Naming of Instruments for Parts
First, let me praise the work that has gone into Musescore. It works very well for the music I do.
My question has to do with the naming of the instrument parts when you select "Parts" or you export.
I use MU to transcribe for choir, so all scores have SATB plus other lines (organ, or small ensemble). I like to use piano lines for the vocal parts because it's easier to hear the note changes than Choral Ahhs.
On the Mixer panel, the Name field shows whatever instrument was originally selected. In my attached template, the SATB sliders are all marked "Piano". If I open Parts, that is the name that appears in the text at the top left of the scores. I can change them there, kool. But if I have already changed the "Instrument Long Name" in the Part Properties dialog, why does that name not show up in the Part score, and in the Export dialog?
Further, the Name field in the Mixer can be misleading. If I change the Sound selection (say, I make my soprano a Hawaiian Guitar), the Name still says Piano even if I save and close the program and reopen it. Not saying I want Parts to say Hawaiian Guitar, I want it to say what I made the Long Instrument Name, "Soprano" (I guess I shortened it to "Sopr").
So, I'm not sure that the Name field is useful, since it can disagree with the name I placed beside the staff and the sound selection I changed. Does the Part need a Name field, since it has a Long Instrument Name property?
I hope these observations make sense. I would be interested if they conflict with decisions you made for good reasons in the design of the present version.
Thanks, and again, wow! Great program.
- Robert Weiss
Tempe, AZ
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Template_SATB with Organ_01_231109.mscz | 27.71 KB |
Comments
To change the part name, change the name within the parts dialog itself.
In reply to To change the part name,… by Marc Sabatella
Thanks, Marc.
I followed your advice with the following result:
- I chose another score where the parts had been created originally as Choral Ahhs and Replaced Instrument for each part with Keyboard>Piano.
- Changed the Long Ins Names to Sopr/Alto/Tenr/Bass in the dialog where you dbl-click the leading part name on the staff.
- Did as you suggested and opened the Parts dialog, changed the names to agree with the Long Ins Name.
- Saved the score, closed the app, and reopened it.
Checking the Mixer dialog, the part names are still Piano. I really hope when you open the attached, you find that same feature and don't think me nuts. :)
I watched Tantacrul's video on the development of MU4. His passion for the program and for thoughtful UI design is palpable. In that spirit, I offer these observations about this little feature.
Maybe there is a reason why there has to be a "Name" field lurking behind the screen. But if there is a Long Ins Name, shouldn't that be what becomes the Part Name?
Or even assuming that there must be separate Names that appear on the staff and in the Parts dialog, the Parts dialog has a design issue that could be improved. I expect that if I want to change an item's title, I click it, which switches its display to a textbox, change it, and hit Enter, which saves it. In this Parts dialog, I click the three dots to get a menu, and select Rename. Two extra clicks to get the textbox. I must do that for every part. And this after already changing the display name on every staff. Not a big deal for 4 staves, but onerous for a bigger score.
...And it appears that my new Name did not carry into the Mixer display.
Seems like a small bug and an opportunity to smooth out the process.
Thanks for your response and dedication to the enterprise.
- R
In reply to Thanks, Marc. I followed… by Hitchcock1939
Instrument name isn't autoamtically part name because a part can contain multiple instruments, and there can be multiple parts generated from the same instrument.
A simpler interface for renaming the parts within the dialog is on the agenda already.
It's known that the mixer does not use this name, and there is still some internal discussion going on about how that name should be chosen.
In reply to Instrument name isn't… by Marc Sabatella
Thanks for your explanation. There is so much that is spot-on with the program. It's a pleasure to work with.
- R
In reply to Thanks for your explanation… by Hitchcock1939
So don't start with piano sounds. Use the choir template. Or at least set up the score with vocal sounds. Change the names on the score and in the parts dialogue, if you must. In the mixer choose the instrument you want to play the part. Result: The only label that doesn't change is the one across the bottom of the mixer. It will still say the full vocal part name. Even on a re-open.
In reply to So don't start with piano… by bobjp
Thanks for the suggestion. That sounds workable. - R