Click on the "Voice 2" button (on the right of the toolbar), or use the shortcut Ctrl+Alt+2 (Mac: Cmd+Alt+2). Enter all the lower Voice notes (down-stem).
The following image shows the above example after the addition of Voice 2 notes:
Rests are automatically added to Voices of lower number if they contains no notes. It may come as unfavorable sometimes, you should consider adjusting your usage of MuseScore Voices:
All rests can be made invisible, if required: select the desired rest(s) and press V, or uncheck the "Visible" checkbox in the Inspector. Rests in Voices 2, 3 or 4 (but not Voice 1) can also be deleted (by selecting them and pressing Delete) but it is not recommended: make them invisible instead.
A Voice 1 rest can only be deleted by removing that part of the measure from the score as well: see Remove selected range; or Delete measure(s).
If a rest has been deleted in Voices 2-4, you will need to restore it before you can enter a note on that beat in that Voice (the problem may arise, for example, in imported XML or MIDI files). The easiest way to fix such a measure is to exchange that Voice with Voice 1 twice. For the exact method, see Exchange Voices of notes (below).
To swap the notes between any two Voices:
Notes: (a) The selection can encompass content of any Voice, but only two will be processed at once. (b) If you select a partial measure the operation will still apply to the whole measure.
You can also move notes from one Voice to another (without note-swapping):
Note: For a successful move, the following conditions need to be met:
To select a note in a higher-numbered Voice than the current one:
To select a note in a lower-numbered Voice than the current one:
To further separate into staffs, see Tools: Explode
Chord inside Musescore has a stricter definition than in daily usage, constituent notes of a chord must have the same duration. You cannot merge Voices of varying duration into one chord (of one Voice).
See Tools: Implode
Sound in Musescore 3 is instrument channel based, see Instrument channel (an abstraction). Use Mid-staff sound (channel) change to assign a sound to a Voice.
Alternatively, use Explode to separate Voices into staffs, then sound by Staff / Part properties: Change instrument, edit "Instrument Name" as requied.
Not to be confused with the note input cursor explained in Note input chapter
Select elements on a score for further action such as duplication. Elements currently selected on the score are shown colorized with the Voice each element belongs to, otherwise black by default. Voice 1 blue, Voice 2 green, Voice 3 orange and Voice 4 purple. The color can be changed under Edit→Preferences : Advanced, see Preferences chapter.
The current selection status is shown on the bottom left status bar, it changes whenever the selection is updated by the user. There are four selection status:
Many common operations such as Copy and Paste requires a Range Selection.
Shown below are "single item selection" of a Voice 1 item (top) and "Range Selection" and its status bar (bottom).
To select a single element with the mouse, simply click it. Clicking on an element always select it only, except for the measure element. Clicking on the blank space of a measure (inside the measure's five staff lines) to select it also automatically selects multiple objects inside that measure, the result is a Range Selection.
To select a single element with the keyboard, use the cursor keys to navigate to the element, see all navigation keyboard keys in Viewing and navigation chapter. In Normal mode (press keyboard Esc to use this mode), the left and right cursor keys ← → navigate through a randomly selected note or rest at each time moment only. Use Alt + cursor keys to navigate through all elements at each time moment, including all notes, articulation, dynamics, and other markings.
When multiple objects occupy the same position on a score and fully overlap each other, such as two notes having same pitch but in different Voices, Ctrl + click on it repeatedly to cycle through the set, until the desired element is selected.
To use pitch only Copy and paste commands, select the notehead of a note. To copy and paste everything, including duration etc, create a Range Selection of the note, see "Creating a Range Selection" section. Pitch only feature is removed in Musescore 4.
Most commands that operate on a single note requires selecting the notehead, for example, changing the note's pitch. A note is also a collection of elements including notehead, stem, flag, dot, accidental, etc. Each of these items can be selected individually for purpose like fine tuning its layout position.
Multiple notes of a single chord can be selected one by one to create a List Selection. A single chord can also be selected with the time positions it starts and ends at to create a Range Selection.
Many commonly used commands, including Copy and paste, that can be used on a single chord requires a Range Selection of it, as shown in the image above. Besides the method explained in "Creating a Range Selection" section, there is a special quick way to do it for a single chord. First make sure nothing is currently selected (press Esc to be sure) and then Shift+click on any one of the notehead of the chord.
As Range Selection automatically selects base on time positions, notes in other voices may be included unless explicitly excluded, see "Excluding elements from Range Selection" section.
The repeat selection command (R) works on a single chord, either on a Range Selection of it, and when exactly one note of that chord is selected. See Copy and paste: Repeating a selection chapter.
Create a List Selection manually by using mouse clicks, drag select, or by using commands.
(All Musescore 3 versions)
Elements positioned outside of the area of any staff lines and does not overlap with other elements, can be selected together using mouse drag select. Shift + click on any blank space (outside of staff lines) and drag the cursor to create a selection box. This creates a List Selection only if no notes or rests are included, otherwise a Range selection using the "starting and end time position method" is created.
(Requires Musescore 3.5 version or later)
To add an object to the selection, or remove one, Ctrl (Mac: Cmd) + click on the object. This converts the selection to List Selection. Measure does not support the addition/removal method. Adding and removing element from a Range Selection also converts it into a List Selection.
To select all elements of a given type in the entire score or in a given staff:
To select all elements of a given type between two time positions:
(Requires Musescore 3.5 version or later)
—OR—
(All Musescore 3 versions)
To create more complex selections of similar elements:
The options available in the select dialog will depend on the type of element you right-clicked.
The selection options specific to notes are:
In addition to the type-specific selection options, there are action options at the bottom of the dialog that are common to all element types. These control what happens to the selected elements, and only one of these can be chosen at a time:
A Range selection instructs Musescore to automatically select useful elements between a given beginning and ending time position across a given set of staves.
Suitable for selections that fit on one screen. Shift + click on any blank space (outside of staff lines) and drag the cursor to create a selection box. Include at least one note or rests to create a Range selection.
Suitable for selections that span several pages.
Using the keyboard alone or primarily:
The available commands include:
MuseScore includes some special commands to make command selections:
Before executing actions on a Range Selection, it is possible to exclude elements by type. For example, leaving out the lyrics when duplicating notes, rest etc of a phrase; or deleting everything not in voice 1 in a multiple voices passage. To exclude elements of a given type:
Note that if you exclude voice 1, you will not be able to select any measures that lack content in other voices. So be sure to restore voice 1 after performing the operation for which you are excluding voice 1. For example, if you wish to copy and paste only voice 2, make your range selection, use the Selection Filter to exclude voice 1, use Edit→Copy or Ctrl+C, then restore the checkbox next to voice 1 before attempting to select the destination to paste.
Example: Suppose you want to copy measures 1 and 2 in the following passage (see image), to give measures 3 and 4:
MuseScore remembers an unlimited number of undo/redo actions.
The standard shortcuts are:
Action | Windows & Linux | Mac |
---|---|---|
Undo | Ctrl+Z | Cmd+Z |
Redo | Ctrl+Shift+Z or Ctrl+Y | Cmd+Shift+Z |
Or use the toolbar buttons:
This chapter describes the options available in the View Menu, and in the Zoom and Page View/Continuous View menus (located in the toolbar above the score). It also details the various navigation commands and functions.
There are several ways to zoom the score in or out:
Keyboard shortcut:
View menu:
Mouse
Drop-down menu: To set a specific zoom, use the dropdown menu in the standard toolbar to set the view magnification of the score (25–1600 %) or display it using the options "Page Width", "Whole Page", or "Two Pages".
You may type a custom zoom % into the dropdown field if your desired zoom level isn't available by default.
To return to 100% zoom: Use the shortcut Ctrl+0 (Mac: Cmd+0).
The Toolbar area is located between the Menu bar and the document window.
It contains the following toolbars:
To show or hide certain toolbars:
Note: This option also allows you to show or hide the Timeline, Score Comparison Tool, Script Recorder, Piano Keyboard, Selection Filter, and Drumset Tools.
Select View→Toolbars, and click on "Customize Toolbars…"
The dialog shows the toolbars that can be customized on the left, the current tool buttons for the selected toolbar in the middle, and the buttons that can be added on the right. When you have selected a toolbar in the left panel, you can do any of the following actions:
Note: The toolbar cannot be customized unless a custom workspace is selected (see below).
Select this option to create a custom workspace or to edit an existing workspace.
The Status bar, at the bottom of the screen, gives information about selected score elements. Tick/untick this option to display or hide.
It is possible to split the document display so as to view two documents at once, or to view two different parts of the same document. Tabs allow you to choose which document to display in each view. You can drag the barrier separating the two scores to adjust the amount of space in the window devoted to each:
This section allows you to display or hide various non-printing elements:
A plus sign or minus sign at the top right of a measure indicates that its duration differs from that set by the time signature.
Full Screen mode expands MuseScore to fill your screen so more content is visible.
You can switch between different views of the score using the drop-down list in the toolbar area:
To scroll the score:
In Page View, the score is formatted as it will appear when printed or exported as a PDF or image file: that is, page by page, with margins. MuseScore applies system (line) and page breaks automatically, according to the settings made in Page settings and Style…. In addition, you can apply your own system (line), page or section breaks.
To choose between horizontal or vertical page scrolling, see Preferences: Canvas (Scroll pages).
In Continuous View, the score is shown as one unbroken system. Even if the starting point is not in view, measure numbers, instrument names, clefs, time and key signatures will always be displayed on the left of the window.
Note: Because the layout is simpler, MuseScore may perform faster in Continuous View than Page View.
In Single Page View the score is shown as a single page with a header but no margins, and with an infinite page height. System (line) breaks are added automatically, according to the settings made in Page settings and Style…. In addition, you can apply your own system (line) or section breaks.
The workspaces, Inspector and Selection filter are conveniently displayed as side panels to the left and right of the score window. To undock a side panel use one of the following methods:
To dock a panel use one of the following procedures:
Alternatively, double-clicking the title bar of the panel will restore it to its previously docked position.
Various commands are available to help you navigate more easily through the score. These are listed under Keyboard shortcuts: Navigation.
The Navigator is an optional panel which displays page thumbnails of the score at the bottom or to the right of the document window.
The Navigator appears at the bottom of the document window if scrolling pages horizontally; or on the right if scrolling pages vertically (see Preferences: Canvas).
The blue box represents the area of the score that is currently visible in the document window: drag the box, or click directly on the navigator panel to bring another part of the score into view. You can also drag the scrollbar.
The Timeline panel provides a detailed overview of the score, with expanded possibilities for navigation and interaction.
For details, see Timeline.
The Find / Go to function allows you to speedily navigate to a specific measure, rehearsal mark or page number in the score:
Use one of the following options:
N.B.: It is best to avoid naming rehearsal marks with the single letters "R", "r", "P", "p", or one of these letters with an integer (e.g. "R1" or "p3"), as this can confuse the search algorithm.
Note: The "Pan score automatically" toolbar button must be enabled for the Find command to be able to reposition the score view to the correct location.
You can choose to display the score in either written or concert (sounding) pitch. Written pitch displays the score as it should look when printed for musicians to read. However, during preparation you may prefer the convenience of seeing the transposing instruments notated as they sound, without transposition. In this case you should select the "Concert pitch" option.
To toggle the score display between written or concert pitch:
Before printing the score, exporting it to PDF or saving it online, you should ensure that the Concert Pitch button is off, and that the individual parts are correctly transposed.
The cut, copy, and paste commands can be used to reproduce entire passages of music, to move music earlier or later, to copy text or other markings between staves, to exchange the content in different measures, and more.
In all cases, the first step is to create a selection of element(s), see Selecting elements chapter.
As with other programs that support cut, copy, and paste, you can access these commands from the Edit menu, from a context menu that appears upon right-click or related gesture (e.g., Ctrl+click, or two-finger tap), or via the standard keyboard shortcuts.
Command | Shortcut (Windows) | Shortcut (Mac) | Context menu | Main menu |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cut | Ctrl+X | Cmd+X | Cut | Edit→Cut |
Copy | Ctrl+C | Cmd+C | Copy | Edit→Copy |
Paste | Ctrl+V | Cmd+V | Paste | Edit→Paste |
Swap with clipboard | Ctrl+Shift+X | Cmd+Shift+X | Swap with Clipboard | Edit→Swap with clipboard |
Paste half duration | Ctrl+Shift+Q | Cmd+Shift+Q | N/A | Edit→Paste half duration |
Paste double duration | Ctrl+Shift+W | Cmd+Shift+W | N/A | Edit→Paste double duration |
Note: (1) When using the context menu, take care to always right-click on a selected item; if you right-click on an empty space by mistake your selection will be lost! (2) Paste half/double duration requires Musescore 3.1 version or later.
As explained in the Selecting Elements chapter, in a Range selection, Musescore automatically selects useful elements between given beginning and ending time positions across a given set of staves. These elements includes all of the notes, rests, Musescore Texts such as dynamics symbols, Musescore Lines such as pedal etc. System-wide elements such as Tempo, Time signatures, Repeats, Layout breaks are not included in the automatic selection, thus are not copied.
Upon pasting onto a destination time position, the copied music replaces all of its existing content, except for its original measure rhythm structure and system-wide elements.
(Copying a List Selection requires Musescore 3.5 version or later)
MuseScore also allows copying a single element, or a List Selection of multiple lyrics, chord symbols, dynamics, articulation, or other markings from one place to another, while keeping the content such as notes in the destination intact.
If a single note selected by notehead, upon copying only the pitch is copyed into the destination note. To copy and paste everything, including duration etc, create a Range Selection of the note first, see Selecting Elements chapter. Pitch only feature is removed in Musescore 4.
Multiple notes List Selection cannot be copied.
MuseScore preserves the relative time positions of the markings based on literal note value distance if possible, measure rhythm is not taken into account. This includes case of copying chord symbols and dynamics. Valid note or rest anchors are required at the destination music when pasting lyrics and articulations.
Cut and paste commands can be used to
Measures (their rhythmic structure) cannot be moved, but see Measure operations and Time signatures chapters. When moving List Selection, its elements' relative positions are preserved if possible, see "Copying a List Selection" section.
To move a selection:
The swap with clipboard command combines two operations into one: (1) First it overwrites a selected part of the score with the contents of the clipboard, just like the paste command; (2) Second, it transfers the overwritten part of the score back to the clipboard, just like the copy command.
It can be used, for example, to swap two equal-length sections of a score, A and B:
Like the other commands discussed here, you can access the swap with clipboard command from the menu or via a keyboard shortcut—in this case, it is Ctrl+Shift+X (Mac: Cmd+Shift+X).
A common use for copy and paste is to duplicate a given passage (including notes, chords etc) immediately after the original. Use the special repeat selection command to simplify this process.
This does not work on List Selection. It works on a single chord, either on a Range Selection of it, and when exactly one note of that chord is selected. See Selecting Elements chapter. In note input mode, this command repeats the entire chord that contains the current note. This is useful for creating a series of repeated chords.
If you wish to copy a passage to multiple staves—for instance, to double music of flute with oboes and clarinets&mdash:
This copies the original selection, assuming it contains only single notes—no chords and no multiple voices. If there are chords or multiple voices, then these are distributed among the remaining staves. For more on Explode command, see Tools chapter.
Requires Musescore 3.1 version or later.
If you have entered a passage using mostly eighth notes but wish to halve the entire passage to using mostly sixteenth notes, or double it to quarter notes, MuseScore provides a pair of special commands to accomplish this. You can either modify the durations of a selection in place or create a separate copy of the passage with the modified durations. To halve or double the duration of a passage:
Individual elements—even those that are not selected automatically in a Range Selection, like time signatures or voltas—can be selected and then duplicated using a mouse.
MuseScore native format (*.mscz and *.mscx) are backward compatible: MuseScore 4 opens MuseScore 3's *.mscz without error.
MuseScore native format has never been forward compatible, see forum discussion. Although partial data retrieval is still possible as of MuseScore 4.0.2, you should not rely on it for score data integrity. Some features present in MuseScore 3 have not (yet) been included in MuseScore 4, and internal data conversion occurs when you open a older version file with a newer version program and then overwrite the file using the save function.
Some users find it useful to keep all data intact by creating seperate folders to store score files designated for editing on different Musescore versions, it is recommended to duplicate files before opening them as required.
In the File menu you can find options for opening, saving, exporting and printing your file:
Apart from native format files (*.mscz and *.mscx), MuseScore can also open MusicXML, compressed MusicXML and MIDI files, as well as a variety of files in other formats.
To open any supported file:
Open recent allows you to choose from a list of recently-opened scores.
Save, Save As…, Save a Copy… and Save Selection… allow you to save native MuseScore files (.mscz and .mscx).
Export... allows you to create non-MuseScore files, such as PDF, MusicXML, MIDI, and various audio and image formats. In the Export dialog, you can choose which format to export to.
MuseScore remembers which format you picked the last time and makes that the default for the next time.
Print... allows to print your MuseScore file directly to a printer from MuseScore. Depending on your printer you will have different options, but generally you can define the page range, number of copies and collation.
If you have a PDF printer installed, you could also "export" to PDF using Print, but it's usually better to use the native PDF option under Export for more accurate rendition. Note: For this to work properly with Adobe PDF, make sure to uncheck "Rely on system fonts only, do not use document fonts" in Printer properties.
Musescore.com allows you to:
Note: A MuseScore Pro account is required for all scores not marked as PD (Public Domain) or "Original" work, the latter must also have the approval of the score owner.
To save a score online:
From the menu, select File→Save Online.... The "Log in to MuseScore" dialog will appear:
Enter your email address or MuseScore username, and password, then click OK. Note: If you don't have a MuseScore account yet, create one first by clicking on the "Create an account" link. That will open your browser app and bring you to musescore.com/user/register.
Upon successfully logging in and if the score already exists online, it will be updated automatically. Uncheck Update the existing score to save online as a new score.
If you are using a different SoundFont than the default one and if you are able to export MP3 files (may not be the case on some Linux versions), a checkbox Upload score audio will be visible:
If the checkbox is checked, MuseScore will render the audio of the score using the current synthesizer settings and upload the audio to MuseScore.com.
Now you'll be able to enter your score information.
You can also upload a score on MuseScore.com directly:
If you want to make changes to one of your scores on MuseScore.com, edit the MuseScore file on your own computer, save it, and then do the following:
It is much more convenient to update online scores from directly within MuseScore than by updating the score manually from the score page. Follow these steps if you originally uploaded the score via the Upload page and now want to switch to the direct method:
Now whenever you want to update the online score simply go to File→Save Online....
Note: The URL should be follow the format of https://musescore.com/XXXXXXXX/scores/XXXXXXXX and should not contain 'Nice Link's.
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
A range of barline symbols for most ordinary purposes can be found in the Barlines palette (Basic workspace); repeat barlines, only, are also available in the Repeats & Jumps palette (Basic and Advanced). Additional symbols can be found in the Barlines palette of the Advanced workspace. It is also possible to create your own custom barlines (see below).
To change an existing barline, use one of the following:
To change a non-single to a single barline:
To hide a barline:
To insert a new barline between existing ones, either:
You can insert a barline in order split a measure into two separate ones. Use one of the following methods:
Note: As of version 3.1 (or earlier), all barlines entered this way are entered as Normal Barlines. See also Split a measure.
It is possible to create custom barlines by selecting one or more barlines, and adjusting the properties in the "Barlines" section of the Inspector:
See also Mensurstrich.
Changes to color and horizontal/vertical offset can also be made in the Inspector.
Barlines may extend over multiple staves, as in the grand staff of a piano, or in an orchestral score to join instruments in the same section. To join barlines:
Enter Edit mode on a barline.
Click on the lower blue handle and drag it down to the staff you wish to connect to. The handle snaps into position so there is no need to position it exactly.
Press Esc to exit edit mode. This will update all other relevant barlines as well.
Vertical alignment is absent because barlines are layout automatically according to content. A workaround for vertical alignment is to insert invisible short rests of same length at another voice, or Anchors for Dynamics and Hairpins plugin to automate the process.
Commonly used Clefs (Treble, Bass, Alto, Tenor) can be found in the Clefs palette in the Basic workspace. For a more complete range, see the Clefs palette in the Advanced workspace (see image below).
Note: "Mid-staff" clefs are always smaller than the main system clef.
Example: In the following image, the top staff starts with a treble clef and switches immediately to bass clef, then after a note and a rest, changes back to treble clef.
Note: Changing a clef does not change the pitch of any note. Instead, the notes move to preserve pitch. If you want, you can use Transposition in conjunction with a clef change.
When a clef change occurs at the beginning of a system, a courtesy clef will be generated at the end of the previous system.
To show or hide all courtesy clefs:
It is also possible to show/hide courtesy clefs on a case-by-case basis:
Note: This option may be useful to TAB users who do not want the clef to repeat on every subsequent line.
Standard key signatures are available in the Key Signatures palette in the Basic or Advanced workspaces. It is also possible to create custom key signatures (below).
Note that key signatures are always defined relative to concert pitch. If you are adding a key signature to a staff for a transposing instrument you should add the relevant concert pitch key signature. The correctly transposed key signature will show on the staff (unless you are viewing in concert pitch mode).
Use any of the following methods:
If you wish to change the key signature of only one staff line, leaving others unchanged:
Use any of the following methods:
If you wish to replace the key signature of only one staff, leaving others unchanged:
Use any of the following methods:
By default, MuseScore only shows cancelling naturals when the key signature changes to that of C Major/A minor (no sharps or flats). In all other cases, it simply shows the new key signature without cancellations:
However, you can opt to display cancelling naturals for all key signature changes:
From the menu, select Format → Style... → Accidentals. You'll see the options:
Select one of the three options.
For example, selecting the option "Before key signature if changing to fewer ♯ or ♭" gives:
And the option "After key signature if changing to fewer ♯ or ♭. Before if changing between ♯ and ♭" gives:
Multimeasure rests are interrupted if there is change of key signature:
To turn off the display of a particular courtesy key signature:
To turn off the display of all courtesy key signatures:
Note: Courtesy key signatures are not displayed at section breaks.
To create a custom key signature:
Press Shift+K to display the Key signatures section of the Master palette.
In the Create Key signature panel, drag accidentals from the palette onto the staff above to create the desired key signature. Note: The treble clef is only decorative—custom key signatures for any type of staff can be created here.
Note: A limitation of custom key signatures is that they cannot be transposed in the usual way. If a transposition is needed, or where there is a clef change, you will need to create a new custom key signature.
To move a key signature from the Master palette to a custom palette:
To apply a key signature to the score directly from the Master palette, use one of the following methods:
An accidental is a sign appearing in front of a note that raises or lowers its pitch. Musescore creates playback for common accidentals only, they includes 7 accidentals: b (flat), ♮ (natural), # (sharp), x (double sharp), bb (double flat), #x (triple sharp), bbb (triple flat). To create microtonal accidentals such as quarter tone, see Tuning systems, microtonal notation system, and playback Chapter.
Accidentals affect all notes on the same staff position only for the remainder of the measure in which they occur, but they can be canceled by another accidental. In notes tied across a barline, the accidental continues across the barline to the tied note, but not to later untied notes on the same staff position in that measure.
Accidentals are automatically added, replaced or removed when note's pitch changes:
To add directly either (i) a bb double flat or x double sharp, (ii) a courtesy (also known as cautionary or reminder) accidental, or (iii) a non-standard accidental, use one of the following options:
Add from Accidentals category of the Master palette using the select and click or drag and drop method. Do not add from Symbols category, they are non-functional visual symbols, see Notation types.
In the above diagram, the second accidental is added from Symbols category of the Master palette, it does not use automatic layout and the note pitch does not change (C instead of C#).
To add brackets (only available for courtesy/cautionary/reminder accidental), use one of the following:
Delete an accidental directly by selecting it and pressing Del, note pitch corrects automatically.
To change the enharmonic spelling of a note, or notes, in both written and concert pitch views:
To change the enharmonic spelling in the written pitch view, without affecting the concert pitch view, or vice versa:
Note: If the pitches of selected notes are not all the same, the effect may be unpredictable.
Time signatures can be found in a Palette of the same name in both the Basic and Advanced workspaces.
Note: Whether or not a time signature is actually shown depends on the staff properties, by default it is not shown for tablature.
Use any of the following methods:
If the time signature you require is not available in any of the existing palettes, it can be created using one of the following methods:
Available as of version 3.3.
Starting in version 3.5.1 there is limited support for fractional time signatures. Only ½ and ¼ are supported at this time. If your keyboard does not have the characters on them you can enter them using Alt+0189 for ½ and Alt+0188 for ¼ on some operating systems. You can also copy/paste from here.
To edit properties of particular time signature object(s) on a score, use the Time Signature Properties dialog. Do either one of the following:
Additive (or composite) time signatures are sometimes used to clarify the division of beats within a measure. To use an additive time signature:
In certain cases a score may show staves with different time signatures running at the same time. For example, in Bach's 26. Goldberg Variation:
In the above example, the global time signature is 3/4, but the time signature of the upper staff has been set independently to 18/16.
To set a local time signature for just one staff:
Occasionally you will need to decrease or increase the duration of a measure without changing the time signature—for example, in a pickup measure (anacrusis) or in a cadenza etc. See Measure operations: Measure duration.
Multimeasure rests are interrupted when a time signature change occurs. Also, a section break will prevent a courtesy time signature being shown at the end of the previous measure.
Arpeggio, strum arrow, glissando (slide), portamento (glide), brass or wind instrument articulation (Fall, Doit, Plop and Scoop) and guitar slide in or slide out symbols are usually added from the "Arpeggios & Glissandi" palette.
To add to the score, use one of the following methods:
To adjust the length and height of a symbol:
After selecting a symbol, various useful properties can be adjusted in the "Glissando" or "Arpeggio" section of the Inspector.
Inspector:Glissando section
Inspector:Arpeggio section
If needed for future use, you can save the result in a custom palette.
When an arpeggio or strum arrow is added to the score, it initially spans only one voice. To change the height, see Adjust dimensions (above). Playback of the symbol can be turned on or off in the Inspector.
Add the arpeggio to the top staff, select it and use Shift+↓ to extend it downwards to the next stave without it affecting distance between those staves.
Note: For this to work the notes in the 2 staves need to be in the same voice. And it won't affect playback.
To add a slide or "portamento" between two notes, add a glissando symbol and change its appearance and playback.
To add a slide or portamento before or after a note before a note (a string instrument or guitar technique), add either one of the four wind instrument articulation symbols (Fall, Doit, Plop and Scoop) or a slide in/slide out. Alternative wavy symbols are found in the Symbols category in Master palette window. All of these do not affect playback, but you can mimic to an extent with a hidden Bends (found in Articulations Palette).
To control piano and vocal portamento playback, try Articulations and ornaments and Piano Roll Editor.
A Glissando or slide may be wavy or straight, and be with or without text. E.g.:
To move an end handle vertically or horizontally, from one note to the next:
This method change length and anchors together.
Use adjustment method (repeatedly) to create one.
Fall, Doit, Plop and Scoop symbols are provided. To change the length and curvature, select the symbol, enter edit mode and adjust the handles as described in Slurs: method 1. Do not affect playback.
Slide in and Slide out lines for guitar. To edit the length and angle of a line, double-click on it and drag the handle (or use the Inspector or keyboard arrows for finer adjustment). Do not affect playback.
A comprehensive set of symbols can be found in the Articulations palette in the Advanced workspace:
and the Ornaments palette (Advanced workspace):
There is also an abbreviated version of Articulations palette in the Basic workspace.
To add verbal articulation objects available in the Text palette (pizz. , arco etc) to a score, see Staff Text and System Text chapter. Guitar bend is covered in Bends chapter. Brass or woodwind articulation (Fall, Doit, Plop, Scoop) is covered in Arpeggios and glissandi.
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:
Use one of the following methods:
Note: This does not affect playback.
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.
Fermata is covered in Tempo chapter.
Edit selected object(s)' properties on a score with the Inspector. Under the Articulation heading:
Edit global style settings in Format→Style→Articulations, Ornaments, see Layout and formatting chapter.
Playback of note affected by articulation symbols varies among instruments, the general effect:
To find out the effect of each instrument, save your score as .mscx, open it as plaintext, find <Articulation>
and its <velocity>
and <gateTime>
values. see <Articulation name="sforzato">
for accent (>) symbol
To achieve your desired playback, either:
See this battle between jazz and classical musicians on the forum for more details.
Bends, of various kinds, can be created with the Bend Tool . You can find this in the Articulations palette of the Advanced workspace. Any bend applied to the score can be customized in the Bend section of the Inspector.
To apply one or more bends to the score, use one of the following options:
Global text and line properties for all bends in the score can be edited in Format→Style...→Bend.
Versions 3.4 and above:
Versions prior to 3.4:
The 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 the text appears just above the staff. This height can be adjusted, 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.
A beam is a line connecting consecutive notes to indicate rhythmic grouping of eighth or shorter notes (Wikipedia). You can change control the presence or absence of beams between notes as well as their appearance.
The default beaming of notes is determined by properties of the time signature. You can edit those defaults and thus affect the beaming of all notes within that time signature, and you can also override the beaming of individual notes to differ from the time signature defaults.
See the main chapter Time signatures.
Each time signature has a set of beaming defaults that control the beaming of all notes in that time signature. Since you will normally want the beaming consistent throughout the score, this is usually the place to start when altering the beaming. To edit the defaults for a given time signature, use the Time signature properties dialog.
You can also access this dialog by right-clicking a time signature.
Note: the settings made in this dialog are per score and also per staff. To apply changes to other staves within the same score, you can Ctrl+Shift+drag the time signature to another staff, which acts similarly to adding it from the palette. To make a customized time signature available to other scores, Ctrl+Shift+drag it back to the palette.
To change the beaming of a note of a given duration on a given beat, click the corresponding note in the Note Groups section to toggle the beam into that note on or off. That is, if you click a note that is currently beamed to the previous note, that will break the beam, and if you click a note that is not currently beamed to the previous note, that will join them. You can also drag one of the Beam selector icons to any given note to set its beaming as explained further below.
If you select the Also change shorter notes option, then changes made to any given note will affect notes on the same beat of shorter durations as well.
Click Reset to remove all changes made since this dialog was opened. Note that this button does not reset settings back to the original defaults from the palette. To revert all changes made since the time signature was added, use the palette to replace the time signature.
The time signature properties control the default beaming for notes in your score, but you can override those defaults on a note-by-note basis, such as to have one measure beamed differently from another. This can be useful when writing certain rhythms that might be more readable beamed in a non-standard manner, or in cases where the options available in Time signature properties are insufficient to create the defaults you want. It is also the only way to create beams over rests.
Beam properties are set on the notes themselves. To change the beam between two notes, you will normally start by selecting the second of the two notes, as most of the beam properties control the beam into a note. Note that some of these properties are available in both the Time signature properties window and the Beam properties palette, but this discussion will focus on the latter.
To change the beaming of a given note, either
Drag and drop an item from the palette onto a note or rest.
From left to right, the available properties are:
To restore to default beaming of time signature:
To extend a beam over a rest:
To extend a beam across a barline:
While breaking and joining beams is a function of the individual notes, the actual appearance of the beam can be controlled by selecting either the beam itself (but not any notes).
There are two items under the Beam properties palette that can be applied to a beam to indicate gradual slowing down or speeding up of the joined notes (note this is not supported in playback). These options only apply to 16th and shorter durations using multiple beams.
To remove feathered beam, reset Grow left and Grow right properties.
The angle of a beam can be edited directly by selecting it and moving the handles by dragging or using the cursor keys, user can also make fine adjustments in the Inspector. To switch handle selection, use Shift+Tab key. In Musescore version 3.4 and below, it is required to select the left handle before making adjustment using mouse cursor dragging.
To reposition a beam to the other side of the notes:
MuseScore spaces and aligns notes within the same system (a layout concept, see Layout and formatting chapter), which may result in undesirable irregular spacing. To specify that notes of one particular staff should use independent note spacing,
Shown below is the distribution improvement before and after applying local relayout to the top staff.
Global properties of beams can be set from Format→Style→Beams. See the Layout and formatting : Beams chapter.
MuseScore provides brackets and a curly brace in the Brackets palette (Advanced workspace).
When a new score is created using a template, MuseScore automatically sets the correct brackets.
To add a bracket or brace to systems, use one of two methods:
When you first apply a bracket it only spans one staff. To extend to other staves:
The default thickness and distance from the system of brackets and braces can be adjusted in Format→ Style... → System.
In the System Brackets section, you can set the properties for the brackets in the two boxes on the left, and the properties for the braces in the two boxes on the right.
There are two fundamentally distinct types of notational functionality in Musescore, designed and implemented from the beginning for different purposes:
Musescore usually create a functional item when you do common editing such as pressing a keyboard shortcuts, clicking a toolbar button, or adding an item from the palette, as it is the most common expectation. Musescore uses different classes of elements internally, their usage are not interchangeable: They have distinct property fields that serves different purpose besides engraving or visual display. For example, if you add a Staff Text and type a #, it can never be configured to change a note's pitch, you must create a new accidental. See also Text types.
Musescore is shipped with non-functional symbols and text not interpreted by Musescore (yet), such as historical clefs under the SMUFLs of Bravura font, Musescore also provides non-functional versions of most functional items. These can be found under the Symbols category in the Master palette. Use a non-functional symbol or text when:
Alternatively, insert Images onto a score.
A specific non-functional symbol or text on a score can sometimes be achieved by the two approaches different in resizing capability:
Images inserted onto a score are resizable, .svg files enlarges without blurring, see Images.
Breath and pause markings are available in the Breaths & Pauses palette (Advanced workspace).
To add a breath, or pause (aka caesura / "tram lines" / "railroad tracks") to the score, use one of the following options:
The symbol is placed after the note. Its position can be adjusted by editing the X and Y offsets in the Inspector, or, in edit mode, using the arrow keys.
You can adjust the pause length (in seconds) of the added symbol in the Inspector.
A grace note is a type of musical ornament, usually printed smaller than regular notes. The Short grace note, or Acciaccatura, appears as a small note with a stroke through the stem. The Long grace note, or Appoggiatura, has no stroke.
Grace notes can be found in the "Grace notes" palette in the Basic or Advanced workspace.
Use one of the following methods:
This will add a grace note of the same pitch as the regular note. To add a sequence of grace notes to a regular note, simply repeat the above actions as many times as required. See also, Change pitch (below).
Note: When a grace note is added to the score, a slur is not automatically created with it, so the latter needs to be added separately. See Slurs.
Grace note chords are built up just like regular chords:
You can also create a grace note chord by using the add interval shortcut in step 2: Alt+1...9 for intervals from a unison to a ninth above.
The pitch of a grace note can be adjusted just like a regular one:
To adjust the horizontal space between a grace note and its regular parent note, use one of the following:
Various other properties of the grace note can be adjusted in the Inspector (see "Element," "Chord", and "Note" sections)—such as vertical position, size, stem properties etc. The exception is "Leading space" which only applies to standard notes.
Hairpins are symbols used to indicate gradual changes in volume in the score. There are two kinds: crescendo (getting louder) and decrescendo (getting quieter).
Alternatively, use one of the following options:
NOTE: Placing hairpins on different voices of the same staff at the same time does not create desired playback, it is a limitation of Musescore, because the minimal area of effect on playback loudness (Dynamic Range property) is staff, not voice. If playback is priority, try splitting voices into individual instruments.
A hairpins is a type of Line with playback properties, and its length is adjusted similarly:
Enter edit mode on the hairpin. Then click on the end handle that you want to move:
Use one of the following shortcuts:
This method of extending or shortening the hairpin maintains playback integrity and allows it to cross line breaks:
To fine-tune the horizontal position of an end-handle (without changing playback), use the following shortcuts:
To change the height of a hairpin:
In addition to hairpins, there are cresc. _ _ _ and dim. _ _ _ lines with the same function in the Lines palette. Edit the text in the Text Line Details property.
To turn a hairpin into its equivalent text line:
Pick an option in the Type property.
From version 3.1, a hairpin can be cut, copied and pasted just like a text element: see Summary of cut / copy / paste commands.
For versions prior to 3.1, you can only duplicate a hairpin: see Copying lines.
Properties of the hairpin can be edited in the Inspector:
MuseScore development focuses on engraving support, rather than playback support. Using hairpins without dynamics symbols are perfectly acceptable in real life scoring, but do not create desired playback inside Musescore.
To create playback loudness variation across a hairpin, either:
To create desired loudness:
To create desired timing, create anchor points for hairpin to adjust its length upon:
Complex notations are handled this way:
Incorrect hairpins do not affect playback: eg f crescendo p.
For all instruments, each individual note under a hairpin can have its playback loudness affected by presence of hairpins at the moment of note start.
MuseScore 3.1 and above
For instruments supporting Single Note Dynamics (e.g. strings, brass etc.), loudness variation can also occur across the span of the note, and across a series of tied notes . This can be switched off individually with the Use single note dynamics checkbox property.
This chapter focuses on Musescore Lines, a type of objects capable of attaching (anchoring) to a horizontal continuous range of more than two notes or rests, or vertical collection of notes (chord). A Musescore Line object contains a length of string or arc, and optionally a text. These objects can functionally affect the score, and share similar configurable properties.
Musescore Line objects include these subtypes, follow the hyperlink on text to read their dedicated main chapters, or "jump to section" on this chapter:
These markings contain length of string or arc, but do not belong to Musescore Line objects because they cannot attach (anchor) to a continuous range:
Standard line or plain line is a simple general purpose, straight line. It can be adjusted to be diagonal or vertical.
A text line has text embedded. Examples of this subtype are Staff text lines, ornament lines, pedal, Volta, Octave lines etc.
When you apply a text line to the score from a palette, the line properties always remain unchanged, but the text properties may, under certain circumstances, assume those of the current style for text lines. For details, see Behavior of applied text and lines.
General purpose text-lines. Staff text lines, when attached to a single staff will appear in Parts that feature that staff or tablature. System text lines, appearing in all Parts.
To add an accidental to an ornament line (e.g. a trill line) and pralls, select the line and click on a symbol in the Accidentals palette (double-click in versions prior to 3.4), toolbar buttons will not work. Does not affect playback.
To add a guitar barre line, use either:
This section focuses on the types of piano pedal engraving available, for knowledge of various piano pedals see wikipedia article.
Supported engravings including:
There are three different subtypes:
Type 1 includes:
Visually, the line or symbol only extends horizontally to the notehead attached to the end anchor.
Functionally, if that note is attached to another marking's start anchor, the following marking will automatically connect and make a shape resembling "-^-", which is indicative of the piano technique "pedal released and pressed again without releasing this note".
shown above is the auto connect, their playback are also in line with the piano technique
Sustain (MIDI CC 64) is created by the synthesizer. When consecutive type 1 markings create a "-^-", playback matches the piano technique, the first marking is interpreted by synthesizer as released at the note attached to the end anchor. Single or trailing type 1 markings creates playback like type 2: sustain until the note attached to the end anchor ends.
The last two type 1 markings shown above are single or trailing, they create the same playback as type 2
Type 2 includes:
Visually, the line extends horizontally to an aprpopiate length spanning the full duration of note attached to the end anchor.
Functionally, sustain (MIDI CC 64) is created by the synthesizer. Type 2 always sustain until the note attached to the end anchor ends.
Type 1 and 2 are interchangable by adjusting properties.
Type 3 includes marking added from Symbols category in Master palette window such as sostenuto pedal marking, custom Staff Text markings, and embedded images, they are for engraving purpose only and are non-functional.
shown above a type 2 marking on score
Add pedal markings from Lines palette, see "Applying lines to the score" (jump to). If you add marking to a single note, end anchor is attached to end of its measure.
Adjust with Shift+←/→, switch handle with Tab, see "Line anchors and playback properties" (jump to).
Unfortunately, you might need to make compromise with engraving style or not notate at all if you must create a desired playback, because of the functional limitation of Type 1 and Type 2 explained. Musescore 3 pedal marking always create sustain playback only (cannot be turned off), making it impossible to use "add redundant symbol, make it invisible" trick.
To create shape resembling "-^-" with consecutive Type 1 markings, make sure the end anchor is attached correctly, which is usually to the first note of the next measure instead of the last note of the previous measure. This big picture shows the correct end anchor result.
MuseScore does not offer keyboard shortcut bindings to palette items, but you can configure a shortcut to apply the same (last used) times consecutively to improve efficiency, see Palettes: Apply the last selected item
Per symbol settings see "Inspector properties of Lines" (jump to). Global settings see Layout and formatting: Pedal, and Layout and formatting: Text-line .
The commonest way to add a new Musescore Line is to use either:
A Line, except Slurs, Volta brackets and Ambitus, can be applied from a palette in the following ways:
Use any of the following methods:
To efficiently apply the same item again, such as adding end to end pedal marks to a piano phrase, setup and use a keyboard shortcut, see Palettes.
Any line in the score can be customized by adjusting its properties in the Inspector, as follows:
In Normal mode, apply one of the following methods:
Note: You can also adjust the vertical position in Edit mode.
Some lines, such as Hairpins, Voltas, Ottavas etc. affect playback. The start handle and end handle are connected by a pink dotted line to their respective anchors on the staff, which are visible in Edit mode only. These anchors indicate the extent of the playback effect.
Note: The following two methods adjust the length of the line engraving and the anchors affecting playback together. This ensures that correct playback of the score is maintained (if applicable), and that the line can be extended between systems if required.
To make fine adjustments to the position of the line end (without changing the position of the anchor):
Once applied to the score, lines cannot be copied using the usual copy and paste procedures. However, you can duplicate lines within a score:
A whole rest, centered within a measure (shown below), is used to indicate that an entire measure (or a voice within a measure) is silent, regardless of time signature.
Use the following method if all selected measures are "standard"—i.e. with no custom durations:
1 Select a measure, or range of measures.
2. Press Del (Mac: Backspace).
If one or more of the measures contains a custom duration, use the following method instead:
If the voice contains only rests you can select the first rest and invoke the conversion keystroke.
A Multimeasure rest indicates a period of silence for an instrument: the number of measures is shown by the number above the staff.
Multimeasure rests are automatically interrupted at important points, such as double barlines, rehearsal marks, key- or time signature changes, section breaks etc. and also at measures that are set to break multimeasure rests.
To turn multimeasure rests on or off:
Alternatively:
Note: It is recommended that you enter all notes in the score first before enabling multimeasure rests.
You may want to have a multimeasure rest divided into two multimeasure rests:
See also: Measure operations: Break multimeasure rest.
Octave (Ottava) lines are used to indicate that a section of music is to be played one or more octaves above or below written pitch: The line may be dotted or solid. Ottavas are available in the Lines palette of the Basic and Advanced workspaces.
8─────┐or 8va─────┐: Play one octave above written pitch
8─────┘or 8va─────┘: Play one octave below written pitch
8va alta/bassa lines are particularly common in piano scores, though they are sometimes used in other instrumental music.1 15ma alta (2 octaves above) and 15ma bassa (2 octaves below) are also occasionally used.
MuseScore automatically adjusts playback of the score under the ottava to the correct pitch.
See Applying lines to the score.
And to adjust the vertical position, see Lines: Adjust vertical position.
See Lines: Change length.
Ottavas can be customized just like any other line. See Custom lines and line properties.
Properties unique to Octave lines can be adjusted in the Ottava section of the Inspector:
Gerou/Lusk. Essential Dictionary of Music Notation (Internet Archive). ↩︎
A slur is a curved line between two or more notes indicating that they are to be played legato—smoothly and without separation. Not to be confused with Ties, which join two notes of the same pitch.
There are a number of ways to add a slur to a score, and all may be useful depending on the context (adding a slur from the lines palette is also possible but not recommended).
Select the note where you want the slur to start:
Press S to add a slur extending to the next note:
(Optional) Hold Shift and press → (right arrow key) to extend the slur to the next note. Repeat as required:
(Optional) Press X to flip the slur direction:
Press Esc to exit edit mode:
If you only want to adjust the position of a slur:
To adjust all the properties of a slur (length, shape and position):
Note: The two outer handles adjust the start and end of the slur, whilst the three handles on the curve adjust the contour. The middle handle on the straight line is used to move the whole slur up/down/left/right.
A slur can span several systems and pages. The start and end of a slur is anchored to a note/chord or rest. If the notes are repositioned due to changes in the layout, stretch or style, the slur also moves and adjusts in size.
This example shows a slur spanning from the bass to the treble clef. Using the mouse, select the first note of the slur, hold down Ctrl (Mac: Cmd) and select the last note for the slur, and press S to add the slur.
X flips the direction of a selected slur.
Dotted slurs are sometimes used in songs where the presence of a slur varies between stanzas. Dotted slurs are also used to indicate an editor's suggestion (as opposed to the composer's original markings). To change an existing slur into a dotted or dashed slur, select it and then in Inspector (F8) change Line type
from Continuous
to Dotted
or Dashed
.
A tie is a curved line between two notes of the same pitch, indicating that they are to be played as one combined note (see external links below). Ties are normally created between adjacent notes in the same voice, but MuseScore also supports ties between non-adjacent notes and between notes in different voices.
In note-input mode, if you specify a tie immediately after entering a note or chord, the program automatically generates the correct destination notes to go with the ties. Or, you can simply create ties "after the fact," between existing notes.
Note: Ties, which join notes of the same pitch, should not be confused with slurs, which join notes of different pitches and indicate legato articulation.
The following command adds an identical tied chord to the selected chord.
Note: This shortcut works, as described above, only if there is no chord following the selected note. If there is, then the duration is ignored and the tied note is added instead to the following chord.
Select one or more noteheads in the "start" chord.
Press +, or the toolbar tie button, :
.
Ties will be created between the selected note(s) and the next available note(s) of the same pitch.
To remove ties, as of MuseScore 3.3.3, use the same command (toggle)
This method ties all notes in the "start" chord (where possible):
Ties will be created between all the notes in the selected chord and the following notes of the same pitches.
To remove ties, as of MuseScore 3.3.3, use the same command (toggle).
Occasionally you may need to return to an existing tied chord in order to add one or more extra tied notes. In this case a different command is used. For example:
A workaround is required to create ties between unison notes:
X flips the direction of a selected tie, from above the note to below the note, or vice-versa.
Tremolo is the rapid repetition of one note or chord, or a rapid alternation between two notes or chords. One-note and two-note tremolo symbols can be found in the Tremolo palette in the advanced workspace, trem. text marking see Articulation Text (Mid-staff sound change)
A one-note or one-chord tremolo is indicated by strokes through the stem of the note or chord (or above/below if a whole note). E.g.
In a two-note or two-chord tremolo, bars are drawn between the notes. E.g.
Tremolo symbols are also used to notate drum rolls.
Alternatively, you can drag the tremolo symbol onto the applicable note.
Alternatively, you can drag the tremolo symbol onto the applicable note.
Example: To enter a two-note tremolo with the duration of a half note (minim), enter two normal quarter notes (crotchets). After applying a tremolo symbol to the first note, the note values automatically double to half notes.
You can create a simple repeat by placing a start and an end repeat barline at the beginning and end of a passage. These can be applied from the Barlines or Repeats & Jumps palette.
Note: If the start of a repeat coincides with the beginning of a piece or section, the start repeat barline can be omitted if desired. Similarly, an end repeat barline can be omitted at the end of a score or section.
First create a simple repeat (as shown above), then apply the first and second time endings—see Voltas.
Simple repeats, such as the ones illustrated above, or "1, 2" volta sections, usually play back correctly first time. More complex repeats may need further adjustment as follows:
Text and symbols related to repeats are located in the "Repeats & Jumps" palette (in the Basic and Advanced workspaces). This palette contains:
To add a repeat symbol to the score use either of the following:
Jumps are symbols in the score which tell the musician to skip to a named marker (see below). Jumps include the various kinds of D.C. (Da Capo) and D.S. (Dal Segno) text.
To set correct playback of jumps:
After the jump, and following established convention, only the last round of any simple repeat section is played back. If you want playback to take these repeats in full:
Note: Jumps are taken only after all simple repeats in the section are played through.
If you click on a jump, some text boxes and a checkbox are displayed in the Jump section of the Inspector. These have the following effects on playback:
Play repeats: Ticking this box tells MuseScore to play repeats after D.C. (Da Capo) or D.S. (Dal Segno) jumps. If this option is not ticked then simple Repeats are not taken after jumps and playback works as if it were the last repeat.
Note: The tags start and end, referring to the beginning and end of a score or section, are implicit and don't need to be added by the user.
Markers are the places referred to by the jumps. A list of markers (in addition to the implicit "start" and "end") follows:
If you click on a marker, the following properties appears in the Marker section of the Inspector:
Note: The properties (i.e. the tag names) of jumps and markers can be set via the Inspector.
You need to modify them if using multiple jumps and markers.
Tuplets are used to write rhythms beyond the beat divisions usually permitted by the time signature. For example, a triplet consists of three notes in the time of two:
And a duplet consists of two notes in the time of three:
The exact method of tuplet entry depends on whether you are starting off in Note input mode or Normal mode. We'll start off with a simple example: the creation of an eighth note triplet.
Select a note or rest that specifies the full duration of the desired triplet group. In the case of an eighth note triplet, you will need to select a quarter note or rest—as in the example below:
Press the keyboard shortcut for a triplet, Ctrl+3 (Mac: Cmd+3); alternatively use the menu, Add→Tuplets→Triplet. This will give the following result:
The program automatically changes to note-input mode and selects the most appropriate duration—in this example an eighth note. Now enter the desired series of notes/rests. For example:
Alternatively, use the Duration Editor to switch between tuplet and non-tuplet.
To create other tuplets substitute one of the following commands at the relevant step above:
For more complex cases, see below.
To create other tuplets than the default options (e.g. 13 sixteenth notes in the space of one quarter note):
Select the desired number ratio (e.g. 13/4 for thirteen sixteenth notes in the space of a quarter note) under "Relation" in the "Type" section. Specify "Number" and "Bracket" using the radio buttons in the "Format" section;
Click OK to close the dialog:
Enter the desired series of notes/rests.
Use either of the following:
To change the display properties of tuplets in the score, select the tuplet numbers/brackets, and adjust the desired properties in the "Tuplet" section of the Inspector:
To make fine adjustments to the way that all tuplets in the score are displayed: from the menu, select Format → Style...→Tuplets.
The legend below illustrates some of the properties that can be adjusted in the Tuplets style dialog:
(2) Vertical distance from stem.
(3) Vertical distance from note head.
(5) Distance before stem of first note.
(6) Distance after stem of last note.
Volta brackets, or first and second ending brackets, are lines used to mark different endings for a simple repeat. Score playback automatically follows the repeat indications.
Use one of the following methods:
Note: When you select a start or end handle, a dashed line appears connecting it to an anchor point on the staff (see diagram, below). This anchor shows the position of the playback start/end points of the Volta. The Shift commands change the anchor point so playback always remains in sync with the visual start/end points. To make fine adjustments to the visual start or end points, without affecting playback, use other keyboard arrow commands, or drag the handles with a mouse.
To make changes to Volta text:
Select the volta, and edit the properties in the Text Line Core section of the Inspector.
To specify the order of repeats:
For example, a first ending shows the number "1"; a second ending, the number "2" and so on. More complex repeats are also possible: e.g. a "Repeat list" displaying "1, 2, 4, 5, 7" indicates that the volta is to be played during repeats 1, 2, 4, 5, and 7, and so on.
Note: Each volta section, except the final one, should end with an end repeat barline.
Note: Keep in mind that the repeat is always referenced in comparison to it's starting point (either the most recent start repeat barline or the start of the current section).
Sometimes a repeat plays more than two times. If you want to change the number of times MuseScore plays a repeat, go to the measure containing the end repeat barline and change its "Play count". See Measure operations: Other properties and the note on playback for voltas in Repeats and jumps.
The play count of the measure with the end repeat barline must be set (at least) one higher than the number of times you want the measure to play (this is usually equal to the number of entries in that volta repeat list + 1).
Take the following score:
Measure 4 should have play count set to 4
Measure 6 should have play count set to 3
Transposition is the act of raising or lowering the pitch of a selection of notes by the same interval. You can choose to transpose notes either manually or by using the Transpose dialog.
MuseScore's Transpose dialog gives you more options for transposing notes.
Note: By default this dialog opens from the Tools menu, but you can also choose to open it using a keyboard shortcut (see Preferences).
To transpose notes up or down to the desired key:
To transpose selected notes up or down in semitone increments:
To transpose selected notes up or down by a diatonic interval:
Two options are available for both Chromatic and Diatonic transposition mode in the options area:
Transposing instruments, such as the B-flat trumpet or E-flat alto sax, sound lower, or higher than their written pitch. MuseScore has a number of features to facilitate the scoring of these instruments.
MuseScore's default viewing mode shows the musical notation in written pitch, but you can choose to display the score in concert pitch instead. In the latter mode, the musical notation of all instruments matches the actual pitches that you hear on playback.
You should ensure that the Concert pitch button is OFF before printing the main score or any parts.
Instrument transpositions are already set up in MuseScore. However, if you want a rare instrument or transposition that is not available in MuseScore, you may need to edit the instrument transposition manually.
You can also use the Change Instrument… button in the Staff/Part Properties window to automatically change the transposition to that of a different standard instrument.
This chapter explains music creation on percussion notation staff only, see also the Instruments, staff setup and templates, the standard notation Note input , and the tablature chapters.
The free MuseScore Drumline (MDL) extension offers even more options to write percussion notation. To download and install it, see the Language, translations, and extensions chapter.
Percussion notation (wikipedia) is a type of musical notation indicating notes to be played by percussion instruments.
Musescore Instruments (see the Instruments chapter) that use percussion notation are under "Percussion - Unpitched", "Percussion - Marching", and "Percussion - Body" groups.
Some Musescore Instruments under "Percussion - Pitched" contain "Drums" in their name, but do not use percussion notation : "Steel Drums", "Soprano Steel Drums", "Alto Steel Drums", "Guitar Steel Drums", "Tenor Steel Drums", "Cello Steel Drums", "Bass Steel Drums". They use standard notation staff, see Note input chapter.
Understanding of Musescore Voices is required if the user wants to create percussion score for more than one real world instrument (sound sample), such as a score for "snare drum and ride cymbal".
MuseScore Studio automatically uses a staff template (percussion staff types, eg. 5-line, 3-line, or 1-line staff) that best suits the Musescore Instrument. To change a staff's setting, see Staff / Part properties) chapter.
This chapter uses the wording "real world instrument" and "sound sample" interchangably.
A percussion Musescore Instrument usually contains several real world instruments (sound samples). Popular Musescore Instruments that use percussion notation include,
Several sound samples are only accessible using the Mixer window:
Music entered for a percussion Musescore Instrument is specific to it. "Determine the audio desired before entering notes".
Musescore Instrument data cannot be edited inside Musescore Studio 3.6.2 - there is no interface to change which sound samples a Musescore Instrument contains, or edit any sound data inside.
It is advisable to determine the audio (sound samples) desired before entering rhythmic patterns.
It is a misconception that the data in "Drumset" Musescore Instrument are stored as rhythmic pattern data independent of pitch. Internally, notes written for different sound samples are stored as separate pitches. Musescore Studio 3.6.2 does not have user interface for switching sound within the same Musescore Instrument, such as in the case where the user has already written notes for "Hi-hat" sound on a "Drumset" Musescore Instrument staff and wants to switch to use "Ride Cymbal" sound.
Alternatively, the Musescore Instrument can be changed as a whole if desired, but doing so may create undesirable result because notes entered for a percussion Musescore Instrument are specific to it.
There are several ways to enter music on a percussion staff.
There are two kinds of time positions that the user can enter notes and rests on to:
To create more available time positions, truncate long rests by adding short rests (right click, or use shortcut 0 (zero), see below).
To add a new note at the current note input cursor position:
To add a new note or rest at any available time positions:
Keyboard shortcuts assignment is explained under "Drum input palette" section. To add a note at the current note input cursor position:
To add a new note at the current note input cursor position:
To add a new note at the current note input cursor position:
By default, the piano keyboard is docked at the bottom of the screen—to the left of the Drum input palette.
To undock the panel, drag the title bar.
To dock the panel:
Drum input palette is displayed at the bottom of the screen when,
The palette items are used to enter new notes with mouse or keyboard shortcuts.
Each item (note) in the palette represents a percussion sound sample, position the mouse pointer over it to view its name. The letters A–G shown on items are keyboard shortcuts. They do not refer to note pitches. Keyboard shortcuts can be changed using the Edit Drumset window.
Do not be confused by the wording "Edit Drumset". It is not possible to edit data inside Musescore Instrument (such as changing the sound samples inside a "Drumset" Musescore Instrument) inside Musescore Studio 3.6.2 (see "sound samples in a Musescore Instrument" section).
To open the "Edit Drumset" window, use one of the following options:
Most settings inside this window affect "Drum input palette" items, which are used to enter new notes with mouse or keyboard shortcuts, except for the Staff line and the Notehead group settings which also affect all notations on the selected staff.
The left pane lists the instrument (sound samples) available in the current Musescore Instrument (see "Overview").
The right pane displays details of the sound sample selected on the left pane, these settings are used to display notes on the score. Any changes made here are automatically saved in the parent MuseScore file.
The settings in this window can be saved as an independent .drm file by pressing Save As.... To import a settings use the Load... button. See files under External links.
Refer to a General MIDI Level 2 (GM2) percussion key map (drum map) for each sound sample's corresponding key (pitch). Some keyboards (e.g., Casio) display percussion symbols next to the keys as an aid to the user.
Outside the note input mode (press ESC), pressing an external MIDI controller key, or a vitual piano keyboard key demo the sound only, it does not create any note on a staff.
Stem direction in percussion notation has been used by musicians to convey several distinct meanings. For example, the "hands up, feet down" and other rules explained in Better drumset notation (with focus on stem direction) forum discussion, the "pulse and rhythm" rule explained in https://www.onlinedrummer.com/blogs/drum-lessons/introduction-to-voicin….
In Musescore Studio, note stem direction in percussion notation is determined by,
Users should be aware Musescore Voice feature (see the Musescore Voices chapter) dictates that notes in the same Musescore Voice (layer) share the same note duration and therefore should not assign Musescore Voice to notes and Drum input palette items solely based on the stem direction desired.
In percussion notation, a note's staff line / space / vertical position usually denotes the instrument (sound sample) used.
To change all notes of the currently selected staff, edit the Staff line explained in "Edit Drumset" section.
Shown below is the default notation definiton of the "Drumset" MuseScore Instrument, to edit it see "Edit Drumset" section.
drumsetdefaultdef.mscz
In percussion notation, a note's shape usually denotes pitch.
To change selected staff's setting, edit Notehead group and Edit Noteheads as explained in "Edit Drumset" section. Use this method to use "cross", also known as "ghost note or dead note" by musicians.
To add brackets (parentheses, dead note or ghost note) to individual notes, use the Noteheads palette item. To add additional "open circle" symbols, apply the Articulation palette item. They do not affect playback inside Musescore.
To enter sticking symbols (R, L):
To create a drum roll, use a Tremolo.
Music for fretted, stringed instruments is commonly notated using tablature, also known as tab, which provides a visual representation of the strings and fret numbers:
Tablature can also be combined with traditional staff notation:
If you wish to create tablature as part of a new score, use the New Score Wizard. If you want to add tablature to an existing score, use the Instruments dialog. Or, alternatively, you can convert an existing standard staff. See below for details.
To create tablature in a new score (for combined staff/tablature systems see → below):
Note: If the desired tablature is not available in the Choose Instrument list, add a tablature staff anyway at step 4 (above). Then edit the tablature to your exact requirements using the Staff/Part properties dialog.
To add a single tablature staff to an existing score (for combined staff/tab system see below):
To convert an existing standard staff to tablature, or tablature to a standard staff:
Note: If you only want to view (rather than change) the instrument tuning, follow steps 1 and 2 only.
Right-click on the staff and select Staff/Part Properties….
Press the Edit String Data… button at the bottom of the dialog box. The String Data dialog opens:
Click on a string pitch and select Edit String…. Or, alternatively, just double-click the string pitch.
Notes: (1) If tuning is changed when the tablature for that instrument already contains some notes, fret marks will be adjusted automatically (if possible); (2) Any change of tuning to a particular instrument applies only to the score at hand, and does not change any program default settings.
Note: After adding a tablature string you will need to adjust the number of lines in the Staff/Part properties dialog.
Note: After deleting a tablature string you will need to adjust the number of lines in the Staff/Part properties dialog.
This feature is used to mark a (bass) course as unstopped (i.e. like a harp string, only played in the open position): as on a Baroque lute or Theorbo etc. This means that only "0" (zero) or "a" is accepted as a fret mark: any other fret mark will be converted to 0/a.
This property defines the maximum fret number which can be entered on a tablature staff.
To access the full range of tablature display options, use the Staff / Parts Properties dialog:
Some basic tablature display options are available from the Instruments dialogue:
The same options are available from the Choose Instruments page of the New Score Wizard.
Plucked-string instruments—such as the guitar—are commonly notated using both a music staff and tablature (TAB) together. MuseScore gives you the option of having the two staves either unlinked or linked:
Unlinked Staves: The advantage of using this option is that each staff can be edited independently. To transfer music notation from one staff to the other, select the desired range and copy and paste it onto the other staff.
Linked Staves: The staves are "mutually updating": i.e. any change you make to the notation in one staff is immediately applied to the other staff as well.
A note on fret mark conflicts: When the same note is entered in two different voices, MuseScore tries to ensure that the fret marks do not overlap on the same string. Any overlaps which do occur are marked with red squares: these appear only in the document window and not on any printed copy. In almost all cases (e.g. frets 0 to 4 on the 6th string), overlapping is the desired result and no further adjustment is required. You can hide the red marks by selecting "View" and unticking "Show Unprintable."
Note: To create unlinked staves with separate mixer channels, instead of step "5" (above), select a Tablature staff in the left-hand column and click Add. Then continue with steps 6 and 7.
To add tablature to a plucked-string staff in the score (or vice versa):
Press 0 to 9 to enter a fret mark from 0 to 9 on the current string; to enter numbers with several digits press each digit in sequence. Keys A to H and K can also be used: convenient when working in French tablature. For L , M, N, use the alphanumeric keyboard and type respectively 10, 11, 12... (Note: You cannot enter a number higher than the "Number of frets" value set in the Edit String Data dialog).
Press ; (semicolon) to enter a rest of the selected duration.
You can enter notes in different voices if required—just as you would in a standard staff.
See also, Edit notes (below).
Period notation for bass strings (lutes and sim.) is supported:
French tablature: letters with prefixed slash-like strokes right under the tab body: i.e. 7th string: "a", 8th string: "/a", 9th string: "//a" and so on, all in the first position below the tab body.
Italian tablature: numbers with 'ledger line'- like segment of string above the tab body: i.e. 7th string: "0" one position above the tab body with one 'ledger line'; 8th string: "0" two positions above the tab body with two 'ledger lines' and so on.
Input of fretmarks is via computer keyboard only: by moving the note entry cursor below (French) or above (Italian) the tab body, 'shadow' slashes or ledger lines will indicate the target string to which the fret mark will be applied; pressing one of the fret keys, will enter (and lay out) the note on that string.
To enter notes into tablature with a mouse:
See also, Edit notes (below).
In note input mode, you can use any of the following methods to set note duration in tablature:
In Note input mode:
In Normal mode:
Note: The fret mark cannot be higher than the "Number of frets" value set in the Edit String Data dialog.
To move the fret mark to an adjacent string without changing the pitch (if the string is free and can produce that note):
In Note input mode:
In Normal mode:
To change a fret mark to a crosshead note:
Type: | to get: |
---|---|
↑ | Select above string as current. |
↓ | Select below string as current. |
Shift+1 to Shift+9 | Select a duration (128th to a longa) |
NumPad1 to NumPad9 | Select a duration (128th to a longa) |
Q | Decrease current input duration. |
W | Increase current input duration. |
0 to 9 | Enter a fret digit / letter. |
A to H, K | Enter a fret letter / digit. |
Alt+Shift+↑ | Increase current fret mark. |
Alt+Shift+↓ | Decrease current fret mark. |
; (semicolon) | Enter a rest |
Type: | to get: |
---|---|
0 | Change note to rest |
1 to 9 | Change duration of selected note or rest (128th to longa) |
Alt+Shift+↑ | Increase the pitch of the selected note (MuseScore chooses the string). |
↑ | Increase the pitch without changing string. |
Alt+Shift+↓ | Decrease the pitch of the selected note (MuseScore chooses the string). |
↓ | Decrease the pitch without changing string. |
Ctrl+↑ (Mac: Cmd+↑) | Move note to above string, keeping the pitch. |
Ctrl+↓ (Mac: Cmd+↓) | Move note to below string, keeping the pitch. |
Shift+X | Toggle the ghost notehead on/off. |
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
To add a new instrument to a score and manage instruments setup, use Instruments dialog instead.
To switch an instrument and change its staffs everywhere on a score, use Staff / Part properties instead.
To switch to another sound sample (switch channel) (e.g. pizz., con sordino) inside an instrument, use Staff Text instead
When a musician is required to double up on a different instrument for a section of a piece, an instruction to switch instruments is generally placed above the staff at the beginning of that section. A return to the primary instrument is handled in the same manner.
MuseScore uses a special class of text called Change Instrument text for this purpose. This allows you to change the instrument for that staff at a chosen point in the score, and have this reflected in playback.
Warning: While the "Change Instr." text is also available from the Text Palette, it contains a bug in MuseScore 3.x where transposition for the new instrument might break. Use the Change Instrument Text from the menu instead to prevent this bug.
An instrument in Musescore is a concept including score settings, behaviors (transposition, playable range), sound etc. More info.
Sound setting changes using a Change Instrument text can be observed:
For example, here is a Mixer display showing the "Tuba" track (first track) among many others. Notice that the small arrow at the top of the Tuba track is dimmed. No new instruments have been added to it.
Now, to the Tuba stave in the score, a "Change Instrument" text has been added to the score, inserting an "Oboe". Notice now that the top arrow on the Tuba track in the Mixer menu has darkened.
Now, if that arrow in the Mixer menu is clicked, a sub-menu opens, showing the sounds of the Tuba are still there (1st two sub-channels), but a new "Oboe" sub-channel has been added. By clicking on this sub-channel, you can assign a sound to the Oboe from the "Sound" tab on the Mixer menu (see below):
To change the track back to its original instrument, just insert a new "Change Instrument" text into the stave after the first one, and name the original instrument. For example, in this example, the Tuba stave has been returned back to Tuba. Notice that in the Mixer menu, a new "Tuba" sub-channel has been added after the "Oboe" sub-channel.
The Mixer contains controls for adjustments of in-app playback (sound, volume and panning), and MIDI out settings. It contains the Details Area on the top and the Control strips Area below. In between the two is a wide button with a tiny triangle. Clicking on it toggles the visibility of the details area. It uses the Preferences > Score > "Show MIDI controls in the Mixer" as default setting.
To display/hide the mixer, use one of the following:
Expanded parent control, showing child controls in pink.
Displays the Master Gain on the left, and columns of controls on the right. It is important to know the difference between channel and sound track (Musescore Voice):
Note: (a) In Musescore 3.6.2, the Mixer does not response to selection on the score screen area, a control in the Mixer must be selected with a mouse click first, before any adjustment is made. (b) It is not possible to add or remove channel inside a instrument on a score inside Musescore. To add or remove a channel, or set default values, a custom instrument must be created utilizing a instruments.xml. The topic is covered in the developers' handbook. (c) Parent control strip is formerly referred to as "part track".
The Master Gain controls the overall output volume. To adjust it, click and drag the slider handle or enter a value in the box underneath.
When an instrument on a score contains more than one channel. A parent control strip is shown in the Mixer, it has an arrow button on the top left corner. Click the arrow to show or hide all channels. Parent control shadows the first child control, modifying values on parent control modifies all children values.
At the top a green S Solo button and a red M Mute button: click to toggle on and off. If any Solo button is checked, unSolo channels are muted regardless of their Mute status. These modify a channel, not voices.. To mute a voice, jump to Mute Voice
The dial below the mute button controls panning left and right. You can click and drag. Note that value 64, not 50, is center pan.
The slider controls the playback volume. This is a final post process output volume. The data size 127 is an arbitrary number not related to MIDI velocity, default 100 value is 90% sound sample volume, more info.
Not to be confused with Long instrument name and Short instrument name in Staff / Part properties.
Display Instrument name or Channel name. Does not affect score visually.
The details area displays and provides finer control of the currently selected channel.
Playback option to be used with Musescore Parts feature.
Not to be confused with Long instrument name and Short instrument name in Staff / Part properties.
Text for display within Mixer only, also known as Part name in Staff / Part properties. Does not affect score visually. Does not affect sound.
Channel name cannot be modified inside Musescore, use custom instruments.xml instead, more info
Affects the whole instrument:
Changing without understanding will mess up your score audio.
Understand difference of channel and voice first, you may not want to edit this field. Consider these alternatives first:
If none of the above options fit, read on to edit sound.
The sound option is the sound data that an instrument channel use for playback. The data reference method depends on the order of soundfonts in the Synthesizer, pay attention to Synthesizer setting before you close and restart Musescore.
Correct audio won't be produced unless you setup Drumset correctly, you must understand the sound's layout.
The drop-down menu lists every sound from SoundFont loaded in the Synthesizer. They are ordered as the order of soundfont files in the Synthesizer: SF2/SF3 by MIDI Bank first, then SFZs. It is not an alphabetical order. To jump to the sound you desire quickly, while the list is open press on your keyboard (once or more) the first letter of the name.
Sound is formerly named Patch.
Same as volume slider on control strip
Same as panning slider on control strip
Color for display in Mixer only, does not affect score visually. Affects whole instrument. To change, click the colored rectangle to pick from the color palette.
The output MIDI port and MIDI channel. As of Musescore 3.6.2, MIDI output driver of the program only use 1 port and 16 channels on the operation system.
The reverb and chorus value sent to MIDI out. Sent to MIDI devices only. Does not affect MuseScore's built in audio playback.
Mute individual Voice. Each row represents one staff of the instrument. So pressing '2' on the top row will mute the second voice of the first staff of the instrument. This field is different from all others as it affects voice instead of channel.
Understand the concept of channels. You can also do these instead:
Some instruments come with multiple channels that you can switch audio playback to and from. For example, the build-in string instrument (violin, viola, cello etc.) has three channels: "arco" (or "normal"), "pizzicato" and "tremolo." The build-in trumpet has two channels "open" (or "normal") and "mute".
To switch channel, add a pre-configured Staff Text or add a plain one and edit it, as explained below. All subsequent notes of affected Voice(s) will switch to play the sound assigned to that channel, unless instructed to do otherwise with another Staff Text object. For example, all notes after a 'pizz.' Staff Text use the "pizzicato" channel, to return to arco (use sound of "normal" channel), a new 'arco' text must be added.
The 5 build-in pre-configured Staff Text in the Text palette (pizz., arco, tremolo, mute, open) instruct all four Voices of a staff to use respective channel. They affect one particular staff, but not the other staffs of the same instrument.
The 4 build-in pre-configured Staff Text in the Text palette (S/A, T/B, T/L, B/B). They only work on:
They affect one particular staff, but not the other staffs of the same instrument.
To use a custom Staff Text :
The Piano Roll Editor allows you edit individual notes and tweak aspects of their playback.
The unofficial Musescore post-3.6.2 version (see End of Life plan for 3.x ?) provides "let ring" capability beyond 2000 limit so that better audio output is possible.
To open the Piano Roll Editor (PRE), right-click on a measure (the spaces within the five lines if it is a five line staff. Not: the space between two piano staffs, nor right-click on a note / rest) in the score and choose the Piano Roll Editor option from the context menu. The Piano Roll Editor will open showing the staff and measure where you clicked. If the Piano Roll Editor is already open, it will be updated to show the new staff and measure you clicked on.
The Piano Roll Editor is divided into several sections. At the very top is a row of buttons and controls that affect playback and can modify notes. The name of the part being edited is at the top right.
The central portion contains the Note Display Area which allows you to view and edit notes. Each note is displayed as a block, with yellow blocks representing selected notes, and darker green blocks representing unselected notes (these colors can be changes in the Preferences). Given sufficient space, each block will display its pitch on the left and the voice it is assigned to on the right. Changing the size of the note blocks is covered in the navigation section.
To the left of the Note Display Area is the Keyboard. By clicking on a key in the Keyboard, you can hear a sample of that note playing. As you move the mouse in either the Node Display Area or the Keyboard, a key on the keyboard will light, corresponding to the pitch you are over. You can also hover your mouse over a particular key to get more information about that pitch. If you are using a Drumkit, the keys of the keyboard will show the name of the drum assigned to that particular pitch. For instruments that are not concert C, the keyboard will be adjusted so that the C of the keyboard matches the C of the instrument.
Along the top of the Note Display Area is the Measure Ruler which displays the current position of the playback head, as well as the current looping range if it set.
The bottom of the editor contains the Levels Display Area. It is a bar graph showing extra data values assigned to each note, such as its velocity or cutoff time. To the left of the Levels Display Area is a dropdown menu allowing you to select the type of data you wish to see displayed or edited.
There are several ways to move about in the Piano Roll Editor. First of all, you can click and drag on the scroll bars on the edges of the Note Display Area.
The mouse wheel can also be used to pan and zoom as follows:
To jump to a particular measure, switch back to score view and find the measure you wish to see. Then right-click on the measure and select Piano Roll Editor. The Piano Roll Editor will scroll to center on the measure you clicked.
In the Note Display Area, you can click on single notes or click and drag to select a group of notes. Holding down the modifier keys will affect how your selection changes:
To change the pitch of a selection of notes: Drag a selected note up or down to a new pitch; or press the ↑ or ↓ arrows. Note: Dragging the note horizontally to change the start time is not supported at the moment.
To delete a selection of notes: Press the Del key.
To move a note selection to another voice: Click the desired voice number button at the top of the editor.
To add notes:
Notes can be inserted by clicking in the Piano Note Area with the modifier keys held. These edit operations will use the beat or subbeat line to the left of the spot where you click as the point where a note is altered:
Ctrl: A note of the current insert note duration will be added at the subbeat and pitch where you clicked. The note insert length is the same as the one you use to add notes in note entry mode in the score. If you wish to change the duration, you will need to select this in the Score View as the Piano Roll Editor does not currently have these buttons. If notes already exist in this location, a chunk will be cut out of them to make room for the note you are inserting, unless they happen to have the same start time and duration of the note you're adding, in which case the new note will simply be appended to the existing chord. Tuplets are currently not supported, and so will be ignored.
Shift: Looks for a chord that already spans this subbeat line. If it finds one, appends a new pitch to the existing chord. Otherwise, this is a rest and the rest will be replaced with a note of equal start time and duration to the existing rest.
Ctrl+Shift: Looks for a chord or rest that spans this subbeat. This chord will be cut in two at this subbeat line. Tuplets are currently not supported, and so will be ignored.
To edit note event data:
Note event data can be changed in the Levels Display Area. To edit event data such as velocity or cutoff time, first select the notes you wish to edit in the note area. Then click in the Levels Display Area on the corresponding bar; the value of the level will changed to correspond to the point where you clicked. You can also click and drag in this area to change the levels of several notes with a single gesture. If you want the levels to all be set to the same value, hold Shift while dragging. Only selected notes will have their value changed - this is to prevent you from accidentally changing the values of other notes.
The Levels area can display the same data in multiple ways. For example, velocity data can be displayed both as absolute (i.e., relative to the output midi volume) and relative (i.e., as an offset to the dynamics value). You can switch between these display modes as you see fit.
From left to right the controls have these functions;
Subdivides the beat by adding extra divisions to the Note Display Area. The value indicated the number of time the beat will be subdivided. So for 4/4 time, a division of 2 will draw grid lines at every eighth note; a division of 3 at every sixteenth note, and so on. Setting the subdivision is necessary for some editing operations if you wish to place notes off the beat.
For larger numbers of subdivisions, you may need to be zoomed in to see the extra grid lines since grid lines are not drawn below a certain density. Combines with the tuplet control which also affects grid line placement.
Adds additional grid lines, subdividing the beat to show the rhythmic placement of tuplets. For example, setting tuplets to 3 will show the beat subdivided into three parts. Combines with the subdiv control to show subdivisions of the tuplet. For example, setting tuplets to 3 and subdiv to 2 will draw grid lines showing the tuplet beats subdivided into two parts - i.e., the beat will be subdivided into 6.
Selecting a tuplet mode other than 1 will disable some of the note insertion tools for the Piano Roll Editor. For larger numbers of subdivisions, you may need to be zoomed in to see the extra grid lines since grid lines are not drawn below a certain density.
Shows the velocity of the currently selected note (only one note may be selected). Indicates the loudness of the note. This can be expressed as 'Offset' or 'User':
When you switch from User to Offset or vice versa, the value will be recalculated to best match the value in the other system. This way you could, for example, switch to User mode to set the value as you would like it to sound in MIDI output and then switch to Offset so that this value respects the dynamic marking instead of overriding it. At the moment you switch back, the offset value will be recalculated to match the User value in loudness but will no longer act as an override so you may later change the dynamic.
Some keys are hooked up to perform special actions:
The Piano Roll Editor will display in both normal mode and dark mode. If you wish to change the colors the Piano Roll Editor uses to display in these modes, they can be adjusted in the Preferences under the Advanced tab. All the Piano Roll Editor related properties begin with ui/pianoroll/light for light mode and ui/pianoroll/dark for dark mode.
Basic playback functions are accessed from the Play toolbar located above the document window:
From left to right, the icons are:
To start playback:
During playback you can jump to a specific note or rest in the score by simply clicking on it.
To stop playback:
Once playback has started, the following commands are available:
During playback you can still use keyboard shortcuts to open and close panels, such as Play, Synthesizer, Mixer etc.
Playback will now cycle within the region marked by the blue flags.
See also: Play Panel (below).
To open the Play Panel use one of the following options:
From the menu bar, select View → Play Panel.
The Play Panel allows you to make temporary changes to tempo and volume, to loop playback between specified points etc.
Musescore, as of 3.5, understands and creates playback for chord symbols and Nashville numbers, but not roman numerals. This chapter discusses the playback settings available. They also affect functionalities other than playback including:
The playback behavior of each chord symbol and Nashville number on a score is determined by two levels, see also Layout and formatting chapter.
On top of settings explained, all these objects attached to one particular instrument (any of its staff(s)) use that instrument's specialized harmony channel. Its control strip is only visible inside Mixer when there is at least one such object. The control strip may be hidden under a parent control strip, in that case click the arrow on the top left corner to show all child strips, see Mixer chapter. Ways to change sound (virtual instrument) used and the volume / muting / soloing are covered in their respective sections.
Every score file has a "Full Score" layout. It also contains "Parts" when the Musescore Part feature is utilized to generate different versions of the same score. Each "Part" and the "Full Score" has their own separate complete set of settings explained above.
Additionally, there are adjustable specific playback settings of Musescore software for these objects. See "Changing settings of Musescore software" section.
Use combination of the following settings to toggle playback.
Shown below are different settings used on a CM7 (Cmaj7) chord, and notes demonstrating the resultant playback. The "Close" and "Auto" create identical result. It is not necessarily so for other chords, so it is advisable to use "Close" explicitly when it is the case.
Harmony channel use "Grand Piano" sound by default regardless of instrument, except where a score created in Musescore 3.5.1 and later using the Guitar solo template, the "Nylon String Guitar" sound is used by default.
To change the sound:
Note: The exeception that Sound settings of an instrument are shared among Musescore Parts.
Note: In a score file containing multiple Musescore Parts, separate adjustments are needed in each individual Part for the same instrument, as harmony channel volume and mute settings are saved in the Part, but not shared among them.
Requires Musescore 3.5.1 and later
To change the playback function of Musescore software on chord symbols and Nashville numbers, when playing back a score:
score/harmony/play/disableNew
: Only affects scores created with Musescore 3.5 and later. The default status is unchecked (playback function enabled). Check it to disable the playback function of MuseScore software.score/harmony/play/disableCompatibility
: Only affects scores created with Musescore 3.4.2 and earlier. default is checked (playback function disabled). Uncheck it to enable the playback function of MuseScore software.
To change playback of a chord symbol or Nashville number when it is first added onto a score:
MuseScore 4.0's Sound and playback support:
Jump to a curated list of free files downloadable, feel free to add to the list.
All pre-defined instruments added onto a score is capable of creating audio playback without further setup. MuseScore creates audio playback by using the Synthesizer and the virtual instrument technology. MuseScore 3 comes with the free MuseScore_General.sf3 which contains the virtual instrument and human voice sounds, drum/percussion kits sounds, and sound effects needed.
To use custom sounds, install a custom virtual instrument file, enable it inside Musescore, then configure a score to use a sound inside the custom file. The two sample-based MIDI synthesizing virtual instrument technologies supported by Musescore 3 are SoundFont (.sf2/.sf3) and SFZ (.sfz).
Creation of audio playback starts with processing of score notation into MIDI data. MIDI exchange utilized includes sound preset/patch/program, MIDI velocity, MIDI CC etc. To edit sound preset usage, see Mixer chapter. To choose whether Musescore use MIDI velocity or MIDI CC or both, and the MIDI CC number used (CC2 by default), see Synthesizer chapter. These data are used together with SF2/SF3/SFZ data.
SF2/SF3/SFZ data consists of sound samples in (PCM (WAV), OGG, or FLAC format / container) and algorithms that handle MIDI data provided by Musescore (sound volume response / attenuation modulator). MuseScore does not offer functionality to edit any data inside SF2/SF3/SFZ, including the MIDI handling algorithm. How MIDI data such as MIDI velocity affect sound volume is determined by the file but not Musescore, it is solely engineered by the creator of SF2/SF3/SFZ file. The free Polyphone editor can be used to edit them, it can also convert SF2/SF3 into SFZ and vice versa, but with some definition data loss. The SFZ definition files can be edited with any plain text editor.
Install a custom file by copying it into the custom virtual instrument directory, which is configurable in Edit → Preferences: General tab, see Preferences chapter, it is by default:
%HOMEPATH%\Documents\MuseScore3\Soundfonts
~/Documents/MuseScore3/Soundfonts
Then enable the custom file by setting up Synthesizer window. Scores refer to virtual instrument files by their ordering in the list in the Synthesizer window. Scores do not create correct playback, unless the ordering is identical to the ordering used last time. To save and load the ordering setting, see Synthesizer chapter.
Lastly, configure a score to use a sound inside the custom file.
Musescore creates playback audio in real-time, it does not use or save cache. A score using a custom virtual instrument will not create identical playback on another machine unless the custom virtual instrument is also installed on that machine. To export audio as an independent file, see Export chapter.
SoundFonts (.sf2/.sf3) are virtual instrument files. The SF2 format is invented by a now defunt company, but a copy of the format specification can be viewed online, see Soundfont, MIDI velocity and instruments.xml: Online Resources. SF3 offers sound data compression, see Glossary. One soundfont file is capable of embedding (packaging) all data required for multiple Musescore Instrument sound generation, see the Instruments, staff setup and templates and Mixer chapters.
Musescore need time to process soundfonts at startup, especially SF3 files. Removing unused files from the list in the Synthesizer can speed up program startup.
If you're having problem, move / copy the file manually to the custom virtual instrument directory.
To disable a virtual instrument, remove the file from the list inside Synthesizer.
To uninstall a virtual instrument, remove the file from the directory. This may change the virtual instrument ordering in Synthesizer, which affects all scores previously created with this Musescore program because the order of soundfonts affects playback. Score may play an incorrect sound even if it does not use the virtual instrument you just uninstalled. When Musescore cannot locate particular data, a staff's playback falls back to use the first sound of the first file, that is usually the "Grand Piano" sound of the pre-installed SF3.
a simplified illustration
SFZ is a free virtual instrument format not related to sf2/sf3, see https://sfzformat.com . SFZ files do not embed (package) audio sample. Musescore 3 understand and uses each SFZ for one articulation sound of one instrument only, see the Mixer chapter.
SFZ files do not embed audio data. Audio files (WAV or FLAC format) are usually located in folder(s) next to SFZ file(s):
Once the files has been installed, they also need to be enabled inside the synthesizer window, see Synthesizer.
If the sound needed is shipped with Musescore, use it by adding instruments onto a score instead, their sounds are already configured properly.
To add a custom sound, choose and add an instrument that use a staff style similar to the custom sound would relate to, then change its sound in the Mixer.
Advanced users could create custom instruments, see developers' handbook instruments.xml chpater. That chapter has info on how to make a soundfont more compatible with MuseScore 3 such as adding sound change text (eg pizz.) support, adding MIDI CC response etc.
The list below are different from other sf2/sf3/sfz online depositories, in that these virtual instruments contains at least one Musescore 3 compatible attenuation modulator. That is, they are engineered to at least responds to one volume-affecting MIDI data exchange practice used by Musescore 3, such as MIDI velocity. Community handbook editors updating this list should be mindful of the distribution aspect of the SoundFonts or SFZ's license (wikipedia)
SF3 Direct download from github
(13.8 MB).SF3 Direct download from osuosl.org
(35.9 MB)SF2 Direct download from osuosl.org
(208 MB)MuseScore\instruments\instruments.xml
File that contains common instrument sounds of the four families:
Tips on extracting downloaded files:
If the toolbar play panel is greyed out, or not visible, follow the instructions below to get your sound working again:
If you are setting up a SoundFont for the first time, please use one of the recommended SoundFonts listed above.
If playback stutters, then your computer may not be able to handle the SoundFont being used. The following advice may help:
Drum notation and Unpitched layout sound requires MIDI Bank number set to 128
MuseScore 3 comes with the free MuseScore_General.sf3. It is located in the directory shown below. This directory should not be used for installing custom files, the custom virtual instrument directory should be used instead.
%ProgramFiles%\MuseScore 3\sound\MuseScore_General.sf3
%ProgramFiles(x86)%\MuseScore 3\sound\MuseScore_General.sf3
%ProgramFiles%\MuseScore 3\sound\MuseScore_General.sf3
/Applications/MuseScore 3.app/Contents/Resources/sound/MuseScore_General.sf3
/usr/share/mscore-xxx/sounds/MuseScore_General.sf3
(with xxx
being the MuseScore version)MuseScore's swing feature allows you to change the playback of your score from a straight to a swing rhythm. Swing can be applied globally or only to a section of the score, and is fully variable.
To apply swing to all staves in a system:
Click Swing in the Text palette (double-click in versions prior to 3.4);
This inserts a System Text object which affects all staves in the system with a default swing percentage of 60%.
Edit the Swing text as required;
If you need to vary swing from the default setting, right-click the Swing text and select System text properties... Click on the "Swing Settings" tab and adjust note duration and "Swing ratio" as required.
To apply swing only to specific staves in a system:
Swing text can be edited and formatted just like any other text object.
Often this notation is used to indicate swing:
MuseScore does not have a way to include a triplet in text as a tempo marking, but there is an easy workaround:
If you want playback to return to straight time after a swing section, use one of the following options:
From version 3.4:
Prior to version 3.4:
If you wish to apply swing to the whole score, you can do so from the menu:
In the "Swing Settings" section, set the desired note value and "swing ratio."
This page provides information on tempo markings, fermata symbols, their playback details, changing monitoring playback tempo and adding metronome tick sound. To add markings such as ♬ = ♪ 𝅘𝅥𝅯 see Swing chapter.
The musical terminology tempo means the speed or pace of a composition. Musicians use tempo markings/marks to indicate tempo. Supported tempo markings include:
Musescore's synthesizer paces based on two settings:
The manual / overriding playback setting inside selected object(s)' inspector uses a special unit "BPM". "BPM" is the amount of quarter notes would have been within one minute in decimal number. It is not related to the musical beat. It is not the whole number used in metronome marks conventionally, or on the score. This unit is also used in Play panel.
Musicians use tempo markings to indicate the value of one beat, but Musescore does not use the beat information inside tempo markings. Beat information is obtained from Time signatures only.
Tempo markings are Musescore Text, see Text chapter. They behave like System Text.
Playback follows written content by default. Editing the number changes playback too. This behavior is changable, see "Changing playback" section. Musescore's playback ignores text, Andante ♩ = 75 and Moderato ♩ = 75 are both interpreted as ♩ = 75. If the note and augmentation dot is accidentally removed or another note value is required, professional glyphs must be used, see "Changing appearance" section.
Musescore does not understand the written content. They have pre-defined tempo setting, the setting is changable, see "Changing playback" section.
All markings are found in the Tempo palette, see Palette chapter. New tempo markings are positioned at the top of system(a layout term, see Layout and formatting chapter), they behave like "System Text", see Staff Text and System Text chapter.
To add a Metronome mark, Verbal tempo indication, or Metric modulation onto the score, use one of the following methods:
To add a Metronome mark that use a suitable note value by using the beat information from the time signature:
Playback can be configured to follow written content of Metronome mark and Metric modulation. Musescore only understand note and augmentation dot professional glyphs. The augmentation dot is not a "Full stop / period" on the computer keyboard. Do not copy from other programs or the internet, as they are not exactly raw unicode characters.
Other characters and numbers are plain characters, entered using (typing on) a computer keyboard. They have different formatting behaviors, for example changing the Inspector :Font does not affect glyphs, see Fonts chapter. See also Text editing chapter.
To assign a manual / overriding tempo setting:
Tempo markings behave like "System Text", see Staff Text and System Text: Repeating System Text on other staves chapter.
Selected tempo markings(s) on a score can be edited with Inspector Tempo text section. Text related settings are covered in the Text, the Text editing and the Text styles and properties chpaters.
The Inspector: Font property affects plain characters, but not the professional glyphs. Professional glyphs use "Musical symbols font", see Fonts chapter.
To edit the score-wide settings, see Layout and formatting chapter.
Musescore does not understand and does not create playback for any tempo expression text, including ritardando ("rit.") and accelerando ("accel."), and thus cannot create correct playback for these.
To create ritardando ("rit.") and accelerando ("accel.") marking and proper playback:
In the example illustrated below, the tempo was originally 110 crotchets per minute. At the ritardando, the value decreases by 10 on the first note of each measure. Each tempo change is made invisible by unchecking the Visible checkbox in the Inspector (Keyboard Shortcut V), so that only the ritardando shows on the printed score:
Use Play Panel to change playback tempo temporarily:
Fermata are available in the Articulations and Ornaments palette.
In playback on a score with multiple instruments, if a note or rest of one instrument is extended with a fermata symbol, every notes sounding the same moment as that note will continue to sound until the extended note ends. Fermatas applied to barlines has no effect
Select a Fermata symbol, edit its property in Fermata in the Inspector:
Placement: Above or below note
Time stretch: Multiplication of normal time duration to play back the current element. Value 1.00 is meaningless as it means no time extension.
Musescore can automatically add metronome ticks sound to playback if desired, use the Playback toolbar or Play Panel, see the Play mode chapter.
How many ticks are added onto each measure is determined by the time signature and tempo. It does not depend on the note value (duration) used on metronome markings (both crotchet ♩ = 60 and quaver ♪ = 120 markings create identical result).
There are two tick sound clips, strong ticks and weak ticks. Which one is added is determined by the beat and written tempo (not affected by the adjustment settings on the Play Panel, but see comments on a related feature request #304412). Beat is dictated by the time signature only, but not affected by the beaming style, or the note value (duration) used on metronome markings.
These ticks are not added to any exported audio files. If you want to include these ticks to exported audio, try these:
Dynamics are symbols indicating the relative loudness of a note or phrase of music. They can be found in the Dynamics palette in either the Basic or Advanced workspace.
Additional dynamics are available in the Master Palette (Shift+F9).
To create a crescendo or decrescendo, see Hairpin instead.
To apply a dynamic to the score, use one of the following methods:
NOTE:
Playback is unaffected by the displayed content. Use the Velocity property to change loudness.
Dynamics symbols are Text, double-click on a symbol to edit its text, see Text editing.
Musescore is shipped with professional glyphs. They include for example the florin sign (the curvy hooked f, ƒ), which is different from an italic plain character f. These glyphs, like any other characters, are used for engraving purpose, they do not affect playback. Unlike plain characters, they use the font setting defined in Format → Style → Score : Musical text font . Shown below are the results of different text content and formatting settings. See also Fonts.
To add them, make sure the app is currently in Text editing mode, use the special characters palette or one of the following shortcuts:
Dynamic | Windows & Linux Shortcut | Mac Shortcut |
---|---|---|
Piano p | Ctrl+Shift+P | Cmd+Shift+P |
Forte f | Ctrl+Shift+F | Cmd+Shift+F |
Mezzo m | Ctrl+Shift+M | Cmd+Shift+M |
Rinforzando r | Ctrl+Shift+R | Cmd+Shift+R |
Sforzando s | Ctrl+Shift+S | |
Niente n | Ctrl+Shift+N | Cmd+Shift+N |
Z z | Ctrl+Shift+Z | Cmd+Shift+Z |
You can edit the properties of a selection of dynamics in the Dynamic section of the Inspector. To apply a previously-edited property to all dynamics in the score, click on the "Set as Style" button (the small S on the right of the property)
Note: For more about selecting objects of a specific type, see Selection modes.
The following is a list of properties in the Dynamic section of the Inspector:
To save and reuse a custom symbol, see Add an existing score element to a palette.
IMPORTANT: When a dynamics symbol is added to the score, it affects playback from the parent note onward until the next dynamic symbol. Final barlines or rests do not reset the loudness to default.
The Synthesizer creates audio for each note based on its assigned MIDI velocity value, ranging from 0 (softest) to 127 (loudest). The possible range of actual loudness is determined by the soundfont creator. A dynamics symbol uses its Velocity property to assign a basic MIDI velocity to the current note, and all following notes, until another symbol is added. In Musescore 3, Velocity to MIDI velocity assignment is exact assignment without conversion. Check this table for default values of Velocity of popular dynamics symbols in Musescore.
If you do not specify any dynamics symbol, the whole score is in mf (mezzoforte). This is because Musescore assigns MIDI velocity 80 to notes that are not affected by any dynamics symbol, 80 is the also the default Velocity of mf .
Note's playback is not affected by dynamics symbols if the note itself's Velocity type property is set to 'User'. This is common in scores imported from .MID files. To fix the problem, see How to restore correct playback of dynamics and hairpins in an imported MIDI file.
MIDI velocity is also affected by each note's Velocity and Velocity type properties, Articulations (eg Accent >, Marcato ^) and Hairpins
The above describe loudness per note, you can also adjust volume broadly. The following sliders affect volume but have nothing to do with MIDI velocity:
You cannot adjust default volume of voices, but you can batch adjust existing notes' Velocity properties based on their voice with the Voice Velocity plugin (notes added afterwards will not be affected, you need to run the plugin again)
If you want notes to remain loud for a longer period of time, eg a tom drum hit sound to linger longer, try adding a reverb effect in Synthesizer instead.
(After Musescore 3.1)
A dynamic symbol with a non-zero Velocity change property can simulate Attack envelope effect (wikipedia) if the Instrument, Synthesizer and Soundfont is setup correctly, such symbol is called Single Note Dynamics (SND), SND also has several different meanings due to continuous software development. SNDs also use Change speed property.
sfz (sforzando) and fp (fortepiano) are designed to work on certain instruments only; e.g. sfz symbol's effect on the violin does not exist on piano.
For more information, see How to setup Musescore for correct playback for all dynamics and hairpins.
MuseScore allows you to transpose the playback of a staff, without affecting the music notation. This simulates the effect of a capo (Wikipedia) on the instrument.
Note: Capo playback will apply from the note that the staff text is attached to, until either the next staff text with "Capo Settings" enabled, or until the end of the score.
To remove capo playback from a staff, returning the instrument to its normal tuning:
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
(Content moved to Text types for clearer handbook hierarchy and browsing)
A Musescore Text object is an object that contains individual characters that can be entered and removed by using (typing on) a computer keyboard, it can be functional. Text may also be found incorporated into Musescore Lines object.
For general engraving or visual display purpose, it is recommended to use Staff text and System text.
Different types of text-based objects are not interchangeable: They have distinct property fields that serves different purpose besides engraving or visual display. For example, a mp using Staff Text can never be configured to change playback loudness because it does not have the Velocity property, you must create a new Dynamics text which has the Velocity property if want the text to affect playback loudness.
Use the following chart to decide which type you need.
To check the type: select a text, its type is displayed on the status bar.
The word "playback" used below means in-program audio created by Synthesizer.
The following types are explored in this chapter. Read on to know how to create, format and edit them:
Text type | Uses | |
---|---|---|
Staff text | General purpose text, when attached to a single staff will appear in Parts that feature that staff. Can be setup to change playback sound samples, change playback to use capo transposition, or change playback to use Swing. | |
System text | General purpose text appearing in all Parts. Offer same function as Staff Text | |
Chord symbols | Display the chords associated with a melody: usually above the staff, provides chord playback (notes automatically decided). | |
Fingering | Numbers or letters attached to notes showing which fingers to use. | |
Lyrics | Create lyrics attached to a melody. Correctly engraved Melisma that automatically follow notes. | |
Rehearsal marks | Facilitate rehearsals, divide score into sections, bookmark passages etc. |
These types are explored in their respective chapters:
Text type | Uses | |
---|---|---|
Expression button on the Text Palette | It is a styled Staff text, same function (and limitation) as such. | |
Tempo marks | Change the playback tempo. Apply metronome and/or expression marks. | |
Dynamics | Change the playback loudness of a note or phrase. | |
Mid-staff sound (channel) change text | For example the pizz. button on the Text Palette. It is a pre-configured Staff Text that change playback sound samples. | |
Instrument text | Not to be confused with Mid-staff sound (channel) change text. Instrument text indicate that the musician should change instrument. Can be setup to change Instrument (MuseScore abstraction), or change playback sound samples. | |
Figured bass | Period notation for keyboarders. | |
Frame text | Title/composer/lyricist details at the start of a score; songsheet lyrics etc. | |
Headers/Footers | Page numbers, copyright info etc. at the top/bottom of a page. | |
Repeats and jumps | Da Capo, Dal segno, Fine etc. | |
Roman Numeral Analysis (RNA) | A chord analysis system. | |
Sticking | Letters (L and R) attached to (drum) notes showing which hand or foot to use. | |
Swing text | Change from straight to swing time, and vice versa. | |
Text-lines | Voltas, ottavas, pedal lines, guitar barre lines etc. |
Decide which object type you need before adding a text, visit Text types. For general-purpose "text boxes" attached to staves, use Staff and system text, they are good if you simply want a text for visual purpose.
To add a Text object or object containing Text to a score, use one of the following general methods:
Notes: The exact method depends on the type of text you are adding, visit and follow links on Text.
The basic formatting options recommended for beginners are:
Options in the Inspector:
To revert changes press the "Reset to style default" (the circular shape) button on the right.
See Text styles and properties for everything on text formatting.
To position a text object, use any of the following methods:
When you apply a text element to the score, its anchor position will depend on the type:
Text edit mode allows you to add or delete text, and apply formatting (e.g. bold, italic, underline etc.) to individual characters.
To enter Text edit mode use one of the following methods:
Note: Creating a new text object (see Text basics) also puts the program into text edit mode.
The Text toolbar appears at the bottom of the window, you can use it to apply formatting to individual characters
To exit Text edit mode use one of the following:
In Text edit mode, the following keyboard shortcuts are available:
Function | Windows & Linux | Mac |
---|---|---|
Toggles bold face. | Ctrl+B | Cmd+B |
Toggles italic. | Ctrl+I | Cmd+I |
Toggles underline. | Ctrl+U | Cmd+U |
Moves cursor. | Home, End, ←, →, ↑, ↓ | (Alt+) ←, →, ↑, ↓ |
Removes character to the left of the cursor. | Backspace | Delete |
Removes character to the right of the cursor. | Del | → Delete or Fn+Del |
Starts new line. | ↵ | return |
Inserts special characters (see below). | F2 | Fn+F2 |
You can use the Special Characters window to insert quarter notes, fractions, and many other kinds of special symbols or characters into your text. A few symbols can also be accessed by shortcut (see below).
Some symbols and special characters are treated specially and use Style window > Score : "Musical symbol font" (6 options), see Fonts.
To open Special Characters, use any of the following methods:
Note: (1) This only works in Text edit mode; (2) The Special Characters dialog should not be confused with the menu item of the same name in the macOS version of MuseScore.
The dialog is divided into 3 tabs: Common symbols, musical symbols and unicode symbols. The musical and unicode tabs are further subdivided into alphabetically-arranged categories.
Double-clicking an item in the Special Characters dialog immediately adds it to the text where the cursor is positioned. Multiple items can be applied without closing the dialog box, and the user can even continue to type normally, delete characters, enter numerical character codes etc., with it open.
In Text edit mode the following keyboard shortcuts can be used to access certain special characters:
Character | Windows & Linux | Mac | Note |
---|---|---|---|
Sharp ♯ | Ctrl+Shift+# | Cmd+Shift+# | May not work on some keyboard layout |
Flat ♭ | Ctrl+Shift+B | Cmd+Shift+B | |
Natural ♮ | Ctrl+Shift+H | Cmd+Shift+H | |
Piano p | Ctrl+Shift+P | Cmd+Shift+P | |
Forte f | Ctrl+Shift+F | Cmd+Shift+F | |
Mezzo m | Ctrl+Shift+M | Cmd+Shift+M | |
Rinforzando r | Ctrl+Shift+R | Cmd+Shift+R | |
Sforzando s | Ctrl+Shift+S | Cmd+Shift+S | |
Niente n | Ctrl+Shift+N | Cmd+Shift+N | |
Z z | Ctrl+Shift+Z | Cmd+Shift+Z | |
Elision ‿ | Ctrl+Alt+- | Cmd+Alt+- |
Layout and formatting in Musescore has 2 main levels, read Layout and formatting first. Text objects have finer levels:
The final visual and function of most object in a score file is determined by:
Concept of formatting is explained in the overview. To assign properties to a particular Text object or object containing Text on a score use the Inspector, covered in Text basics chapter.
Concept of formatting is explained in the overview. To change values inside a style (profile), either:
Contains these options
Concept of formatting is explained in the overview.
Different types of text-based objects are not interchangeable, see Text types. Staff Text object and System Text object are used for purposes not covered by other text types only. Including:
"Expression" is a Staff Text object using "Style for text inside Expression text". See "Style" section below.
Both of them attaches to a note or rest in a Musescore Instrument.
Both of them can be set-up to have effect on audio created by Musescore's Synthesizer, a Staff Text affects only the playback of that Musescore Instrument is affected, a System Text affects all Musescore Instrument on a score.
Staff Texts are hidden along with "Hide empty staves within systems" option (and the sub-option "Don't hide empty staves in first system") under "Style" window : "Score" , see Layout and formatting.
A Staff Text only appears in the Musescore Part(s) that features the Musescore Instrument. A System Text appears on all Musescore Parts.
New System Text is positioned above the top staff of each system (layout concept).
To add one onto a score:
New System Text is positioned above the top staff of each system (layout concept). If you need a similar indication on a lower staff, add it to that staff using Staff Text.
Fomatting of a Staff Text object or System Text object on a score is edited in the Inspector, covered in Text basics chapter.
The playback settings are edited in "Staff Text properties" and "System Text properties" window
Staff Text contains settings that affect playback. Only the section after the attached note or rest is affect. When a Staff Text is duplicated, or reused through customized palette, the playback settings are reused.
The playback settings can be accessed in two ways:
The four tabs on top are:
Works like "Staff Text properties", but only has "Capo Settings" and "MIDI Action" tabs.
"Style for text inside Staff Text" is special, see Text styles and properties.
Values of the "Style for Staff Text" can be edited in Format→Style→Staff Text.
Values of the "Style for text inside Staff Text" can be edited in Format→Style→Text styles→Staff
Values of the "Style for text inside Expression" can be edited in Format→Style→Text styles→Expression
Values of the "Style for text inside System Text" can be edited in Format→Style→Text styles→System
A chord notation is an abbreviated way of representing musical chord and harmony
Note: To fill measures with slashes, see Fill with slashes or Toggle rhythmic slash notation.
MuseScore supports:
Am
(wikipedia), and6m
(wikipedia), andvi
(wikipedia).A-G alphabetical chord name plus chord quality
After you exit Edit Mode, the characters entered will automatically assume the correct format: by default a root note typed in lower case will turn into upper case (for alternative options, see Automatic Capitalization)
Entered accidentals will be converted into a professional glyphs automatically, for example "#" (hash character) is automatically converted into a sharp sign (♯).
Do not input or copy and paste unicode character U+266F(sharp sign, ♯), U+266D (flat sign, ♭) etc, as MuseScore does not interpret them in chord notation properly.
The following commands are available during chord symbol entry:
MuseScore understands most of the abbreviations used in chord symbols:
Chord symbols are Text. Double-click on a chord symbol to enter Edit Mode, see Text editing. Use methods described above to create special characters. After you exit Edit Mode, they are automatically converted to the correct formatting.
See also the main chapter Layout and formatting in Musescore.
The final visual and function of most object in a score file is determined by:
Shown below are results of different Font face and Rendering style settings
Font face is not to be confused with Rendering style. See also Fonts.
You can assign a specific font face and formatting to each individual chord symbol on a score in the Inspector. You can also assign a specific font face to the global style profiles "style for text inside certain type". Font face setting is ignored when the Jazz rendering style is used.
Rendering style is not to be confused with font face option.
Rendering style is the MuseScore feature that uses extra formatting to improve engraving. It is defined in the global style profile "Style for Chord Symbol" in Format → Style → Chord Symbols . All Chord symbols are affected by the chosen rendering style, there is no individual property option. An appropriate default setting is used automatically, based on the template selected to create the score. For Jazz templates the Jazz rendering style is used, for other templates the Standard rendering style is used. The three options available are:
Musescore uses the following terminology:
Extension part and modifier part can use extra formatting:
It is defined in the global style profile "Style for Chord Symbol" in Format → Style → Chord Symbols.
By default, MuseScore uses letter names for chord symbols. For users in regions where other note naming schemes are used, MuseScore provides the following controls:
It is defined in the global style profile "Style for Chord Symbol" in Format → Style → Chord Symbols.
By default, MuseScore automatically capitalizes all note names on exit, regardless of whether you entered them in upper or lower case. However, you can also choose other automatic capitalization options:
You can also turn off the automatic capitalization completely, in which case note names are simply rendered the way you type them.
Default layout is defined in the global style profile "Style for Chord Symbol" in Format → Style → Chord Symbols: Positioning.
In addition to the layout settings described above, the position of new chord symbols is also determined by the global style profiles "style for text inside certain type" used. The default style used is "Style for text inside Chord symbol" defined in Format → Style → Text Styles → Chord Symbol. The effect is cumulative.
You can also adjust positioning properties of each individual chord symbol on a score in the Inspector.
You can enable the feature to automatically create extra chord symbols with capo, in the global style profile "Style for Chord Symbol" in Format → Style → Chord Symbols: Capo fret position. Assign the capo position for the appended extra chord symbol, Musescore will append an extra bracketed chord symbol to each chord symbol on the score. The bracketed symbol, when played using that capo, sounds identical to the unbracketed one. Default value 0 does not create extra chord symbols.
To lay down chord notes onto a score, as heard in playback configured in Playback: Chord symbols / Nashville numbers:
Note: The triangle symbol Δ in Musescore creates a Major triad only.
Use a plugin such as:
Chord symbols are automatically transposed by default if you apply the menu Transpose command to the containing measures. If this is not required, you can untick the "Transpose chord symbols" option in the same dialog.
(MuseScore 3.3 and above)
See Playback: Chord symbols / Nashville numbers.
Note: The triangle symbol Δ in Musescore creates a Major triad only.
(MuseScore 3.3 and above)
The Nashville Number System is a shorthand way of representing chords based on scale degrees rather than chord letters. This allows an accompaniment to be played in any key from the same chord chart.
To start entering Nashville notation:
Just as with standard chord symbols, you can type Nashville notation normally and MuseScore will do its best to recognize and format the symbols appropriately. The same shortcuts used for navigation when entering standard chord symbols (e.g. Space, see above) are available for Nashville notation as well.
Same as chord symbol, see "Convert chord symbols into notes" section
(MuseScore 3.3 and above)
See Playback: Chord symbols / Nashville numbers.
Not to be confused with Figured bass.
(MuseScore 3.3 and above)
The Roman Numeral Analysis system is a type of musical analysis where chords are represented by upper and lower case Roman numerals (I, ii, III, iv etc.), superscripts, subscripts and other modifying symbols.
RNA input offers the same keyboard shortcuts for navigation as in chord symbols (see above ).
Upon each computer keyboard input, characters are automatically converted to the correct format. MuseScore uses a specialist font, Campania, to provide the correct formatting for RNA. See also Fonts.
Type this:
To get this:
Musescore 3.6.2 does not create playback for RNA.
Use a plugin such as:
Fingering symbols for various instruments are found in the Fingering palette in the Advanced workspace.
Keyboard music employs the numbers 1–5 to represent fingers of the left or right hand.
Guitar music uses the numbers 0–4 to represent left-hand fingering (T is occasionally used for the thumb). Right-hand fingering is indicated by the letters p, i, m, a, c. Circled numbers represent instrument strings.
The last five symbols in the palette are used for lute fingering in historical music.
Note: To enable the display of fingering in tablature, right-click on the TAB, and select Staff/Part Properties...→Advanced Style Properties; then check the box labelled "Show fingering in tablature".
Use any of the following methods:
When fingering is added to a note, the focus immediately shifts to the symbol, so you can adjust it right away.
This special feature allows you to add fingering quickly and easily to successive notes.
To change the position of one symbol, use any of the following methods:
To change the position of multiple symbols:
To restore a symbol to its default position, select it and press Ctrl+R.
Fingering symbols are text objects and can be edited in the usual way. Text properties and overall style can be adjusted in the Inspector.
If you want to add another lyrics line to an existing one (e.g. a 2nd or 3rd verse etc.):
Example:
In most cases, lyrics can be edited just like normal text. However, special keyboard shortcuts are required to enter the following characters:
Space character: Ctrl+Space (Mac: Alt+Space).
- (hyphen): Ctrl+- (Mac: Alt+-).
_ (underscore): Ctrl+Shift+_ (Mac: Alt+Shift_).
Line feed: Ctrl+↵ (Mac: Alt+Return) or Enter (from the numeric keypad).
To number verses, simply type the number (e.g. 1.) and a space before the first syllable. MuseScore will automatically align the numbers and first syllable correctly.
A melisma is a syllable or word that extends over two or more notes. It is indicated by an underline extending from the base of a syllable to the last note of the melisma. The underline is created by positioning the cursor at the end of a syllable and pressing Shift+_: once for each note in the melisma. See the image below:
The above lyric was created in the following manner:
For non-last syllables to extend, just use additional dashes -, usually only one of them will show (more when the distance between the syllables is large enough), and the syllable will right-align to the first note, similar to last syllables that got notated with a melisma, see above.
Two syllables under a note can be joined with an elision slur, also known as a "lyric slur" or "synalepha". For example:
To create the example lyric text, starting with the syllable text "te":
Use one of the following options:
Note: Not all fonts include the "undertie" character (U+203F ‿ "undertie", present in "Special Characters" mainly for compatibility with MuseScore 1.x scores). To find out which fonts on your computer support it, see "fontlist" (look for any font that shows a tie between "te" and "A" instead of a blank rectangle).
Type A.
As of 3.6: Ctrl+Alt+- or AltGr+- (Mac: Cmd+Alt+-).
To copy all lyrics to the clipboard:
To copy and paste lyrics from a text file (say) into a score:
To edit selected lyrics object(s) on a score:
Note: in Musescore 3.6.2, the Minimum distance property for lyrics objects is not implemented, see patch file by upx on https://musescore.org/en/node/357739#comment-1218262
To edit default setting, edit the style profile, see https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/layout-and-formatting#concept2 and https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/text-styles-and-properties
Layout settings are culminative
All lyrics at the same line (same vertical position on a page) are in the same system (layout concept), see Layout and formatting chapter. To select them, see Selection mode : Select All similar chapter. Check Same system option in the selection window. To assign one value to all of them, enter a new value in the X and Y offsets property in the Inspector.
Rehearsal marks can be used in a number of ways:
Typically, rehearsal marks consist of one or more letters and/or numbers, and appear in sequence in the score—e.g. A, B, C…, or 1, 2, 3… etc. Alternatively, they may display measure numbers (usually larger than standard measure numbers, boldface and/or enclosed in boxes). Multimeasure rests are automatically broken before and after rehearsal marks.
Rehearsal marks can be added to the score (i) automatically—which ensures that they are named in sequence—or (ii) manually, allowing you to name them as you wish.
To create a rehearsal mark manually:
Use either of the following options:
Notes: (1) By default, marks are added in the sequence, A, B, C etc. (2) To change the format of subsequently-added marks (to lower case letters, or numbers), edit the previous rehearsal mark accordingly. (3) Marks added between existing rehearsal marks append a number or letter to the previous mark: it is a good idea to apply the Resequence command afterwards (see below).
MuseScore allows the user to automatically re-order a series of rehearsal marks if they have got out of sequence for any reason. Use the following method:
MuseScore automatically detects the sequence based on the first rehearsal mark in the selection—all rehearsal marks in the selection are then altered accordingly. The following sequences are possible:
Rehearsal marks are a variety of system text, appearing both on the score and on every part. By default, they are in a large bold font, and enclosed in frames. All aspects of their appearance can be changed globally via the rehearsal mark Text style.
See Find (Viewing and navigation).
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
To jump to the useful image that illustrates page layout terms, click on this link.
This chapter discusses the settings of score and items on score, how to edit and re-use them, and options and commands under the Format menu.
See also the Instruments, staff setup and templates: Change instrument and staff setup chapter.
The size of everything on a score, such as staff, note heads, note stems, accidentals, clefs etc., uses a basic unit of measurement called "staff space" or "sp." to maintains correct proportions.
One sp is defined as the standard vertical distance between the midpoints of two lines of a music staff (or one quarter of vertical dimension of a full five-line staff, assuming a hypothetical staff line thickness of 0).
When you create a new score, MuseScore tries to adjust the staff space automatically so that the staves all fit on the page initially.
This usually leads to 1 sp = 1.75 mm, which results in a staff height of around 7 mm (more details explained in "Final absolute staff height" section), which is a good staff height for most solo music, choral music, small ensemble scores, and individual parts. Lead sheets and children's music may benefit from a larger staff size. Large ensemble scores may often require a smaller staff size in order to fit all instruments on the page.
You may need to adjust this value further as you add music, if auto-place results in additional space being added between staves in order to avoid collisions.
Modify the definition of "staff space" itself in the "Page settings" window. See Page settings chapter, the overriding options are also explained there.
Staff line thickness is set in Format→Style...→Measure (see main chapter Measure and horizontal spacing). Its default value is 0.11sp, and the default value of sp is 1.75mm, so the default staff line thickness 0.1925mm. The 'absolute' height of default 5-line stave, measuring from the top edge of the top line to the bottom edge of the bottom line, is 0.5x0.11sp + 4sp + 0.5x0.11sp = 0.5x0.1925mm + 4x1.75mm + 0.5x0.1925mm = 7.1925mm. source: https://musescore.org/en/node/362733
Horizontal spacing: All measures are stretched out so that all systems (except the last if desired) are filled to the right margin. You cannot change this behavior, but you can add Frames. See Layout and formatting in Musescore section below. Use Format→Style...→Score, Page, Measure, found them below. See also Measure chapter.
Shown above is an analogy to horizontal spacing in Musescore 3.6.2: it is like being restricted to the "justified" option in a word processor software. UI of Libre Office Writer, not Musescore.
Vertical spacing: Two options of algorithm, use vertical justification or not. Use Format→Style...→Score, Page, found them below.
Styles in Musescore are profiles that contains settings, rather than being the settings themselves. The visual setting for text and musical symbol in musescore some users mistaken for style is called Font.
All styles are built-in, they contain visual and functional settings default values. Each object type, eg Chord Symbol object, Accidental object, has a corresponding style of the same name built-in: "Style for Chord Symbols", "Style for Accidentals". Each Text object, eg Chord Symbol object, Lyrics object, also has one or more corresponding style(s) built-in: "Style for text inside Chord Symbols", "Style for text inside Chord Symbols (Alternative)", "Style for text inside Lyrics Even Lines", "Style for text inside Lyrics Odd Lines". Style is not the object type.
You cannot create a new style, but you can edit the settings values in each style.
After you created an object, you cannot change its object type. The same is almost true for style: an accidental object on a score must use values in "Style for Accidentals", it cannot use values in "Style for Chord Symbols", you cannot change which style (the named profile) an object on a score uses unless the object is a Text object or it contains a Text object within. A Lyrics object on a score, if desired, can use the compatible values in "Style for text inside Chord symbols" rather than the values in "Style for text inside Lyrics Odd Lines" or "Style for text inside Lyrics Even Lines", for more see Text styles and properties chapter.
Read on to see the final visual and function of objects are determined.
Not to be confused with app appearance set in Preferences.
Layout and formatting in Musescore consists of two main levels, Text objects and objects containing them have more levels, see Text styles and properties. The final visual and function of most object in a score file is determined by:
Every score file has a "Full Score" layout. It also contains "Parts" when you use Musescore Part feature to generate different versions of the same score. Each "Part" and the "Full Score" has their own separate complete set of layout and formatting information.
Visit https://musescore.org/en/node/355981 for .mss files shared by other musicians.
The concepts and layout logic are explained in the overview. .mss file contains "level 2 information" and can be stored in any folder, Musescore does not automatically use any specific folder. The default folder for easier file management can be set-up in Preferences.
To save: Format→Save Style....
To load: Do either one:
- Right click on any empty space on a score, select "Load Style", or
- Go to Format→Load Style....
Open Preferences menu > Score tab
Style: Browse and set the .mss file Musescore uses as "level 2 information" when creating a new score file. When creating a new score file from a template, the information present in the template is used instead.
Style for part: Similar to the above but for new Musescore Part.
This tool adds or removes system breaks over all or part of the score:
Increase, decrease or reset the horizontal spacing of notes within selected measures.
To reset stretch to the default spacing of 1:
See also Measure Properties: Layout stretch. This allows you to set the stretch more precisely.
Musescore style and layout concepts are explained in the overview.
To open this window:
In the left pane, there are two types of items:
Changes made are live on the score for preview, click Cancel or Esc to revert and close. Press OK or Return to save and close.
When editing a Musescore Part (but not the "Full score"), press Apply to all parts button to apply the current "level 2 information" (including settings in Page settings) to other Musescore Parts.
To open the Score dialog, select Format→Style…→Score.
This dialog allows you to set global settings, such as the music font, display of multimeasure rests, whether or not to hide empty staves, swing playback etc.
To open the Page dialog, select Format→Style...→Page.
This dialog allows you to adjust the overall layout of your score by changing the spacing of margins, systems, staves, lyrics lines, and frames. You can also control the display of key signatures, time signatures, and clefs.
To open the Sizes dialog, select Format→Style...→Sizes.
Sets the proportional size of "small" notes and grace notes, as well as small staves and small clefs. Changing this would be unusual.
To open the Header, Footer dialog, select Format→Style...→Header, Footer.
This allows you to add header and footer text using meta tags (see Score properties)—such as page numbers, page headers, copyright information etc. For example, you can create different Headers and Footers for even and odd pages, such as putting page numbers on the right for odd-numbered pages and on the left for even-numbered pages.
If you hover with your mouse over the Header or Footer text region, a list of macros will appear, showing their meaning, as well as the existing meta tags and their content.
To create a header or footer for an individual part, that part needs to be the active tab. To create a header or footer for a score with linked parts, make sure the main score is in the active tab.
To open the Measure Numbers dialog, select Format→Style...→Measure Numbers.
This allows you to specify whether measure numbers will appear in the score, and, if so, at what intervals.
To open the System dialog, select Format→Style...→System.
This dialog allows you to adjust certain properties of all systems.
Brackets:
See also Brackets.
Dividers:
To open the Clefs dialog, select Format→Style...→Clefs.
Choose the style of the default tablature clef: Standard or Serif.
To open the Accidentals dialog, select Format→Style...→Accidentals.
Allows you to specify how the score displays key signature accidentals at key changes. See Naturals on key signature changes.
See the main chapter Measure
To open the Measure dialog, select Format→Style...→Measure.
Adjustment of global settings such as the horizontal distance between various items within measures. A major setting affecting layout is Spacing, which affects the number of measures per system. Global Staff line thickness can be changed here.
To open the Barlines dialog, select Format→Style...→Barlines.
Other properties allow you to set the thickness of "thin," "thick" and double barlines, the distance between double barlines, and the repeat barline to dot distance.
To open the Notes dialog, select Style→General...→Notes. The dialog can also be opened direct from the score by right-clicking on any note and selecting "Style…"
Here you can adjust the distance and thickness of note-related objects (stems, ledger lines, dots, accidentals). Changing these would be unusual.
To open the Beams dialog, select Style→General...→Beams.
This allows you to set the overall properties of note beams in the score:
Ticking the Flatten all beams option means that all note beams will be horizontal only—not sloped.
To open the Tuplets dialog, select Format→Style...→Tuplets.
Vertical Distance from Notes:
Horizontal distance from notes:
Brackets:
Properties:
To open the Arpeggios dialog, select Format→Style...→Arpeggios.
Here you can change the distance to note, line thickness, and hook length of the following arpeggio and strum symbols:
To open the Slurs/Ties dialog, select Format→Style...→Slurs/Ties.
To open the Hairpins dialog, select Format→Style...→Hairpins.
Here you can set the default properties of hairpins (crescendo and decresendo lines):
To open the Volta dialog, select Format→Style...→Volta.
Here you can set the default properties of voltas:
To open the Ottava dialog, select Format→Style...→Ottava.
Here you can set the default properties of ottavas (octave lines):
To open the Pedal dialog, select Format→Style...→Pedal.
Here you can set the default properties of pedal lines:
To open the Trill dialog, select Format→Style...→Trill.
Here you can set the default placement of Trill lines:
To open the Vibrato dialog, select Format→Style...→Vibrato.
Here you can set the default placement of Vibrato lines:
To open the Bend dialog, select Format→Style...→Bend.
Here you can set the display properties of Bends. This includes the line thickness, arrow width and font properties.
To open the Text Line dialog, select Format→Style...→Text Line.
Here you can set the default placement of text lines:
To open the Articulations, Ornaments dialog, select Format→Style...→Articulations, Ornaments.
This dialog allows you set the default placement distances and size (as a percentage) of articulations and ornaments.
To open the Fermatas dialog, select Format→Style...→Fermatas.
This dialog allows you set the default placement of fermatas.
To open the Staff text dialog, select Format→Style...→Staff Text.
This dialog allows you set the default placement and autoplacement properties of staff text.
To open the Tempo text dialog, select Format→Style...→Staff Text.
This dialog allows you set the default placement and autoplacement properties of tempo text.
To open the Lyrics dialog, select Format→Style...→Lyrics.
Lyrics Text
Lyrics Dash
Lyrics melisma
See also, Melismas.
To open the Dynamics dialog, select Format→Style...→Dynamics.
This dialog allows you set the default placement and autoplacement properties of dynamics.
To open the Rehearsal Marks dialog, select Format→Style...→Rehearsal Marks.
This dialog allows you set the default placement and autoplacement properties of rehearsal marks.
To open the Figured Bass dialog, select Format→Style...→Figured Bass.
This allows you to set the default font, style, alignment and position of figured bass.
To open the Chord Symbols dialog, select Format→Style...→Chord Symbols.
There is another global setting for Chord Symbols at Text > Chord Symbol in which the Font is set; Format→Style...→Text .
This section allows you to adjust the format and positioning of chord symbols:
To open the Fretboard Diagrams dialog, select Format→Style...→Fretboard Diagrams.
This section allows you to adjust the format and positioning of Fretboard diagrams.
To open the Text Styles dialog, select Format→Style...→Text Styles.
Select a text type on the middle pane and edit its styles, see Text styles and properties.
This chapter explains the Format→Style...→Measure window used for adjustment of global settings such as the horizontal distance between various items within measures, see Layout and formatting. Other measure related global settings such as measure visibility are under the Format→Style...→Score, Page, Sizes, Measure number.
Change properties for individual measure(s) on score with "Measure Properties" window, see Measure operations chapter. To change all measures of a staff on the whole score, change the staff instead, see Staff / Part properties. See Page settings for how to override theses settings with individual systems pages specific options and on an individual object on a score.
See also Measure rests.
MuseScore automatically adjusts the score to maintain the correct spacing between notes and rests according to best music engraving practice. It will also correctly reposition any elements attached to notes or rests, such as fingerings, dynamics, lines etc.
The main setting is Spacing (1=tight)
All settings related to measure width and note spacing are minimum values. Measures are automatically stretched, if necessary, to maintain existing page margins.
Minimum measure width: Sets the minimum horizontal length of measures. In measures containing very little content (e.g., a single whole note or whole measure rest), the measure will only shrink as far as this minimum.
Spacing (1=tight): set the ratio of space allocated for one note value compared to the next shorter value. The default spacing ratio value of 1.2 means that each note value takes 1.2 times as much space as the next shorter value. So, a half note takes 1.2 times as much space as a quarter note, etc. This setting thus affects not only space between notes but also between the last note and the ending barline. If you need to change this value, you should consider upgrading to Musescore 4. See https://musescore.org/en/node/326965 and https://musescore.org/en/node/299741#comment-982983 . For the space between the beginning of the measure and the first note or rest, see Note left margin (below)
Note left margin: Sets the distance from the start barline to the first note.
Barline to grace note distance: Sets the distance between a barline and a grace note that occurs before the first actual note in a measure (independently of the "Note left margin" setting).
Barline to accidental distance: Sets the distance between a barline and an accidental placed before the first note in a measure (independently of the "Note left margin" setting).
Note to barline distance: Sets the distance from the last note to the following barline.
Minimum note distance: Specifies the smallest amount of space MuseScore will allow after each note (depending on other factors, more space may be allowed).
Clef left margin: Sets the distance between the very beginning of each line and the clef. (This option is rarely needed.)
Key signature left margin: Sets the distance between the beginning of the measure and a key signature.
Time signature left margin: Sets the distance between the beginning of the measure and a time signature (if there is no key signature in between).
Time signature to barline distance: To be added
Clef/key right margin: Sets the distance between a mid-staff clef or key signature and the following note or rest.
Clef to barline distance: Sets the distance between a barline and a clef change preceding it.
Clef to key distance: Sets the distance from the clef to a key signature following it.
Clef to time signature distance: Sets the distance from the clef to the time signature following it (if there is no key signature in between).
Key to time signature distance: Sets the distance from a key signature to the following time signature.
Key to barline distance: To be added..
System header distance: Sets the distance from a clef or key signature at the beginning of a system to the first note or rest.
System header with time signature distance: Sets the distance from a time signature at the beginning of a system to the first note or rest.
Multimeasure rest margin: Sets the distance between a multimeasure rest and the barlines on either side.
Staff line thickness: Sets the thickness of the lines of the staff, which allows you to make the staff thicker and darker, if you need greater visibility on your printouts. See detailed calculation in Layout and formatting : Final absolute staff height chapter.
Note: Changes to an individual measure's Stretch (using Format→Stretch → Increase/Decrease Layout Stretch) are calculated after, and proportional to, the global Spacing setting.
To open the Page settings dialog: from the menu, select Format → Page Settings....
"Page settings" allows you to adjust the overall dimensions of your score such as page size, page margins, and scaling. It contains layout score-wide settings of currently editing "Musescore Part" or "Full Score", see also Musescore Parts chapter.
Other overall size and spacing options:
The individual systems pages specific options:
Here you can select the paper format, either by standard name (e.g., Letter or A4), or by specifying the height and width in either mm or inches (use the radio buttons to choose which unit of measurement to use). The initial default page size depends on your localization—in the United States, Letter size paper is standard.
You can also choose to format your music in Landscape or Portrait orientation using the radio buttons. You can optionally use Two sided layout (i.e., book format, with mirror left and right margins for even and odd pages—see below).
The Even Page Margins and Odd Page Margins settings allow you to define the printable area of your pages. Aside from changing the margins around the music on the page, other settings, such as the positions of headers and footers, are calculated relative to the margins defined here.
If the "Two sided" checkbox under "Page Size" is selected, you can set margins differently for mirroring odd and even pages. Otherwise, only one set of margins can be modified, but will apply to all pages.
To display page margins in your score on screen (though not in print), go to View→Show Page Margins.
Staff space (sp) : changes the definition of staff space (sp) itself. See Layout and formatting chapter.
Overriding options for individual object on a score are available:
Select between inches and millimeters for values in this dialog.
Sets the number of the first page of the particular score. Page numbers below 1 won't get printed—e.g., setting the first page number to -1 would result in the first and second page showing no page number, and page number 1 appearing on the third page.
The Apply to all Parts button is available when modifying a part, rather than the main score (see Part extraction). If you change the page settings of one part and want the rest of the parts to have the same settings, this button will apply the change to all parts in one go.
The Breaks & Spacers palette contains the following non-printing symbols:
The first three symbols are called breaks; the vertical lines are known as spacers.
A break can be applied to either a measure or a frame. There are three types:
Notes: (1) Break symbols are visible on the screen, but do not appear on printouts. (2) To add (or remove) system breaks over all or part of the score, see Add/Remove System breaks. (3) To split a measure, see Measure operations: Split and join.
Breaks can be added using either (1) a keyboard shortcut; or (2) a break symbol from a palette.
To add a System break or a Page break only:
Any break can be added from a workspace palette:
To add a break to a frame, use one of the following options:
Use one of the following options:
See also: Add / Remove System breaks.
Although breaks are not visible on printed output, you can reposition one, if required, by entering edit mode on it and using the keyboard arrow buttons (see Adjust position of text objects).
A Section break, as the name suggests, is used to create separate sections within a score. Like a system break, it forces the next measure or frame to begin a new system, and can also be used in association with a page break if required. A section break could be used, for example, to divide a piece into separate movements.
Each section can have its own measure numbering independent of the rest of the score. By default, the first measure of a section is numbered "1" (see image below), though like the first measure of the score itself, the number is not displayed unless configured in the measure properties dialog. The same dialog can be used to change the numbering according to your preference.
If you change Time signature or Key signature at the beginning of the new section, there will be no courtesy signature at the end of the previous section. See example below:
When you play back the score, the program adds a short pause between each section. In addition, the first end repeat barline in a section always sends the playback cursor to the beginning of the section, so a start repeat barline is optional.
The following properties can be adjusted in the Inspector after selecting the section break:
Prior to version 3.4, the same properties are accessed by right-clicking the break and selecting Section Break Properties.
There are three types of spacers:
Notes: (1) Spacers are designed for local adjustments only. If you wish to adjust the space between staves across the whole score, use the settings in Format → Style... → Page instead. (2) Spacer symbols are visible on the screen, but do not appear on printouts. (3) Spacers cannot be applied to a frame.
A Frame is a rectangular container for empty space, text or pictures in the score. It can be one of three types:
A horizontal frame is used to create a break in a system. For example, you can:
See Create a Frame (below).
Use one of the following methods:
To add text: Right-click on the frame and select Add → Text.
To add an image: Right-click on the frame and select Add → Picture.
A vertical frame can be inserted above a system or appended to the last system. It can contain one or more text objects and/or images. The height is adjustable and the width equals the system width.
It can be used, for example, to:
See Create a Frame (below).
Use one of the following methods:
Selecting the frame allows you to adjust various parameters in the Inspector:
Top Gap: Adjusts distance between frame and element above.
Bottom Gap: Adjusts distance between frame and element below.
Height: Adjusts height of the frame.
Left Margin: Moves left-aligned text objects to the right.
Right Margin: Moves right-aligned text objects to the left.
Top margin: Moves top-aligned text objects downwards (see also Format → Style... → Page).
Bottom Margin: Moves bottom-aligned text objects upwards (see also Format → Style... → Page).
To add text: Right-click on the frame, select Add, and choose one of the text options.
To add an image: Right-click on the frame and select Add → Picture.
You can create as many objects as you like within a frame. Their positions can be adjusted independently by dragging or, more accurately, by altering the offset values in the Inspector. To format text objects, see Text editing and Text styles and properties.
The horizontal frame is automatically left-aligned and fills the entire vertical frame. To right-align it:
A vertical frame is automatically created at the beginning of a score, showing the title, subtitle, composer, lyricist etc., when you fill in the information fields provided on page 1 of the New Score Wizard.
If the score does not have a vertical frame at the beginning, you can create one as follows:
A Text frame looks like a vertical frame, but is specialized for text input: one text object is allowed per frame. The height automatically expands to fit the content and there is no height adjustment handle.
A text frame can be used, for example, to:
See Create a Frame (below).
Selecting the frame allows you to adjust various parameters in the Inspector:
Top Gap: Adjusts distance between frame and element above.
Bottom Gap: Adjusts distance between frame and element below.
Height: Not applicable to text frames.
Left Margin: Moves left-aligned text objects to the right.
Right Margin: Moves right-aligned text objects to the left.
Top margin: Moves top-aligned text objects downwards.
Bottom Margin: Moves bottom-aligned text upwards.
From the menu:
From a measure:
From a palette:
See Apply symbols from a palette.
Use one of the following:
System, page or section breaks can be applied to frames as well as measures. Use one of two methods:
Embed Images onto a score as cover art or as symbols that are not found in any Palettes or the Master palette window (check its Symbol category as last resort). MuseScore supports the following formats:
Does not support the following formats at all:
Use one of the following options:
Once imported, it can be added to any palette and reapplied to other scores easily, see added to a palette.
To modify the width/height of an image, double-click it and drag any of the handles. If you want to adjust width or height separately, untick "Lock aspect ratio" first in the Inspector. Toggle the "Size in staff space units" checkbox to switch between proportional unit and absolute value, see Layout and formatting.
You can adjust the position of an image by simply dragging it.
MuseScore's image capture feature allows you to save a snapshot of any part of the score window. PNG, PDF and SVG formats are supported.
You can save the image in either PNG (default), SVG or PDF format.
Note: SVG is a vector graphics format rather than being pixel-based (or raster, like BMP or PNG). The advantage of this format is that enlarging the image or zooming in does not cause blurring or unwanted sawtooth effects.
Right-clicking on the selection rectangle opens the Image Capture menu (Mac: Ctrl + click, or 2-finger-tap):
While dragging an element:
Snap to grid is a feature which allows you to drag an element in precise steps—useful for exact positioning.
To enable snap to grid, select an element and click one or both of the snap to grid buttons, located to the right of the X (horizontal) and Y (vertical) offset fields in the Inspector. You can then drag the element in steps equal to the grid spacing. The default value is 0.5 sp.
To change the grid spacing:
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
This document is written for blind and visually impaired users of MuseScore 3. It is not intended to provide a full description of all of the features of MuseScore; you should read this in conjunction with the regular MuseScore documentation.
MuseScore comes with support for the free and open source NVDA screen reader for Windows. You can also install a script to enable support for JAWS, or install a script for Orca on Linux.
Eventually we hope to support other screen readers such as VoiceOver and Narrator. Currently, unsupported screen readers will usually read menus and dialogs, but reading the score note by note currently requires one of the supported screen readers.
Beginning with MuseScore 3.3, most of the features of MuseScore are fully accessible, it is viable both as a score reader and editor. Previous versions were more limited with respect to editing.
When you run MuseScore for the first time, you will be asked some questions on startup. We recommend you accept the defaults, but answer "no" to the question about showing tours, since these unfortunately are not yet accessible.
When MuseScore starts, the first thing you normally see is the Start Center window. This shows you a list of recent scores that you can access via Shift+Tab and then using the left and right cursor keys. You may find it easier to open scores directly from the File menu, however so you can press Esc to close the Start Center if you prefer. In fact you may want to permanently disable it. After closing the Start Center, open the Edit menu (Alt+E), choose Preferences, and in the General tab, uncheck Show Start Center, then close the Preferences window.
MuseScore includes keyboard shortcuts for many of its commands, and others that do not have shortcuts defined by default can be customized later, in Edit, Preferences, Shortcuts.
The user interface in MuseScore works much like other notation programs or other document-oriented programs in general. It has a single main document window within which you can work with a score. MuseScore supports multiple document tabs within this window. It also supports a split-screen view to let you work with two documents at once, and you can have multiple tabs in each window.
In addition to the score window, MuseScore has a menu bar that you can access via the shortcuts for the individual menus:
Hint: once you have opened a menu, it may take several presses of the Up or Down keys before everything is read properly. Also, if at any point the screenreader stops responding, a useful trick to kickstart it again is to press Alt to move focus to the menu bar, then Esc to return to the score. Sometimes switching to another application then back can help as well.
In addition to the menu bar, there are also a number of toolbars, palettes, and sub-windows within MuseScore, and you can cycle through the controls in these using Tab (or Shift+Tab to move backwards through this same cycle). When you first start MuseScore, or load a score, focus should be in the main score window.
If nothing is selected (press Esc to clear any selection), pressing Tab takes you to a toolbar containing a series of buttons for operations like New, Open, Play, and so forth. Tab will skip any buttons that aren't currently active. The names and shortcuts (where applicable) for these buttons should be read by your screen reader.
Once you have cycled through the buttons on the toolbar, the next window Tab will visit is the Palettes. This is used to add various elements to a score (dynamics, articulations, and so forth).
If an element is selected in the score, the first window visited by Tab is the Inspector, which is used for making various manual adjustments in your score. Many of these features are based on the visual appearance of the score (although a few relate to playback).
If you have opened one of the additional optional windows, such as the Selection Filter, the Tab key will also visit these. You can close windows you do not need by going to the View menu and making sure none of the first set of checkboxes is selected (the windows that appear before the Zoom settings). By default, only the Palettes and Inspector should be selected. See Initial Setup for instructions for disabling the Start Center. F9 can be used to toggle the Palettes while F8 will toggle the Inspector.
To return focus to the score window after visiting the toolbar, or a subwindow, press Esc. If something was selected before visiting the other window, the selection is left intact, but pressing Esc once focus is in the score window clears the selection. The selection is automatically restored when you commence navigation using the accessibility commands described below.
When you first start MuseScore 3 an empty example score is loaded by default. If you wish to experiment with editing features, this would be a good place to begin. Otherwise, you will probably want to start by loading a score. MuseScore uses the standard shortcuts to access system commands like Ctrl+O (Mac: Cmd+O) to open a file, Ctrl+S (Mac: Cmd+S) to save, Ctrl+W (Mac: Cmd+W) to close, etc.
If you press Ctrl+O (Mac: Cmd+O) to load a score, you are presented with a fairly standard file dialog. MuseScore can open scores in its own format (MSCZ or MSCX) as well as import scores in the standard MusicXML format, in MIDI format, or from a few other programs such as Guitar Pro, Capella, and Band-in-a-Box. Once you have loaded a score, it is displayed in a new tab within the score window. You can move between the tabs in the score window using Ctrl+Tab (does not apply for Mac). Hint: if the name of the score in the current tab is not read, ask your screen reader to read the title bar.
To read the score note by note, see below, but there are a few other interesting things you can do with a loaded score. You can press Space to have MuseScore play the score for you. You can use File / Export to convert to another format, including PDF, PNG, WAV, MP3, MIDI, MusicXML, etc. And of course, you can print it via File / Print or Ctrl+P (Mac: Cmd+P).
If a score contains multiple instruments, it may already have linked parts generated. Linked parts are presented as part tabs within score tabs, but currently, there is no way to navigate these part tabs using the keyboard. The parts would not normally contain information different from the score; they would just be displayed differently (each part on its own page). If a score does not already have parts generated, you can do so through File / Parts, and that dialog is accessible. If you wish to print the parts, you can work around the inability of accessing part tabs individually by using the File / Export Parts dialog, which automatically exports PDF’s (or other formats) for all parts in one step.
When you first load a score, the score window has the keyboard focus, but there will be nothing selected. The first step to reading a score is to select something, and the most natural place to begin is with the first element of the score. After a score is loaded, Alt+Right (Mac: Alt+Right) will select the literal first element, which is likely the title; Ctrl+Home (Mac: Cmd+Home) will select the first "musical" element (usually a clef or an initial barline).
As you navigate between elements, your screen reader should give the name of the selected element. You will hear it read the name of the element (for example, “Treble clef”) and also give position information (for example, “Measure 1; Beat 1; Staff 1; Violin”). The amount of information read is optimized to not repeat information that has not changed. Pressing Shift currently interrupts the reading, which might also be useful.
Most navigation in MuseScore is centered around notes and rests only—it will skip clefs, key signatures, time signatures, barlines, and other elements. So if you just use the standard Right and Left keys to move through your score, you will only hear about notes and rests (and the elements attached to them). However, there are two special accessibility commands that you will find useful to gain a more complete summarization of the score:
These commands include clefs and other elements that the other navigation commands skip, and also navigate through all voices within the current staff, whereas other navigation commands such as Right and Left only navigate through the currently selected voice until you explicitly change voices. For instance, if you are on a quarter note on beat 1 of measure 1, and there are two voices in that measure, then pressing Right will move on to the next note of voice 1—which will be on beat 2—whereas pressing Alt+Right (Mac: Alt+Right) will stay on beat 1 but move to the note on voice 2. Only once you have moved through all notes on the current beat on the current staff will the shortcut move you on to the next beat. The intent is that this shortcut should be useful for navigating through a score if you don’t already know what the contents are.
When you navigate to an element, your screen reader should read information about it. For notes and rests, it will also read information about elements attached to them, such as lyrics, articulations, chord symbols, etc. The accessibility commands will also navigate through those elements individually.
One important note: Up and Down by themselves, with Shift, or with Ctrl / Cmd are not useful shortcuts for navigation! Instead, they change the pitch of the currently selected note or notes. Be careful not to inadvertently edit a score you are trying to read. Up and Down should only be used with Alt if your intent is navigation only. See the list of navigation shortcuts below.
If you should lose track of your place in the score - or if you lose the selection completely - press Shift+L ("location") to get the current location.
The following shortcuts are useful for moving “horizontally” through a score:
The following shortcuts are useful for moving “vertically” through a score:
The Alt+Up and Alt+Down commands are similar to the Alt+Right and Alt+Left commands in that they are designed to help you discover the content of a score. You do not need to know how many notes are in a chord, how many voices are in a staff, or how many staves are in a score in order to move vertically through the score using these commands.
Excluding certain elements like lyrics, or chord names while reading the score is possible by using the Selection filter (F6). Uncheck those elements you don't want to read. However, this feature may not currently be implemented.
The Space bar serves both to start and stop playback. Playback will start with the currently selected note if one is selected; where playback was last stopped if no note is selected; or at the beginning of the score on first playback.
MuseScore supports looped playback so you can repeat a section of a piece for practice purposes. To set the “in” and “out” points for the loop playback via the Play Panel (F11):
You can also control the loop playback and control other playback parameters, such as overriding the basic tempo of a score, using the View / Play Panel (F11).
While some advanced score editing techniques require visual inspection of the score, and a small number of commands may require the mouse, as of MuseScore 3.3 most score editing features are fully accessible.
You can enter music into the default empty score (a score with one staff, using a piano sound), or edit an existing score that you have opened already, or you can create a new score with the set of instruments you want.
To create a new score, use File, New or Ctrl+N. A wizard then walks you through the score creation process.
The first screen of the wizard has fields to enter the title, composer, and other information. The second allows you to select a template (predefined scores for common ensembles like choral SATB or jazz big band) or to select instruments. The third allows you to select an initial key signature and tempo. Sometimes this screen gets skipped, so if this happens, press the Back button to go back. To select a key, use Up and Down. The key signature control does not work well with some screenreaders, but if you give the "read current line" command (e.g., NVDA+L), it may read the currently-selected key. The next and final screen of the wizard allows you to select an initial time signature, pickup (anacrusis), and the number of measures to start with.
Once you have a score, you can begin editing it.
To enter notes, you need to be in note input mode. First, navigate to the measure in which you would like to enter notes, then press N. Almost everything about note input is designed to be keyboard accessible, and the standard documentation should be good to help you through the process. Bear in mind that MuseScore can either be in note input or normal mode, and it won’t always be clear which mode of these you are in. When in doubt, press Esc. If you were in note input mode, this will take you out. If you were in normal mode, you will stay there, although you will also lose your selection.
The basic process of note input is to first select a duration (for example, using shortcuts 4-5-6 for eighth, quarter, half), then enter a note by typing its letter name. Once a duration is selected you can enter multiple notes of the same duration. Press 0 to enter a rest.
The Up and Down keys raise or lower the pitch by a half step, adding or removing accidentals as necessary. To change enharmonic spelling of a note, press J.
To enter a tie, select the duration of the tied note then press +. To create triplets, select the total duration for the triplet, then press Ctrl+3 (similarly for quadruplets and other tuplets). To enter music in multiple voices on a single staff, pressing Ctrl+Alt plus a number from 1 to 4 will switch to that voice (keep in mind, the first voice for each staff is always voice 1).
There is much more to note input in MuseScore. See for the section on Note Input in the Handbook.
MuseScore supports the usual keyboard shortcuts for selection. Navigating is the same as selecting for single elements. To select a range of elements, navigate to the first, press and hold Shift, then navigate to the second. Ctrl+A will select the entire score.
As mentioned previously, many symbols other than notes are entered from the palettes window. The basic use model is, first select the element or elements in the score you want to apply the palette item to, then apply the palette element. There are a few different ways to select the palette element.
The simplest method to use at first is to simply browse the palettes window by keyboard. To reach the palettes window, press Shift+Tab. The screenreader may not specifically tell you that you are in the palettes window, but you will discover that you are as you navigate. Depending on whether you have used the palettes before, focus may be where you left off, or at the top. Press Tab a few times to get to the first palette within the window (Clefs). You can browse the list of palettes using the Up and Down cursor keys. The Right cursor key opens a palette, and then all four cursor keys can be used to navigate through the elements (they are arranged in a table). You can also use Tab to navigate the palette names and contents.
Once you have found a palette item you want to apply, press Enter to apply it to the currently-selected score elements and return focus to the score. The next time you press Shift+Tab to return to the palettes, the last-used palette item will still be selected, so Enter will apply it again. The screenreader may stop responding after applying a palette item, even though focus has returned to the score, but the trick of pressing Alt followed by Esc should get it working again.
You can also use the palette search facility to quickly find a palette item. The search box is one of the first elements at the top of the palette, so you can navigate to it, or you can define a shortcut (Edit, Preferences, Shortcuts) for the "Palette search" command, which will subsequently take you directly to the search box. Once you are in the box, type the first few characters of a search term, and only palette items matching that search will shown. You can then navigate to the search results and find the element you want. The Down cursor will take you directly to the first search result, then you can use Right after that. However, on some systems MuseScore may crash when using the palette search function with a screen reader enabled.
Another way to reach the palettes window is with the F9 shortcut, which toggles the palettes window on and off. By default, the palettes window is open, so pressing F9 will close it, but then pressing it again opens the window and puts the cursor in the search box.
There is one other useful technique for palette accessibility, and that is the "Apply current palette element" command (for which you can define a shortcut). If you are in the score, this will apply the last-used palette element automatically (the equivalent of Shift+Tab followed by Enter).
Some elements can be added or edited via menu commands or keyboard shortcuts. The Edit menu has standard copy and paste commands (and the usual shortcuts work too). The Add menu has commands to add notes, tuplets, measures, frames, text, and some lines. The Format menu has commands relating mostly to the visual appearance of the score (e.g., page and staff size, position and size of symbols, fonts used for text), which can be extremely useful in producing large print a.k.a. "modified stave notation" scores (see below). The Tools menu has a number of other useful commands, including ones to remove measures or other selected ranges, to transpose a selection, to join and split measures, and more. any of these commands have shortcuts defined by default that should be read by a screenreader. You can define custom shortcuts for most of the rest in Edit, Preferences, Shortcuts.
There are also shortcuts for a number of palette items, and the possibility to define others (although many palette items currently do not support this). Some useful shortcuts to remember include:
Ctrl+T: staff text
Alt+Shift+T: tempo
Ctrl+L: lyrics
Ctrl+K: chord symbol
Ctrl+M: rehearsal mark
S: slur
Shift+S: staccato
Shift+V: accent
Shift+N: tenuto
Shift+O: marcato
slash: grace note
less than: crescendo
greater than: diminuendo
You can customize the keyboard shortcuts by opening the Edit menu, selecting Preferences, then navigating to the Shortcuts tab. Once there, Tab will take you to the list of shortcuts, and you can navigate the list directly with the Up and Down cursor keys, but it is a very long list. You can instead hit Tab a few more times to reach the Search box, then type the first few characters of the command to filter the list, then navigate back to the list.
Once you have found the command you wish to customize, press Enter. You can then press the key combination you wish to be the shortcut. It can be a single key, a key with Shift, Ctrl, and/or other modifiers, or even a sequence or two or more keys pressed in succession. After entering the shortcut you wish, press Tab to get to the Add or Replace button (Tab is the only key that won't be interpreted as part of a shortcut sequence). If you reach Cancel without ever seeing Add or Replace, it means the shortcut you choose conflicts with another. Navigate back to the where you typed the shortcut and it will tell you the name of the command it conflicts with. Hit Tab to get to the Clear button to clear it, then try again with a different shortcut.
At some point, we may provide a set of special accessibility-optimized shortcuts. There is already a facility in the shortcut dialog to save and load shortcut definitions, so it is possible to share shortcut definitions with other users.
The Album feature has been disabled for 3.x. It will come back in 4.x (x > 0!).
The Album Manager allows you to prepare a list of multiple scores and save the list as an album file ("*.album"), print all the scores as one long print job with consistent page numbers, or even join the scores into a single new MSCZ score. This is ideal for preparing an exercise book or combining multiple movements of an orchestration.
To open the Album Manager, go to File → Album...
If you have previously created an album, you can open it through the Album Manager by clicking the Load button. A file selection dialog will appear to let you load the .album file from your file system.
To print an album as if it were a single document, click Print Album. The scores loaded into the Album Manager are printed in the order they are listed in with the correct page numbers, ignoring the page number offset values in Layout → Page Settings... → First page number for all but the first score. As the album is printed in one print job, double-sided printing (duplex printing) also works as expected.
To combine multiple scores into a single .mscz file, click Join Scores. The scores are combined in the selected order into one single score. If not already present, line- and section breaks are added to the last measure or frame of each score in the combined file.
All style settings are taken from the first score, different style settings from subsequent score are ignored.
All the scores should have the same number of parts and staves for this to work correctly, ideally with the same instruments in the same order. If the scores have the same total number of instruments but not the same ones, or not in the same order, then the instrument names from the first score will overwrite ones from subsequent scores. If some of the scores have fewer instruments than the first score, then empty staves will be created for those sections. Any part or staff that is not present in the first score will be lost in the joined score.
Upon clicking the Close button, you will be prompted to save your album as a .album file. This file is not the same as a joined score; it simply consists of the list of scores. Album files can be loaded into the Album Manager as described above.
MuseScore's automatic placement (AP) feature ensures that, in most cases, elements are correctly spaced and do not collide or overlap with each other.
Note: When you create an element, AP is automatically enabled, but can be turned off if required (see Disable automatic placement).
A newly-created element, such as staff text or fingering, assumes a default position on the staff specified by "positional" properties contained in the Style menu. These "positional" properties may include things such as:
For details of the settings available for each element type, see Layout and formatting: Style.
Use one of the following methods:
Use one of the following methods:
Elements with a "Placement" property available in the Inspector can be easily moved from above the staff to below it, and vice versa:
Note: When automatic placement is enabled for an element, you cannot position it in a way that causes a collision with other elements.
The element reverts to its default position. It can be repositioned as desired and is no longer avoided when placing other elements.
To change the value for Stacking order:
In cases where elements are allowed to overlap, Stacking order controls the order in which they are placed on top of each other. The element with the lower value will be placed behind.
Default stacking order values (source)
Item | Default stacking order value |
---|---|
Accidental | 1600 |
Ambitus | 2200 |
Arpeggio | 1500 |
Articulation | 2800 |
Barline | 1100 |
Beam | 3200 |
Bend | 4800 |
Breathmarks | 2500 |
Caesura | 2500 |
Change instrument | 4400 |
Clef | 2000 |
crescendo - diminuendo | 5100 |
D.C. | 3700 |
D.S. | 3700 |
Dynamic | 3100 |
Fall etc. | 3000 |
Fermata | 2900 |
Fingering | 3800 |
Flag | 3300 |
Fretboard diagram | 4700 |
Glissando | 6100 |
Hairpin | 5100 |
Hook/Flag | 3300 |
Instrument names | 800 |
Key signature | 2100 |
Ledgerlines | 1700 |
Line | 5700 |
Minus sign measure | 1099 |
mf + hairpin | 5100 |
Note anchored line | 5700 |
Note dot | 6600 |
Noteheads | 1900 |
Ornament | 2800 |
Ottava's | 5200 |
Palm mute | 5600 |
Parenthesis | 500 |
Pedal lines | 5900 |
Rehearsal mark | 4300 |
Repeat measure sign | 2600 |
Rest | 2400 |
RH fingering | 2800 |
Sawtooth | 5500 |
Segno | 3600 |
Slide etc. | 3000 |
Slur | 900 |
Stafflines | 1200 |
Staff text | 4100 |
Stem | 1800 |
System text | 4200 |
Tempo | 4000 |
Text line | 5700 |
Thumb pos | 2800 |
Tie | 1000 |
Time signature | 2300 |
Title text | 600 |
Tremolo | 6700 |
Tremolobar | 4900 |
Trill lines | 5300 |
Volta | 5800 |
In piano scores, it is common to write a musical phrase extending across both staves—bass and treble. This can be entered in MuseScore as follows:
To start with, enter the notation in one staff. e.g.
Select a note and press Ctrl+Shift+↓/↑ (Mac: Cmd+Shift+↓/↑). This moves the selected note, and all other notes in the same voice, down (or up) to the other staff, e.g.
Note: It follows that if you want to ensure that notes remain on the same staff during the operation, they should be in a different voice to the one selected above. Be aware that notes which have been moved to a different staff still belong logically to the staff of origin. This is why no rest is shown in the place where the moved notes originated.
To adjust the beam, double-click it to show the handles. Use the keyboard arrows or drag the handles to change the beam angle and height:
MuseScore offers several specialized functions to create engravings of early music (particularly medieval and renaissance) akin to commercial editions from the 20th century onwards.
In MuseScore, notes lasting longer than the duration of a measure are normally tied across barlines. However MuseScore has a special feature which allows it to display the note values intact, without splitting and tying them in this way. This enables you to notate music which is unbarred (i.e. not divided into measures), such as that of the renaissance:
Note: The feature is still in development and may contain bugs. The longest supported note value is the longa (a dotted longa is still broken up and tied over).
Since a complete lack of barlines could make performing the music more difficult for current musicians, many modern engravers settled on a compromise called Mensurstrich, where barlines are drawn between, but not across, staves.
To place barlines between staves:
Before there was the concept of an absolute pitch, performers were required to transpose vocal music to a singable range for their ensemble "on the fly." To aid them, an ambitus was sometimes included, marking the entire range of a voice at the beginning of the piece.
To apply an ambitus, use one of the following methods:
When applied, the ambitus automatically displays the note range of the score: if there is a section break then only the note range of the section is displayed. Beyond the section break a new ambitus may be applied.
The note range of the ambitus can be adjusted manually by selecting it and changing the "Top note" and "Bottom note" values in the Inspector. For automatic adjustment click the Update Range button in the inspector.
In the mensural notation system, time signatures did not define the length of a measure, but the length of breves and semibreves. MuseScore supports mensural time symbols as a display method in the Time signature properties dialog rather than as symbols, but they are just for show, as the proportion of e.g. half notes per whole notes cannot be modified.
One way to make use of these symbols is to replicate when composers of the renaissance had multiple voices in different time signatures simultaneously without using tuplets. Edit the time signature on a per-staff basis, as long as the beginning and end of a measure in all staves match up. If they do not, then consider increasing the size of the measures to the lowest common denominator.
De Profundis Clamavi for 5 voices by Josquin Des Prez
Authentic-looking period tablature is possible for instruments such as the lute, theorbo etc. The various historical styles are well supported by a choice of fretmark and note symbol fonts, optional “upside-down” tablature, and special symbols for bass-string notes. See Tablature.
Not to be confused with Chord notation systems: Roman Numeral Analysis
Digits are entered directly. Groups of several digits stacked one above the other are also entered directly in a single text, stacking them with Enter:
Accidentals can be entered using regular keys:
To enter: | type: |
---|---|
double flat | bb |
flat | b |
natural | h |
sharp | # |
double sharp | ## |
These characters will automatically turn into the proper signs when you leave the editor. Accidentals can be entered before, or after a digit (and of course, in place of a digit, for altered thirds), according to the required style; both styles are properly aligned, with the accidental 'hanging' at the left, or the right.
Slashed digits or digits with a cross can be entered by adding \, / or + after the digit (combining suffixes); the proper combined shape will be substituted when leaving the editor:
The built-in font can manage combination equivalence, favoring the more common substitution:
1+, 2+, 3+, 4+ result in (or
)
and 5\, 6\, 7\, 8\, 9\ result in (or
)
Please remember that / can only by combined with 5; any other 'slashed' figure is rendered with a question mark.
+ can also be used before a digit; in this case it is not combined, but it is properly aligned ('+' hanging at the left side).
Open and closed parentheses, both round: '(', ')' and square: '[', ']', can be inserted before and after accidentals, before and after a digit, before and after a continuation line; added parentheses will not disturb the proper alignment of the main character.
Notes: (1) The editor does not check that parentheses, open and closed, round or square, are properly balanced. (2) Several parentheses in a row are non-syntactical and prevent proper recognition of the entered text. (3) A parenthesis between a digit and a combining suffix ('+', '\', '/') is accepted, but prevents shape combination.
Continuation lines are input by adding an '_' (underscore) at the end of the line. Each digit of a group can have its own continuation line:
Continuation lines are drawn for the whole duration of the figured bass group.
'Extended' continuation lines
Occasionally, a continuation line has to connect with the continuation line of a following group, when a chord degree has to be kept across two groups. Examples (both from J. Boismortier, Pièces de viole, op. 31, Paris 1730):
In the first case, each group has its own continuation line; in the second, the continuation line of the first group is carried 'into' the second.
This can be obtained by entering several (two or more) underscores "__" at the end of the text line of the first group.
Each figured bass group has a duration, which is indicated by a light gray line above it (of course, this line is for information only and it is not printed or exported to PDF).
Initially, a group has the same duration of the note to which it is attached. A different duration may be required to fit several groups under a single note or to extend a group to span several notes.
To achieve this, each key combination in the table below can be used to (1) advance the editing box by the indicated duration, and (2) set the duration of the previous group up to the new editing box position.
Pressing several of them in sequence without entering any figured bass text repeatedly extends the previous group.
Type: | to get: |
---|---|
Ctrl+1 | 1/64 |
Ctrl+2 | 1/32 |
Ctrl+3 | 1/16 |
Ctrl+4 | 1/8 (quaver) |
Ctrl+5 | 1/4 (crochet) |
Ctrl+6 | half note (minim) |
Ctrl+7 | whole note (semibreve) |
Ctrl+8 | 2 whole notes (breve) |
(The digits are the same as are used to set the note durations)
Setting the exact figured bass group duration is only mandatory in two cases:
However, it is a good practice to always set the duration to the intended value for the purposes of plugins and MusicXML.
To edit a figured bass indication already entered use one of the following options:
The usual text editor box will open with the text converted back to plain characters ('b', '#' and 'h' for accidentals, separate combining suffixes, underscores, etc.) for simpler editing.
Once done, press Space to move to a next note, or click outside the editor box to exit it, as for newly created figured basses.
To configure how figured bass is rendered: from the menu, select Format → Style… → Figured Bass.
Line Height: The distance between the base line of each figured bass line, as a percentage of font size.
The following picture visualizes each numeric parameter:
Alignment: Select the vertical alignment: with Top, the top line of each group is aligned with the main vertical position and the group 'hangs' from it (this is normally used with figured bass notation and is the default); with Bottom, the bottom line is aligned with the main vertical position and the group 'sits' on it (this is sometimes used in some kinds of harmonic analysis notations):
Style: Choose between "Modern" or "Historic." The difference between the two styles is shown below:
For the relevant substitutions and shape combinations to take effect and for proper alignment, the figured bass mechanism expects input texts to follow some rules (which are in any case, the rules for a syntactical figured bass indication):
If a text entered does not follow these rules, it will not be processed: it will be stored and displayed as it is, without any layout.
Type: | to get: |
---|---|
Ctrl+G | Adds a new figured bass group to the selected note. |
Space | Advances the editing box to the next note. |
Shift+Space | Moves the editing box to the previous note. |
Tab | Advances the editing box to the next measure. |
Shift+Tab | Moves the editing box to the previous measure. |
Ctrl+1 | Advances the editing box by 1/64, setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+2 | Advances the editing box by 1/32, setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+3 | Advances the editing box by 1/16, setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+4 | Advances the editing box by 1/8 (quaver), setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+5 | Advances the editing box by 1/4 (crochet), setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+6 | Advances the editing box by a half note (minim), setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+7 | Advances the editing box by a whole note (semibreve), setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+8 | Advances the editing box by two whole notes (breve), setting the duration of the previous group. |
Ctrl+Space | Enters an actual space; useful when figure appears "on the second line" (e.g., 5 4 -> 3). |
BB | Enters a double flat. |
B | Enters a flat. |
H | Enters a natural. |
# | Enters a sharp. |
## | Enters a double sharp. |
_ | Enters a continuation line. |
__ | Enters an extended continuation line. |
Note: For Mac commands, Ctrl is replaced with Cmd.
MuseScore can import and export a wide variety of file formats, allowing you to share and publish scores in the format that best meets your needs.
See also Native format compatibility.
MuseScore saves files in the following native formats:
A note about fonts: MuseScore does not embed text fonts in saved or exported native format files. If you want your MuseScore file to be viewed by other MuseScore users, make sure you are using the built-in Edwin (since version 3.6), FreeSerif, or FreeSans font families for your text, or a font that the other parties have installed too. If a system does not have the fonts specified in your original file, MuseScore will use a fallback option, which may cause your score to appear differently. For more see Fonts.
*.mscz
)MSCZ is the standard MuseScore file format and recommended for most uses. A score saved in this format takes up very little disk space, but preserves all the necessary information. The format is a ZIP-compressed version of .mscx
files and includes any images the score may contain and a thumbnail.
Note: An .mscz
file can be unzipped using a ZIP software utility to extract an uncompressed .mscx
file. (Note that changing the file extension from .mscz
to .zip
may be required to unzip the .mscz
file, depending on the software utility used.)
*.mscx
)MSCX is the uncompressed version of the MuseScore file format. A score saved in this format will retain all information, except images. It can be opened with a text editor, allowing the user access to the file's source code.
.*.mscz,
) or (.*.mscx,
)Backup files are created automatically and saved in the same folder as your normal MuseScore file. The backup copy contains the previously saved version of the MuseScore file and can be important if your normal copy becomes corrupted, or for looking at an older version of the score.
The backup file adds a period to the beginning of the file name (.
) and a comma (,
) to the end (e.g. if your normal file is called "untitled.mscz
", the backup copy will be ".untitled.mscz,
"), and the period and comma need to be removed from the name in order to open the backup file in MuseScore. As it is stored in the same folder as your normal MuseScore file, you may also need to give it a unique name (e.g. changing ".untitled.mscz,
" to "untitled-backup1.mscz
").
Note: In order to see the MuseScore backup files, you may need to change your system settings to "Show hidden files". See also How to recover a backup copy of a score.
MuseScore can export a score as a graphic file in either PDF, PNG or SVG format.
*.pdf
)PDF (Portable Document Format) files are ideal for sharing your sheet music with others who do not need to edit the content. This is a very widely-used format and most users will have a PDF viewer of some kind on their computers.
To set the resolution of exported PDFs:
*.png
)PNG (Portable Network Graphics) files are based on a bitmap image format, widely supported by software on Windows, Mac OS, and Linux, and very popular on the web. MuseScore creates PNG images as they would appear if printed, one image per page.
To set the resolution of exported PNG images:
Note: If you want to create images that show only parts of the score (with or without screen-only items such as frame boxes, invisible notes, and out-of-range note colors), use Image capture instead.
*.svg
)SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) files can be opened by most web browsers (except Internet Explorer before version 9) and most vector graphics software. However, most SVG software does not support embedded fonts, so the appropriate MuseScore fonts must be installed to view these files correctly. SVG is the current format for all scores saved on MuseScore.com.
To set resolution and transparency of exported SVG files, see the instructions under PNG (above). Note that MuseScore does not (yet) support gradients on export (although it does for images in a score).
MuseScore can create normalized, stereo audio of the score in any of the following formats: WAV, MP3, OGG VORBIS, FLAC. To export an audio file:
You can adjust the sample rate of all audio formats as follows:
*.wav
)WAV (Waveform Audio Format) is an uncompressed sound format. This was developed by Microsoft and IBM, and is widely supported by software for Windows, OS X, and Linux. It is an ideal format for use when creating CDs, as full sound quality is preserved. For sharing via email or the internet, use a compressed alternative such as MP3.
*.mp3
)MP3 is a very widely-used compressed audio format. MP3 files are ideal for sharing and downloading over the internet due to their relatively small size.
To set the MP3 bitrate:
*.flac
)Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC) is compressed audio format. FLAC files are approximately half the size of uncompressed audio and just as good quality. Windows and OS X do not have built-in support for FLAC, but software such as the free and open source VLC media player can play FLAC files on any operating system.
*.ogg
)Ogg Vorbis is intended as a patent-free replacement for the popular MP3 audio format (which MuseScore also supports—see above). Like MP3, Ogg Vorbis files are relatively small (often a tenth of uncompressed audio), but some sound quality is lost. Windows and OS X do not have built-in support for Ogg Vorbis. However, software such as VLC media player and Firefox can play Ogg files on any operating system.
MuseScore can import and export MusicXML and MIDI files; it is also able to import a variety of native format files from other music notation programs.
*.musicxml
, *.xml
)MusicXML is the universal standard format for sharing sheet music between different scorewriters—including MuseScore, Sibelius, Finale, and more than 100 others. MuseScore supports both export and import.
*.mxl
)Compressed MusicXML creates smaller files than regular MusicXML. This is a newer standard and isn't as widely supported by older scorewriters, but MuseScore has full import and export support.
*.mid
, *.midi
, *.kar
)MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a format widely supported by sequencers and music notation software. For details of the protocol see the MIDI Association website.
MIDI files are very useful for playback purposes but contain little in the way of score layout information (formatting, pitch spelling, voicing, ornaments, articulations, repeats, key signatures etc.). To share files between different music notation software, MusicXML is recommended instead.
For details about how to import MIDI files see MIDI import.
*.md
) (import only)MuseData is a format developed by Walter B. Hewlett beginning in 1983 as an early means of sharing music notation between software. It has since been eclipsed by MusicXML, but several thousand scores in this format are still available online.
*.cap
, *.capx
) (import only)CAP and CAPX files are created by the score writer, Capella. MuseScore imports version 2000 (3.0) or later fairly accurately.
*.bww
) (import only)BWW files are created by the niche score writer, Bagpipe Music Writer.
*.mgu
, *.sgu
) (import only)BB files are created by the music arranging software, Band-in-a-Box. MuseScore's support is currently experimental.
*.ove
, *.scw
) (import only)OVE files are created by the score writer Overture 4 or older. This format is mainly popular in Chinese-language environments, such as Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Overture 5, the current version of Overture, uses the extension .ovex, which MuseScore can't read.
SCW files are created by Score Writer, they are identical to OVE files, only differences is the extension.
MuseScore's support is currently experimental and seems to support Overture / Score Writer 3 and 4 only.
MuseScore can open Guitar Pro files with the following extensions: *.gtp, *.gp3, *.gp4, *.gp5, *.gpx, and, as of version 3.5, *.gp.
*.ptb
) (import only)PTB files are created by Power Tab Editor. MuseScore's support is currently experimental.
To change the appearance of Musescore user interface, see Preferences instead.
To edit sound samples, see SoundFonts and SFZ files instead.
A computer font (font family, font face, typeface, wikipedia) is a digital data file containing a set of graphically related glyphs, characters, or symbols. This chapter discusses object's font assignment and font options and other related info. There are several different usage of font data by an object depending on:
Font file cannot be embedded into a score file.
A Musescore Text object is an object that contains individual characters that can be entered and removed by using (typing on) a computer keyboard. Text object can be edited in Edit mode, simply double-click on it to enter Edit mode. Text line object (Line object containing Text) has Begin Text, Continue Text, End Text properties, see Lines chapter.
There are two types of characters in a Text object, plain character and professional glyph ("Musical text" character), they have different formatting options.
Plain characters, entered using a computer keyboard, use font assigned in Inspector (musescore 3), Properties panel (musescore 4) and the Style windows (Format → Style → [item] and Format → Style → Text Styles → [item]), see formatting concept in the Layout and formatting in Musescore and Text styles and properties chapters. Their font options are explained in the "Font options of plain characters" section below.
Musicians use symbols and marks to indicate various aspects of a composition, most of these glyphs cannot be found on any typical computer keyboard. To add new professional glyphs into any Text object on a score, use the "Symbols and special characters" window's Common Symbols tab and Musical Symbols tab (Some items under these two tabs are not professional glyphs.), or Keyboard shortcuts, see Text editing chapter. They are also present in some of the pre-configured Text objects found in Palettes. Musescore displays them using data that only exist in fonts designed specifically for musical notation. The font assignment and font options are distinct from plain characters, see "Font options of glyphs" section below.
Special internal encoding such as <sym> is used to store professional glyph inside Text object, rather than using its raw unicode codepoint. Some features relies on this special internal encoding to work, including
It is possible but not advisable to achieve similar visual result by directly using raw unicode characters defined in Private Use Area (PUA, wikipedia). To do this, use "Symbols and special characters" window Unicode tab, or the Master palette window Symbol category, or copy from other programs or from the internet. Unicode characters entered this way are plain characters. Using raw PUA unicode characters bypasses font fallback mechanism and creates unnecessary risk of displaying the unsupported character symbol (tofu, wikipedia).
There are objects that are text visually but are not Musescore Text object technically because they cannot be edited using (typing on) a computer keyboard. These objects utilize font file data. Also, some non textual objects utilize font file data. All of these objects are referred to as non-Text objects in this chapter. To change their "font" (font assignment and font option) see "Font options of Professional glyphs inside Text objects; all non-Text objects" section below.
Plain characters can use fonts already built into Musescore program, and fonts installed on the operating system(OS).
It is advisable to only use fonts that are generally available across different machines. Scores containing text that uses fonts such as Times New Roman, Arial etc. should render correctly on all machines. Same goes for scores on www.musescore.com , but for related issues please contact official dot com support rather dot org volunteers.
There is only one level of font assignment for Non-Text objects and professional glyphs, which is score-wide or staff-wide setting.
Professional glyphs inside Text objects ignore the object's font assignment (the Inspector settings etc explained in "Plain characters" section, those are used by plain characters only).
Both the Non-Text objects and professional glyphs only use fonts already built into the Musescore program, they cannot directly use fonts installed on the OS. As Musescore program is shipped with a limited set of font due to licensing reason, it leads to limitation on their font options.
However, if a different version of a particular built-in font is installed on the OS, Musescore uses it instead. This allows using custom fonts indirectly on that particular machine. Musescore check the font's name only, when determining whether these verions belongs to the same font. See details of this method at https://johngrren007.blogspot.com/2018/04/musejazz-customised-font.html, and https://musescore.org/en/node/299448#comment-1171159. Score files (*.mscz) using this trick do not reliably render identically on other machines, because the modified font files are not embedded into the score file. To install a new font file onto an OS, refer to the instructions written for that OS, or try google.
Font option restriction explained in this chapter is valid for Musescore 3.6.2, but musescore is open-source and there are forks (wikipedia), see MuseScore, MuseScore 3, MuseScore 4 and How can I add third party SMuFL Fonts?.
Musescore create in-app user interface, and musical symbols and notation on score, with data content from font files. Some fonts are invented by Musescore project development team for Musescore and maintained by the team. Some fonts are from other companies, the team does not edit their content at all. Read the readme file https://github.com/musescore/MuseScore/blob/master/fonts/README.md . Musescore software development focuses on engraving creation, based on real world notation popularity and significance, it does not aim to create support for every symbols included in any one particular font.
Emmentaler has been renamed as "mscore" after musescore 3.6.2
Standard Music Font Layout (SMuFL) is a standard way of mapping the thousands of musical symbols required by conventional music notation, to the code-points of Private Use Area (PUA, wikipedia) in Unicode's Basic Multilingual Plane. It improves font format independence. The SMuFL standard itself is not managed by the Musescore project development team.
"Musical text" is a component of Musescore's implementation, the internal encoding schema does not conform to any standard, research the musescore 3.6.2 archived source code
Note: This page applies to MuseScore 3.1 and above only. Users of versions prior to 3.1 should go to Fretboard diagrams (prior to version 3.1).
MuseScore allows the use and creation of fretboard (or chord) diagrams. They usually appear above the staff on lead sheets and piano scores. They are commonly used for guitar chords, but MuseScore permits the creation of diagrams for any instrument.
Below is a simple example of Fretboard Diagrams use.
(Note: Fretboard Diagrams are an alternative to and quite different from Tablature, which is a specialized notation form that is preferred by some string instrument players.)
The Fretboard Diagram mechanism can be used in several different ways.
Standard chords. A set of 21 common chord diagrams for the guitar are found in the Fretboard Diagrams palette in the Advanced Workspace. These consist of a single example of a major, minor, and seventh chord for each diatonic scale tone (CDEFGAB). These 21 chords are adequate for many simple pop or folk music scores. See the overview of this palette below.
Modified chords. In many cases, the standard chords from the Fretboard Diagrams palette are used as a starting point for creating modified chord diagrams, via the Inspector. This technique enables chord extensions, alterations, different voicings, different positions, etc. to be applied to the 21 standard diagrams. There are literally thousands of guitar chords in general use, making a comprehensive palette or dictionary impractical. See How to use Fretboard Diagrams for custom/complex chords for examples.
"Freehand" chords. More advanced guitarists often prefer to start from a blank chord grid, and then draw the specific chord tones desired. See How to use Fretboard Diagrams for custom/complex chords for examples.
Note: Many aspects of music notation follow well-established engraving standards. Guitar chord diagrams are an exception. Usage has varied widely from year to year, from publisher to publisher, from teacher to teacher, and from arranger to arranger. Many inconsistent practices persist today, and distinct styles of chord notation are preferred in different musical genres and regions. For this reason, the MuseScore Fretboard Diagram interface supports diagrams of various types. Users are free to choose their preferences.
The Fretboard Diagrams palette in the Advanced Workspace provides 21 diagrams, comprising a single major, minor, and seventh chord for each diatonic scale tone (CDEFGAB). The name of each diagram appears when the cursor hovers over the entry.
Note: This range of chord diagrams, or indeed any selection of 21 chords, would not typically be sufficient for publication purposes. Arrangers must consider many other voicings, positions, and chord qualities. This palette is also an example of the diverse diagram formats in use, as discussed above. These 21 chords happen to incorporate open/mute string indicators (the X and O symbols above the diagrams). Although those symbols do often appear in published scores, their usage varies by context. For example, jazz arrangements generally omit mute string indicators, unless contextually important, and rarely use open strings.
Additional palettes that contain a broader range of standard chords are expected be available in the future. These would try to address the needs of specific musical genres and situations.
Modified Fretboard Diagrams are created by adding and then editing an existing diagram from the palette. By modifying standard chords, it is possible to create Fretboard Diagrams for any playable chord, and to reflect fingering on any Western fretted stringed instrument, regardless of tuning, number of strings, or number of frets. Most of the material below deals with the process of modifying diagrams and creating new ones.
Custom diagrams can be saved to a custom palette if desired for future use. Modified diagrams can of course be copied/pasted within a score in the usual ways.
To add a Fretboard Diagram to the score, use one of the following methods:
As the cursor hovers over the chosen diagram within the palette, its name will appear as a pop-up hint (see the example in the overview).
When adding a Fretboard Diagram to a score, a chord symbol is also automatically created. The chord symbol is normally placed above the diagram, and uses the chord name from the chord's palette cell. Automatic placement and formatting of a diagram's chord symbol is controlled by style settings (see style settings, below).
A Fretboard Diagram's generated chord symbol can be selected, moved, and modified like any other text element. It behaves generally like the normal chord symbols that are added using Add→Text→Chord Symbol or the shortcut Ctrl+K.
Note 1: A field on the Chord Symbols style page (Style submenu: select Format→Style…→Chord symbols) – rather than on the Fretboard Diagrams style page – controls the chord symbol's "Distance to Fretboard Diagram". This value interacts with the Element "Minimum distance" field, within the Inspector, to control automatic placement of the chord symbol relative to the diagram. Note also that the Fretboard Diagram's "top edge" includes the blank space where open/mute string indicators would appear, even if that area is empty. This may leave a larger gap than is desired. As usual, manual placement can be used to override the automatic settings.
Note 2: Automatic chord symbols generated for Fretboard Diagrams are not completely integrated with normal Chord Symbols that may be directly associated with notes on the staff. Specifically, focus does not flow from a Fretboard Diagram's chord symbol back to the sequence of other symbols on the page when using Space to move through the chord symbols. This minor issue will be addressed in a future update.)
The position of a Fretboard Diagram can be adjusted using the keyboard arrows in Edit mode; or with the X- and Y-offsets in the "Element" section at the top of the Inspector.
Visibility, Color and Stacking order can also be adjusted in the "Element" section: see the diagram under editing.
Certain default and global properties of Fretboard Diagrams (see diagram below) can be adjusted from the Style submenu: select Format→Style…→Fretboard Diagrams. Some of these properties are subject to override via the Inspector; but most affect all Fretboard Diagrams in the score.
Most Fretboard Diagram properties exposed by the Inspector offer "reset to style default" and "save as style default" buttons. These values do not typically appear on the style page, but are manipulated via the Inspector.
When a Fretboard Diagram is selected, it can be edited in the Inspector as follows:
The Inspector displays three sections related to the Fretboard Diagram:
Below is an example of the Inspector with a Fretboard Diagram selected.
(See Inspector properties above in the editing example.)
(See Inspector properties above in the editing example.)
Some arrangers and educators use a more advanced form of Fretboard Diagram that a) incorporates multiple types of "dot", and that b) allows multiple dots per string.
This technique is particularly associated with the many books and arrangements published by Ted Greene and his successors. (Note: No other notation software currently supports this diagram style.)
Multi-dot notation style. With this approach, the round dots are played first. Then, on successive beats, the notes represented by the other dots are then played in order. This allows a single diagram to represent several beats of music. (The usual sequence is: dot→X→square→delta. Usage varies however.) Here are two examples of multi-dot diagrams.
Optional-note notation style. Another use of multiple dots per string allows other symbols to show optional notes, rather than delayed notes. Typically, a related chord voicing is shown, such as an optional extension or an optional rootless chord version. Here is an example of an optional extension.
MuseScore Fretboard Diagrams allow the creation of these and other types of multi-symbol diagrams. A chord is first created and edited using the basic steps described above. Then, the multiple dot buttons above the diagram are used to add secondary notes.
(Note: Experienced users of Ted Greene style diagrams will find that several secondary features from Ted's diagrams are not yet supported in MuseScore. These include: a. Displaying the fret number on a higher fret than the first visible fret. b. Allowing the note symbols to include digits, not just the four dot styles currently supported. c. Allowing the creation of annotation on and between diagrams, such as circling a particular note, or drawing lines linking notes in adjacent diagrams. However, MuseScore does provide many tools for drawing and annotation that can serve in place of these techniques.)
(Note: Because multi-note symbols are not standardized, even within the Ted Greene community, users must be careful to indicate how they are being used within a given score.)
Note: This page applies to versions of MuseScore prior to 3.1 only. Users of MuseScore 3.1 and above should go to Fretboard diagrams.
A range of fretboard (or chord) diagrams for the guitar are provided in the Fretboard Diagrams palette in the Advanced Workspace.
You can create a chord diagram for any fretted, stringed instrument by editing an existing one. It can be saved to a custom palette for future use if required.
To add a fretboard diagram to the score, use one of the following methods:
As the cursor hovers over the chosen diagram within the palette, its name will appear as a pop-up hint.
When a fretboard diagram is selected, it can be edited in the Inspector as follows:
The position of a Fretboard Diagram can be adjusted using the keyboard arrows in Edit mode; or with the X- and Y-offsets in the "Element" section at the top of the Inspector.
Visibility, Color and Stacking order can also be adjusted from the "Element" section.
Certain default and global properties of Fretboard Diagrams (e.g. barre thickness, vertical position, scale, fret-number font-size and position) can be adjusted from the Style submenu: select Format→Style…→Fretboard Diagrams. Some of these properties are subject to override via the Inspector; but most affect all Fretboard Diagrams in the score.
This feature is still experimental and only visible if MuseScore is started using the '-e' option, see Command line options
For the Open-Goldberg project, the ability to create different versions of the score was needed. One version is the "Urtext", a score which is close to the original version of Bach. A second version could be a Czerny variation, which in addition to the Urtext, contains fingerings.
The layer feature allows creating different versions out of one score file. If you want to add fingerings, you have to create a layer and tag the fingering elements with the layer name.
First, create layers:
Second, create a score variant:
Add the visible layer to the score variant, then select all fingerings and tag them with the name of the score variant:
Default layer:
Czerny layer:
MuseScore can import MIDI files (.mid/.midi/.kar) and convert them into music notation.
The MIDI Import Panel appears at the bottom of the screen: you can expand this by dragging the interface with the document window upwards. The panel shows all the tracks in the file (only those with note events are shown) and allows you to adjust parameters affecting the conversion process. If there are multiple tracks, then one more track is added at the top of the list to select all tracks at once.
To accept the default conversion: Simply press the "X" symbol on the top-left of the Import Panel to close it. The panel can be re-opened at any time during the session by pressing "Show MIDI import panel" at the bottom of the document window.
To reimport the file: Adjust the desired parameters in the Import Panel (see below) and press Apply. If you have made changes to the Import Panel but wish to UNDO them, press Cancel. To close the Import Panel, press the "X" symbol at the top-left of the panel.
If you reimport the file after making changes to the temporary generated result score, MuseScore will prompt you what should happen with that modified score: Save it somewhere, Discard it or Cancel. The Save option will save the modified score as a Musescore file in your \bin directory without modifying the original MIDI file. It will then reimport the original MIDI file and apply the import panel settings. The import panel settings are NOT applied to the saved file. The Discard option will UNDO your changes to the Musecore file, then reimport the original MIDI file and apply the new settings. The Cancel option will reimport the original MIDI file in the first tab and apply any import panel setting then create a new tab with your modified score but without applying any import panel settings. The second tab is the same as hitting SAVE, then opening the saved file. Therefore, you cannot apply import panel settings to a user modified score. You must first apply the import panel settings, make any changes to the score, then save the score using the standard Save command.
Mouse wheel scrolling (MIDI Import Panel): Vertical scrolling is the default. For horizontal scrolling, press Shift or Ctrl while using the wheel.
Quantize MIDI notes by some regular grid. The grid MAX resolution can be set via the drop-down menu:
However, the actual quantization grid size is adaptive and reduces when the note length is small, so for each note the quantization value is different. But there is an upper limit for the quantization value, and that value can be set by the user as "max. quantization".
For example, if some note is long - say, half note, and the max. quantization is set to 8th, then the note will be quantized with the 8th-note grid, not the half- or quarter-note grid as it supposed to be by the algorithm.
Such quantization scheme allows to quantize all notes in the score (with different lengths!) adequately.
importmidi_clef.cpp
). This option is available for non-drum tracks only.The Master Palette is a repository of symbols and text used to:
Items are categorized based on musical meaning. Hovering the mouse over an item shows a tool tip (a short definition in black on yellow background).
Functional and non-functional items : the Master Palette contains two distinctly different types of notation items:
See Notation types for their difference in usage.
Sometimes there are two approaches to adding a symbol or text, consider your need to adjust its size before adding, see Notation types: Resizing.
To open the Master Palette window, use either of the following options:
Open the Symbols category directly from the score by using the shortcut "Show symbol palette", or press Z.
See Palettes : Customize palettes.
You cannot add items to a toolbar from the Master palette, see Viewing and navigation: Toolbars instead.
See Time Signatures and Key Signatures.
Either:
IMPORTANT: Make sure you understand and really need the Non-functional symbol
Use the font drop down list on the bottom right of the box to specify Emmentaler-, Gonville- or Bravura-specific symbols.
Search for a particular symbol by entering a keyword in the search box.
Elements from the Symbols section can be connected to each other on the score page, so that they can be moved as one unit:
MuseScore allows you to choose from any of several note input modes. Step-time (see below) is the default, but others can be accessed by clicking the small dropdown arrow next to the note entry button on the note input toolbar.
This is the default method of note input and involves entering notes one at a time: first by selecting a note duration using the mouse or computer keyboard, then choosing a pitch using the mouse, computer keyboard, MIDI keyboard or virtual piano keyboard.
For details see Basic note entry.
Re-pitch mode allows you to correct the pitches of a sequence of notes while leaving their durations unchanged (not to be confused with Accidental: Respell pitches).
You can also use the Re-pitch function to create a new passage from an existing one of the same sequence of durations—by copying and pasting the latter, then applying Re-pitch.
Rhythm mode allows you to enter durations with a single keypress. Combining Rhythm and Re-pitch modes makes for a very efficient method of note entry.
The Real-time modes basically allow you to perform the piece on a MIDI keyboard (or MuseScore's virtual piano keyboard) and have the notation added for you. However, you should be aware of the following limitations which currently apply:
However, these restrictions mean that MuseScore has very little guessing to do when working out how your input should be notated, which helps to keep the Real-time modes accurate.
In the automatic version of Real-time input, you play at a fixed tempo indicated by a metronome click. You can adjust the tempo by changing the delay between clicks from the menu: Edit → Preferences... → Note Input (Mac: MuseScore → Preferences... → Note Input).
The score stops advancing as soon as you release the key. If you want the score to continue advancing (e.g. to allow you to enter rests) then you can use the Real-time Advance shortcut to start the metronome.
In the manual version of Real-time input, you have to indicate your input tempo by tapping on a key or pedal, but you can play at any speed you like and it doesn't have to be constant. The default key for setting the tempo (called "Real-time Advance") is Enter on the numeric keypad (Mac: Fn+Return), but it is highly recommended that you change this to a MIDI key or MIDI pedal (see below).
The Real-time Advance shortcut is used to tap beats in manual Real-time mode, or to start the metronome clicks in automatic Real-time mode. It is called "Real-time Advance" because it causes the input position to move forward, or "advance", through the score.
The default key for Real-time Advance is Enter on the numeric keypad (Mac: Fn+Return), but it is highly recommended that you assign this to a MIDI key or MIDI pedal via MuseScore's MIDI remote control. The MIDI remote control is available from the menu: Edit → Preferences... → Note Input (Mac: MuseScore → Preferences... → Note Input).
Alternatively, if you have a USB footswitch or computer pedal which can simulate keyboard keys, you could set it to simulate Enter on the numeric keypad.
When the notes are entered they will be placed just before the selected starting element, which will be highlighted with a square blue marker. The start element and any subsequent notes or rests within the same measure will be shifted forward. You can move the insertion point forward and backward using the arrow keys → or ←, and the new insertion point will then be highlighted.
Insert Input mode (called Timewise in versions prior to 3.0.2) allows you to insert and delete notes and rests within measures, automatically shifting subsequent music forwards or backwards. Measure duration is automatically updated as you go.
Alternatively, if you have only one or two notes to insert, you may prefer to use a shortcut:
If, at any time, the total duration of the notes and rests within the measure does not match the time signature, a small + or - sign will be shown above the measure.
See also: Remove selected range (Tools).
To leave Note Input mode, click on the Note Input tool button, press N, or press Esc. This puts you in Normal mode, in which you can change durations and delete notes or rests as follows:
Not to be confused with MuseScore Voices feature, see also Glossary: Part.
To add, duplicate, edit or remove instruments, see Change instrument setup instead.
Parts is a MuseScore feature to aid extracting staffs to generate different versions of the same score.
A Part is an independent viewing profile that contains layout and formatting style configuration, Mixer settings and chord playback settings only. Most of the musical score data (except for certain items like image attached to first staff) is shared among Parts. Modification such as changing a note when viewing one Part will reflect on the same places if the item exists on other Parts.
Tempo markings are always shown on all Parts. Text and Line object's visibility depends on its object type, for example a System text added on any one staff is visible on all Parts, even if it is not included in that Part.
To manage Parts, open the Parts window by selecting File → Parts…, Parts are shown in Select Part pane.
New score file created contains no Parts by default. Full Score is shown, there are no sub-tabs under the score file tab:
score adapted from https://musescore.com/user/9928481/scores/5706424
When a score contains at least one Part, the Full Score and Part(s) are shown as tabs under the score file tab, click on any one tab to view it. Either the Full Score or any one of the Parts can be viewed at a given time:
Use Include or exclude Voices in a Part for the last two.
To add new instruments, see Change instrument setup instead.
A Part can be manually named, and include instrument(s) or their Voice(s).
To batch create separate Parts for each instrument:
Parts are only editable during creation - A bug in Musescore 3.6.2 prevents user from editing existing Parts. You may need to delete it and edit it during recreation.
Change Part name in Part title:, it is displayed at the tab heading. It is also used as filename suffix when exporting. You may want to rename Parts to prevent confusion if you have already changed the long or short name to something other than instrument name.
To add an instrument to an existing Part:
To remove instruments from an existing Part:
This feature is not working in Musescore 3.6.2 due to a bug, use Include or exclude Voices instead.
This feature only works if all notes need to be strictly written in separate Musescore Voice respectively. To extract, for example, "Flute 1 & 2 in the same staff" into two Parts, notes need to be strictly written in Musescore Voice 1 and Voice 2 respectively, even in passages where they share content, you might need to create duplicate Voice 1 unison and assign it to Voice 2. Flute 1 and Flute 2 notes should not be merged into one chord in one Voice at all.
piano left hand separation like shown above does not work
assign piano left hand notes to Voice 2 as shown above, working result is shown below
The same result can also be achieved without fiddling with note Voices assignment, because piano left hand is on the Bass staff.
When you delete Parts, most of the musical score data are intact, because Part contains layout and formatting style configuration and its playback options only
Instruments not included in the currently opened Part does not create playback by default, to change this behavior toggle Mixer Play Part Only option. This option is not modifiable when the "Full Score" is currently opened, as shown below. It is only modifiable when a "Part" is currently opened, for example, click either "Send to Chris" or "Print one for Jimmy" to open that Part.
To export Part(s):
Score file name will be used as prefix for Parts, generating files with the names "<Score file name>" + "-" + "<Part name>.<extension>". When exporting as PDF, an additional file named "<Score file name>" + "-Score_And_Parts.pdf" is generated.
To print a Part:
Parts are embedded into a score file, and saved along with the score file. No other action is required.
To save a Part as an separate file:
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Part_Creation5_en.png | 10.48 KB |
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Part_Creation1_en.png | 10.01 KB |
Parts-create-all_en.png | 18.89 KB |
Parts-create-voices_en.png | 19.64 KB |
Parts_create_All_Parts_en.png | 48.29 KB |
Parts_create_Single_Part_en.png | 51.83 KB |
Not to be confused with VST and VSTi. VST support is added in Musescore 4, Musescore 3 does not support VST.
Visit Developers' Handbook Plugins for 3.x Chapter for step by step guide to write a new plugin or edit a current one.
A MuseScore plugin is a small piece of software that adds extra functionality to the program. A plugin need to be enabled first, and then executed by using the Plugins menu. Some plugins come pre-installed, they are disabled by default. There are also plugins created and shared by other musicians, anyone can download and use them.
%HOMEPATH%\Documents\MuseScore3\Plugins
~/Documents/MuseScore3/Plugins
~/Documents/MuseScore3/Plugins
Note: (1) The folder name "Plugins" is translated according to Musescore's language setting, see Preferences:General chapter. (2) Some plugins require installing other components such as a specialized Font file.
Tick a plugin to enable it.
Select Plugins → [The plugin name]
To assign a keyboard shortcut to a plugin, use the Plugin Manager.
One way to create and edit a plugin is using Musescore's Plugin Creator window, but see the developers' handbook Plugin documentation chapter. That chapter contains coding tutorials and code boilerplates.
Some plugins come pre-installed with MuseScore. They are not enabled by default, see "Enabling and disabling plugins" section. They are available at MuseScore repository https://github.com/fp22june/MuseScoreTag362/tree/master/share/plugins.
Pre-installed plugins are in the folder:
%ProgramFiles%\MuseScore 3\Plugins
(or %ProgramFiles(x86)%\MuseScore 3\Plugins
for the 32-bit versions) and in %LOCALAPPDATA%\MuseScore\MuseScore 3\plugins
on Windows 7 and later/Applications/MuseScore 3.app/Contents/Resources/plugins
(to reveal files in the app bundle, right-click on MuseScore 3.app
and choose "Show package contents"), and in ~/Library/Application Support/MuseScore/MuseScore 3/plugins
./usr/share/mscore-3.x/plugins
and in ~/.local/share/data/MuseScore/MuseScore3/plugins
. These folders should not be modified. The directory names might be different depending on language setting of the operating system.You can customize many of MuseScore's default behaviors via the menu: Edit→Preferences... (Mac: MuseScore→Preferences...).
The Preferences dialog has multiple tabs:
Reset All Preferences to Default will reset all preferences to the ones MuseScore had when you installed it. Ok will save the settings and close the dialog. Cancel will close the dialog without applying changes. Apply will make changes take effect without closing the dialog.
Here you can define:
Use Canvas to set your preferred color and wallpaper for the score background and paper. The default "Background" is dark blue (RGB 20, 36, 51; Alpha 255) and the default "Paper," white.
On this tab there are note input and MIDI remote control preferences. Here the following can be set:
Midi Remote Control allows you to use certain keys on your MIDI keyboard to enter notes and rests and to select note durations, without involving the computer mouse or (computer) keyboard. The default setting is off.
To assign a command to a MIDI key:
Once you have defined your key settings you can use the MIDI keyboard to control note input operations. You can verify your key settings by observing the MuseScore Note Input toolbar while pressing the MIDI keys.
To temporarily deactivate Midi Remote Control: uncheck "Midi Remote Control": all MIDI input key action buttons are now greyed out. Note: Your key assignments are always saved between MuseScore sessions and are not affected by deactivation.
Notes: (1) The "Clear" option turns off all the green buttons for the current MuseScore session but all the user-recorded MIDI key settings are retained and will be reloaded on the next session. (2) A MIDI key setting that is activated cannot afterwards be turned off, and the green button will always remain lit: however it can be overwritten with a different MIDI key by using the red button again. (3) If the same MIDI key is accidentally assigned to more than one option, then all the associated green buttons remain lit although only one will work. To fix, see "(2)".
Score preferences include:
A known bug of musescore 3.6.2: After changing settings inside this box, you must press Restart Audio and MIDI Devices to apply the change, using Apply or OKbutton alone will not apply the change.
API and Device:
MIDI Input, MIDI Output and MIDI Output Latency :
Check these options as required if using the JACK Audio Connection Kit.
In case of lost communication between your audio device or your MIDI keyboard and MuseScore (no sound output or MIDI action), click on Restart Audio and MIDI Devices to restore them.
These settings determine how files from other sources are imported:
These settings determine how various files are exported from MuseScore:
This tab lists all the commands in MuseScore and any keyboard shortcuts associated with them. Shortcuts listed in preferences also appear next to their associated commands in the menus.
Note: Some shortcuts, including default ones, may not work with some keyboards.
To search for a particular command: Enter its action name in the "Search" box near the bottom of the window.
To create a new shortcut for a command:
To reset a shortcut to its system default: Select a command in the list and press Reset Shortcut to Default.
To save the shortcuts list: Press Save and save to a file name of your choice.
To load a saved shortcut list: Press Load etc.
To clear all shortcuts for an entry: Select the entry and press Clear.
To print out the shortcuts list (incl. export to pdf): Press Print etc.
This sets whether MuseScore will check for updates and extensions at startup.
Updates may be checked manually in Help→Check for updates.
Allows you to control specific settings for "application, "export", "i/o" and "user interface", as well as color settings.
If MuseScore or your computer should crash, or if power is lost, a pop-up message upon restarting MuseScore will ask if you wish to restore the previous session:
Click Yes, to initiate attempted recovery of files from the interrupted session. Or click No to ignore message.
When MuseScore recovers files after a crash, it renames them with the full path name added in front of the original file name. This very long name will appear in the tab(s) above the active score window.
To ensure that the file is saved in its original location. You should immediately save the restored file using the "Save As..." option: this will open a window to allow you to navigate to the correct folder and directory. If you use the "Save" command instead, the file will be saved in its current location which is unlikely to be the original one.
In the event that "Save" is used instead of "Save As..." with a recovered file, you will have to find the files in your computer. The actual location of those files will vary, depending on your operating system, and in which directory MuseScore is installed.
For Windows 7, with a default installation of MuseScore to the program files directory, recovered files are auto-saved to C:\Program Files\MuseScore 3\bin
(actually %ProgramFiles%\MuseScore 3\bin
).
For Windows 10, look in C:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\MuseScore 3\bin
(actually %LOCALAPPDATA%\VirtualStore\%ProgramFiles:~3%\MuseScore 3\bin
).
or in C:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Local\MuseScore\MuseScore3\
(actually %LOCALAPPDATA%\MuseScore\MuseScore3\
).
You may need to run a system-wide search in order to find files saved directly after a session recovery. Use keywords from the original file name as well as wildcards, and specify the date modified.
How to recover a backup copy of a score (MuseScore HowTo)
The Score Comparison Tool allows you to compare two versions of a score to find the differences between them.
To open the Score Comparison Tool:
From the menu, select View→Score Comparison Tool.
The dialog opens below the document window and consists of three sections (left to right):
The first step is to select the score. Use the combo box next to "Score 1" to choose between the currently open scores, or click on the Browse button to open the File Explorer and select a score from disk. Secondly, use the next combo box on the right to choose whether the first score should be the current version, or the last saved version. Score 2 is set to the same score you selected for Score 1, but you may choose another of the open scores.
When you have selected the scores and versions press Compare to do the comparison.
"Intelligent comparison" is the default option in Diff mode: this displays the differences between the scores in a human-readable format (e.g. "Measure 1: Note: property pitch changed from B4 to C5"). Change the Diff Mode selection to "Raw" if you prefer to see the results displayed in XML code.
When you press Compare a list of differences will be displayed to the right, and the score view will automatically change to Documents Stacked. In the Comparison section, double-click on a difference from the list and both score views will automatically pan to show you the changed element, which will also be highlighted.
To exit the Score Comparison tool, turn off the two options "Score Comparison Tool" and "Documents Stacked" in the View menu.
Below you will see two small scores with a few differences between them.
Last saved:
Current:
The result of the comparison will look like this:
The Score Properties dialog contains document meta tags such as "workTitle," "Composer," "Copyright" etc. To view the dialog:
Several meta tags are generated automatically when you create a score using the New Score Wizard, and others may be added later. Meta tags can also be incorporated into a header or footer if required—see below.
Every score displays the following fields in Score Properties:
If you need to display multiline text in a header or footer (as a result of these meta tags), you must first enter the multiline text into a Text Editor (e.g. Notepad for Windows, TextEdit for Mac, Nano for Linux). Then you can copy and paste that multiline text into the relevant meta tag field. For example a multiline copyright:
Words: © 2000 The Archbishops' Council. Used with permission.
Music: © 2006, 2021 The Royal School of Church Music. All Rights Reserved.
It is customary, when using the New Score Wizard, to create a work with the movementTitle as title (even though it ends up in workTitle then) and, directly after creating the score, amending this information in the Score Properties dialogue.
Every part additionally has the following meta tag, generated and filled on part creation:
This meta tag is not present in the main score and thus is not available for use in its header/footer or in an added part name box in the top vertical frame, unless manually added as a new tag to its score properties.
To show the content of one or more meta tags in a header or footer for your score/part:
The Staff / Part Properties dialog allows you to make change display properties of one staff and the properties of the of the instrument it belongs to. To open:
Clicking on Navigation arrows ↑ and ↓ buttons at the bottom left will cancel any unsaved changes and switch to edit the previous or next staff.
There are four different types of staff:
1a. Standard staff I. A pitched staff used for most instruments except fretted, plucked-string ones.
1b. Standard staff II. A pitched staff containing a fretted, plucked-string instrument, with options to set the number of instrument strings and tuning.
2. Tablature staff. A staff containing a fretted, plucked-string instrument, which displays music as a series of fret-marks on strings. Also contains options to set the number of instrument strings and tuning.
3. Percussion staff. A pitched staff for percussion instruments.
Four instruments shown above are examples of the four staff types respectively. Download this testing score file.
For each type, there are pre-defined Template to choose from in the Advanced Style Properties (Edit Staff Type) window
Replacing an instrument also changes staff types but may create unreasonable result and wrong playback. For example, replacing Piano (a standard staff, type 1a) with Drumset (percussion staff, type 3).
Inside "Staff properties" box on upper part:
First column:
Second column:
Third column:
Inside "Part properties" box on lower part:
In addition to those listed above, staves of fretted, plucked-string instruments (Type 1b and type 2) have a few extra options at the bottom part of the window,
Clicking the Advanced Style Properties... button opens the Edit Staff Type window, the properties available vary depending on staff type.
First row: Lines, Line Distance: duplicated UI for the exact same property as above
Second row: Show clef, Show time signature, Show barlines: duplicated UI for the exact same property as above
At the bottom of the window:
Third row:
The preview window at the bottom displays a short score in tablature format with all the current parameters applied.
Properties includes:
Under Note Values tab: properties define the appearance of the symbols indicating note values
Not to be confused with Mid-staff instrument change.
This replaces the instrument that this staff belongs to, and change all of its staffs everywhere on a score. It changes playback, staff name, and staff transposition etc. The Staff Type change may be unreasonable and create wrong playback.
You can change the appearance of a staff mid-score by adding a Staff type change element to a measure, and adjusting its properties in the Inspector.
When you alter a Staff type change property in the Inspector, the new value takes precedence over the value shown in the global Staff properties dialog. Only those property values in "Staff Properties" that cannot be changed in the "Staff type change" dialog will be valid throughout the score.
The properties that can be altered in the Staff type change dialog in the Inspector are:
Offset
How far the changed staff shall be moved up or down: measured in spaces (abbr.: sp) .
Small
Tick the box to create a reduced-size staff.
Scale
Changes the size of the staff and all associated elements, as a percentage.
Lines
The number of lines making up the staff.
Line distance
The distance between two staff lines, measured in spaces (abbr.: sp).
Step offset
How many steps up or down the notes in the staff are offset.
Show barlines
Whether the staff barlines will be shown.
Show ledger lines
Whether ledger lines will be shown for notes above/below the staff lines.
Slash style
Whether the notes shall be shown in standard or slash style.
Notehead scheme
Allows selection of how noteheads are displayed.
Generate clefs
Whether the staff clef will be shown.
Generate time signatures
Whether the staff time signature(s) will be shown or not.
Generate key signatures
Whether the staff key signatures will be shown or not.
To illustrate the use of Staff type change, the staff shown below was created using the following steps:
Change "Lines" to 7,
Afterwards the global Staff Properties are changed using Staff properties:
1 Set "Lines" to 2.
2. Change "Staff Line Color".
As can be seen, the change in "Lines" is only effective up to the first staff type change, whereas the change to "Staff Line Color" is effective throughout the score.
Download this testing score file ms3_noteheadschemes.mscz
Notehead schemes are used by musicians to designate notehead shape meaning, see the main chapter Noteheads. In Musescore 3, scheme option for all notes on a staff is named "Notehead Scheme", scheme option for individual note is named "Head scheme". Specific Notehead shape can also be assigned to individual note directly, when a note has specific notehead shape assigned, it does not use pitch information to determine notehead shape.
Musescore supports nine schemes. Five of them are directly fully supported, notes written create correct playback. Four "shape note notations" are supported in terms of notehead engraving, users need to take advantage of 'Transposing instruments' feature to create desired playback, see Noteheads. To create custom "shape note notations" using a scheme other than the four, see Noteheads: adding pitch info.
The nine supported by Musescore are:
4 solfege related notations:
4 shape note notations, need further config if you wish to create desired playback:
This chapter discusses the appearance of notehead in Musescore.
One aspect of music notation systems is notehead scheme. A scheme is a set of rules used to decide notehead shape's meaning, some of them are supported in Musescore. Supported schemes relate notehead meaning to a note's:
The most widely used scheme is very likely the only one known to many musicians. It is referred to as "Normal" in Musescore and is the default settings for new staff. Details of the nine schemes available in Musescore are covered in Notehead schemes.
Understanding relative pitch notations (shape note solfege, shape note notation) can enhance the reader's comprehension of this chapter. Most of the time, a notehead shape conveys one specific meaning, and that meaning is only associated with one notehead shape. Shape note solfege is like a variant of movable-do solfege that belongs to the exceptions. For example, in one type of "shape note notation", a triangle must be used to notate a relatively pitched "C4", but triangles are also read as relatively pitched "C"s or "F"s only, and triangles must sing "Fa" or a syllable agree upon by singers on-site. The loosely related shape note solfege notates interval perception much better than the "Normal" setting.
Shown above diamond notehead can be used for harmonic notes in guitar, violin etc; and slash notehead for guitar strums etc.
Final display of notehead shape in Musescore is determined by three factors: the notehead type factor, the pitch factor, and the duration factor (or note-value, rhythm).
Note pitch may affect affect notehead shape, depending on the scheme, but it only happens on notes that do not use an overriding Head group property. See "Notehead type factor" section.
The duration factor is determined by note's duration, to edit duration see Entering notes and rests and Editing notes and rests chapters. It also can be visually overridden for individual note, while keeping the real value and playback intact.
Options available for notehead type factor depends on staff type:
Notehead scheme determines the notehead shape for every note on a staff, unless overridden by individual note's Head group property. When Notehead scheme is not overridden, notes' pitch may affect notehead shape, depending on the scheme. "Normal" Notehead scheme does not use pitch to determine notehead shape. When a note uses an overriding Head group property, a note's pitch does not affect notehead shape at all.
Notehead type factor
Duration factor
There are six methods to change "pitch".
Most of the time, a note's pitch only affects its staff space / vertical position, to change it:
Tablature, percussion notation, and some notehead scheme (see Overview) use notehead shape to convey pitch information:
To move notehead(s) horizontally to the other side of stem, use one of the following:
(Note: Contrast this command with X which moves the stem and the beam horizontally and vertically to other side of the notehead)
Other properties for notehead, see Inspector: Note
There are 6 font options for notehead set in Format→Style→Score. Notehead does not use style profiles (Layout and formatting).
Noteheads palette are displayed with Bravura font.
When two notes in different voices, but of the same written pitch, fall on the same beat, one of two things may happen:
MuseScore uses the following rules:
Note: If two unison notes occur in the same voice they are always offset.
To turn offset noteheads in opposite voices into shared noteheads :
In a small minority of cases (where the smaller value note is dotted) this workaround is not applicable, so use the following alternative:
By contrast, in the next example, white notes cannot share noteheads with black notes, so are offset to the right:
To create a shared notehead, change the black eighth note's head type to match that of the white note or, pre-3.5, make it invisible (as explained above):
In certain cases, a shared notehead, when pasted to a tablature staff, may result in two separate fret marks on adjacent strings. To correct this, make any extraneous tablature notes invisible by selecting them and using the keyboard shortcut V (or by unchecking the "visible" option in the Inspector).
The timeline was developed as part of the Google Summer of Code 2017, and is included for the first time in MuseScore 3.0.
The timeline is a navigation tool that displays an abstraction of the score to the order of measure numbers and instrument names. There are four parts to the timeline:
This is found in the top left corner of the timeline. These are the names of the meta rows.
This is found in the bottom left corner of the timeline. These are the names of the rows in the main grid.
This is found in the top right corner of the timeline. These hold the meta values of the score.
This is found in the bottom right corner of the timeline. This holds multiple 'cells' (a specific measure and staff in the score represented as a square)
Meta are elements found on the score that are not notes, but are still important to the score (key signature, time signature, tempo, rehearsal marks, bar lines, and jumps and markers).
To select a measure in the timeline, press the mouse button on the cell. A blue box will appear around the selected cell and the respective measure in the score will be selected. The score view will place the selected measure in view.
Holding Shift and holding the left mouse button and dragging the mouse over the main grid will create a selection box. Upon releasing the mouse button, all the cells underneath the selection box will be selected, as well as all the measures in the score.
If a cell is already selected, holding Shift and selecting another cell in the timeline will stretch the selection to that new cell, similar to how the score does
If no cells are currently selected, holding Ctrl and selecting a cell will select the entire measure
To clear selection, holding Ctrl and clicking anywhere on the grid or the meta rows will clear any current selection.
Selecting the meta values on the timeline will attempt to select the respective meta values in the score.
Scrolling the mouse wheel up or down will move the grid and instrument labels down or up respectively. The meta labels and rows do not move.
Holding Shift and scrolling the mouse wheel up or down will move the grid and meta rows left or right respectively. The meta labels and instrument labels do not move.
Holding Alt and scrolling the mouse wheel up or down will move the grid and meta rows left or right respectively, faster than Shift scrolling. The meta labels and instrument labels do not move.
To drag the contents of the timeline, hold the left mouse button and move it around.
All meta labels besides the measures meta may be rearranged in any way. By moving the mouse cursor onto one of the meta labels, small up and down arrows will appear. Click the left mouse button on the up arrow to swap the meta label with the one above it. Click the left mouse button on the down arrow to swap the meta label with the one below it.
In order to hide all the meta labels while keeping all the meta information on the timeline, there is an arrow that appears on the measures meta when the mouse is over it. Click the left mouse button on the large up arrow to collapse all the currently visible meta rows into one row, where the meta values are staggered in that row. Click the left mouse button on the large down arrow to expand the meta rows again.
All instruments--hidden or not--will be displayed on the timeline. To start this interaction, the mouse cursor is moved over an instrument label. A small eye will appear on the right side of the label that is open if the instrument is visible on the score, and closed if the instrument is hidden. Click the left mouse button on the eye to toggle between the two options.
To zoom in or out of the score, hold Ctrl and scroll the mouse wheel up or down respectively (Mac: Cmd + scroll).
To bring up a context menu, right-click on the timeline. There are three context menus found in these locations: meta labels, instrument labels, and meta rows.
Upon clicking the right mouse button on the meta labels, a context menu appears that displays all possible meta labels as well as two options: "Hide all" and "Show all." Next to each meta label in the menu, there is a check box that shows if the meta label is currently being shown on the timeline. To show or hide one of the meta labels, select the box of the meta label in the context menu. Selecting "Hide all" will hide all meta labels except for the measures meta. Selecting "Show all" will display all meta labels.
Clicking the right mouse button on the meta rows will display the same context menu as the meta labels.
Clicking the right mouse button on the instrument labels will display a context menu with the option to "Edit Instruments." Selecting this will bring you to the same dialog as Edit > Instruments... or pressing I for the shortcut.
A number of useful commands can be found in the Tools menu.
This opens the Transpose dialog with various options for transposing passages of music.
The explode command allows you to select a passage of music in a single staff and split (explode) the chords into their constituent notes or voices as follows:
To explode a section of the score:
Notes: (1) If the selection is all in voice 1, MuseScore will discard the lowest note(s) of any chord that contains more notes than the number of staves in the selection. (2) If the selection is all in voice 1, and If a given chord has fewer notes than the number of destination staves, then notes will be duplicated as needed so that every staff receives a note. (3) Any existing music in the destination staves is overwritten. (4) If you select a partial measure, the explode command will automatically expand it to a full measure.
The Implode command works in the opposite way to "explode":
All selected notes in the staff are now displayed in voice 1.
This allows you to swap the voices of a selected measure-range of notes. See Exchange voices.
Join or split measures. See Measure operations: Split and join.
This command is used to completely remove an element, or range of elements from the score.
To remove measures (including partial measures):
Note: If the selected range includes only part of a measure, the result will include a measure of smaller duration than the indicated Time Signature. This is indicated by a small - (minus) sign just above the system.
To join measures:
The following table is a comparative summary of the Delete and Remove selected Range commands when applied to single elements:
Selected Element | Apply Delete | Apply Remove selected range | |
---|---|---|---|
Note | Replaces with rest | Removes score section | |
Rest (voice 1) | No effect | Removes score section | |
Rest (voices 2-4) | Deletes rest | Removes score section | |
Barline | No effect | Deletes barline and joins measures | |
Measure | Replaces contents with rest | Removes measure |
Note: To insert notes, see Insert.
This command fills the selection with slashes, one per beat:
If a measure is empty the slashes are added to voice 1, full-sized and centered on the middle line of the staff:
Notes: (1) If there are already notes in a measure in the selection, the command will put the slashes into the first available empty voice. (2) Voice 2 slashes are full-sized and centered on the middle line of the staff; voices 3 slashes appear small and above the staff; voice 4 slashes are small and below the staff. (3) If a measure contains notes in all 4 voices, voice 1 will be overwritten. (4) All slashes are set to not transpose or playback.
This command toggles selected notes between normal notes and rhythmic slash notation:
The selected noteheads are changed to slash noteheads which do not transpose or playback.
Slash-notehead notes in voices one or two are fixed to the middle staff line; those in voices three or four are small ("accent" notation) and fixed above or below the staff:
In percussion staves, notes in voices 3 and 4 are not converted to small slashes but to small notes above or below the staff.
Corrects accidentals to fit in with the current key signature. See Accidentals: Respell pitches.
This option corrects note ties, durations and beaming so that they are grouped according to standard music notation practice. For example:
Before:
After:
Any notes that are tied and are the same length as a dotted note will be changed to the dotted note with two limitations. (i) Only the last note of a group of tied notes will have a single dot. Notes with more than one dot are not produced using this option. (ii) Dotted notes will not span from one group of beamed notes to another unless their duration is the same as all of the beam groups it covers. Any notes with more than one dot will be regrouped according to the above rules.
To apply:
Note: This is an experimental feature and there are known bugs. Articulations and ornaments are deleted and some pitches respelled. Ties across barlines may be lost on UNDO.
The Resequence Rehearsal Marks command allows you to re-order the numbering/lettering of rehearsal marks if, for any reason, they have got out of sequence. For details see Automatically resequence rehearsal marks.
This command creates a copy of the score (in a new tab), eliminates the repeat barlines and notates the repeat sections in full instead.
This command copies all the lyrics of the score to the clipboard:
Take a snapshot of a selected part of the document window. PNG, PDF and SVG formats are supported. See Image capture.
This automatically removes any blank measures at the end of the score.
To setup a transposing instrument, visit Staff / Part properties instead.
The default tuning is equal temperament (12-EDO/12-TET), and the default concert pitch setting is A4 = 440Hz. Concert pitch is configurable in synthesizer.
MuseScore supports tuning systems such as Just intonation, Pythagorean tuning, and Scordatura etc. indirectly, see create desired playback below.
Default notation uses 7 accidentals: ♭ (flat), ♮ (natural), ♯ (sharp), 𝄪 (double sharp), 𝄫 (double flat), ♯𝄪 (triple sharp), ♭𝄫 (triple flat), see source code.
You can add these 7 accidentals using any of the following:
See the main chapter Accidentals for more information.
MuseScore supports microtonal notation systems such as Helmstolk Ellis notation, Johnston notation etc., so that tuning systems such as Just intonation, Pythagorean tuning etc can be notated precisely. MuseScore development focuses on engraving support, rather than playback support, see create desired playback below.
Professional glyphs of some SMuFL (Wikipedia) symbols are shipped with Musescore, add them by using any of the following:
Note: Adding symbols other than the 7 accidentals used in the default notation system may damage compatibility with plugins such as Chord Identifier (Pop Jazz), because of the implicit change explained in microtonal playback below.
To create desired playback for a custom tuning or notation system, use one of the following methods:
With some tweaking, you can create desired playback on a whole score or a phrase to:
To create the desired playback, use:
Direct playback of microtonal notation is not supported, create desired playback by using:
Points to consider when adjusting Tuning property.
Alternatively, use a software in microtonal composition and playback such as Mus2, see a list on Xenharmonic Wiki.
Tuning, Temperament, Intonation, Notation, EDO (Equal Division of the Octave), TET (Tone Equal Temperament), HEJI (Helmholtz-Ellis Just Intonation), HEWM (Helmholtz-Ellis-Wolf-Monzo), Sagittal notation system, Stein, Dicot, Porcupine, Meantone, Superpyth, Well-tempered.
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
You can help translate the MuseScore software and documentation into your own language, visit Translation instructions
MuseScore has the option to revert back to the standard built-in presets or "factory-settings". This can be necessary if your settings are corrupted. Warning: Reverting to factory settings removes any changes you have made to the preferences, palettes, or window settings. This is not a commonly needed procedure; consult the forums first, as there may be a way to solve your problem without resetting everything.
If MuseScore still starts, it is possible to revert from within MuseScore.
Go to Help→Revert to Factory Settings. A warning dialog will appear:
Clicking Yes resets all MuseScore's settings as if the program was installed for the first time, and MuseScore will immediately restart. No will safely cancel the revert.
If MuseScore does not start, you must run this process via the command line.
Click Open to leave the Browse dialog and return to the Run dialog. The following text (or something similar) should display in the Run dialog
C:\Program Files\MuseScore 3\bin\MuseScore3.exe
(actually %ProgramFiles%\MuseScore 3\bin\MuseScore3.exe
)
For the 32-bit version of MuseScore in a 64-bit version of Windows, the location is
C:\Program Files (x86)\MuseScore 3\bin\MuseScore3.exe
(actually %ProgramFiles(x86)%\MuseScore 3\bin\MuseScore3.exe
)
For the Windows Store version (Windows 10), it is pretty well hidden, search for it via Windows Explorer
Click after the quote and add a space followed by a hyphen and a capital F: -F
After a few seconds, MuseScore should start and all the settings reverted to "factory settings".
For advanced users, the main preference file is located at:
C:\Users\[USERNAME]\AppData\Roaming\MuseScore\MuseScore3.ini
%APPDATA%\MuseScore\MuseScore3.ini
)The other preferences (palettes, session, shortcuts, workspaces...) are in:
C:\Users\[USERNAME]\AppData\Local\MuseScore\MuseScore3\
(actually %LOCALAPPDATA%\MuseScore\MuseScore3\
)
For the Windows Store version (Windows 10), these are pretty well hidden, search for them via Windows Explorer
Type (or copy/paste) the following command into your terminal line (include the '/' at the front):
/Applications/MuseScore\ 3.app/Contents/MacOS/mscore -F
This resets all MuseScore preferences to factory settings and immediately launches the MuseScore application. Note that you cannot quit the Terminal without quitting MuseScore. You can safely quit MuseScore, quit the Terminal, and then reopen MuseScore in the normal fashion, ready to continue using.
For advanced users, the main MuseScore preference file is located at ~/Library/Preferences/org.musescore.MuseScore3.plist
. Often, deleting this file has no effect: macOS stores a cached copy of the settings in some unknown location. The correct way to delete this file, is by running the following command in the Terminal app:
defaults delete org.musescore.MuseScore3
The other preferences (palettes, session, shortcuts, workspaces...) are in ~/Library/Application\ Support/MuseScore/MuseScore3/
. (Those are not cached by macOS.)
The following is true for Ubuntu, and most likely all other Linux distributions and UNIX-style operating systems.
Type, (or copy/paste) the following command into your terminal line (Ctrl+Shift+V to paste in Terminal):
mscore -F
Or, if you are using the AppImage version, you must first use the cd
command to change directory to wherever you saved the AppImage. For example, if you saved it to your Desktop (and there is only one):
cd ~/Desktop
./MuseScore*.AppImage -F
This resets all MuseScore preferences to factory settings and immediately launches the MuseScore application. You can now quit Terminal, and continue using MuseScore.
For advanced users, the main MuseScore preference file is located at ${XDG_CONFIG_HOME:-~/.config}/MuseScore/MuseScore3.ini
.
The other preferences (palettes, session, shortcuts, workspaces, …) are in ${XDG_DATA_HOME:-~/.local/share}/MuseScore/MuseScore3/
.
The musescore.org issue tracker has been retired on March 2023, please report bugs on GitHub instead:
https://github.com/musescore/MuseScore/issues
Before filing bug reports or feature requests in the Issue Tracker, it is recommended first to search for similar ones, post in the relevant Forum if none is found, so others may help establish a bug as genuine, provide ideas and second opinions for new features, and gather concensus.
Include a link to such discussion when creating the Issue in Issue Tracker.
The role of Issue Tracker on musescore.org is to triage before opening an issue on github. The expectancy is that the .org tracker will at some point undergo some changes to facilitate it linking to github issues, source.
Once the issue is referred/reposted to github, the one on musescore.org will be marked Duplicate to unclutter the triage system.
Please include as much of the following information as you know and limit each issue to one report:
Attach the score that shows the problem, at least a minimal example —use the "File attachments" option at the bottom of the page, just above the Save and Preview buttons when you're typing your post.
Fill in the correct issue detail field, eg If you did not gather any shared experience in forum, use Frequency: Once. Once the issue is referred/reposted to github, the one on musescore.org will be marked Duplicate to unclutter the triage system, jump to triage above.
When you write a comment in a forum topic, you can refer to an issue in the issue tracker using the following notation: ´[#number]´
That way the link in the comment will include the issue title and reflect the current status of the issue. Furthermore, it'll lead to the forum topic being listed in the issue itself.
Type [#153286] get #153286: Change instrument causes a crash
This page is an administration page intended for the editing community only. Click this link to go to the handbook front page intended for public viewing.
Most keyboard shortcuts can be customized via the menu: select Edit→Preferences...→Shortcuts (Mac: MuseScore→Preferences...→Shortcuts). Below is a list of some of the initial shortcut settings.
Beginning of score: Home (Mac: Fn+←)
Last page of score: End (Mac: Fn+→)
Find/Go to (measure number, rehearsal mark, or pXX when XX is a page number): Ctrl+F (Mac: Cmd+F)
Next score: Ctrl+Tab
Previous score: Shift+Ctrl+Tab
Zoom in: Ctrl++ (doesn't work on some systems) (Mac: Cmd++); or Ctrl (Mac: Cmd) + scroll up
Zoom out: Ctrl+- (Mac: Cmd+-); or Ctrl (Mac: Cmd) + scroll down
Next page: Pg Dn; or Shift + scroll down (Mac: Fn+↓)
Previous page: Pg Up; or Shift + scroll up (Mac: Fn+↑)
Next measure: Ctrl+→ (Mac: Cmd+→)
Previous measure: Ctrl+← (Mac: Cmd+←)
Next note: →
Previous note: ←
Note below (within a chord or on lower staff): Alt+↓
Note above (within a chord or on higher staff): Alt+↑
Top note in chord: Ctrl+Alt+↑ (Ubuntu uses this shortcut for Workspaces instead)
Bottom note in chord: Ctrl+Alt+↓ (Ubuntu uses this shortcut for Workspaces instead)
Next element (accessibility): Alt+→
Previous element (accessibility): Alt+←
Begin note input mode: N
Leave note input mode: N or Esc
1 ... 9 selects a duration. See also Note input.
Half duration of previous note: Q
Double duration of previous note: W
Decrease duration by one dot: (as of version 2.1) Shift+Q (e.g. a dotted quarter note becomes a quarter note; a quarter note becomes a dotted eighth note)
Increase duration by one dot : (as of version 2.1) Shift+W (e.g. an eighth note becomes a dotted eighth note; a dotted eighth note becomes a quarter note)
To select a voice in note input mode.
Voice 1: Ctrl+Alt+1 (Mac: Cmd+Alt+1)
Voice 2: Ctrl+Alt+2 (Mac: Cmd+Alt+2)
Voice 3: Ctrl+Alt+3 (Mac: Cmd+Alt+3)
Voice 4: Ctrl+Alt+4 (Mac: Cmd+Alt+4)
Pitches can be entered by their letter name (A-G), or via MIDI keyboard. See Note input for full details.
Repeat previous note or chord: R (the repeat can be of a different note value by selecting duration beforehand)
Repeat selection: R (The selection will be repeated from the first note position after the end of the selection)
Raise pitch by octave: Ctrl+↑ (Mac: Cmd+↑)
Lower pitch by octave: Ctrl+↓ (Mac: Cmd+↓)
Raise pitch by semi-tone (prefer sharp): ↑
Lower pitch by semi-tone (prefer flat): ↓
Raise pitch diatonically: Alt+Shift+↑
Lower pitch diatonically: Alt+Shift+↓
Change enharmonic spelling in both written and concert pitch views: J
Change enharmonic spelling in current view only: Ctrl+J (Mac: Cmd+J)
Rest: 0 (zero)
Add interval above current note: Alt+[Number]
Flip direction (stem, slur, tie, tuplet bracket, etc.): X
Mirror note head: Shift+X
Increase stretch of measure(s): }
Decrease stretch of measure(s): {
Line break on selected barline: Return
Page break on selected barline: Ctrl+Return (Mac: Cmd+Return)
Staccato: Shift+S
Tenuto: Shift+N
Sforzato (accent): Shift+V
Marcato: Shift+O
Grace note (acciaccatura): /
Crescendo: <
Decrescendo: >
Staff text: Ctrl+T (Mac:Cmd+T)
System text: Ctrl+Shift+T (Mac: Cmd+Shift+T)
Tempo text: Alt+Shift+T
Rehearsal Mark: Ctrl+M (Mac: Cmd+M)
Enter lyrics on a note: Ctrl+L (Mac: Cmd+L)
Previous lyric syllable: Shift+Space
Next lyric syllable: if the current and the next syllables are separated by a '-': -, else Space
Move lyric syllable left by 0.1sp: ←
Move lyric syllable right by 0.1sp: →
Move lyric syllable left by 1sp: Ctrl+← (Mac: Cmd+←)
Move lyric syllable right by 1sp: Ctrl+→ (Mac: Cmd+→)
Move lyric syllable left by 0.01sp: Alt+←
Move lyric syllable right by 0.01sp: Alt+→
Up to previous stanza: Ctrl+↑ (Mac: Cmd+↑)
Down to next stanza: Ctrl+↓ (Mac: Cmd+↓)
For more lyric shortcuts, see Lyrics.
Timeline: F12 (Mac: Fn+F12)
Play Panel: F11 (Mac: Fn+F11)
Mixer: F10 (Mac: Fn+F10)
Palette: F9 (Mac: Fn+F9)
Inspector: F8 (Mac: Fn+F8)
Piano Keyboard: P
Selection filter: F6
Display full screen: Ctrl+U (Mac: none, use View→Full screen instead)
Toggle visibility on selected element(s): V
Show Instruments dialog: I
Toggle multimeasure rests on or off: M
Reset element to default location: Ctrl+R (Mac: Cmd+R)
MSCORE(1) — General Commands Manual Page
mscore, MuseScore3 — MuseScore 3 sheet music editor
You can launch MuseScore from the command line by typing
[options] and [filename] are optional. For this to work the MuseScore executable must be in %PATH%
(Windows) resp. $PATH
(Mac and Linux). If it is not, see Revert to factory settings for detailed instructions on how and where to find and execute the MuseScore executable from the command line on the various supported platforms.
A more detailed synopsis follows:
mscore [-deFfhIiLmnOPRstvw]
[-a | --use-audio driver]
[-b | --bitrate bitrate]
[-c | --config-folder pathname]
[-D | --monitor-resolution DPI]
[-d | --debug]
[-E | --install-extension extension file]
[-e | --experimental]
[-F | --factory-settings]
[-f | --force]
[-h | -? | --help]
[-I | --dump-midi-in]
[-i | --load-icons]
[-j | --job file.json]
[-L | --layout-debug]
[-M | --midi-operations file]
[-m | --no-midi]
[-n | --new-score]
[-O | --dump-midi-out]
[-o | --export-to file]
[-P | --export-score-parts]
[-p | --plugin name]
[-R | --revert-settings]
[-r | --image-resolution DPI]
[-S | --style style]
[-s | --no-synthesizer]
[-T | --trim-image margin]
[-t | --test-mode]
[-v | --version]
[-w | --no-webview]
[-x | --gui-scaling factor]
[--diff]
[--highlight-config]
[--long-version]
[--no-fallback-font]
[--raw-diff]
[--run-test-script]
[--score-media]
[--save-online]
[--score-meta]
[--score-mp3]
[--score-parts]
[--score-parts-pdf]
[--score-transpose]
[--source-update]
[--template-mode]
[file ...]
MuseScore is a Free and Open Source WYSIWYG cross-platform multi-lingual music composition and notation software, released under the GNU General Public Licence (GPLv2).
Running mscore without any extra options launches the full graphical MuseScore program and opens any files specified on the command line.
The options are as follows:
Use audio driver: one of jack, alsa, portaudio, pulse
Set MP3 output bitrate in kbit/s
Override configuration and settings directory
Specify monitor resolution (override autodetection)
Start MuseScore in debug mode
Install an extension file; soundfonts are loaded by default unless -e is also specified
Enable experimental features, such as layers
Use only the standard built-in presets (“factory settings”) and delete user preferences; compare with the -R option (see also Revert to factory settings)
Ignore score corruption and version mismatch warnings in “converter mode”
Display an overview of invocation instructions (doesn’t work on Windows)
Display all MIDI input on the console
Load icons from the filesystem; useful if you want to edit the MuseScore icons and preview the changes
Process a conversion job (see EXAMPLES below)
Start MuseScore in layout debug mode
Specify MIDI import operations file (see EXAMPLES below)
Disable MIDI input
Start with the New Score wizard regardless whether it’s enabled or disabled in the user preferences
Display all MIDI output on the console
Export the given (or currently opened) file to the specified output file. The file type depends on the extension of the filename given. This option switches to “converter mode” and avoids the graphical user interface.
When converting to PDF with the -o option, append each part’s pages to the created PDF file. If the score has no parts, all default parts will temporarily be generated automatically.
Execute the named plugin
Use only the standard built-in presets (“factory settings”) but do not delete user preferences; compare with the -F option
Set image resolution for conversion to PNG files. Default: 300 DPI (actually, the value of “Resolution” of the PNG option group in the Export tab of the preferences)
Load a style file first; useful for use with the -o option
Disable the integrated software synthesizer
Trim exported PNG and SVG images to remove whitespace surrounding the score. The specified margin, in pixels, will be retained (use 0
for a tightly cropped image). When exporting to SVG, this option only works with single-page scores.
Set test mode flag for all files, includes --template-mode
Display the name and version of the application without starting the graphical user interface (doesn’t work on Windows)
Disable the web view component in the Start Center
Scale the score display and other GUI elements by the specified factor; intended for use with high-resolution displays
Print a conditioned diff between the given scores
Set highlight to svg, generated from a given score
Display the full name, version and git revision of the application without starting the graphical user interface (doesn’t work on Windows)
Don’t use Bravura as fallback musical font
Print a raw diff between the given scores
Run script tests listed in the command line arguments
Upload score(s) to their source URL. Replaces existing online score(s). (As of 3.6)
Export all media (except MP3) for a given score as a single JSON document to stdout
Export score metadata to JSON document and print it to stdout
Generate an MP3 for the given score and export it as a single JSON document to stdout
Generate parts data for the given score and save them to separate mscz files
Generate parts data for the given score and export it as a single JSON document to stdout
Transpose the given score and export the data to a single JSON file, print it to stdout
Update the source in the given score
Save files in template mode (e.g. without page sizes)
MuseScore also supports the automatic Qt command line options.
The argument to the -j option must be the pathname of a file comprised of a valid JSON document honoring the following specification:
The top-level element must be a JSONArray, which may be empty.
Each array element must be a JSONObject with the following keys:
in
: Value is the name of the input file (score to convert), as JSONString.plugin
: Value is the filename of a plugin (with the .qml
extension), which will be read from either the global or per-user plugin path and executed before the conversion output happens, as JSONString. Optional, but at least one of plugin
and out
must be given.out
: Value is the conversion output target, as defined below. Optional, but at least one of plugin
and out
must be given.The conversion output target may be a filename (with extension, which decided the format to convert to), as JSONString.
The conversion output target may be a JSONArray of filenames as JSONString, as above, which will cause the score to be written to multiple output files (in multiple output formats) sequentially, without being closed, re-opened and re-processed in between.
If the conversion output target is a JSONArray, one or more of its elements may also be, each, a JSONArray of two JSONStrings (called first and second half in the following description). This will cause part extraction: for each such two-tuple, all extant parts of the score will be saved individually, with filenames being composed by concatenating the first half, the name (title) of the part, and the second half. The resulting string must be a valid filename (with extension, determining the output format). If a score has no parts (excerpts) defined, this will be silently ignored without error.
Valid file extensions for output are:
flac
metajson
mid
midi
mlog
mp3
mpos
mscx
mscz
musicxml
mxl
ogg
pdf
png
spos
svg
wav
xml
See below for an example.
SKIP_LIBJACK
XDG_CONFIG_HOME
~/.config
if unset.XDG_DATA_HOME
~/.local/share
if unset.Note that MuseScore also supports the normal Qt environment variables such as QT_QPA_GENERIC_PLUGINS
, QT_QPA_PLATFORM
, QT_QPA_PLATFORMTHEME
, QT_QPA_PLATFORM_PLUGIN_PATH
, QT_STYLE_OVERRIDE
, DISPLAY
, etc.
/usr/share/mscore-3.0/
contains the application support data (demos, instruments, localization, system-wide plugins, soundfonts, styles, chords, templates and wallpapers). In the Debian packages, system-wide soundfonts are installed into /usr/share/sounds/sf2/
, /usr/share/sounds/sf3/
or /usr/share/sounds/sfz/
, respectively, instead.
The per-user data (extensions, plugins, soundfonts, styles, templates) and files (images, scores) are normally installed into subdirectories under ~/MuseScore3/
but may be changed in the configuration. Note that snapshot, alpha and beta versions use MuseScore3Development
instead of MuseScore3
in all of these paths.
$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/MuseScore/MuseScore3.ini
contains the user preferences, list of recently used files and their locations, window sizes and positions, etc. See above for development version paths.
$XDG_DATA_HOME/data/MuseScore/MuseScore3/
contains updated localization files downloaded from within the program, plugin information, cached scores, credentials for the musescore.com community site, session information, synthesizer settings, custom key and time signatures and shortcuts. See above for development version paths.
mscore -o 'My Score.pdf' 'My Score.mscz'
mscore -j job.json
This requires the file job.json
in the current working directory to have content similar to the following:
[
{
"in": "Reunion.mscz",
"out": "Reunion-coloured.pdf",
"plugin": "colornotes.qml"
},
{
"in": "Reunion.mscz",
"out": [
"Reunion.pdf",
[ "Reunion (part for ", ").pdf" ],
"Reunion.musicxml",
"Reunion.mid"
]
},
{
"in": "Piece with excerpts.mscz",
"out": [
"Piece with excerpts (Partitura).pdf",
[ "Piece with excerpts (part for ", ").pdf" ],
"Piece with excerpts.mid"
]
}
]
The last part of the job would, for example, cause files like “Piece with excerpts (part for Violin).pdf
” to be generated alongside the conductor’s partitura and a MIDI file with the full orchestra sound, whereas the equivalent part of the Reunion conversion will be silently ignored (because the Reunion piece (a MuseScore demo) has no excerpts defined).
The attached midi_import_options.xml
is a sample MIDI import operations file for the -M option.
The mscore utility exits 0 on success, and >0 if an error occurs.
fluidsynth(1), midicsv(1), timidity(1), qtoptions(7)
Online Handbook, full user manual
Support Forum
Reverting to factory settings (troubleshooting)
Project Issue Tracker — Please check first to if the bug you’re encountering has already been reported. If you just need help with something, then please use the support forum instead.
Documentation of automatic Qt command line options
MuseScore attempts to implement the following standards:
MuseScore was split off the MusE sequencer in 2002 and has since become the foremost Open Source notation software.
MuseScore is developed by MuseScore BVBA and others.
This manual page was written by mirabilos <tg@debian.org>.
The automatic Qt command line options are removed from the argument vector before the application has a chance at option processing; this means that an invocation like mscore -S -reverse
has no chance at working because the -reverse
is removed by Qt first.
MuseScore does not honor /etc/papersize.
Probably some more; check the project’s bug tracker (cf. SEE ALSO).
MuseScore — August 28, 2023
MuseScore 3.6 introduces a new music font, Leland, a new default text font, Edwin (a version of New Century Schoolbook), and many new default settings. It also introduces a number of new features which are available in all newly-created scores by default, and which can also be applied automatically or manually to existing scores.
The three main features, which are interrelated, are:
The first two features apply at score creation time and are available in the New Score Wizard, though they can also be accessed later in the Instruments panel. Previously, it was up to the user to arrange instruments and add brackets manually once the score was created. The aim of these new features is to save time and give a better default result in the majority of cases, but it is not intended to accommodate every possible score setup. For unusual layouts, the results can be customised after the score is created, the features can be turned off completely, or a template could be used.
When creating a new score via 'Choose Instruments', there is now an 'Ordering' dropdown showing the current system of instrument ordering. 'Orchestral' is the default. As instruments are added to the score, they will be added in the correct position according to the select ordering. (Previously, each instrument would appear below whichever was currently selected in the right-hand list.) This also makes it easy to, for instance, add a double wind section, by selecting Flute, Oboe, Clarinet and Bassoon in the left-hand list, and clicking 'Add to score' twice.
Each ordering defines a position in the score for solo instruments. For example, in an orchestral ordering, this is above the strings. With an instrument selected in the right-hand list, the 'Make soloist' button will move it to that position. You can designate multiple soloists; within the soloist 'section' the overall ordering will apply. Solo instruments will have "solo" added to their name by default, and will be numbered separately from non-solo instruments, where relevant. Note that the soloist designation is a score layout feature only and has no impact on playback.
One quirk is that, for now, only a single soloist position is defined per ordering, so a work with a chorus plus both vocal and instrumental soloists will place the instrumental soloists above the chorus. These will need to be moved manually.
As before, instruments can be moved up and down manually with the buttons that are now to the right of the list. In the dropdown the ordering will have '(Customised)' appended to its name. The customised ordering is saved with the score. You can reset the order by selecting the original ordering (or a different one) from the dropdown.
Selecting the 'Custom' ordering disables this feature entirely, as well as the automatic bracketing.
The predefined ordering assigns instrument families (flutes, oboes, clarinets, etc.) and arranges those families into sections (woodwind, brass, percussion, etc.). Brackets are added automatically according to these simple rules:
Again, while this should provide reasonable defaults for most scores, it won't give perfect results for every possible style or layout. Fortunately, it is easy to make adjustments once the score is created.
There is a new algorithm for vertically justifying staves to properly fill the page, which is turned on by default for new scores in MuseScore 3.6. To turn this off, untick Format > Style > Page > Enable vertical justification of staves.
The basic principle of the algorithm is to try to make the space between staves equal, subject to two settings (all in Format > Style > Page):
The space between a brace and bracket will be determined by the larger of these two values. The "Max. great staff distance" setting is used to limit the amount of distance between staves joined by a curly brace. This is useful as these staves generally need to be read at once in a single glance by the player.
The "Max. system distance" and "Max. stave distance" should have reasonably large values to enable the routine to fill even quite sparse pages. Sometimes a page will not have enough staves for it to make sense to justify. In this case, once the algorithm first equalises the space as described above, it then adds extra space between the staves up to a maximum of the setting given in "Max. page fill distance" (multiplied by any relevant factor setting). If you find many pages are not fully justified, but you'd like them to be, try adjusting this setting. In general, a low value is likely to be best for a score with a small number of staves per system, and a larger one for larger numbers of staves.
The vertical justification is dynamic, and not tied to the section assignments of instruments used to determine the score order at the setup stage, so if you add or remove brackets the spacing will change accordingly. In the same way, if empty staves are hidden on a given system, the spacing will be determined only by the brackets which are present on that system.
Hopefully the default settings give good results in most cases, but it might take a bit of experimentation with the settings depending on the makeup of a score. If you are used to using spacers to achieve similar results, it is best to try to find settings which give a good result for the majority of the score, and use spacers only where local adjustments are necessary. It is planned for future versions to make this more configurable. For example, extra space could be suppressed for a specific bracket, or the value might be increased or decreased for a particular page or system.
This new option, which is turned on by default, is found in Style > Score > Enable indentation on first system. As the name suggests, it will indent the first system of a section in the customary way for classical scores. (The old workaround of using a frame for this is no longer necessary.) If there are instrument labels present, the maximum of either the value given for this setting or the length of the labels will apply.
When opening an old score, a dialog box gives the option to apply either the new notation font Leland, or the new text font Edwin, or both. Each of these applies a subset of the new default 3.6 style settings beyond just the font changes, for example, line widths and text sizes, but does not apply every one of the the new defaults, in the interest of minimising disruptive layout changes.
To apply all of the new defaults, including these text and notation font changes, open the Format > Style window and click the "Reset All Styles to Default" button at the bottom. This was formerly the Format > Reset Style menu option. The button behaves the same way, except that it no longer resets the page layout options which are set in the Format > Page Settings window; that window now has its own equivalent button, which will reset only those settings it contains. This means that the new style options can be tried out without completely ruining the layout of the score, though a few settings in the Score and Page settings of the Style window may need to be re-set manually.
If it is an option, delete any non-essential system and page breaks, then select the whole score and select Format > Stretch > Reset Layout Stretch. Also delete spacers if you want to see the default results of the new vertical justification algorithm (see below).
Edwin has wider character sizes in general than FreeSerif (though slightly smaller default point sizes are used) so it is quite likely that the Edwin option will cause layout changes, particularly in scores with lyrics. Leland will affect the spacing less radically, but some adjustments may still be necessary.
Text items which have local style overrides applied will not have those customisations removed, either as part of the score migration process, or via the Reset Styles options. This may result in an inconsistent score where some text retains its old font face or size. The new menu option Format > Reset Text Style Overrides will remove these customisations, resetting all text items to match the currently defined text styles. (This is equivalent to clicking 'Reset to style default' for each attribute in the Text area of the Inspector.) Note that this does not remove Custom Formatting, which must be done manually if required.
Press I to open the Instruments panel, or choose the Edit > Instruments menu item. Assuming the score was created pre-3.6, the selected ordering will be 'Custom'. If you wish to apply a standard ordering, select one from the menu, for example 'Orchestral'. The instruments in the score will be reordered according to that definition, and have brackets and braces applied accordingly. Note that any existing brackets and braces will be deleted.
If you want to use this feature but have previously been using spacers to create extra or fixed distance between staves, it would be best to delete all those spacers first, as they will distort how the new algorithm works. A quick way to do this is by right-clicking any spacer, choosing Select > All Similar Elements, and pressing Delete.
Turn this feature on by selecting Style > Page > Enable vertical justification of staves. Then you can reintroduce spacers if there are specific places where the default spacing needs adjustment.
In the process of investigating style settings, engraving issues, and creating a new music font, many issues were uncovered which needed to be corrected and which may have a small impact on the appearance of existing scores. In some cases it is possible to undo these manually.
A long-standing error in the interpretation of the beamDistance setting that is defined alongside SMuFL fonts meant that this value was frequently half as big as it ought to be in MuseScore, including with Emmentaler and Bravura. (MuseScore defines the distance between beams as a percentage of the thickness of a beam, but for SMuFL the setting is an absolute distance in stave spaces. The normal thickness of a beam is 0.5sp, and the standard distance between beams is also 0.25sp, which MuseScore interpreted as 25% of 0.5sp, i.e. 0.125sp.)
The new correct interpretation of this value, 50%, will be applied even to existing scores, unless this value had been explicitly overridden. The extra space is added inwards, so the position of the outermost beams remains the same. If you really want the old, very-tight spacing, set Style > Beams > Beam distance manually to 25%.
Before (beam distance 25%):
After (beam distance 50%):
In a similar way, MuseScore interpreted this SMuFL value as the total extension of the ledger line beyond the notehead (i.e. x/2 at each side), when the value is meant to be the extension at each side. This error was also masked by a square cap being used for the line, rather than a straight cap, thus also adding half of the line thickness at each end.
As with beam spacing, if this setting was not explicitly overridden in the file, a new default will be applied even in old scores, but this will give identical results. If you did adjust this value, this value will be preserved, but will produce ledger lines that are too long. You can convert the value manually with the formula:
new value = (x / 2) - (y / 2)
where x is the previous 'Ledger line length' value, and y is the 'Ledger line thickness' value. Or, just use the now correctly-interpreted default settings for each font:
Round caps were previously drawn on stems. This has been replaced with a flat cap. Partly this is to make the length of the stem more exact, but mainly it is so that the round cap does not obscure the design of the tip of the flag symbols in each font. Emmentaler's flags, for instance, are designed with a flat tip; Bravura and Leland have rounded tips which are not exactly symmetrical.
The placement of flags was also previously at odds with SMuFL fonts: a calculation was made of how much to extend the stem for a given number of flags, and then the flag symbol was drawn with the top or bottom of its bounding box at the end of the stem. Now, the presence of flags does not affect stem length (i.e. a normal length stem is used for a note according to its vertical position and stem direction) and the flag symbol is then placed with its y=0 at the end of the stem. Any 'extension' of the stem is thus determined by the extent to which the flag symbol extends above or below y=0. The flags in Emmentaler, as used within MuseScore, have been repositioned to reflect this, and to match other SMuFL fonts.
The result of this is that flags may appear slightly lower or higher than they did previously; however, their positioning now reflects the intentions of the designers of each of the available fonts. Beamed notes are not affected.
Before (Bravura, in 3.5):
After (Bravura, in 3.6):
Previously MuseScore did not add any space between the bounding boxes of accidentals and brackets around them. Now a small amount of padding is added, which can be customised via Style > Accidentals > Padding inside parentheses.
Before (Bravura, in 3.5):
After (Bravura, in 3.6):
These have been replaced with those taken from Parnassus. For details, see PR #6747.
MuseScore 3 includes a number of new and improved features. For a brief summary, see the Release notes for MuseScore 3. More details can be found in the summaries below and by referring to the relevant pages of the handbook.
MuseScore initially places elements in the score according to (a) the properties specified in style defaults and (b) any manual adjustments made. For elements that have automatic placement enabled, however, MuseScore will attempt to avoid collisions by moving one or more of them as needed.
See Automatic placement.
The default position for most elements is controlled by settings in Format → Style. You can either change the default there, or, in the Inspector, apply a manual adjustment (see below) and then use the "Set as style" control (the S to the right of the value you wish to set).
The specific properties you can set vary by element type but include:
See Automatic placement.
Many elements can be placed either above or below the staff. To flip an element from above to below or vice versa, use the "Placement" setting in the Inspector, or press the shortcut "X".
Manual adjustments to position can be performed by dragging or by changing the offsets in the Inspector. Neither method will allow you to position an element in a way that causes a collision, however. To take full control of the position of an element, you can disable automatic placement for it.
See Automatic placement.
To disable automatic placement for an element, untick the "Automatic placement" box in the Inspector. The element will revert to its default position, and it will no longer be considered when automatically placing other elements.
See Automatic placement.
The "Stacking order" setting in the Inspector controls which elements overlap which in the cases where they actually do overlap and are not moved due to autoplacement.
See Automatic placement.
Formatting of text is controlled by three factors:
See Text basics, Text styles and properties.
Each text element has a text style associated with it. The default style for an element is determined by the type of the element itself - staff text defaults to the Staff text style, dynamics to the Dynamics text style, etc. This text style determines the default font face, size, style (bold/italic/underline), alignment, and frame properties.
You can change the defaults for any of these text styles using Format → Style → Text Styles. For instance, you can make rehearsal marks bigger, or change lyrics to be italicized. This will affect all existing elements using that style as well as elements you add later. Some elements also contain a limited set of text style controls in their own sections of the Format → Style dialog (although this might not be the case in the final release). The settings are linked: you can change the font size for measure numbers in either Format → Style → Measure Numbers, or in Format → Style → Text Styles: Measure Number. The effect is the same: all measure numbers in the score will take on this size. You can also change the defaults for a text style using the Inspector; see Text Properties below.
For most text elements that you create directly (like staff text, rehearsal marks, and lyrics), you can apply a different text style using the Style control in the Inspector. This will cause them to display using that style instead of the "native" style for the element. For example, you can select one or more staff text elements and give them the Tempo style to force them to display as if they were tempo markings.
See Text basics, Text styles and properties.
The text style controls the default properties for elements using that style, but you can override any of these properties for selected elements using the Inspector. For example, you can select a handful of staff text elements using Ctrl+click, then use the Inspector to make them larger. The Reset to Default button next to each property control returns it to the default. You can also click the Set as Style button to change the style to match. So another way to change the size of all measures numbers is to select one, change its size in the Inspector, then click Set as Style.
See Text basics, Text styles and properties.
Custom formatting is applied to text using the toolbar at the bottom of the main window in the same manner as in previous releases. Thus, you can embolden one word in a sentence while the rest is normal, or superscript a particular character etc. You can also remove all custom formatting from select text elements using the "Remove Custom Formatting" button in the Inspector. This returns the text to the settings currently shown in the Inspector.
See Text editing.
You can change various staff properties mid-score, including staff size, notehead scheme (e.g., for pitch name noteheads), generation of time signatures, and others. The staff type change element is found on the Text palette (currently, but see #278205: Move Staff Type Change to another palette (it is not text) - it may move). Add it to the measure where you want the change to occur, then use the Inspector to change properties of the staff type change element.
To create a temporary staff that appears on certain systems only: first add the staff normally (Edit / Instruments), then add notes, then right-click the staff, click Staff Properties, and set "Hide when empty" to "Always". This will cause the staff to show only where needed even without needing to turn on "Hide empty staves" for the whole score (in Format / Style). The default for "Hide when empty" is "Auto", meaning the staff will be hidden when empty if "Hide empty staves" is enabled. Additional values include "Never" (the staff will not be hidden when empty even if "Hide empty staves" is enabled) and "Instrument" (for instruments containing multiple staves, the staff is hidden only if all staves for that instrument are empty).
To create a cutaway staff in which only the measures containing notes are visible (for ossia or cutaway scores, for example), right-click the staff, click Staff Properties, and enable the "Cutaway" option. This can be used independently of "Hide when empty" or "Hide empty staves".
System dividers are a set of short diagonal lines that are used to visually separate systems on a page. MuseScore can add these to your score automatically. In Format → Style → System, you can enable dividers on the left, right, or both, and you can set their default position. You can also adjust the position of individual dividers in your score manually or mark them invisible (this currently does not survive saving).
As part of the automatic placement in MuseScore, staves are now spaced automatically, so you can set a comfortable minimum distance and depend on MuseScore to open up more space where needed. You can use staff spacers as in MuseScore 2 to increase distance between staves, but MuseScore 3 now also provides a way to decrease it—the "fixed" staff spacer, found on the Breaks & Spacers palette. Just add the spacer and adjust its height. This will also prevent MuseScore from automatically adding more space to avoid collisions, allowing you to manage this yourself.
See Spacers.
Currently disabled
In addition to the system, page, and section breaks familiar from MuseScore 2, the "Breaks & Spacers" palette now contains a new "Don't Break" element. This allows you to force two measures to be kept together, for example, if there is some complex passage that spans the measures and you want to make sure they are adjacent. If both measures don't fit on a system, MuseScore moves them both to the next system. (currently, this leaves a "hole" at the end of the first staff - is this a bug or is there some purpose behind it?)
In addition to the ability to generate parts from the different instruments in your score, you can now also associate a part with a specific staff within the instrument or even a specific voice within a specific staff. This allows you to combine multiple parts (e.g., Flute 1 & 2) onto a single staff in the score while still generating separate parts.
The Parts dialog now contains two sections at the bottom, Instruments in Score and Instruments in Part. Once you have generated a part (or all parts) using the New and New All buttons, you can select any part at the top and use the controls at the bottom to control not only what instrument is in the part, but also which staves and voices within the instrument are included.
To add an instrument to a part, select it from "Instruments in Score" and press "+". To remove an instrument from a part, select it from "Instruments in Part" and press "-". To customize the part at the staff or voice level, click the arrow next to the instrument in "Instruments in Part" to expand the listing to show all staves and voices of the instrument. You can remove a staff by selecting it and pressing "-", or remove a voice by unchecking it.
Limitations: If you select only voice 1 for a given staff, then only the content in voice 1 for that staff will be included in the part. Thus, in order to share flute 1 & 2 on the same staff, you will need to enter all notes onto both voices, even in passages where they share content. You also cannot enter the two parts as chords in the passages where they share rhythms.
Explode has been updated to allow separation of voices as well as notes. See Explode.
The implode tool (Tools / Implode) works in one of two modes.
With a single staff selected, the implode command merges notes in different voices into chords where possible (when notes are on the same beat and have the same duration). This is the same as recent versions of MuseScore, although some bugs have been fixed.
With multiple staves selected, the implode command combines the content of the first four non-empty voices (on any staves) into multiple voices on the top selected staff. This is different from MuseScore 2, where notes would be combined into chords rather than using multiple voices, and thus required the rhythms to match. The MuseScore 3 approach preserves the original rhythms even where they differ, and is intended to produce the expected results when combining two different parts onto one staff for use with the parts from voices feature, or when reducing an open (four-stave) SATB score into a closed (two-stave) version. To further merge the voices into chords where possible, simply run the command again.
See Tools.
You can insert and delete notes and have the measure automatically expand or contract to accommodate the change. This can be useful in creating unmetered music or in ordinary editing.
To insert a note before the currently-selected note, press Ctrl+Shift while adding the note normally. For example, in note input mode, Ctrl+Shift+click will insert a note of the currently-selected duration at that location. Ctrl+Shift+B will insert a B of the currently-selected duration before the note at the current cursor position. You can also switch to Insert mode using the dropdown menu next to the note input button on the toolbar. In this mode, all notes you add act as if you were pressing Ctrl+Shift - they are inserted rather than replacing the existing notes or rests at that location.
To delete notes, you must be in normal (not note input) mode. Select either a single note or a range and press Ctrl+Del.
See Note input modes, Remove selected range (Tools)
To split a measure before a given note, simply insert a barline from the palette at that point while holding Ctrl. For example, you can select the note, and Ctrl+double-click the barline in the palette, or Ctrl+drag the barline to the note. You can also use Tools → Measure → Split Measure Before Selected Note/Rest.
To join two measures, Ctrl+Del the barline between them. You can also use the menu command Tools → Measure → Join Measures.
See Measure operations.
The Timeline presents a graphical overview of your score. To access it, use View →Timeline (F12). The top portion of the Timeline shows the location of tempo, key, and time signature changes as well as rehearsal marks, repeats, and double barlines. The bottom portion shows the staves of your score, with non-empty measures highlighted. You can click anywhere within this view to jump to the corresponding spot in the score.
See Timeline
The Score Comparison Tool (View / Score Comparison Tool) allows you to compare two versions of a score to find the differences between them. Select the two scores you want to compare and whether you want to compare the current version or the last saved version (note you can compare the current version of a score against the last saved version of the same score to see what you have changed since the last save), then click the Compare button. A list of differences will be displayed to the right. The score view will automatically change to Documents Side by Side, with the two scores you have selected displayed within. Double-click on a difference from the list and both score views will automatically pan to show you the changed element, which will also be highlighted.
Normally you would want the default Intelligent comparison, which displays the differences in human-readable format (e.g. "Measure 1: Note: property pitch changed from B4 to C5"). There is also a Raw mode to show the results according to the actual XML code.
See Score comparison.
See Mixer.
See Piano roll editor (preliminary page).
Capo changes are now a property of staff text, and can be used to automatically change the pitch of all notes that follow them, up until another capo change.
See Capo playback.
New UI. See Fretboard diagrams.
While all members of the development team did their best to make the software easy to use and bug-free, there are some known issues and limitations in MuseScore 3.x.
The local time signature feature, which allows you to have different time signatures in different staves at the same time, is very limited. You can only add a local time signature to measures that are empty, and only if there are no linked parts. When adding notes to measures with local time signatures, you can enter notes normally via note input mode, but copy and paste does not work correctly and may lead to corruption or even crashes. The join and split commands are disabled for measures with local time signatures.
The Regroup Rhythms
command found under the Tools menu may have unintended side effects, including changing the spelling of pitches and deleting some elements like articulations, glissandos, tremolos, grace notes and, esp. on undo, ties. Use this tool with caution on limited selections, so that you can tell if any unwanted changes are made.
When entering multiple-note chords on a standard staff in a linked staff/tablature system, the notes should be entered in order from the top (first) string to the bottom string to ensure correct fret assignment.
This limitation does not apply if entering notes directly onto a tablature staff, or when using an unlinked staff/tablature system.
Changing settings in the mixer other than the sound doesn't mark the score 'dirty'. That means if you close a score you may not get the warning "Save changes to the score before closing?". Changing mixer values are also not undoable.
There is no way to edit Header and Footer in a WYSIWYG manner. The fields in Format → Style → Header, Footer are plain text. They can contain "HTML like" syntax, but the text style, layout, etc. can't be edited with a WYSIWYG editor.
Download and install the latest version from the download page as described at Installation.
Installing MuseScore 3 won't uninstall 1.x nor 2.x —all three versions can coexist peacefully and can even be used in parallel. So this isn't really an upgrade but an installation of a new and different program.
MuseScore 3 significantly improved the typesetting quality to make scores attractive and easier to read. Improvements cover many items such as beam slope, stem height, layout of accidentals in chords and general note spacing. However, this means that sheet music made with MuseScore 1.x or 2.x looks slightly different from sheet music made with 3.x.
It also means that scores saved with 3.x won't open with 1.x nor 2.x.
To prevent you from accidentally overwriting your 1.x or 2.x scores, 3.x treats them as an import, which means:
If you did not manually adjust the layout of a 1.x or 2.x score, then MuseScore uses the 3.x typesetting engine to layout the score. If you did touch the layout of the 1.x or 2.x score, the individual adjustments you may have made should remain after opening it in MuseScore 3.x, but due to slight changes in the surrounding layout they may still not appear correct in context. If you wish to reset even manual adjustments to use the 3.x typesetting engine throughout, select the complete score with the shortcut Ctrl+A (Mac: Cmd+A) and reset the layout with Ctrl+R (Mac: Cmd+R).
Note: When you open a 1.x or 2.x file in MuseScore 3, it will ask you if you want to reset the layout to the defaults.
While the sound in 2.x/3.x has been much improved, you may still prefer the sound from MuseScore 1.x. In that case, you can get the 1.x sound in 3.x by downloading the 1.3 SoundFont and add it in 3.x. You can do this in two steps:
The following software is known to crash MuseScore on startup:
MuseScore requires access to your internet connection with AVG. MuseScore doesn't need an internet connection to function, but if AVG blocks it, MuseScore hangs.
If AVG prompts you, Allow MuseScore and check "Save my answer as a permanent rule and do not ask me next time."
If it doesn't prompt you anymore,
MuseScore is known to display notes as square when some fonts are damaged on macOS.
To troubleshoot this issue:
In this forum article, a user believes to have found the font "Adobe Jenson Pro (ajenson)" to be the culprit, regardless of not being reported as broken, or problematic as per the above validation, and solved the problem by deleting that font, so this is worth checking too.
If the default desktop environment application font is set to bold, MuseScore will not display the notes properly.
To troubleshoot this issue (gnome 2.*/MATE users):
For GNOME 3/SHELL users
Some users reported that the Save As dialog is empty on Debian 6.0 and Lubuntu 10.10.
To troubleshoot this issue:
Type the following in a terminal
which mscore
The command will answer with the path of mscore. Edit it with your preferred text editor and add the following line at the beginning
export QT_NO_GLIB=1
Launch MuseScore and the problem should be solved.
Listed below are technicial terms and musical terms, which are frequently used in MuseScore or in the Handbook. Links to relevant handbook chapter are provided. To help musicians who are capable of reading a notation but do not know its proper name, image is provided. This chapter does not aim to be a dictionary of all musical notations, see External links.
The differences between American English and British English are marked with "(AE)" and "(BE)", respectively. Editors and translators of this chapter should add the individual entry for each term.
<singleNoteDynamics>
. Instruments' settings can be ignored by the master control in Synthesizer.A curved line between two adjavent notes of the same pitch to indicate a single note of combined duration. See Tie chapter. A tie is not a slur.
The act of moving the pitches of one or more notes up or down by a constant interval. See Transposition chapter. There may be several reasons for transposing a piece, for example: