One of the most common mistakes that I see in scores when using Finale is entering text. In this post I will go through the basic types of text entry and what Finale tools to use for the job. The screen shots in this post are from Finale 2012.

The Text Tool 

Use the Text Tool only for Titles and copyright notices and text blocks that are attached to a specific page in the score. This includes composer, arranger, lyricist, and other text that you want to appear above and below the page.

The Lyric Tool 

Use the Lyric tool to enter lyrics into the score. Press the – key when you encounter a syllable break and the space bar at the end of a word. I also use Lyrics to enter other markings that attach to specific notes such as drum sticking in a snare drum part or solfeggio markings.

Staff Text: Expression Tool 

When you have a text marking that is specific to one staff or you want it to appear in the top staff in the score and in all of the parts, enter it via the Expression Tool. When you double-click in or near a measure, you can choose from the various types of text, which include:

Markings that appear one one staff in the score, but automatically will appear on every part when viewed or printed:

  1. Tempo Marks: Allegro, Adagio and other text that appears in a bold font. They appear in the score only where they are placed but will automatically appear in the parts when they are viewed or printed.
  2. Tempo Alterations: rit., accel, and others. These usually appear above the staff and, like Tempo Marks, appear in the score only where they are placed but will automatically appear in the parts when they are viewed or printed.
  3. Rehearsal Marks:  Like Tempo Marks and Tempo Alterations, they appear in the score only where they are inserted but will automatically appear in the parts when they are viewed or printed.

Markings that appear one one staff in the score. They can be altered to also appear in other parts.

  1. Dynamics:  p, f, ff, mp and so forth. These are entered below most staves with the exception of vocal staves with lyrics where they are usually placed above the staff. With groups of staves such as piano, they are placed in between the two staves. They are staff-specific. If you don’t specify otherwise, they will only appear in the selected staff.
  2. Expressive Text: legato, dolce, cresc., dim., and other markings. Like dynamics, These are entered below most staves with the exception of vocal staves with lyrics where they are usually placed above the staff. With groups of staves such as piano, they are placed in between the two staves. These are staff-specific. If you don’t specific otherwise, they will only appear in the selected staff.
  3. Technique Text: used for markings that appear above the staff such as “Solo” or “Mute.” These are entered above most staves. These are staff-specific. If you don’t specific otherwise, they will only appear in the selected staff.

Assigning Dynamics, Expressive Text or Technique Text to more than one Staff

If you have a marking that you want to appear in all or some of the staves in a score, after it is entered, right-click (control-click with a 1-button Mac laptop) and from the contextual menu, choose one of the options:

“Assign to all Staves” places the text in each staff of the score or the specific parts that you select. All markings will appear in both the score and the parts.

 Text that is Assigned to all parts in the Score

When you use Tempo or Tempo Alterations text, it is automatically assigned to the staff that you choose in the score and it will appear on all of the parts when they are printed. To experiment with this:

  1. Select the Expression Tool.
  2. Move the mouse and make sure the arrow in the cursor is pointing to the desired staff.
  3. Double-click to enter an Expression.
  4. Choose Tempo Text or Tempo Marks.
  5. Select the text or create it as you want in the score.

With Tempo Marks and Tempo Alterations, they will display on the selected staff in the score (typically the first) and in the parts when they are viewed or printed. To view a part choose Document > Edit Part.  The Tempo marks will appear in the parts.

Playback of Expressions

If you want the expressions in your score to playback, be sure to turn on one of the Human Playback options. Then, the markings will take effect.

Summary

For more information on any of these tools, go to the Help menu in Finale and choose User Manual. Once you have a basic understanding of the types of text and how they should be entered, your scores and parts will be more accurate.