How to add this slur to a composition
I am trying to enter a song composition into Musescore and have run into a snag.
Please refer to the attached snip of two measures I am working on. I can enter everything except the slur in the treble clef from measure 1 to measure 2. Musescore tries to rearrange the notes with things I did not enter.
And, is there a way to disable the automatic setting of rests? I would like to enter an entire measure before the software checks for the timing.
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| Snip of page 3.jpg | 143.23 KB |
Comments
Select the starting note, press S, then Shift+right until the slur reaches the target note
In reply to Select the starting note,… by Jojo-Schmitz
Yes that will work but how do I get the slurred notes into the measure in the first place without all the other notes changing automatically?
In reply to Yes that will work but how… by dale19
See https://musescore.org/en/handbook/4/working-multiple-voices
In reply to See https://musescore.org/en… by Jojo-Schmitz
Thanks for the article, but I am still stuck. Either I am doing something wrong or something is wrong in my composition that won't allow Musescore to edit it the way I want. Refer to the attached screenprint. At the hightlighted in blue note I am trying to enter the B (with dot) note directly above the first note in the triplet (F note), but it refuses to let me position it there. I selected voice 2 and it won't put it where I want it.
In reply to Thanks for the article, but… by dale19
In voice 1, enter the dotted rest and the dotted quarter note, followed (and tied to) the dotted half. Go back to the first measure, and click on the dotted quarter. Switch to voice 2, and enter the three eighth notes followed by the duads in the next measure.
In reply to In voice 1, enter the dotted… by mikey12045
I can get the dotted rest and dotted quarter note in voice 1, followed by the dotted half and tie them. But it all goes crazy when I click on the dotted quarter in the first measure and switch to voice 2. When I switch to voice 2 the note turns green and wants me to place it either under the dotted rest or in the second measure under the dotted half note. Is there any way to suppress the automatic insertion of rests while editing? I am on version 4.5.1
The screenshot is all I have been able to do before things went wonky.
In reply to I can get the dotted rest… by dale19
You must be in note input mode before you click the button (or press the keyboard shortcut) to switch to Voice 2. If you're not, you have explicitly moved the selected note(s) to Voice 2, which I don't think is what you want. But, from your description, is what you did.
So, follow along:
1) Press N (enter note input mode)
2) Enter the Voice 1 notes into the measure (or several measures)
3) While remaining in note input mode, use the Left arrow key to move back to the beginning of the measure where the Voice 2 notes are to begin. Be sure that you have moved to the beginning of the measure!
4) Still in note input mode, click the Voice 2 button or press Ctrl +Alt+2 to switch to Voice 2.
5) Enter the notes that belong in Voice 2.
For steps 3 and 4, you can toggle out of note entry mode to do other stuff if necessary. The key thing is that before you switch to Voice 2, you must be back into note entry mode. And you want to be at the beginning of the measure in question. If the Voice 2 notes begin after the beginning of the measure, explicitly enter the necessary rests to reach that beginning spot.
How to select which notes should be in Voice 1 versus Voice 2? Voice 1 defaults to stem up; Voice 2, down. So, for example, in SATB closed score (with SA on one staff and TB on another), soprano would be Voice 1 and alto, Voice 2. In the TB staff, tenor would be Voice 1 and bass, Voice 2.
In reply to You must be in note input… by TheHutch
Thanks! This got me much further. Except for one annoying little problem. The dotted rest is in the wrong place and I can't get it to move to the beginning of the measure.
![Screenshot - 3_29_2025 , 4_12_46 PM.jpg]( "Screenshot - 3_29_2025 , 4_12_46 PM.jpg")
These rests are getting in the way.
In reply to Thanks! This got me much… by dale19
Apparently it's how to manage the dotted quarter rests from start of measure that's been giving you trouble. Take a look at this GIF below. It starts at the end of Voice1 input (which is no particular problem). I'm still in input mode.
You'll notice that the cursor has reached the third measure, from which point on: return to the first measure with the left arrow (or Ctrl/Cmd + left arrow, which is what I'm doing here).
Then switch to Voice 2, via the toolbox selector for example, and enter the dotter quarter rest (eg with "0" shortcut), which is therefore in Voice 2 (this was probably the crux of the problem for you).
You'll notice that there now are 2 dotted quarter rests (one in Voice1 and the other in Voice2). You're perfectly welcome to leave it that way when entering this score (which is what you should do as a beginner, just don't forget to merge the rests at the end of the input.)
I continued to enter a few notes in Voice 2 (but there were no more problems after that, so I stopped the input there).
However, to make it match your image, simply select the dotted quarter rest and then type "V" (to make it invisible).
You can stop there, it's grayed out and won't be printed, but as I show at the end of the GIF, you can hide it completely from your screen, via the "View" menu/ Show / Untick "Show invisible"
See:
In reply to I can get the dotted rest… by dale19
You can start the voice mid-measure. Click on the Bb, not on the rest.Then, switch to voice two.
In reply to I can get the dotted rest… by dale19
You can start the voice mid-measure. Click on the Bb, not on the rest.Then, switch to voice two.
Your picture show ties, no slurs!
![ScreenShot 390.png]( "ScreenShot 390.png")
And it works a little different: Select the starting note and press 't'.
What is your problem?
In reply to Your picture show ties, no… by HildeK
OFF topic, but related. How can I get the voices to display in colors, like you do? I've looked through the preferences and the various plugins, but I can't make it work.
In reply to OFF topic, but related. How… by mikey12045
Just select the measures...
Or use the Collor Voices plugin, to make it permenent
In reply to Just select the measures… by Jojo-Schmitz
Yes, permanent is what I want. I'll try it out. thanks.
In reply to Just select the measures… by Jojo-Schmitz
JoJo, we started this discussion before you went skiing. I can't get that plugin (if I even have the right one) to work. It didn't work for me in 4.5 or 4.5.1.
My first preference would be to have it universal, but I could deal with it with each new document. Or even apply it to a template.
EDIT: It's working now. Go figure. Where are those colors controlled? I'd like to change one or the other. They're both dark, and I'm having difficulty seeing the difference.
In reply to JoJo, we started this… by mikey12045
Sorry, but first https://musescore.org/en/node/376883 needs to get sorted (IOW: I'm on strike)
In reply to OFF topic, but related. How… by mikey12045
I have selected the measures, which is also indicated by the blue frame.
In reply to I have selected the measures… by HildeK
Thanks, HildeK. I thought that was a permanent display.
In reply to Your picture show ties, no… by HildeK
The problem is I cannot insert the notes above the triplet and into the second measure. When I do, all the notes that are in the measure change. In other words, I can't get the slurred/tied notes entered into the measures.
In reply to The problem is I cannot… by dale19
Do you understand the concept of voices? HildeK’s screenshot shows notes in voice 1 (blue) and voice 2 (green.) That might explain your problem of the already entered notes changing when you enter the notes to be slurred.
And as he said, you have tied notes, not slurred. Do you understand the difference?
In reply to Do you understand the… by mikey12045
I do understand the concept of different voices. I'm just new to this app. I will give this a try. Thank you.
In reply to I do understand the concept… by dchamb5590
Excuse me for intruding, but I wonder if you noticed this comment on the handbook page mentioned above regarding working with multiple voices:
"Note: to enter new notes, make sure you are in note input mode before selecting the desired voice, otherwise you will change the voice of any currently-selected elements instead."
I make this mistake all the time. I enter voice 1 and then mess it up when I go to enter voice 2 as Musescore thinks I am trying to change voice 1. It might help to take note of the current voice in the menu bar to make sure you are in the voice you want to be in. The attached picture shows the current voice is Voice 2.
In reply to Excuse me for intruding, but… by EMGScore1
There's also this info in the lower left status bars, which keeps you informed of everything on a selected note.