Now that MuseScore is installed, let's get started on creating our first score.
When you first open MuseScore, you should see the following screen:
That's good! For now, let's hit the X in the upper-right corner of the section entitled MuseScore Connect. MuseScore Connect is a useful tool that allows you to share scores online with friends or colleagues, and explore scores from others. Once you close it, you can open it again at any time by going to the Display menu and clicking on MuseScore Connect. While we will not be discussing it in this book, you are encouraged to explore what it has to offer as you learn more about MuseScore.
Since the demo score has been opened for us, let's figure out how to navigate scores in MuseScore. The current score will always be visible in the Score View, the section of the screen that shows the score you're currently editing. You can zoom in and out of the Score View by using the drop-down box in the toolbar called the Zoom Box. Initially, this is set to 100%, but can be changed easily by either typing in a new percentage and pressing Return, or using the drop-down menu to select a new zoom amount. Let's change it to 150% using either of these methods. It is also possible to zoom in and out by holding Ctrl (or on Mac) and moving the scroll wheel on your mouse.
Now we are zoomed in, but we may not be looking at what we would like to look at. Click and hold anywhere on the score, as long as it is not on top of any markings. Then, when you drag the mouse, you will be able to move the score. Using your mouse's scroll wheel without the Ctrl (or ) key pressed will move the score vertically, and holding Shift while scrolling will move it horizontally.
Though the sample score is not very long, the bar along the bottom of the screen with a miniature version of the score is another convenient way to navigate. This bar is called the Navigator. Clicking-and-dragging the blue box in the Navigator will change the portion of the score that can be seen in the Score View. This allows you to jump around to other portions of the score quickly when dealing with long scores. By clicking-and-dragging the border between this and the Score View, we can also adjust the size of both relative to each other.
Let's make our first piece! To start, go to the File menu at the top of the screen and select New. You will be prompted for some basic information about the piece, such as the composer's name and the title of the piece. Note that all of the information on this screen is optional. Once you have filled in the relevant boxes, click the Next button.
The next screen will prompt you about which instruments to add. You can find the correct instruments by clicking on the appropriate family of instruments on the side of the dialog box, such as Strings. Clicking on the instrument will add it to your list. Let's add a piano (under Keyboards) and then a trombone (under Brass) for practice. As you add instruments, they will appear on the right-hand side of the dialog box. The order of this list will also be the order of your score. If you would like the instruments to be in a different order in the score, you can select an instrument in the list and click on the Up or Down button. Let's move the trombone above the piano by selecting it and clicking on the Up button. Don't worry, if you need to add more instruments later, you can return to this dialog at any time by selecting Instruments under the Create menu on the main screen.
After you have finished selecting your instruments, click on the Next button. You will be prompted for a key signature. Hitting Next again will prompt you for the time signature and number of measures. Of course, it is also possible to insert measures and change the time or key signature throughout the piece. For our sample piece, let's leave all of these at their defaults.
When you are done, hit the Finish button. MuseScore will create a score for you that looks like the following screenshot:
Notice how our piece has created a new tab near the top of the screen. Tabs are an easy way of managing all of the files you have open at any given time. Clicking on one of the tabs will allow you to work on that piece of music.
In order to enter notes into our score, we need to enter Note Entry mode. MuseScore has various modes that we can use to accomplish special tasks. You can enter Note Entry mode by clicking on the N button in the toolbar. You can tell whether you are in Note Entry mode at any given time by checking whether the N button is depressed. You may also enter/exit Note Entry mode by pressing the N key.
After you enter Note Entry mode, the quarter note should be selected by default. If you hover over the staff, you should see a light blue outline of a note appear. Clicking here will cause a quarter note of that pitch to be inserted. In the toolbar, you will see several notes of different lengths, such as half notes, eighth notes, and whole notes. This area is called the Note Entry toolbar, and indicates which note will be inserted when you click on the staff. Right now, the quarter note should be selected. Click on the half note, and then click an area of the staff on top of the rest that is immediately after the quarter note we just inserted. A half note of the pitch you chose will be added.
Note
In MuseScore, whenever we add notes, we must overwrite other notes. First, we overwrote a whole rest with a quarter note, which caused three beats of rest to be added after the quarter note. Then, we overwrote a quarter rest with a half note. Since the half note was longer than the quarter rest, it also overwrote one beat from the half rest following it, and changed the rest to a quarter rest to accommodate the size of the half note.
To add an accidental, simply insert the note without the accidental, and then press the appropriate accidental button in the toolbar. For example, let's insert an F eighth note. We click on the eighth note button, then on the F line of the staff, and finally on the sharp button in the toolbar.
We can insert dotted notes in a similar fashion by using the dot button on the Note Entry toolbar. In the next measure, let's add a G dotted quarter note by clicking on the quarter note in the Note Entry toolbar, then clicking on the dot button, and then clicking on a G in the staff. The dot will stay selected after you insert the note. If you would like to deselect the dot, you can click on it again. It is also automatically deselected when you change the note duration. Thus, you should always select the dot after you select the value of the note you would like to be dotted.
It is possible to notate more quickly using keyboard shortcuts. The number keys 1 through 9 will select different durations, and the letters A through G will insert the designated note. The 0 key inserts a rest. Inserting notes this way will always insert the closest note with the desired pitch. If you hold Ctrl (or on Mac) while pressing the up or down arrow keys, MuseScore will move the last note you inserted up or down an octave. So, inserting a C half note and moving it up an octave can be accomplished by pressing the sequence 6 C Ctrl + ↑. Notes can be adjusted by a half step by pressing the up or down arrows without holding the Ctrl key. Hitting the up arrow will always create sharps, and the down arrow creates flats. This allows us to insert an F♯ eighth note with the keystroke sequence 4 f ↑.
Making chords is also very straightforward. We just click on top of our previously inserted note after selecting a note of the same value. Be careful! If a different note length is selected, it will overwrite the previous note.
Chords can also be inserted rapidly with keyboard shortcuts. Just start by inserting the first note of the chord normally. If you would like to insert a note of the chord above the previous note, hold Alt and press the interval above the previous note you would like to insert. To insert it below, hold Shift and do the same. Notes are always inserted in the present key signature. So to insert a C first inversion chord, press the sequence E Alt + 3 Alt + 4, or to insert a C second inversion chord, press the sequence G Alt + 4 Alt + 3. Alternatively, after inserting the first note, you can hold Shift and type the letter names of the notes to add to the chord. So pressing the sequence G Shift+C Shift+E would insert the same C second inversion chord.
If you ever make a mistake, you can always undo your latest changes by going to the Edit menu and selecting Undo. You can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Z (or + Z on Mac).
Let's put some notes and chords in some measures for both the trombone and piano parts so that we have something to work with.
To insert a triplet, first enter Note Entry mode. Then, from the Note Entry toolbar, choose the total duration that you would like all three triplets to sum to. Next, insert the first note of the triplet in the position you would like the triplet to occupy. After this, exit Note Entry mode, and from the Notes menu, under the Tuplets submenu, click on the Triplet option. A triplet will be created with the selected note as the first note. MuseScore will automatically enter Note Entry mode for you again, and select the correct duration of note needed to complete the triplet. From here, you can replace the two rests with notes by inserting the correct notes on top of them, as we did when we entered notes previously.
Also, there is a keyboard shortcut to make this process easier. While in Note Entry mode, select the proper duration you would like the entire triplet to be, as before, but then hit Ctrl + 3 (or + 3 on Mac). The triplet will be inserted, and the proper note duration to fill in the triplet will be selected. You can now enter the notes of the triplet as you would enter normal notes. For instance, to insert a triplet arpeggio of an F major triad totaling one beat, we would press the sequence 5 Ctrl + 3 F A C. For a B major triad totaling two beats, we would similarly press 6 Ctrl + 3 B D ↑ F ↑.
Ties are very easy to create in MuseScore. The simplest way to insert a tie is to insert both of the notes that you want to be tied together, exit Note Entry mode, click on the first note, and then click on the tie button in the toolbar, or press the + key. Make sure the two notes you are trying to tie together have the same pitch, or no tie will be inserted. This method works for individual notes, and also for chords. In order to have flexibility when tying chords, you must tie each note of the chord individually if you want the full chord to be tied. An easy way to do this is to ensure that you are not in Note Entry mode, hold Shift, click on the first note of the first chord so that the whole chord is selected, and press the + key. Again, for this to work, you must have two chords with identical pitches next to each other.
If you are working with keyboard shortcuts, then there is also a faster way to enter ties that does not require the use of the mouse. After you enter a note in Note Entry mode, the note you just entered will be selected, and the cursor will be located on the right-hand side of this note, as shown in the following screenshot:
Then, using the appropriate keyboard shortcut, select the duration of note you would like this note to be tied to. Finally, press the + key. MuseScore will insert a note of the selected duration tied to the previous note. So, pressing the sequence 5 C 4 + will insert a quarter note C tied to an eighth note. While this method is extremely convenient for single notes, it does not work for chords.
Often, it is necessary to flip the tie for visual appeal, especially when tying chords. This can be accomplished by ensuring that you are not in Note Entry mode, clicking on a tie, and then pressing the X key.
Suppose that we would like to repeat a measure in the bass line, or that the next measure in the melody is very similar to the previous measure. As in a word processor, we can copy and paste measures and fragments of music.
First, let's copy and paste a measure. Exit Note Entry mode by ensuring the N button in the toolbar is not selected. Then, click on a portion of the measure where no notes are present. The measure should be selected, as indicated by the blue box around it. Now, either go to the Edit menu and click on Copy, or press Ctrl + C ( + C on Mac). The measure will be copied to the clipboard. Now, click on a portion of the target measure without any notes, and either click on Paste from the Edit menu, or press Ctrl + V (
+ V on Mac). The notes will be inserted, and the target measure will be overwritten.
It is also possible to copy any portion of your score, even if it spans partial measures or multiple staves. First, click on the note at the top-left of the region you want to copy. In the following example, this would be the E♭ in the right hand. Then, press and hold the Shift key, and click on the note at the bottom right corner of the region you would like to copy. Here, that would be the D in the left hand. MuseScore will select all of the notes in between.
Once you have selected the region, you can copy it in the same way you copied the measure before. To paste the region, click on the first note or rest in the uppermost stave where you would like to paste it, and paste as we did with a single measure using either Ctrl + V or Paste from the Edit menu. If your selection has different measure breaks or is in a different meter than the destination, the selection will be reflowed to fit the destination, and ties will be added as necessary.
Often, it is helpful to insert or delete a measure in your score. Luckily, MuseScore makes this extremely easy. To insert a measure, select the measure (as we did when we copied a measure) immediately after the location where you would like to insert the measure. Then, go to the Create menu, and under the Measures submenu, select Insert Measure. A measure will be inserted. To insert multiple measures, select Insert Measures. A dialog box will prompt you for how many measures to insert.
If you would like to add measures to the end of the score, you can select Append Measures from under the Measures submenu within the Create menu. There is no need to select any measures to perform this operation.
To delete measures, simply select the measure by clicking any blank area within the measure, and then go to the Edit menu, and click on Delete Selected Measures. Doing so will delete this measure position within all staves, not just the selected staff. You can also select multiple measures (as we did earlier when we were copying by selecting one measure, holding the Shift key, and selecting additional measures), and use the same menu button to delete all of the measures that you have selected.
After we continue along in this way for a while, we may be ready to hear our work played back by the computer. This is as easy as clicking the ‣ button in the toolbar, or pressing the space bar. Pressing either again will stop playback.
If you would like to hear only a portion of the piece played back, exit Note Entry mode by clicking on the N button in the toolbar, or by pressing the N key on the keyboard. Then, click on the note you would like to start with. (A note from any instrument will work.) When you press play, MuseScore will automatically play back the piece from this point.
Note
It should also be noted that while your score is playing back, you are free to zoom in and out, to move the page up and down with your mouse's scroll wheel, and to move left and right by holding the Shift key while using the scroll wheel. Unfortunately, you cannot adjust the score by dragging the mouse during playback.
You can also selectively mute and adjust the balance of different instruments during playback. Let's mute the trombone so that we only hear the piano part right now. Go to the Display menu, and click on the Mixer option. You should be presented with the following screen:
If we click on the Mute checkbox near the Trombone label, when we play back the piece, we will not be able to hear the trombone. Unchecking it will restore the trombone's sound. We can also change the balance of the different instruments by adjusting the Vol dial. To adjust the dial, click on it and hold, and then drag your mouse cursor straight up to increase the volume or straight down to decrease it. These settings can also be adjusted while the piece is playing back, allowing you to easily fine-tune the balance. You can close this window when you no longer need it.
Printing your piece is as simple as going to the File menu and pressing the Print menu option. It will print exactly as it is displayed on the page. We will discuss how to print separate parts from the full score later.
However, it is also possible to save your piece as an audio file (which will sound exactly as MuseScore's playback sounds), a PDF, or a MusicXML file, which can be imported into other notation software. To do this, under the File menu, select Save a Copy. MuseScore has the ability to save audio files in MIDI, Wave, Ogg Vorbis, and FLAC formats, in addition to MusicXML and PDF. Due to patent restrictions, exporting to MP3 is not possible, and MP3s have to be created by converting the Wave or FLAC file to MP3. Choose the file type you would like from the Filter drop-down box, and click on the Save button.