This post deals with setting an initial tempo marking in a Finale or Sibelius file and then changing it as the piece progresses.

The fisrt step is to indicate the tempo above the first bar of the piece. Then, enter tempo changes where you want them to occur later in the piece.

Sibelius: Setting and Changing Tempos

When you start a new score, in the Quick Start menu,  there is an option to include an inital tempo marking or metronome mark. Doing this will set the tempo to the specific metronome marking or beats per minute.

If you forget to do this when you are creating your Sibelius score, you can add one after the fact:

  1. Select the first bar of the piece
  2. Sibelius 6: Choose Create > Text > Metronome Mark
    Sibelius 7:  Choose Text > Styles > Metronome Mark
  3. Right-click the mouse and choose the desired note value.
  4. Type: [space] = [space] and the desired beats per minute.

To enter another metronome mark, you can follow the above steps – select the bar and choose Text > Metronome mark. Another way to go is to copy and paste the metronome mark and then edit it. This saves going to the menu.

  1. Select the Metronome mark in bar 1.
  2. Copy it
  3. Paste it into the bar where you want to change the tempo
  4. Double-click on the copied metronome mark and edit the number to the desired tempo.

Finale: Setting and Changing Tempos

When you start a new score, using the Setup Wizard,  there is an option to include an initial tempo marking or metronome mark. Doing this will set the tempo to the specific metronome marking or beats per minute.

If you forget to do this when you are creating your Sibelius score, you can add one after the fact:

  1. Choose the Expression Tool.
  2. Double-click in the first measure.
  3. Select Tempo Marks and then click “Create Tempo Mark.”
  4. Choose the note value  from the pull down menu
  5. Enter = [the desired tempo marking]
  6. Select the marking you created and click assign.

You can enter additional tempo markings as needed.