Different Dorico questions

Dear Dorico team,

I am a Hungarian contemporary composer:

Very sorry for my bad english.

First of all, I would like to say many thanks and congratulations to your new notation software. I think it is a fantastic work with wonderful engraving, I expected it since long time, and now I am so happy and proud to having it!

However, I have many remarks and questions.

For me the main problem is the quite poor and laconic HELP, in which very important program functions (like metronome marks or text handling) are mentioned with only one or two sentences, or they have no mention at all. Please, please, improve it and give more detailed directions for use.

When I purchased my first Sibelius version (Sibelius 3), I became it together with a big book (580 pages, actually written by Daniel Spreadbury :slight_smile:), in which I could found explications and using instructions about EVERY little item of the program.
It would be so great to have such one even now, AND it would be nice to see also more and detailed video tutorials from Daniel.

Now my questions.

TEXT.

  • How can I create a metronome mark (individually or together with a tempo marking)? Does this affect to the playback tempo, like in Sibelius?
  • How is most efficient to handle the non-musical texts in a score? I mean, how can I create a Subtitle for instance, which is non included in the Paragraph Styles? Where should I modify my Title: directly in the Engraving page, or first in the Master Page Editor? I am not so familiar with this box-based object handling.
  • How to simply move a Text frame, and how to align it to the center of the page?
  • Why I cannot see my Page number (actually “3”) on first page, while in Layout options Initial page number is 3, and Visibility is Always shown?
  • How can I align position of the Instrument names of the first staff system instead of Right to Center? How can I adjust the size of the Inst. names? (I would like to have smaller abbreviated names).

SELECTING.

  • How can I select the whole staff in a flow (I mean I want to copy the whole playing material of a movement to another instrument)? Or is the dragging select method the only one which I can work?

NOTE INPUT.

  • For instance, I am in 2/2. I want to input a half note on the 2. crotchet place of the bar, but I don’t succeed it - Dorico changes it to two quarter notes with a tie. Why? How can I obtain to have a single half note? In Notation options, in Notes starting after the start of the bar of multiple beats in duration “Notate as a single note” is selected.
  • Why must I input a normal Tenor part on MIDI keyboard with an octave higher for correct pitch? (I mean, why I can’t input to its sounding pitch?)
  • How can I take one selected note simply up or down?

PARTS.

  • Which is your suggestion for a good workflow for working with parts?

INSTRUMENTS.

  • How to create an Instrument change?
  • How can I create in my orchestral parts Cue citations from other instruments (called in Sibelius Paste as Cues), helping the players to enter after a long tacet?

PLAYBACK.

  • How can I hear the sound of the instruments during inputting music? This is important because usually I compose with piano (only headphones) and it would be great to have piano sound to try my music before writing it down.
  • How can I change the default instrument of a part to another?

Thank you very much, and I am really sorry for so many questions (I am sure I will more…) Also sorry if I missed to find something in Help.

You posted your questions twice, and I provided answers in this thread.