How (best or most efficient way) to create a pick-up bar (partial measure) for a piece with an alternating time signature, such that the next/following bar, which is the first full bar of the piece, is in the first of the alternating time signatures rather than the second.
The time signature in this case is: 12/8 + 2/4
If I use the SHIFT-M time signature popover, and specify “12/8 + 2/4,1”
Dorico does create a pickup bar with one beat (3 eighth notes) duration, but the next bar, the first full bar of the piece, is treated or notated as 2/4 by Dorico, when I would like it to be 12/8, since 12/8 is the first of the specified alternating time signatures.
Thanks.
Could you enter the first time signature as “12/8,1” and then in the second full bar enter a new alternating time signature of “2/4 + 12/8”?
Wouldn’t that pickup bar be 12/8,3 ?
I was hoping to achieve functionally what is pictured in the attached screenshot, but without two time signatures, and with the 12/8 + 2/4 time signature appearing at the beginning of the first bar.
Actually, I need only an eighth-note duration in the pickup bar, so I suppose this (attached screenshot) might work, but thought that Dorico might have a more elegant way to add a pickup bar to the 12/8 + 2/4 time signature, so that the time signature would appear at the beginning of the staff. Other than the pickup bar, all other bars of the piece alternate consistently between 12/8 and 2/4.
Have you tried 12/8+2/4, 0.5?
I’m sorry, not in front of Dorico, so I cannot try it myself…
[Edit] I remembered I could use my iPad:
So the first time sig is 12/8 + 2/4,0.5 (space before and after the plus sign)
The second one (second signpost) is 12/8 + 2/4 and hidden through the properties. Is that what you needed?
3 Likes
That’s a very interesting solution. Thanks.
Currently I’m trying this alternative (attached pic)
I specified the time signature as:
[3+3+3+3+4]/8, 1
which is 16/8 with beam groupings of 3, 3, 3, 3, 4 eighth notes, with a pickup bar of one eighth-note duration.
Ok, but… that is not what you asked! 
I re-read your first post and would grant my answer with the solution tick, since it solves entirely the problem.
1 Like
Good point. Solution ticked. 
In addition, I think that 12/8 + 2/4 may look and read better than 16/8.
Evidently, what Dorico does, rather than create a new bar at the beginning of the staff/flow (which is what I expected), it simply truncates the existing first bar to the value one specifies.
1 Like
