Master palette

The Master Palette is a repository of symbols and text used to:

Edit and compose custom Palettes,
Create new Time Signatures or Key Signatures, and
Add to the score a rare symbol as a one time action without editing any palettes, for example, adding the rarely used ppppppp this one time for this score.

Items are categorized based on musical meaning. Hovering the mouse over an item shows a tool tip (a short definition in black on yellow background).

Functional and non-functional items : the Master Palette contains two distinctly different types of notation items:

Non-functional items under the Symbols category, and
Functional items under all other categories.

See Notation types for their difference in usage.

Ability to adjust the size of the symbol or text

Sometimes there are two approaches to adding a symbol or text, consider your need to adjust its size before adding, see Notation types: Resizing.

Open the Master Palette window

To open the Master Palette window, use either of the following options:

Press Shift+F9 (Mac: fn+Shift+F9), or
From the menu, select View → Master Palette.

Open the Symbols category directly

Open the Symbols category directly from the score by using the shortcut "Show symbol palette", or press Z.

Edit and compose custom palette

See Palettes : Customize palettes.
You cannot add items to a toolbar from the Master palette, see Viewing and navigation: Toolbars instead.

Create new Time Signatures or Key Signatures

See Time Signatures and Key Signatures.

Add an item to the score directly

Either:

Drag-and-drop on to the score/staff/notes/rests, or
Select a note or rest and double-click a symbol.

Find a Non-functional symbol

IMPORTANT: Make sure you understand and really need the Non-functional symbol

Use the font drop down list on the bottom right of the box to specify Emmentaler-, Gonville- or Bravura-specific symbols.
Search for a particular symbol by entering a keyword in the search box.

Connect Non-functional symbols to move together

Elements from the Symbols section can be connected to each other on the score page, so that they can be moved as one unit:

Apply first symbol to the score. Adjust position as required.
Double-click, or drag-and-drop, a second element onto the first symbol. Adjust position as required.
Drag the first element, the second attached element will follow.

External links

Discussion on symbol usage