Good evening,
I have a problem with a dotted note which is the final note of a tie. I want the last note on “Tbó. B” to be a dotted quarter note, just like the Trumpets above, but Dorico only displays the dotted note on 2/4 when I input another 8th note following the dotted quarter note.
I would like Dorico to display a dotted quarter note on “Tbó. B” followed by an 8th note rest. Can someone help me with this issue?
Thank you so much!
If you have Dorico Pro, check the options in Write > Notation Options > Note Grouping. There are some different options for when notes are followed by other notes or by rests, so you’re looking for the options for when notes are followed by rests.
If you don’t have Dorico Pro, set the rhythmic grid (using the selector in the bottom left) to Eighth notes, select the tied note, press Shift-Alt/Opt-Left arrow to shorten it an eighth note, keep it selected and press O for Force Duration, then press Shift-Alt/Opt-Right Arrow to lengthen it an eighth note. It should now have a dotted quarter at the end.
I think I have a similar problem. Dorico won’t let me create 2 dotted half-notes (in 3/4 time) tied to each other, as shown in the example in the LH. I had to enter them as untied, then go back and add the tie. I checked Write>Notation Options>Note Grouping and didn’t see any options for this simple situation.
You can enter the tied F as a single note of duration dotted whole (8.), then add the lower octave with shift-I -8
Thanks @Janus, but I don’t think that’s the issue. I’m entering notes with a midi keyboard, so getting the F octaves is no problem. It’s the fact I want them tied and dotted. Here’s another screen shot showing what happens if I try to enter 2 tied dotted halves. And referencing the solution from @Lillie_Harris, this happens whether there are rests or notes in the following ms.
(Seriously, don’t enter them as two notes. It is one note!)
That said, I have no problem entering them as two notes and adding the tie. I suppose you must be using pitch before duration…
I do have pitch before duration.
Yes, I could be clever and enter the 2 dotted halves as a dotted whole note, but I don’t expect to do math like that when entering one measure at a time.
So is this something that can be rectified with some option as @Lillie_Harris is suggesting?
I never could work like that, but check your note input preference settings as to whether you enter the dot before or after you enter the note. (Preferences>Note input and editing)
I have it set for dots AFTER inputting notes. We may differ on our methods, but as Dorico puts it, it seems “more natural” to me to do it that way.
Notation Options won’t solve the issue here, because the issue relates to the actual duration of the notes that get input, not how that duration is displayed (ie with or without ties).
I’ve recommended that @Tracy_Icenogle share a screen capture showing the note input steps she’s following, so it’s clear what’s going on.
I’ve seen other posts discussing how rhythm dots interact with the input order preference for tie chains though, so it could be that -I’m not currently in front of Dorico to check.
We had a long, fruitless argument about this same issue 3 weeks ago. The upshot is you will never get Dorico to think of tied notes as separate notes. It is one note with one duration. If you insist on entering each note as you see it on the page (with pitch first), then the best you can do for these ties is enter the notes separately and go back and tie them afterward.
Two tied dotted halves equals a dotted whole note. It’s faster, and a lot more fun to enter the whole thing at once.
Thanks for the back story, @Mark_Johnson . It helps to know I’m not the only one.
To honor @Lillie_Harris’s request, I’ll give more details, albeit with a bit of fear and trembling as it will probably turn out that my problems stem from my being an incompetent boob.
I did put a couple of screen shots earlier in this thread, but they probably don’t show what you need. My process is (3/4 time, pitch before duration, dots after notes, midi keyboard for note entry):
Yes, it’s specifically trying to dot – to add half of the value – afterward. The sticking point is half of what value. Duration before pitch (especially with a midi keyboard) easily solves all this.
All of mine do. 
(And I’ve been using Dorico for two years!)
Thanks for this @Tracy_Icenogle – that’s a perfect outline of reproducible steps, really clear, thank you.
(Quick aside: one of the UK’s most prominent journalists had to cancel an interview with a former prime minister today, because she included him (accidentally, she says) in an email to her team, sharing the briefing notes. So we can all be made humble before technology! You’ll find understanding and sympathetic ears here.)
Now I’m not a regular pitch-before-duration user, but what I suspect is happening here is an awkward collection of requirements that makes inputting a pair of dotted minims like this, using pitch before duration and specifying the rhythm dot after input, impossible to square.
Because:
So, as it stands, your best options are as I see it:
Thanks @Lillie_Harris for the detailed explanation and sympathetic ears!
For now, my plan going forward will be to stubbornly insist on doing things my way and griping about it.
