Common standards for font size, italics, etc, with A4 print out scores.

• Apr 23, 2017 - 19:21

Hello, I've finished a rough draft of my composition which is attached below and would like to know if there is a standard font size to use with the title composition, author name, tempo markings, common qualifiers, articulations markings, etc. I am using the basic 12 point font for many of the markings and setting the common qualifiers in bold with no italics. I just want it to look professional and neat on musescore as well as ready from printing when I get the final draft complete. I've googled some sites online and would like to hear some common standards from other users of musescore. Also, I've noticed that if I use a special font it wont show up when I upload it in musescore. Is there any other font besides "freeserif" that would look neat on the musescore?

Also, if any of you have the time, could you please let me know how my layout and system organization looks?

Thank you.

Sincerely, Daniel.


Comments

The standard depend on the genre of music, the intended audience, etc. The defaults MuseScore uses for all fonts are pretty much standard for classical music intended for adult / professional use. If you are producing jazz or rock, or music for children, you might want different choices. Also, for a few marking type, there are different fonts used depending on context - eg, the font for a tempo marking like "Allegro" often differs from that used for "rit.", and "p" differs from "cresc". Best to check examples from the publishers you imagine your work would fit in with, and do whatever they do.

Hi, Daniel

There is a problem in your score at bars 49-51 (count your eighth notes!) To distribute "professional" looking parts and scores, formatting, Fonts, etc. might be important, but primarily you have to care about obvious errors in your sheet music...that is really the most important thing here.

In reply to by olivo

The strange stuff starts at measure 35. You've obviously changed all of the 1/2 note heads to 1/4 note heads which will cause nothing but confusion to real musicians. I'm not sure if this was on purpose or not. If you want to change it back you can select the entire score. Look in the inspector and click the button that says notes. Scroll down to the note section and press the black circular arrow next to the Head Type to change them back.

Not to pile on, but in addition:
(and I realize some of this is not font-specific, sorry)

Mind your consistency. I think I caught a few font variations in tempo, technique, and style.
For example: Misterioso at bar 99 seems unique. Consistency trumps font IMO.

I'll add my concern to watch your noteheads; I do not know what caused this.

Starting at 53-55, perhaps a key change is advisable; again at 99; back to 3 flats at 111.

Lastly - and I am no expert here - but your bass -8 and regular bass clef seem like maybe the wrong choices for the contrabass. I am most accustomed to traditional transposing notation for bass with regular bass and treble clef or perhaps an 8va line on regular bass clef for the upper range.
Would anyone else wish to weigh in on this?

In reply to by mike320

right, thanks
I was one of the people pushing for the change for bass and guitar.
I wanted to point out that even on earlier versions, playing in F-8 and then switching to regular F might have been a little confusing, and I was wondering if there was a 'preferred normal' in such a case.

In reply to by mkjnovak

I didn't realize the he had made the clef change. From talking to bassist, they would not appreciate this type of clef change. It would be better to change the bass definition and use tenor clef or possibly the treble clef in the higher parts.

If you want to change it so the clefs are standard make the concert pitch not be pressed. Right click the staff (or instrument name) and select staff properties. Change the transposition to down 1 octave. Then change to the plain bass clef. This will allow you to replace the normal bass clef at the cantando section for the higher parts with the tenor clef (which is more common) and then change back to the bass clef. starting in the eroica section. Actually you really only need the tenor clef for the first 3 measures of the cantando section, but using the same locations you have now would not cause any problems.

If you do not change the transposition, the tenor clef will not work properly since there is no 8vb tenor clef.

@mkjnovak, I was also pushing to eliminate all clefs with octave numbers for the reason in the previous paragraph..

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