Fixed vertical position of lyrics

I previously used Finale and found it very useful to be able to fix exactly the position of lyrics between two staves. I can’t find such a possibility in Dorico 5. Doesn’t this exist? Or at least an option to always center lyrics between two staves?

Many thanks for your help!

Welcome to the forum.

No, there is not a way to precisely center lyrics between a grand staff. However, you set distance from the upper staff globally, and it’s easy to make micro-adjustments to baselines. Also, when you move one baseline, all lyrics in that system and line will move.

Many thanks for this very quick answer!
I’m excited to get to know Dorico!

I will definitely have to get used to this.
Is there a specific reason why it is not possible to globally define a fixed position for lyrics, in order to have them always in the same position within staves?

Because the devs haven’t added it yet, I guess, would be the unhelpful but accurate answer.

I work almost exclusively with vocal music, particularly hymnals. I’d like a setting for this as well, but I’ve gotten so used to the very quick ways to adjust baselines that I haven’t thought about it in ages.

I suppose you could set distance between staves in Layout Options>Vertical Spacing and Engraving Options>Lyrics>Vertical positioning in such a way that they were almost exactly centered. I usually need to make small modifications anyways, depending on musical “protrusions” into the center.

Thanks again for the immediate reaction!

Probably because it’s a specific case: you only want that in choir reductions where all parts are singing the same lyrics at the same time. When each voice/part has its own staff, then you want lyrics closer to the notes for ease of reading.

Dorico’s collision avoidance is an advantage that takes getting used to. When you set your “ideal” staff spacing and lyric distance both as small as you would allow, Dorico makes room for everything automatically, and it looks good with no fuss.

Yes, it might be a question of getting used to it and I will do my best with the current options.

Still, as I prepare song-sheets and songbooks and I want to have a clean and unified layout for all the songs, it would be highly appreciated to be able not only to fix a minimum vertical spacing between staves, but also a maximum spacing, or simply a fixed vertical spacing, as it is possible in Finale.
If I’m not the only one looking for this, it would be interesting to consider this option for a new update.

You do know you can quickly and easily make manual adjustments, right? Just making sure. It’s literally seconds per page to nudge.

Yes, I know that.
You are right, with the staff spacing tool I can easily adjust it.
Is there also a way to know the exact vertical positions of the lyrics? I understand that I can move the whole line up and down, but how to know if it corresponds exactly to the position in other systems?

Just grab one of the lyrics in the line using the graphic edit tool and move it up and down! The whole line will move.

There’s no way to match it to the vertical positioning of other systems, but lyric adjustment doesn’t really work that way… Each system has slightly different requirements depending on protruding elements downward from the cleft.