triplets in tablature
I'm writing out some arpeggio exercises in tablature for guitar. These are 32 bars of eighth note triplets.
I begin by clicking quarter note then cmd-3 to enter triplets and type the first three notes. Now Musescore has changed the note duration to eighth notes and not triplets. So I must click quarter note again then cmd-3 again to enter the next three notes. It seems I must do this every three notes, four times per bar, 32 bars per exercise.
If I'm entering eighth notes throughout then Musescore does not change the note duration and force me to set again repeatedly. But with eighth note triplets (and I suppose other tuplets) this is not the case. Unless I am missing something?
Is there anyway to tell Musescore to keep the same note duration until I take action to change it?
Musescore 3.5.2 on MacOS 10.15.6
Comments
When you see the 3 triplet rests (after cmd+3), select the first rest and shift click on the third one to select the triplet. Press R as many times as necessary to fill your measures with triplets (rests). Then enter notes.
You wrote:
Musescore has changed the note duration to eighth notes and not triplets.
Not really, you had just entered a string of eighth notes (3 eighths per beat), yes?
MuseScore can not read your mind to determine if you wish to continue adding eighth notes as triplets (3 per beat), or as normal (2 per beat). When software makes a guess, it can't always be correct. Only you can tell it exactly what you wish to enter.
EDIT: What style of TAB are you using? Is your TAB staff linked to a standard (treble clef) staff?
In reply to When you see the 3 triplet… by Jm6stringer
Brilliant idea to use R to repeat triplet rests, thanks! But I must be doing it wrong. If I'm entering tablature there's no rests displayed that I am able to select. If I'm entering guitar + tablature, after I select the first rest and shift click on the third to select the triplet, when I press R once nothing apparent happens. When I press R a second time it replaces the first two eighth rests of the triplet with a quarter rest leaving me in input mode on the third rest. When I press R a third time, nothing apparent happens. When I press R a fourth time it replaces the quarter rest on the second beat with two (non-triplet) eighth notes. I feel like I must be missing a step somewhere.
However, this did give me an idea. Using guitar + tablature I created one measure of eighth note triplets then copied and pasted to the rest of the measures in the treble clef. Then I was able to easily enter tablature without interruption.
I would suggest that Musescore should not be making a guess at all, rather it should continue to enter exactly what the user has asked it to enter until the user says otherwise.
In reply to Brilliant idea to use R to… by edrmiller
You wrote:
I must be doing it wrong.
If I'm entering tablature there's no rests displayed that I am able to select.
It depends on the TAB style you use. Follow the instructions here:
triplets using R to repeat_2.mscz
Also see:
https://musescore.org/en/handbook/tablature#adjust-tablature-display
for info. about simple, common, full.
You wrote:
I would suggest that Musescore should not be making a guess at all, rather it should continue to enter exactly what the user has asked it to enter until the user says otherwise.
Plus, earlier you wrote:
Now Musescore has changed the note duration to eighth notes and not triplets.
If you inspect the note input toolbar, there is no note duration "triplet". "Triplet" is a special case of a "tuplet". There are "duplets", "quadruplets", "quintuplets". etc. - all are types of tuplets.
When you ctrl+3 a quarter rest into a "triplet" MuseScore displays 3 eighth rests. (This is actually a guess.) Someone (else) might complain: "Heck, where's my quarter note? I wanted to enter a quarter note + eighth note tuplet. I never said I wanted to change to eighth note."
You did not notice that because you wanted to enter 3 eighth notes. That's common enough so that the eighth note duration is automatically "lit up" on the note selection toolbar.
So you enter the first eighth note of your triplet. The eighth note duration is still "lit up".
You enter the second eighth note of your triplet. The eighth note duration is still "lit up".
You enter the third eighth note of your triplet. The eighth note duration is still "lit up".
Your triplet is now full. Remember, "triplet" is not a note duration. So, if someone (else) now wanted a 'normal' eighth note, what duration should he select from the toolbar? (because the eighth note duration is already still "lit up".)
N.B. If you press ctrl+3 immediately after completing your entry of your eighth note triplet, a new triplet of 16th notes will appear, because that eighth note duration is not changed but is instead converted into its own triplet (of 16th notes).
In reply to You wrote: I must be doing… by Jm6stringer
Many thanks for the information and explanations.
In reply to Many thanks for the… by edrmiller
Perhaps some good news here...
More options for the top toolbar are planned for MuseScore 4, including something for tuplets.
In one early mockup UI image, I noticed what looks like a special button - and it's not a "note duration". Perhaps such a button will be able to "lock" note entry into some sort of "triplet (or tuplet?) entry mode" until toggled off.
(Such an idea had been kicked around in forums past.)
An early release (of ver. 4.0) for testing that I downloaded about 3 weeks ago did not yet display the full toolbar so I can't see any such button, nor determine its function. I haven't checked for newer release(s) because it will take months as the coding and testing continue and more features are enabled...
See:
https://musescore.org/en/MuseScore4