Synchronise selected channel in mixer with stave being worked on?

• Apr 21, 2020 - 19:30

Hi,

First of all: Thank you to all the marvellous people working on MuseScore, it's a wonderful program, and I am fantastically happy with it!

I was wondering if the following would be possible (and if it is possible already, maybe someone can point out how to do this?):

When I work in a particular stave (note input, etc, or even clicking on the stave), I would like the mixer to automatically select (and scroll into view) the corresponding channel.
The way it is now, often I work in a stave, do something in the mixer, only to find that I am actually adjusting the wrong mixer channel, as the selected mixer channel does not follow what I'm doing in the score.

Of course, this should be an option that can be switched off or on, because maybe not everyone would want this behaviour.

Is this something that would be feasible?

Many thanks again to all the great contributors to MuseScore.

Comments

• May 4, 2020 - 01:30

Our main goal is to maximize score view space. Doing this may clutter the screen. Maybe if you select a bar at a certain instrument and when it plays back it appears?

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• May 4, 2020 - 14:50

Hmm... can you clarify further?

You wrote:
...often I work in a stave, do something in the mixer, only to find that I am actually adjusting the wrong mixer channel...

What work do you often perform in a stave that requires your subsequent access to the mixer?

Also, you wrote:
...the selected mixer channel does not follow what I'm doing in the score.

What kind of work in a score does a mixer channel not follow for you?
For example, if you 'Change Instrument' in the score, the mixer automatically follows your change, yes?

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• May 4, 2020 - 16:59

I've made a little video that explains (I hope) what I mean: https://youtu.be/H2giFs3gxNg

> What work do you often perform in a stave that requires your subsequent access to the mixer?

E.g., when I work on a large orchestral score, and I am adding or editing notes in, say, the trombones, and I want to hear them a bit better, or solo them, etc, then my expectation would be that the stave I am working on (the trombones) would be the one selected in the mixer as well, and that mixer channel to be in view inside the mixer (if and only if the mixer is open at all, of course).
But oftentimes I find I am adjusting the wrong channel in the mixer, because some other channel happens to be selected, and then I wonder why I am not hearing the expected change…

> What kind of work in a score does a mixer channel not follow for you?

Only the fact whether it is selected and in view, or not.

> For example, if you 'Change Instrument' in the score, the mixer automatically follows your change, yes?

Yes, but this is not what I am talking about. I only mean, if I add / edit something in one particular stave, then it would be nice if the mixer would select and scroll into view the corresponding mixer channel.

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• May 4, 2020 - 19:10

Here's what other notation software can do that seems easier to use than always having to go to the mixer. If I just want to hear the trombones at a particular place in the score, I select the measure I want to hear. CTRL or SHIFT + select as needed if multiple staves are involved. Then "play". Playback of the selected instruments begins. This is much easier than going to the mixer to solo them.

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• May 4, 2020 - 21:12

Is it? I mean entirely? I mean, I get it. I work in medium sized orchestra scores and it's a pain to scroll around to find the right channel even in those. You only gave us one example of how you would use this. Unless I am totally off, there are only three things of practical use that you can do in the mixer.
1. mute
2. solo
3. change volume
Yes, there are the articulation voices, and some folks do something with mid. As well as change the voice. I don't think any software does what you suggest. That's not a reason to not do it. But they have provided a few work-arounds. Personally I try not to change the volume in the mixer unless I have to. It can throw off all the dynamics for that channel. I merely pointed out how other software handles the solo function. Which, in that software, I use all the time so I don't have to mess with the mixer.

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• May 4, 2020 - 22:05

Oh well, it's not all that important I guess.

> …it's a pain to scroll around to find the right channel even in those

So wouldn't it be simpler if there was the option (checkable in Preferences) to have MuseScore scroll into view and select the right channel for you?
I mean, this would only apply if the mixer was actually already open and in view, which means that the user probably wants it open and in view, which means the user probably has a use for the mixer.

> Unless I am totally off, there are only three things of practical use that you can do in the mixer. 1. mute 2. solo 3. change volume

And if I happen to have the mixer in view (which isn't 100% of the time, but quite regularly nonetheless), then it is mostly to solo or mute tracks, try different instruments, and - less often - change volume.

> I don't think any software does what you suggest

I know MuseScore isn't a DAW, but many folks will be using both MuseScore and some sort of DAW.
And although MuseScore isn't a DAW, it has certain similarities to one.
I personally use Reaper.
And Reaper most certainly does exactly this: whenever I do anything with a track, like select a take, double-click to open to edit the piano-roll, anything, Reaper will select the track in the mixer for you, and scroll it into view.
So, at least from my point of view, it is somewhat expected behaviour to have the focus of different parts of an application on the same thing, i.e, the thing being worked on.

> That's not a reason to not do it. But they have provided a few work-arounds.

It's not a big deal, it's merely something I somewhat regularly stumble upon, e.g. by adjusting an instrument or soloing exactly the wrong track, and being somewhat irritated by that.
It's only a usability issue, not a fundamental problem with MuseScore whatsoever.
I simply want MuseScore to be the best it can be, and it already is the most awesome AND free notation software available.

I plan to set up my laptop to be able to compile MuseScore from source, and once I do, I might try and implement this, and if I do, I will submit a pull request :)

> Personally I try not to change the volume in the mixer unless I have to

Of course. I use dynamic indicators all over the place to make things sound good, and the mixer volume is not something I use much. However, solo and mute are things I do use quite a bit when composing.

> It can throw off all the dynamics for that channel

Agreed.

> I merely pointed out how other software handles the solo function

This would indeed be a welcome addition to MuseScore's features :)

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