Getting Startedwith

2012 TI:ME / JENNational Conference

@MarcSabatella

What Is MuseScore?

90% of the power of Finale or Sibelius for 0% of the price!

• Create, playback, and print sheet music for free• Open source• Cross-platform: Windows, MacOS, Linux• Multilingual: over 30 languages• WYSIWYG• Unlimited staves, four voices per staff• Part creation• Dynamics, articulations, lyrics, chords, lead sheet notation• Import/export of MusicXML and MIDI• Export of PDF and WAV• Online score sharing

MuseScore Facts & Figures

• Started in 2002 by Werner Schweer

• Launched in summer of 2008• Feb 2011: release of MuseScore 1.0• So far 2.5 million downloads with >100,000 per month• More than 150 contributors• MuseScore 2.0 scheduled for second half of 2012

Applications

• Lead Sheets• Piano Music• Vocal Arrangements• Combo Arrangements• Big Band Arrangements• Orchestra Arrangements• Musical Examples

Installation

Program• Download: http://musescore.org• Install: http://musescore.org/en/handbook/installation

Plugins• Download: http://musescore.org/en/plugins• Install: http://musescore.org/en/handbook/plugins• Recommendation: Slash, Add Staff, Explode/Implode

SoundFonts• Download: http://musescore.org/en/handbook/soundfont• Install: same• Recommendation: FluidR3

Initial Setup

• Edit->Preferenceso General->Working directoryo Score->Default paper sizeo Score->Scalingo Shortcuts

Migration from Finale or Sibelius

MusicXML

• Sibeliuso v7 has support built ino previous version: download Dolet plugin

• Finaleo most versions have support built in

MIDI

• Might be useful in a pinch• May be more work to fix up than to re-enter

Create New Jazz Lead Sheet

• File->New

• Title, Composer, Lyricist (style), Copyright• Create new score from template

• Jazz Lead Sheet

• Key signature

• Time Signature, Pickup Measure, Measures

Score Setup

Style->Edit General Style->Chordnames• cchords_muse: ma7, mi7, mi7b5, o7• cchords_nrb: ma7, mi7, mi7(b5), o7• cchords_rb: maj7, -7, -7b5, o7• cchords_sym: Δ, -7, ø, o7• stdchords: Maj7, m7, m7b5, dim7• jazzchords: ma7, mi7, mi7b5, dim7

Style->Edit Text Style• Font, Offset

Navigation

To move score• Drag blue rectangle in Navigator• Click-drag an empty area• Mouse wheel to scroll vertically• Shift mouse wheel to scroll horizontally

Zooming• Ctrl-+, Ctrl--• Ctrl mouse wheel

Playback• Click to set cursor position• Space or Play button to play

Note Entry - Basics

• Select starting position• Press "N" to enter note entry mode

• Press key for duration: 3=1/16, 4=1/8, 5=1/4, 6=1/2, 7=1• Press "." to toggle dot• Press key for note name: "A" - "G", "0" for rest• Default is diatonic, closest octave• Press up/down to transpose one semitone• Press ctrl-up/down to transpose one octave• Cursor automatically moves to next time position

• Press "N" or "Esc" to leave note entry mode

Note Entry - Additional Features

• Pitches can also be specified using MIDI or via mouse• Press "R" to repeat previous note• Press "+" to extend current note with tie• Press "Shift" with note name to add to current chord• Palette / shortcut to add courtesy accidentals• Palette / shortcut to break and join beams• Press "Ctrl-3" to divide into triplets• Press "X" to flip stem• Press "Shift-X" to mirror note head• Voice buttons to enter multiple voices

Editing Individual Notes

While in note entry mode• Left/right to move cursor• Newly entered notes always replace existing notes!

While in standard mode with a single note selected• Arrows transpose• Numbers change duration• Letters change pitch• Delete replaces with rest• Right click for properties menu

While in edit mode (double click)• Arrows nudge

Editing Groups of Notes

Selecting multiple notes• Click to select a single note or rest• Click empty area within a measure to select the measure• Shift-drag or click/Shift-click to select a range• Ctrl-click to add to selection

While in standard mode with multiple notes selected• Arrows transpose• Delete replaces with rest• Right click for properties menu• Ctrl-C/Ctr-X/Ctrl-V for copy/cut/paste

Chord Symbols

• Select note• Press Ctrl-K to enter chord edit mode• Type chord name normally• Space to move to next beat, note, rest (shift for previous)• Tab to move to next measure (shift for previous)• Press Esc to leave chord edit mode

Measures and Repeats

Adding and deleting measures• Create->Measures->Append Measures (Ctrl-Shift-B)• Edit->Delete Selected Measures (Ctrl-Delete)

Double bars• Barline palette

Repeats• Barlines palette for repeat signs• Lines palette for endings• Repeats palette for measure repeat sign• Repeats palette for Segno, Coda, and Fine

o Double click to edit as text

Line Layout

To decrease the number of measures on a line• Line break: select barline and press Enter• "Break Every X Measures" plugin• Layout->Add More Stretch ("}")

To increase the number of measures on a line• Layout->Add Less Stretch ("{")

To add horizontal space•  Create->Measures->Insert/Append Horizontal Frame

Page Layout

To decrease the number of systems per page• Page break: select barline and press Ctrl-Enter

To increase the number of systems per page• Layout->Page Settings->Space• Style->Edit General Style->Page

o Staff distance, System distance, Page fill threshold

To add vertical space• Breaks & Spacer palette - Staff spacer• Create->Measures->Insert/Append Vertical Frame

Transposition

• Notes->Transpose• Edit header, F2 for text symbols palette• Cleanup

Output

Visual• Print• File->Save As (PDF, PNG, ...)

Audio• Play• File->Save As (WAV, MIDI, ...)

Other Topics

Most of these will be covered in the next presentation

• Text• Lyrics• Grace notes• Note markings• Score markings• Adding staves• Clef changes• Key signature changes• Time signature changes• Slash notation• Drum notation