New features in MuseScore 0.9.5

• Gsh 15, 2009 - 05:39
  • With the release of MuseScore 0.9.5 comes the first stable release for Mac OS X 10.4 and above
  • Create sound files of your scores via File → Save As... (WAV, OGG, and FLAC)
  • Use and create plugins
  • Know the pitch range of instruments (MuseScore marks out-of-range notes for amateurs in yellow and professionals in red)
    Pitch range of piccolo
  • Double-click to open a MuseScore file
    Open file via Windows Explorer
  • Over 30 crashes fixed

Playback

  • Dynamic markings affect playback. For example ff sounds louder than mp
  • 8va and 8vb now affects a single staff (as expected) instead of all staves in a score
  • Tempo changes playback correctly for scores with repeats
  • All staves playback on Windows using the default
    SoundFont. Previous versions only played the top staff unless you manually setup a General MIDI SoundFont
  • Position of slider in play panel is now reliable
  • Mixer allows you to change instrument sounds on Windows. Linux versions could already do this
  • Individual notes can be microtuned up to 200 cents above or below the original pitch via the note/chord properties dialog. The Tuning plugin allows you to modify the pitch of all notes in a piece
  • Reworked internal fluid synthesizer
    • Reduced the idle load on the processor from ten percent to nearly zero percent. MuseScore only processes chorus and reverb if sound is present
    • Faster startup and smaller memory footprint especially when using large SoundFonts. MuseScore only loads samples from the SoundFont if needed

Files

  • Sets file type associations for MuseScore (".mscz" and ".mscx")
    The MuseScore logo displays on each document icon
  • Drag-and-drop of files onto the MuseScore window opens the score on Windows (already available in Linux)
  • Automatically delete temporary files with names such "msHp4124" on Windows
  • New file extension ".mscx" replaces the old file extension ".msc". The old file extension conflicted with a type of Windows system file
  • Fixed problem with special characters (&<>\") in filenames for Compressed MuseScore Files
  • Part extraction is less prone to crashes (slurs, voltas, and bar lines through multiple staves are no longer a problem)
  • Export to sound file. See [[nodetitle:Export]] for more details on WAV, OGG, and FLAC
  • Improvements to MusicXML import: recognize text style, credits, meta-data, multi-measure rests, dominant chords
  • Improvements to MusicXML export: include information about page layout, credits, meta-data, multi-measure rests; fixed dominant chords, percussion clef, tempo markings, measure width, correct order for elements in note tag, correct octave for B sharps
  • Improvements to MIDI import: recognize key signature changes, copyright text
  • Improvements to LilyPond export: fixes for B, C, and C-sharp major key signatures
  • Implemented a preference that lets you apply a custom style file to all imported scores

User Interface

  • Close button appears on each tab similar to modern browsers instead of a single button off to the side
    Tab bar shows a close button on each tab
  • Default shortcuts conform to platform conventions. For example Ctrl+Y for redo on Windows, Ctrl+Shift+Z for redo on Debian/Ubuntu
  • Beginning note entry with the mouse in a selected measure no longer causes a crash (prominent crash introduced in 0.9.4)
  • More instruments added to the new score wizard
  • Drag-and-drop of dynamics now works
  • Copy-paste of measures also includes chord names and lyrics
  • Copy-paste of full-measure rests
  • Note and rest split correctly across barline on paste
  • Note entry mode
    • Cursor now advances when you enter a rest
    • Notes snap into correct positions so that a slightly misplaced mouse no longer divides existing notes into unexpected smaller durations (bug introduced in 0.9.4)
    • Backspace undoes the previously added note
    • Tuplet are created a little differently. See tuplet .
  • Undo now works for the following
    • Moving note up or down with mouse (pitch change)
    • Changes to the Page Settings dialog
    • Changes to Edit Text Style dialog
    • Changes to Edit Style dialog
    • Stem flip
    • Part and staff property changes
    • Measure stretch
  • Added Slur to line palette (previously only available via keyboard shortcuts)
  • Breath marks placed after the note it was dropped on instead of before
  • Notes outside of the pitch range of an instrument appear red and notes only playable by professionals in yellow
  • Edit → Search allows you to jump to a measure

Notation

  • Ledger lines
    • Thicker lines to match standard engraving practice
    • Half-note and whole-note rests in voice 2 have proper ledger lines
    • Avoid touching other ledger lines when notes are close
    • Automatically widen to reach noteheads on the opposite side of the stem
      ledger lines between a displaced notehead and the staff should be double width
  • Percussion
    • Note entry for drums and percussion is less prone to crashes
    • Drumset can include notes above staff
    • New Score wizard no longer adds key signatures to unpitched percussion staves
  • Vertical note alignment and slurs for whole-note chords now follow the same rules as stemmed notes
  • Ties copy-paste correctly (bug introduced in 0.9.4)
  • Accidentals after a tied note now follow standard notation rules
  • More control over the layout of notes and articulations in the Style → Edit Style dialog
  • Dotted notes allowed in tuplets
  • Shifting notes by an octave retains pitch spelling (sharps or flats)
  • On small staves key signatures, time signatures, accidentals and dynamics are also small and rests are positioned correctly
  • The measure property dialog now has options for "layout stretch" and "measure number offset"
  • The bar line for grand staff instruments goes through both staves by default
  • Arpeggios can span two staves
    Arpeggio spanning two staves
  • Multi-measure rests automatically break at voltas, key changes, and time changes
  • The default size of the staff and notes can be changed via the scaling option in the preferences
  • Two new clefs: bass clef 8va and bass clef 15va
  • Visibility of note stems and staff lines is now saved
  • Note head position (left/right of stem) can now be overridden by user. This supports notation of "Griffschrift" for Steirische Harmonika

Text

  • A special toolbar for text editing makes it easier to change the formatting of specific text
    Text formatting toolbar appears when editing text
  • Improved layout for formatting options in the Edit Text Style dialog
  • Separate style options for odd and even lyrics. For example you can alternate between normal and italic type for each stanza
  • Lyric hyphens better match the lyric text
  • Lyrics, measure numbers, and other relevant text resizes with the staff when you change the scaling (via Layout → Page Settings...)
  • Changes to the text style (via Style → Edit Text Style) are visible without closing and reopening score
  • Dynamics (such as mf or pp) now resize properly using Style → Edit Text Style → Dynamics
  • Flats and sharps in chord names now resize properly using Style → Edit Text Style → Chordnames
  • Chord names are configurable via an external XML file: styles\chords.xml
  • Experimental jazz font for chord names (the font is incomplete and several symbols are missing)
    Chord names have a handwritten appearance

Plugins

  • Plugins enabled for Debian and Ubuntu due to new features in Qt 4.5
  • Plugins can now include dialogs created with Qt Designer
  • Eight sample plugins added
  • Most script actions are now undoable
  • Script debugger option added to the Help menu
  • Added -p option on command line to launch a plugin

Internationalization

  • Eight new translations for the software: Arabic, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Traditional Chinese, Traditional Chinese (Taiwan) and Ukrainian. This brings the total to 18 languages and dialects
  • More text in MuseScore is now translatable (certain sections of the user interface were English only in previous versions)
  • Italian and Norwegian versions of the handbook. The handbook is now available in nine languages

Credit

Programming

  • Werner Schweer: Project lead, main developer
  • Nicolas Froment (lasconic): Windows and Mac OS builds, MusicXML import-export developer
  • Toby Smithe: Debian and Ubuntu builds
  • Olav Gundersen: LilyPond export developer
  • Leon Vinken: MusicXML import-export developer
  • Raffaele Russi: MusicXML import-export developer
  • Joachim Ganseman: Mac OS build

Localization

  • Arabic
    • Hosam Adeeb Nashed
  • Chinese, Traditional
    • Ying-Da Lee
  • Chinese, Traditional (Taiwan)
    • benice
  • Danish
    • Stig Wolff
  • Dutch
    • Jaap Plaisier
  • English, US
    • Raymond May Jr.
  • Finnish
    • Heino Keränen
  • French
    • Jean-Louis Waltener
    • Nicolas Froment (lasconic)
  • Galician
    • Xosé
  • German
    • Werner Schweer
  • Hindi
    • Shashi Sharma
  • Italian
    • Angelo Contardi
    • Antonio Marchionne
  • Norwegian
    • Dag Henning Sørbø
    • Per Holje
  • Polish
    • Piotr Komorowski
  • Portuguese
    • José Luciano Batista Gomes
  • Portuguese, Brazilian
    • israel_zeu
  • Russian
    • Alexandre Prokoudine
  • Spanish
    • Carlos Sanchiavedraz
    • Macedonious
    • Marcos Guglielmetti
  • Swedish
    • Magnus Johansson
  • Turkish
    • Halil Kirazlı
  • Ukrainian
    • Serhij Dubyk

Other

  • Thomas Bonte: Website
  • Magnus Johansson: Instrument list
  • David Bolton: Documentation, instrument lists, Windows SoundFont
  • Han-Wen Nienhuys, Jan Nieuwenhuizen & others: Emmentaler font

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