Possible to create atonal key signature via the panel?

Dorico
1

Hello friends,

My question will be brief: is it possible to create an atonal key signature using the panel and not just the popover ?
Thank you very much.

2

The answer can be brief too: no. Dorico is optimised for keyboard use so much that some things just aren’t accessible by the mouse. To be honest, this is the first time in eight years that I even tried to do it this way.

3

As hrnbouma cited above, no. But here are a couple of ways to get an atonal key signature without using the popover or the panel.

  1. If you’re creating file via “File” - “New”, the key is set to atonal by default.
  2. If you’re starting with a template, accept the default key then, after the file opens, delete the key signature signpost at the beginning of the piece. This should put you in atonal mode.

The only time you’ll need to use the popover is when you’re adding an atonal section within a piece that has a key signature. Locate where you want the key change, activate the popover (shift-k), and type atonal.

4

Just curious, @ObiwanKenobi, is your question rooted in some aversion to using popovers or to another aspect of your workflow (or just curiosity)?

5

Curiosity. I’m exploring all aspects of this software (new for me Finale user), and I want to know before I act.

At the moment, a lot of Finale users are jumping on Dorico as if a meteorite were about to hit the earth and bring about the end of the world.
I’m more moderate: I’m exploring Dorico to get to know its possibilities, because Finale hasn’t suddenly stopped working…
So I’ve downloaded the trial version of Dorico 5, and in few weeks’ time I’ll see whether or not I’ll buy Dorico via the MakeMusic offer (and if it’s gone, it doesn’t matter, I’ll have other solutions).
Then I’ll have plenty of time to learn Dorico in depth, which I’m keen to use with a thorough knowledge of its nooks and crannies, rather than instinctively and inappropriately.
When you decide to change software, you have to learn to think like it, and Finale and Dorico are very different on many points.

1 Like
6

Not quite true … There’s a functional difference between open key and no key signature. In order to use another tonality system you must enter a key sig. (Of course it doesn’t matter if you just stay in 12-EDO.)