Adding a slur
As a quick exercise, let’s add some slurs
to the score.
- Click
the Smart Shape Tool . The Smart Shape Palette appears on the top of the screen (or as a palette on the Macintosh), containing
icons for slurs, crescendos, 8va markings, lines, and several kinds of
brackets. This palette is just like the others you’ve encountered; you
can hide it or move it around.
The Slur Tool should already
be selected; if not, select it now.
- Place
your cursor on the first note in measure five (top staff).
- Double-click
the mouse, hold the button down after the second click, and drag the mouse
to the right, until the third note in the measure is highlighted.
As long as you hold the button down, you can move the endpoint of the
slur.
- Release
the mouse button. You’ve just created a note-attached slur. Take
a look. Is the slur exactly where you wanted it? Does it arc too high
or too low?
A Smart Shape is easy to edit. When a Smart
Shape has multiple handles, it’s currently selected. Each slur will have
six handles. Here is a description of how to use these handles to edit
the slur:
Shortcuts for the Smart Shape Tool: Hold
down S for a slur, < for a crescendo or > for a decrescendo.
Hold down the key while editing
the slur to “constrain” your cursor to perfect horizontal or vertical
movements.
- Position
the cursor at the top of the arc. Click
and drag downward to decrease the arc of the slur. Now create another
slur. Scroll to the beginning of measure 3.
- Position
the cursor on the first note in measure 3 (top staff). Double-click and
drag to the last note in the measure. Release the mouse button.
The new phrase marking displays its reshaping handles, letting you know
that it’s selected. The first one you drew, meanwhile, is no longer selected.
Instead, it displays a single handle. To select a Smart Shape that doesn’t
display its reshaping handles, click its handle.
Feel free to experiment with these Smart Shapes.
Click and drag each reshaping handle to see what it does. Try adding a
crescendo or decrescendo.
When the Smart Shape Tool is selected, every
Smart Shape in the score displays a small square handle on the screen
(unless it’s already been selected, in which case it has reshaping handles).
To delete a Smart Shape, click the handle to select the shape—and press
the k key. For more information, see the User Manual under Smart
Shape Tool.
Before moving on, you can choose to hide the
Smart Shape Palette by deselecting it in the Window menu. Otherwise, feel
free to leave it on the screen.
Previous
|
Next |