Inserting a note while composing a melody
Hi - new user here. There is something that seems like it ought to be simple to do. But I'm not figuring it out.
I'm in 4/4 time.
I write a melody - say, a scale, from C3 to C4. All quarter notes. So - 2 measures.
Now between F3 and G3, I want to insert a quarter note, F4. I don't want to lose the notes G3, A3, B3 and C4. If I was doing this on paper, the two measures would then be: C3, D3, E3, F3, F4, G3, A3, and B3. C4 would start in the next measure.
Is there an easy way to do this in MuseScore?
If there is, what if I wanted F4 to be an eighth note?
If this cannot be done the way I am asking about, how would you do the equivalent in MuseScore?
(Note: The image is screenshot from a software app called Harmony Assistant. If it would help, I can create a video that shows what I described above.)
Thanks
~ Bal
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| show-musescore.png | 56.66 KB |
Comments
See https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/note-input-modes#timewise. Or use Copy/Cut and paste to move the following notes asside before inserting the additional note
In reply to See https://musescore.org/en… by Jojo-Schmitz
Thanks, Jojo - I'll study this and give it a try. I will likely have other questions... :)
~ Bal
Of course, if you were doing it on paper, you'd now have five beats in one of those measures, and the final C still being in the second measure, not the third.. So you'd actually need to erase the barlines and redraw them to get the result you describe. But the spacing would be messed up, so in the end, you'd probably erase the notes and re-draw them all from that point after all. Cut and paste in MuseScore is definitely way easier!
In reply to Of course, if you were doing… by Marc Sabatella
That's true about using paper, Marc. But it's not true with Harmony Assistant, the software I'd be moving from if I start using MuseScore. With HA, it works like a word processor, where I can insert a note and the notes to the right shift (across the bar lines if necessary) by the durations of the inserted notes. I can also copy and paste notes in between two notes and all the notes to the right shift to the right.
I don't like HA's soundbase all that much and there are other oddities that I don't like, which is why I'm exploring MuseScore. Being able to insert notes without messing up what I've already written to the right of the inserted notes is likely a different process in MuseScore. I'm trying to get a handle on how it's done.
In reply to That's true about using… by wordmuse
The issue with moving notes automatically is guessing how many notes to move. Seldom would you literally want everything from the point of an edit to the end of a score move. But at least one program guesses exactly that. Occasionally it might be just one measure, and that's what some other programs guess.
So, moving notes is done by cut and paste. Normally it's not that common an operation - you would normally enter notes onto the correct beats to begin with, or you'd realize the mistake pretty quickly. Actually going back later to move notes to a different beat is not that common of a thing to do, and cut & paste is just a couple of keystrokes and allows precise control of which notes get moved.
That said, there is a "duration editor" plugin you might find yourself if you find youself doing this sort of thing a lot. See the Download menu above.
In reply to The issue with moving notes… by Marc Sabatella
Hmm - I do this kind of thing a lot, which is why it's important to me. I'm working on a melody, and I think, what would happen if I inserted a 1/16th note here. Or what would happen if I copied measures 16-20 over to this new place at measure 72? How would it sound on top of the other staves, etc.
I do a lot of "what-if?" this way.
Where would I find the duration editor?
Thanks!
~ Bal
In reply to Hmm - I do this kind of… by wordmuse
You can find the plugin here: https://musescore.org/en/project/duration-editor
To add to one of those possible complexities in making the "correct" choice when a note is inserted is what should happen with notes on other instruments/staves as well.
In reply to You can find the plugin here… by jeetee
Thank you for the link.
Yes - I do have to be mindful of what happens with the other staves. But composing is an iterative process, so I'm somehow able to make it work.
~ Bal
In reply to Hmm - I do this kind of… by wordmuse
Well, sure, "what if" is common, and as mentioned, cut and paste is your one stop shop for all sorts of variations - what if you moved that line from the flute staff to the oboe staff, etc. I just meant, of all the possible "what if" edits in the world, inserting a note and moving literally everything else in the entire score forward is pretty rare.
In reply to Well, sure, what if is… by Marc Sabatella
Next time I'm doing it in a significant way, I'll post a video of it. :)
~ Bal
In reply to Next time I'm doing it in a… by wordmuse
For what it is worth (not much) Sibelius will do this. But as stated above, inserting a note and moving everything after to the right butchers the melodic and metric flow of what is there. OK, they didn't say "butcher". They are much to nice. I have to assume that you structured a phrase or melody a certain way for a reason. Even atonal music has structure. Inserting anything throws that off. Unless that is what you want. Maybe you use this as a composition technique. That's fine. But it seems a bit hap-hazard.
In reply to For what it is worth (not… by bobjp
I'm not formally trained in any way, but I like what I produce. I wrote a 20 minute piano quartet and an 8½ minute tone poem (and some smaller works, too). We all have our techniques. The question we have to answer is whether we are producing the music we want to produce and are the tools sufficient to the task? I find Harmony Assistant to be very intuitive, so my answer is yes.
But as I said, I don't really care for some of the sounds in its soundbase, and some of the limitations make musical effects (like arco vs pizzicato) more difficult than they ought to be. So I'm exploring for alternatives. Especially if they can save me time in the long run. It took me a year each to compose the quartet and tone poem.
In reply to I'm not formally trained in… by wordmuse
I looked at HA. Did I see that you can buy additional sounds?
Perhaps another question is, are we able to write what we want in spite of our tools. Consider the composers who wrote with nothing more than paper and ink.
In reply to I looked at HA. Did I see… by bobjp
Yes - I bought the additional sounds (called Gold Sound Base). I'm still not satisfied. And yes, your question is relevant. Back in the 1970s, which is when I began dabbling with composing, I did it with a pencil and paper, and then corrected what I wrote, using a piano. So I am very grateful for Harmony Assistant. I'm just looking to see if there are things that can help me get closer to where I want to be.
In reply to Yes - I bought the… by wordmuse
There may be no such thing as the perfect notation software. But by all means, delve into MuseScore. What sounds are you interested in? MuseScore sound can be pretty good once you figure out how to use them.
In reply to There may be no such thing… by bobjp
Mainly, I want more realistic sounding instruments. For example, while HA's clarinet is beautiful, its trumpet leaves a lot to be desired. HA offers the ability to play 1 violin or a violins section. Ditto cello and bass. But not viola. So creating realistic orchestral music is somewhat problematic.
I feel like I'm badmouthing HA. I really don't mean to do so. I've been using the software since 2014, and can't imagine where I'd be in my composing efforts without it. The price was reasonable and their online forum is very responsive when I have questions or make suggestions.
It's just that I'm greedy! I want more! :)