Metric modulation dotted eighth to quarter

• Apr 5, 2020 - 13:03

Hello,

it would be great to add the metric modulation dotted eighth to quarter note. I can only find dotted quarter to quarter note but it many cases, when drummer needs to switch from a 16th note type of groove to swing, the metric modulation is dotted eighth to quarter.

Thanks.

Comments

• Apr 5, 2020 - 13:08

Feel free to create it yourself and add it to your palette.
1. Start by adding both a dotted 1/8th = tempo marking and a quarter = tempo marking.
2. Double click the latter and copy the quarter note text element.
3. Double click the dotted 1/8th tempo marking and paste the quarter note instead of the value
4. remove the quarter note tempo marking

(5. Ctrl-Shift-drag the marking from your score into your palette for future reuse)

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• Feb 7, 2021 - 19:13

I tried your suggest for eighth note = quarter note and when I did the paste I got a character in Chinese Font. See image attached. Also not sure of what happens in the tempo change when utilized. I have a score I'm copying with Allegro (using default 144 BPM, assume quarter note.) When I add any modulation with smaller duration note = longer duration note, since the above is not in the palette, the inspector always shows a 120 BPM tempo. In this score I am expecting a marked slowdown in the tempo. It is not marked explicitly so I can only guess a value to set manually.

Attachment Size
ChineseTempo.jpg 1.99 KB

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• Feb 8, 2021 - 02:37

It's near the end of Brahm's Academic Festival overture. The final measures are played slower then everything to that point. Just from listening sounds like the intent is to slow to to half the previous so 144 BPM down to 72. Not sure I understand the marking... but from what I read in references, metric modulation did not exist at the time it was written and so using that from the tempo section would not be correct. Symbols implied slow tempo in half????

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• Feb 8, 2021 - 23:56

We mean, we would need you to 8attach* the score - the actual MSCZ file. In general, the markings work exactly as designed and documented, so if you have a case where it seems they are not, chances are good that you've entered them wrong, or found some as-yet-undiscovered bug that happens only in this specific case. Either way, we need you to attach the score to understand and assist further.

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• Feb 9, 2021 - 01:52

I understand that that using the metric modulation of eighth = quarter will double the speed. Perhaps the issue can be explained from the following taken from Wikipedia for Metric Modulation.

"Before the modern concept and notation of metric modulations composers used the terms doppio piu mosso and doppio piu lento for double and half-speed, and later markings such as: (Adagio)quarter note=eighth note(Allegro) indicating double speed, which would now be marked (eighth note=quarter note) (Weisberg 1996, 52)." So this is the effect I am seeing with the tempo modulation in Musescore. But the note implies that the current implementation is opposite the use of similar markings in classical scorer. So the eighth = quarter in Brahms was intended to cut tempo in half, which is what is required, but using current implementation produces the reverse effect. Probably best to just set the tempo and use graphical glyphs for the text.

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• Dec 7, 2021 - 16:51

Just an update. It does appear that Musescore metric modulation works opposite what was intended by classical composers. I found in The Planets/Jupiter section a marking of quarter = half and the intent is definitely to slow the pace in half. However Musescore doubles the tempo from 135 to 270 BPM, not reducing to a little under 70. The actual marking on the score is "Andante maestoso quarter = half" where quarter and half are the quarter and half note symbols.

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• Dec 7, 2021 - 17:01

The attached score was downloaded from Musescore but I saved with altered name but the contributor is identified on the score itself. Measure 191 or thereabout contains the tempo marking in question. (quarter = half) Inspector shows it is set explicitly to a slower tempo. If you then check the checkbox to follow text, the tempo changes to double and up to 270 BPM. The marking is per the printed score. The override to explicitly set the tempo is required. This is what I commented on in recent post and earlier this year for other scores including my comment from a Wikipedia search that indicates current use of modulation appears to be the reverse of classical implementations. Not a musician so can't comment otherwise other than observations. Not saying it is a bug but need to be aware of use that is counter to current implementation.

Attachment Size
The_Planets_Jupiter_exMusescore.mscz 288.03 KB

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• Dec 7, 2021 - 17:11

Metric modulations used to work opposite in older times on occasion; they were usually annotated with additional text markings to clarify their intent.

MuseScore's implementation however follows the current day standard of (new = old) which also corresponds with how metric swing marking modulations are written.

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• Dec 7, 2021 - 17:23

Here's the code:

            TempoPattern("<sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym> = <sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym><sym>space</sym><sym>metAugmentationDot</sym>", QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Quarter note = dotted quarter note metric modulation"), 3.0/2.0, true, false, true, false, false),
            TempoPattern("<sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym><sym>space</sym><sym>metAugmentationDot</sym> = <sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym>", QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Dotted quarter note = quarter note metric modulation"), 2.0/3.0, true, false, true, false, false),
            TempoPattern("<sym>metNoteHalfUp</sym> = <sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym>",    QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Half note = quarter note metric modulation"),    2.0/1.0, true, false, true, false, false),
            TempoPattern("<sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym> = <sym>metNoteHalfUp</sym>",    QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Quarter note = half note metric modulation"),    1.0/2.0, true, false, true, false, false),
            TempoPattern("<sym>metNote8thUp</sym> = <sym>metNote8thUp</sym>",         QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Eighth note = eighth note metric modulation"),   1.0/1.0, true, false, true, false, false),
            TempoPattern("<sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym> = <sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym>", QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Quarter note = quarter note metric modulation"), 1.0/1.0, true, false, true, false, false),
            TempoPattern("<sym>metNote8thUp</sym><sym>space</sym><sym>metAugmentationDot</sym> = <sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym>",     QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Dotted eighth note = quarter note metric modulation"),  2.0/3.0, true, false, true, false, false),

There's clearly something wrong with it, the last line needs to be

<sym>metNoteQuarterUp</sym>",     QT_TRANSLATE_NOOP("Palette", "Dotted eighth note = quarter note metric modulation"),  4.0/3.0, true, false, true, false, false),

A bad math screw-up of mine...

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