Hello there,
I´m trying for hours to set a tempo mark as this:
Even tried with text box using Bravura Text but I can´t join the tremolo with the eight note.
Tried Metrico font but doesn´t help.
Is this possible at the moment? If not, can it be added?
Thanks in advance.
I checked MusGlyphs, it’s not in there either… Also, don’t think I’ve ever seen this notation before, could you share a bit more context? What’s its added use over regular metronome markings?
(Sorry I don’t have a solution!)
Hello there, thanks for replying.
This kind of notation is common on mandolin music. It is used to set the speed of the tremolo. On the case I showed on the image, it´s from a mandolin orquestral piece that has a lot of movements and each of them has a specific tremolo speed.
Ya learn somethin’ new every day.
Although I know nothing about mandolin music, here is my attempt to recreate your example tempo marks using Dorico Pro 4:
The first step is to determine the rhythmic position where the note in the tempo mark should appear. Then enter a note of the desired duration above the staff at that rhythmic position using an additional up-stem voice.
With one note in the additional voice selected, switch to Engrave Mode and set the following properties: Scale to Cue, Starts voice, Ends voice Immediately, Single stem tremolo to Two or Three strokes, and Hide ledger lines. For the dotted quarter note, also set Rhythm dot X to -1/4 space.
Now switch back to Write Mode, select a note at the beginning of the measure, press Shift-X and enter the text for the tempo mark, with six spaces before the equals sign and two spaces after. Set the Paragraph Style to Harp Pedal Settings so the text will have the same size as a real tempo mark, highlight all of the text and make it Bold.
Now switch to Engrave Mode, set the property to allow collisions and nudge the text into the correct position relative to the note.
For the digit 9 in the first tempo mark, create another instance of staff text, set the Paragraph Style to Player Labels, highlight the digit and make it italic. Then nudge it into position.
Wow, johnkprice, that is an amazingly clever solution! Thank you for sharing that!
@johnkprice thank you so much. What an amazing workaround 
I´ll use this for sure.
Nonetheless I hope the Dorico team can create something to make this easier.
That’s certainly ingenious, but it’ll break as soon as you have more than one instrument, won’t it? Piling one hack on top of another, you could create .svg Graphic Slices of all the tempo marks you need, then put them in your score by hand. Alternatively, get a font editor and Frankenstein your own tremolo notes from Bravura, which might be the most flexible solution in the long run. Or convince @dan_kreider to add them to MusGlyphs 
I wonder if any instrument other than the mandolin needs to see tempo marks with tremolo strokes. Quite a few musicians wouldn’t know the meaning of those strokes.
Well, OP’s request was about a piece for mandolin orchestra which according to Wikipedia does have multiple sections, comparable to a string orchestra.
One problem with using glyphs from Bravura to create these tempo marks is that the stem of the eighth note is not long enough to accommodate three tremolo strokes, whereas my proposed solution uses a real note and the stem automatically lengthens when the tremolo strokes are added.
Very true. I tried that route. I could custom build a note with separate notehead/stem/tremolo mark, etc. but it didn’t look good. The Tremolo marks were too short and thick.
If an SVG could be created for import, that would be best. But, then if he needs an eighth with 2 and also 3 tremolo marks, then it becomes limiting.
Also, @cesar_pinto20 I have learned how to hack the instrument database. I have created template files for Mandolin Orchestra as well as for Quartetto Romantico and Quartetto Classico. Let me know if you would like them.
Hello Craig,
just read your reply.
Could you PM me the said templates as I now and again I write arrangements for mandolin
orchestras. I just write these tempo indications per hand in the score and parts.
Many thanks
Stan McKee
I can post them publicly 
. I’ll post both the English and Italian versions. The English one is using US Letter sized paper. You may want to change that if you’re not in the US.
The templates include both types of Mandola - Octave and Alto(Viola). Europe generally uses Octave tuning while the US uses Alto. You can delete the unneeded one in Setup mode and rename accordingly.
Mandolin Orchestra.dorico (770.9 KB)
Orchestra di Mandolino.dorico (769.6 KB)
Many Thanks !
I’m in SW Germany and in most small towns here there is a mandolin orchestra.
cesar_pinto20,
I hope you don’t mind, something is itching my eye. I’m sure, you are on Windows and can’t find the apostrophe key. I am not sure, but it can be created by holding down the ALT-key and typing 0146.
I’m- can’t- doesn’t- etc…
I believe any plucked instrument that uses a plectrum can have this kind of notation. It is only a matter of the composer wanting to have more control on speed of the tremolo or not.
Hey @Craig_F. I was wondering myself where could I create the template for it. If you don´t mind tell me how to do it or send the file. Thank you.
Hey @k_b. Learning something new every day. I’m not English so I didn’t know the correct symbol for that. Thank you so much.
I posted them about 4 posts up as someone else wanted them. As to the how, it involves manual edits to the Dorico system files. Not really recommended. Fortunately, you don’t need the hacks to use the file I created. Hopefully you find it useful.
