I didn’t see an easy way to delete my first post and replies so if a Mod wants to, that is fine.
Here is exactly what I want Dorico to do. I want it to look more published with more standard publishing conventions. Not perhaps 100% Gould but close.
So the question is after you look at the examples is that same thing possible in Dorico. Even though hours of searching I can’t find any solutions. So a few tips on how to do them would-be nice. I think I have already got the basic steps down. Like I said before some are brilliant but some are bordering on pure insanity. Creating these two pages in Finale is simple.
The need to learn “Dorcoese’ because Dorico doesn’t use the same verbiage that Finale does. What you are looking for may not be and probably isn’t called the same thing.
Bottom line I can all learn Dorico and use it. It’s just not going to be easy for some of us that have used Finale for so many years or decades.
The first page may be easier to do in a word processor or DTP program, although you can also do it more or less the way you would in Finale – add a blank page to your layout and then add a bunch of text frames.
For the second page, you already provided in your other topic screen shots of the same page in Finale and Dorico. As folks were saying there, if the Dorico page doesn’t look the way you want it, and you’d like suggestions, it would be helpful for you to explain what you’d like to change; it’s not enough just to say, “I’d like this page to look like that page,” because it’s not clear to others what aspects you’re focusing on. And you don’t need to worry about using Finale terms or Dorico terms – just use visual or musical terms to describe what should be different.
Well of course it’s not… Dorico, like any other piece of software that does such a complex task as setting music is by very definition going to be complex. That requires a learning curve.
That being said, in my experience, coming from Sibelius rather than Finale, after 20 years, it took me an awful lot longer to get up to speed with Sib than Dorico and any time spent on learning the program is more than repaid in the time saved because of the excellent way that Dorico does things for you. Also, the factory defaults in Dorico are based loosely on Gould, amongst others so should get you quite a way there.
There’s also this amazing forum which has helped me out immeasurably.
So, like others have said in the other thread, ask some specific questions as to what you can’t do and someone here will help.
Sorry for the slightly ranty nature of this post but there’s a huge amount of (understandably) ‘it doesn’t work like Finale’ (of course it doesn’t, it’s not Finale…) or ‘this was easy in Finale’ (of course it was, you’ve been using it for decades) posts that expect a huge complicated piece of software to work like your old, huge, complicated piece of software… It’s going to take time, but just look around, there’s a large number of people here that have taken that time and love Dorico and what it can do and are welcoming and willing to help you along that journey.
All the best with Dorico, I promise (as much as is possible to do so) that it’s worth it.
P
One big concern on his score page is the same as I have coming from Finale - getting large time signatures where you want them, instead of Dorico just putting them in brackets with no ability to control placement. It is my only remaining complaint.
The text boxes are easy enough and I do something similar - and if it’s a standard thing, once he has a page the way he likes it, he can template his document.
First please ignore my first post. Perhaps a Mod will delete it. Since it seems impossible to ask how to create the pages as shown how about just creating the instrument names as shown. One simple task at a time.
The very suggestion that I need a word processor to do what Dorico can’t is a limitation as is using Acrobat to insert graphics. Finale does both.
As I said, you can do it the same way in Dorico, with text frames.
What specifically are you looking for?
- Naming instruments the same?
- Using the same font?
- Using small caps?
- Other?
But that doesn’t answer how does it, if I knew how to use text frames perhaps it would make sense.
I can’t seem to make it any clearer. I want it exactly like what I have in my example. This should not be difficult as it is common practice in published music.
Look at the Percussion 3. How do I create that EXACTLY? In Finale this is simple and it is not because I have used it for decades it is just very simple.
Set up a page template in engrave mode.
If I knew how to include links to the manual, I would… Have a quick search for page templates and it’ll come up with the manual pages.
P
Yes, perhaps it would. They’re similar to text boxes in Finale. Have you tried looking up text frames in the manual?
Staff names are called Staff labels in Dorico. You can change the style for them in the Library menu, Paragraph styles.
Are you talking about the way the staff is labeled, or displaying three percussion instruments on a single 5-line staff?
I want it exactly like my examples. How is that done? I want a flat symbol where it belongs . Guys I don’t know how to ask any clearer or plainly than that. The things I have tried have failed to reproduce it. The manual doesn’t and the vids don’t either.
I think part of why your request remains so unclear to us is that you have two complete different types of pages posted: a performance notes / instrumentation page and the first page of the musical score.
Perhaps you could mark up the two pages in colored font and repost them so we know what aspect(s) is/are giving you trouble.
I’m slightly amused that your cherished exemplar has a massive spelling error.
Gets that Sturm und Drang effect nicely, though! 