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Fretboard (or chord) diagrams usually appear above the staff on lead sheets and piano scores.
They are commonly used for guitar chords, but MuseScore Studio allows you to create and customize diagrams for any stringed instrument.
MuseScore Studio comes with a library of common fretboard diagrams which can be accessed by first creating chord symbols and then adding fretboard diagrams to them.
The quickest way to add a fretboard diagram to your score is the following:
Press Ctrl + K to enter a chord symbol at a selected nore or rest (Mac: Cmd + K).
Type in any chord name.
Right-click on the chord symbol and select Add fretboard diagram
You can also use any of these other methods:
Select one or more in the score, then either:
In the Properties panel, click the Add fretboard diagram button in the Chord symbol section.
Set a keyboard shortcut for the Add fretboard diagram action in Preferences -> Shortcuts and run it.
Fretboard diagrams and chord symbols on the same beat position and staff are considered linked.
When you change the name of a chord in a chord symbol, its linked fretboard diagram will update automatically to match it.
Once you customize a diagram, to prevent it from being overwritten, it won't automatically update when you edit its linked chord symbol. If you never want fretboard diagrams to change when editing chord symbols, go to Preferences -> Note input -> Fretboard diagrams and turn on 'Never autofill fretboard diagrams when changing chord symbols'.
You can control the default distance between chord symbols and fretboard diagrams using the 'Minimum space from fretboard diagram' property found in Format -> Style… -> Chord symbols -> Positioning. You can further control individual chord symbol and fretboard diagram positioning using their properties.
A linked chord symbol can be deleted independently of its fretboard diagram and vice versa. You can also add a new linked chord symbol to a fretboard diagram by right-clicking on the diagram and choosing Add chord symbol, or using the Ctrl + K shortcut.
Neither fretboard diagrams nor their linked chord symbols are affected by commands.
The Fretboard diagrams provides some basic fretboard diagrams to get started with (major, minor, and 7th chords). To see the associated chord name, hover the cursor over a diagram.
When any fretboard diagram from Palettes is added to the score, a chord symbol is automatically placed above it.
The Blank diagram element lets you add a blank diagram, though when placed in the score you can immediately type in a chord symbol to fill the diagram automatically.
You can save any in-score fretboard diagram to any palette by holding Shift + Ctrl (Mac: Shift + Cmd) and dragging the diagram from the score into the desired palette.
Add the Blank diagram from the Fretboard diagrams palette (or select a diagram that's already in your score).
Open the Properties panel (toggle F8).
Edit the properties in the tab as required.
In the tab, use the interactive fretboard diagram editor to customize the diagram as described below:
See also (below).
When a fretboard diagram is selected, its properties are viewable in the as follows:
At the bottom of the Fretboard diagram properties section is an interactive editor of the selected fretboard diagram. The General tab contains tools for using the interactive editor, though the editor is also functional in the Settings tab.
Barré: Check on if you want to add or delete finger barrés with one click on the fretboard diagram editor below. Barrés can also be added by holding Shift while clicking instead.
Multiple dots: If unchecked you can only add one finger dot per string. If checked you can add multiple dots per string.
Marker type: When you click on the fretboard diagram editor, the shape of the dot added is determined by this property. The default shape is a round black dot, which suffices for standard chord (and scale) diagrams. A cross, square and triangle are provided to enable other .
Scale: Makes the fretboard diagram larger or smaller.
Strings: The number of strings to be displayed.
Visible frets: Specifies the number of displayed frets (these are added or removed from the bottom of the diagram, or the right if oriented horizontally)
Fret number: Specifies the starting fret of the diagram, displayed next to the topmost fret (or the leftmost fret, if oriented horizontally)
Edit a fretboard diagram's color, offset, and more by clicking on Appearance in the Properties panel. See for more details.
Global fretboard diagram properties can be set in Format -> Style… -> Fretboard diagrams:
Some arrangers and educators have extended the basic form of the fretboard diagram, incorporating finger dots of various shapes (see ), and allowing multiple dots per string. Jazz guitarist Ted Greene and his successors are notable examples.
With this approach, the chord signified by round dots on the fretboard diagram is played first (see image below). Then, on successive beats marked by chord symbols, the chord fingering is modified to incorporate other shapes on the same diagram. The usual playing order is: dot -> X -> square -> delta, but this can vary.
Another use of multiple dots per string allows other symbols to show optional notes, rather than delayed notes:
A fretboard diagram corresponding to the chord symbol will automatically populate in the score.
Drag and drop a fretboard diagram from a palette onto a note.
Finger dots (markers)
To add a dot: Click on a fret. The shape of the dot is determined by the Marker type setting. If Multiple dots is checked you can add more than one dot per string.
To delete a dot: Click on an existing dot/marker.
Barrés
To add a barré: Hold Shift and click on the fret where you want the barré to begin. Or, with Barré checked, simply click on the fret.
To add a partial barré ending before first string: Create a standard barré first (see previous instruction). Then shorten it by Shift clicking (or clicking with Barré checked) where you'd like the barré to end.
Open / Mute strings: Click just above each string in the diagram to toggle between:
No symbol
Open (O)
Mute/Unplayed (X)
Show fingerings: When turned on, you can specify a number to indicate which finger should be used to fret each string.
Clear: Clears everything, leaving a blank fretboard.
Show nut: Can be turned off to hide the emboldened line at the top of diagrams. Applies to first position diagrams only.
Orientation: Vertical draws diagrams top-to-bottom; Horizontal draws them left-to-right.
Position: Positions the diagram above or below the staff.
Exclude from vertical alignment: Turn on to exclude this fretboard diagram from automatic alignment of chord symbols and fretboard diagrams on the same staff. This checkbox syncs to the same checkbox in the properties of chord symbols linked to fretboard diagrams.
To create multiple barrés: Repeat the above steps at different fret positions.
A capo is a device that can be clamped onto the fretboard of a fretted stringed instrument, such as the guitar. The capo effectively shortens the strings, which makes the instrument play in a higher key than it normally would.
MuseScore allows you to emulate this effect by adding a Capo marking to an instrument staff (or staves). This automatically transposes playback to the desired pitch while keeping the notes, or fretmarks, unchanged. Partial capos, where only some strings are shortened, are also possible (see below).
The capo element is available in the Guitar palette, which is hidden by default.
To find the capo element:
Click the Search Palettes button at the top of the palettes, or use the shortcut Ctrl+F9 (macOS: Cmd+F9).
Type "capo".
Alternatively, to permanently reveal the Guitar palette:
Click Add palettes
Click the Add button next to Guitar
Note: The Add palettes dialog is not currently accessible to screen readers, so blind users must use the first method (via search).
In the score, select the note or rest where you want to add a capo marking.
In the Guitar palette, select the Capo element.
“Capo 1” text is added to the score, and a Capo settings popup dialog appears next to it.
Adjust the capo's settings in the popup dialog (see below).
The Capo settings popup dialog appears when you add a new capo marking or select an existing capo marking in the score.
Note: Keyboard users can press Tab to focus the Capo settings popup after it has appeared, and then use the arrow keys to navigate the available settings. If you press Tab a second time the popup will disappear. To get it back, simply deselect the capo marking with Alt+Left, reselect it with Alt+Right, and then press Tab to focus the popup.
Select On at the top of the Capo settings dialog to indicate that a capo should be added to the instrument.
Select Off to indicate that the capo should be removed from the instrument and return playback to the original key.
By default, if you select Off the text in the score will change to read "No capo".
The number in the Fret spinner refers to the fret where the capo should be applied. For example, fret 1 transposes the key up by a semitone, fret 2 by a whole tone, and so on. The text label in the score will update automatically.
For example, if you choose fret 4, the text in the score will say "Capo 4".
Note: Keyboard focus can get stuck in the fret edit control. If this happens, press Up and Down to change the value of the spinner, then press Right to move to the Apply to string checkboxes below.
The checkbox switches in the Apply to section let you specify that a capo should be applied only on certain strings. When at least one string is turned off, the text in the score will change to indicate a partial capo.
For example, if you choose fret 4 and then turn off strings 1 and 2, the text in the score would say "Partial capo: Fret 4 on strings 3, 4, 5, 6".
To change the wording of the Capo text:
Check the Manually specify instruction text box in the popup dialog.
Type the text you want to appear in the score.
Under Position, select Below.
Using the steps above, you can, if desired, vary the capo setting at different points in the score. Each capo instance will affect the transposition of all music that follows it, up until the next capo mark.
Note: It is not possible to apply more than one capo at the same time. This feature is planned for a later release.
Tremolo bar symbols are available from the Guitar palette (look for the oversized "V") and are applied and adjusted in a similar way to (above)—with a similar graphical interface in the "Tremolo" bar section of .
You can choose from a range of presets in "Tremolo bar type", or create your own custom one.
Click and drag the String tunings element to a measure
A tuning fork icon will appear above your stave.
Alternatively, first select a measure, then select the String tunings element in the Guitar palette.
String tuning instructions are added to measures, and affect only the stave to which they have been applied (including any linked staves). You can apply multiple string tunings at different measures in your score. Each string tuning will apply from the start of the measure to which it has been added, up until the next string tuning element.
Once you've added a string tuning element to a stave, you can specify the tuning you want for your instrument.
Select the tuning fork icon (outlined in the steps above)
In the widget that appears, choose from the many common tunings in the Preset dropdown
The tuning fork icon will be replaced with the conventional tuning text instruction, comprising encircled numbers for each of the instrument's strings, and text designations showing the new pitch of each string.
You can customise the string tuning text to display any number of strings, as well as any pitch you like:
Click on the string tuning text
In the widget that appears, toggle on or off the 'eye' icon to show or hide instrument strings
Adjust the pitch of each string using up and down arrows in the text boxes alongside each string
Note that the 'eye' icons merely show or hide the text instruction on the score. The actual tuning of each string, insofar as it affects playback and tablature fret positions (see more below), is determined by the pitch indicated in the text field alongside each string – regardless of whether that string's tuning instruction is shown or hidden in the score.
When an alternate tuning element is applied to a stave, the pitch specified for each string will be shown as an open position ("0") in the tablature stave.
During playback, the pitch of all fret positions along each string remains relative to the pitch of the open string: For example,
If the sixth string is tuned to E, the open position will sound like an E during playback, and the first fret will sound like an F;
If the sixth string is tuned down to a D, the open position will sound like a D during playback, and the first fret will sound like an E-flat.
The notation on any linked standard stave remains unaffected by the presence of alternate string tunings. This allows the player to continue reading the sounding pitches of each string.
Sometimes, especially in cases where every string on the instrument has been uniformly tuned down, it will be preferable for the player to read the standard notation at the ‘regular‘ (i.e. pre-tuned) pitch rather than the sounding pitch. In order to achieve this, the standard stave can be transposed.
Right-click on a measure in the standard stave
Select Stave/Part properties...
In the Transposition dropdown menu, select your desired transposition amount.
A common example is to want to tune the guitar down a half-step without affecting the standard notation. To achieve this:
Apply an alternate string tuning element to your stave (see steps above)
Select the Tune down 1/2 step preset
Where required, add a key signature that corresponds to the pitch of the song/work (I.e. its concert pitch)
Right-click on a measure and choose Stave/Part properties...
From the Transposition dropdown menu, select 1 – Minor second
Select the Down radio button
Finally, if you are using a linked tablature stave and wish for the tablature fret positions to continue showing the expected standard fingering, select the Don't reflect transposition in linked tablature staves checkbox
When you're done, click OK.
Both the standard stave and any linked tablature stave (where applicable) will show the fret positions and standard notation at the standard playing pitch (as if no alternate tuning had been specified). Playback will, however, reflect the alternate tuning.
Toggling on Concert pitch will show the sounding pitches notated on the standard stave.
[Draft only: more content forthcoming]
Slides can be found in the Arpeggios and glissandi palette. They are of two types:
Glissando-type slides: these run from one note or chord to the next.\
In / Out slides: played before or after a note; these can be slide-up or slide down.\
By default, slides have a playback effect on the score. You can turn this off by unchecking "Play" in the General section of the Properties panel.
Use one of the following methods:
Select one or more notes as start points, then click the desired slide icon in the palette.
Drag the desired slide from the palette onto a note.
In the case of in-between slides going from one chord to the next, the program will attempt to link the correct notes where possible. If further adjustment is required, see below.
For in-between slides, the following properties can be adjusted in the Glissando section of the Properties panel.
Type: Choose between Straight or Wavy.
Show text: Tick this box to display text. Note: If there isn't enough room between notes, the text is not displayed.
Text: The wording displayed above the slide (if any).
In-between slides:
To move an end handle vertically or horizontally, from one note to the next:
Select the slide.
Click on the start or end handle.
Hold Shift and press an arrow key (Up, Down, Left or Right) to move the handle to the nearest note in that direction.
Slides in/out:
To adjust the position of the end handle:
Select the slide.
Click on the adjustment handle.
Drag the handle, or use the keyboard arrows.
A Barre lines is a text-line drawn above a guitar staff to indicate that the passage requires a full or half barre. Symbols such as the following are commonly found in guitar music:
Full bar (2nd fret):\
Half barre (2nd fret):\
The C before the roman numerals can be omitted and other variations in line style and text are possible—according to the publisher.
To apply a barre:
Click on the start note for the barre, then shift click on the end note to establish the range.
Click on the "Capo Line" symbol in the Guitar palette.
Customize the line and text as required. See Line properties (Other lines).
To adjust the length of a line, see Changing range of a line.
Hammer-ons and pull-offs are notated by slurs. If you need text annotations as well, create them using staff text; they can be saved to a palette for future use (see Adding elements from your score).
A natural harmonic can be notated in one of three ways:
At the pitch of the open string on which it is produced. For example, harmonics on the third string appear as:\
At the pitch of the string fret at which it is produced. The same harmonics now appear as:\
At concert pitch. The same harmonics now appear as:\
An annotation, such as "Nat. Har.", "N.H.", "Har.", is usually attached, as well as string and fret numbers; the notehead may be standard or diamond-shaped, and rendered clear rather than black; fret numbers may be Arabic or Roman, and so on.
Fixing Playback: If harmonics do not play back at the correct pitch, mute them and create a hidden voice containing the harmonics at concert pitch.
See also, How to Read Harmonic Notation on the Classical Guitar (douglasniedt.com).
A natural harmonic in tablature may be rendered simply as a fretmark, or may be followed by a dot, or enclosed in a diamond, or a pair of angled brackets. e.g.
To create a pair of angled brackets:
Select a harmonic and add staff text.
Enter a "single left-pointing angle quotation mark" (U2039), then a space, then a "single right-pointing angle quotation mark" (U203A).
Move the text so it sits over the fretmark;
Adjust the font size of the staff text and the space inside it to just enclose the harmonic.
Save it to a palette for future use.
You should ensure that the staff/tab pairs are not linked, since you need to be able to edit each staff independently of the other.
The types of guitar fingering and how to apply them are explained in Fingering.
Not to be confused with brass or woodwind instrument bends. This section shows old instructions for using Bends in MuseScore 4.0 to Musescore 4.1. For users of MuseScore 4.2 and above versions, see the Guitar bends chapter.
Bends are created with the Bend Tool located in the Guitar palette. To apply one or more bends to the score, use one of the following options:
Select one or more notes and click the bend symbol in the palette.
Drag the bend symbol from the palette on to a note.
A default bend is created in the score. You can modify this bend or choose from a range of alternatives using “Bend type” in the Bends section of the Properties panel.
Bend shape and length can be edited in the graphical display in the Bends section of the Properties panel:
Each red line segment between blue nodes represents one step in the bend, and each step extends horizontally for 1 sp. in the score. The slope of any line shows whether it is an up-bend, a down-bend or a hold. So the above graph describes an up bend, then a hold—total length 2sp.
The vertical axis of the graph represents the amount by which the pitch is bent up or down: one unit (the side of a small square) equals a quarter-tone, 2 units a semitone, 4 units a whole-tone, and so on.
To add another step to a bend
add another node by clicking on the appropriate line intersection.
To delete a bend step
click on the relevant node to remove it.
The height of the bend is automatically adjusted so that any text appears just above the staff. This height can be adjusted, if necessary, with a workaround:
Create another note vertically above the note (shortening the height) or below the note (extending the height) at which you want the bend to start.
Apply the bend to the new note.
To adjust the height of the bend move this created note vertically so that the bend symbol gets the desired height.
Drag the bend symbol to the correct position (to the original note).
Mark the created note invisible and silent (using the Properties panel).
Bends can be freely repositioned using the methods shown in Changing position of elements.
The fretboard diagram legend element is used to present a table of each unique chord symbol in a given score along with corresponding guitar fretboard diagrams.
This is useful for illustrating how to play all the chords in a score in one place without cluttering the notation itself with diagrams.
To add a fretboard diagram legend:
Open a score containing .
Add a fretboard diagram legend using one of the following methods:
In the Layout palette, drag a fretboard diagram legend onto the measure where you'd like to insert the legend (e.g. the first measure).
Select a note or rest in the measure where you'd like to insert the legend, then either:
The legend will be filled with one diagram for each chord symbol in the score in the order in which they appear. If the same chord symbol is used multiple times in the score, it's only represented once in the legend.
If you want to add a fretboard diagram legend after the last measure in your score, you can either:
Navigate to Add -> Frames -> Insert at end of score -> Fretboard diagram legend.
Define a keyboard for Insert fretboard diagram legend at end of score and run it.
Chord symbols and fretboard diagrams are individually selectable within the fretboard diagram legend.
You can change the appearance and some other properties of chords symbols in the legend, but you cannot edit the chords themselves.
You can customize the fretboard diagram that appears beneath each chord by selecting it and editing its properties. See .
To include different diagrams for the same named chord, you can use special chord symbol :
Add a fretboard diagram legend.
Create two chord symbols in the score, appending type and any number of character by which you want to distinguish them (e.g. Atype1 and Atype2).
See that in the legend, there are now two different A chords.
To select the legend to edit its , click any blank area within the legend's dotted boundary line.
Every unique chord symbol in the score is represented in the list of chords in this tab. Use this tab to reorder, hide, or reset chords in the legend.
Select a chord in the list in the Chords tab, then use the arrow buttons to move it up or down in the list.
Turn the visibility (eye) button off for chords that you want to hide from the legend.
You can also select a chord symbol or fretboard diagram in the legend in the score, and either:
Press Delete or Backspace.
Right-click it and select Hide in the context menu.
Use the Reset button to make all chords visible and reset the order to the default.
Many of these properties are the same as those of .
Scale with staff size: When checked on, the contents of the legend will scale in proportion to the Staff space setting in Page settings -> Scaling.
Text scale: Adjust the size of all chord symbols in the legend relative to the default.
Diagram scale: Adjust the size of all fretboard diagrams in the legend relative to the default.
Right-click on the staff and select Staff/Part Properties…
Press the Edit String Data… button at the bottom of the dialog box. This opens the String Data dialog:\
Under Strings tuning, click on a string pitch and select Edit String…; Alternatively, just double-click the string pitch.
Select a new pitch in the Note Selection box and click OK. Alternatively, just double-click the new pitch.
Click OK to close the “String Data” dialog box.
Click OK to close the Staff/Part Properties dialog.
Notes: (1) If the tuning is changed on a tab staff that already contains some notes, fret marks will be adjusted automatically (if possible); (2) Any change of tuning to a particular instrument applies only to the score at hand, and does not change any program default settings.
Right-click on the staff and select Staff/Part Properties…
Click on Edit String Data…
Click on a string pitch and select New String…
Select the new pitch and press
The new string is inserted below the selected string. You will also need to adjust the number of lines in .
Right-click on the staff, select Staff/Part Properties…
Click on Edit String Data…
Click on a string pitch and press Delete String.
Note: After deleting a tablature string you will also need to adjust the number of lines in .
For an instrument such as the Baroque lute, this feature is used to mark a bass course as unstopped—i.e. always played open like a harp string. This means that only a fret mark indicating a zero fret can be displayed.
To mark a bass course as unstopped:
Right-click on the staff, and select Staff/Part Properties...
Click on Edit String Data…
Check the required boxes in the Open column.
See also .
This property defines the maximum fret number which can be entered on a tablature staff.
Right-click on the staff, and select Staff/Part Properties…
Click on Edit String Data…
Select or enter a new number using the “Number of frets” spinner.
MuseScore provides a range of common tablature types. If you want to change the tablature type, choose one of two options:
Ensure that the Layout panel is visible (toggle F7).
Click on the arrow next to the instrument name to reveal the staves.
Click on the edit cog next to the desired staff and choose an option from the "Staff type" dropdown.
Right-click onto an empty area of the staff and select Staff/Part Properties….
Click on Advanced Style properties, select the desired option from "Template", then press < Reset to Template. You can fine tune the display if necessary using the "Fret Marks" and "Note Values" tabs.
Click OK twice to exit.
Note: For customization options in detail, see (below).
You will find the terms "simple", "common" and "full" in the tablature type names:
Simple: Displays just fretmarks.
Common: Displays fretmarks, rests, stems and beams.
Full: Displays fretmarks; rests, stems and beams, half-note stems.
Right click on the staff and select Staff/Part Properties…
Click on Advanced Style Properties….
This gives you access to a full range of tablature customization options. See .
Global settings are set in Format→Style→Tablature styles.\
Music for fretted, stringed instruments is commonly notated using tablature (often abbreviated as tab); this gives a visual representation of the strings and fret numbers. Tablature is frequently found in combination with traditional staff notation.
A variety of tablature templates for common instruments are supplied. If this isn't quite what you're looking for, you can easily change the template (see ), and/or customize the staff (see ).
There are three possibilities:
.
.
.
To create tablature as part of a new score:
Open the dialog.
Select the required tablature from either the Choose Instruments or Create from template tabs.
Complete the rest of the New Score dialog.
To create a tablature staff in an existing score:
In the Layout panel, click on the Add button; or press the shortcut key, I. This brings up the Add or remove instruments dialog.
Click on the Strings – Plucked family and choose the desired tablature from the Instruments column.
Press OK.
Make sure that the standard staff contains a plucked string instrument;
Use one of the methods described under .
Music for the guitar (and other plucked-string instruments) is often notated using paired standard and tablature staves. In MuseScore, the staves can be either linked or unlinked.
Linked: Any change you make to the notation in one staff automatically updates the other.
Unlinked: Each staff is edited independently. To update the other staff, copy and paste the relevant music notation.
Note : In both cases, the staff/tablature pair shares the same instrument.
There are two ways to do this when creating a new score (A or B):
A. For linked staves only:
Open the New Score Wizard.
In the "Create from template" tab, click on the "Solo" category and choose the "Guitar + Tablature" .
Complete the rest of the New Score wizard.
Change the instrument type, if required, in .
B. For linked or unlinked staves:
Open the New Score Wizard.
In the "Choose instruments" tab, click on the "Strings – Plucked" family, and select a staff option from the "Instruments" column.
Complete the rest of the wizard.
Add the desired staff using the .
Use this method when you want to add to an existing score:
Open the Add or remove instruments dialog: press I; or, alternatively, the Add button in the Instruments sidebar
Click on the Strings – Plucked family and choose the desired staff from the Instruments column.
Press OK.
Note: If you already have one staff of a standard/tab pair in your score, you can simply add the missing staff from the Instruments panel. See .
OK
Click the fretboard diagram legend element in the Layout palette.
Navigate to Add -> Chords and fretboard diagrams -> Fretboard diagram legend or Add -> Frames -> Insert fretboard diagram legend.
Define a keyboard shortcut for Insert fretboard diagram legend and run it.
Select the fretboard diagram for the chord(s) you would like to customize, and do so in Properties.
Row gap: Adjust the vertical space between each row of fretboard diagrams.
Chords per row: Set the maximum number of chords and diagrams in each row.
Alignment: Choose whether to align the diagram contents to the left, center, or right of the legend's frame.
Gap to staff/frames:
Above: Set the amount of space above the legend to the bottom of the preceding frame or the bottom staff line of the preceding staff.
Below: Set the amount of space below the legend to the top of the following frame or the top staff line of the following staff.
Between two adjacent vertical frames or legends, both the first frame's gap below and the second frame's gap above are considered, but only the larger value is applied.
Clearance for notation: If the preceding/following staff has notation that extends beneath/above the staff, this sets the amount of space above/below the legend to that notation.
Left/right/top/bottom padding: Adjust space from the legend contents to the edges of its containing frame.
Left padding is usable when Alignment is set to Align left and Right padding is usable when it's set to Align right.
Change the tablature type, if required (see Changing tablature staff type).
Add the desired tablature from the Layout panel.
Select the duration (see below) of the note or rest to be entered.
Press arrow keys to navigate:
Up and Down moves the cursor between strings.
Left and Right moves through the score.
Type digits to enter fret numbers from 0 to the maximum set in the Edit String Data dialog.
Fret numbers 0 to 9 can also be entered with the letter keys A to K, skipping I. This is useful when writing French-style period tablature notation.
Values higher than 9 must be typed as numeric digits. For example, type 1 0 for 10, which appears as l (lowercase L) in French tablature.
Press ; (semicolon) to enter a rest of the selected duration.
To enter grace notes, see Grace notes.
You can enter notes in different voices if required—just as you would in a standard staff.
See also, Editing notes and rests (below).
Enter note input mode and select the note or rest duration (see below).
Click on a string and MuseScore will enter a 0 (zero), which means "open string".
For French-style period tablature notation, MuseScore enters an a (lowercase A) instead of 0.
Type digits to replace 0 with any fret number up to the maximum set in the .
Fret numbers 0 to 9 can also be entered with the letter keys A to K, skipping I. This is useful when writing French tablature.
Values higher than 9 must be typed as numeric digits. For example, type 1 0 for 10, which appears as l (lowercase L) in French tablature.
You can increase/decrease the fret mark using Alt+Shift+Up or Alt+Shift+Down.
You can enter notes in different voices if required—just as you would in a standard staff.
See also, Editing notes and rests" (below).
Whether you are using a keyboard or mouse, you can set note duration using one of the following:
Press Shift+0 up to Shift+9: to set duration from a 128th note to a longa (availability of these shortcuts may depend on the platform and/or keyboard layout);
Press NumPad 0 to 9: to set duration from a 128th note to a longa (if a numeric keypad exists and NumLock is on);
Click on the desired note duration icon in the Note Input toolbar above the document window;
Press Q to decrease the selected duration and W to increase it.
Note: This applies to note input mode only. If you want to change the duration of a selected note in normal mode see Changing duration in normal mode.
MuseScore also supports tablature notation for period instruments such as the renaissance and baroque lutes, Theorbo etc. There are a number of notation systems in use (French, Italian, German, Spanish), but the most common is French.
French tablature features 6 lines representing the top 6 courses. Instead of numbers, fretmarks are indicated by letters—as explained above. Any notes on bass courses below the 6th string (fretted or unfretted) are represented by symbols in the space underneath the 6th line of tablature.
To enter symbols below the 6th course:
In note input mode, move the cursor until it is in the space below the 6th line. Press Down to move the cursor to the next lowest course and so on. As you do so a "cue mark" appears at the left side of the cursor to show you which course is active:
no cue
7
a
/
8
/a
//
9
//a
///
10
Conversely you can return to a higher course by pressing Up, and the cue mark changes accordingly. 2. If the selected course is fretted simply enter a fretmark in note input mode (as shown above). If the selected course is unstopped press any note key in note input mode and MuseScore will automatically enter the correct zero fretmark (see table above).
In note input mode:
Position the cursor over the fret mark and type the desired number.
Increment or decrement the fret mark using Alt+Shift+Up; or, Alt+Shift+Down (The fret mark automatically changes strings, if necessary, to achieve the lowest possible fret position).
In normal mode:
Select one or more fret marks.
Use any of the following commands:
To increment or decrement, without changing the string: Press Up/Down.
To increment or decrement, changing strings, when possible, to minimize the fret number: Press Alt+Shift+Up/Down.
Note: The fret mark cannot be higher than the “Number of frets” value set in the Edit String Data dialog.
To move the fret mark to an adjacent string without changing the pitch:
In note input mode:
Position the cursor over a fret mark, and press Ctrl+Up/Down (Mac: Cmd+Up/Down).
In normal mode:
Use one of the following methods:
Select one or more fret marks, and press Ctrl+Up/Down (Mac: Cmd+Up/Down).
Drag a fret mark up or down to an adjacent string.
Note: This operation can only proceed if the relevant string is free and can produce that note.
To change a fret mark to a crosshead/ghost note:
Select one or more fret marks (in normal mode).
Press Shift+X to toggles ghost noteheads on/off.
This page describes features added in MuseScore 4.2. For older versions of MuseScore 4, see Guitar techniques. For other types of bends, see brass or woodwind instrument bends.
From MuseScore 4.2 onwards, four types of guitar bends can be added to your score:
Standard bend
Pre-bend
Grace note bend
Slight bend
These bends can be found in the Guitar palette
In general, bends in MuseScore connect two notes together: a ‘starting note’ and an ‘arrival note’.
Bends are contextual, meaning if the arrival note is higher than the starting note, an upward bend will be created. Conversely, if the arrival note is lower than the starting note, a release will be drawn.
Whenever a bend is added to a tablature stave, both the starting and arrival notes will be entered as a fret positions. The arrival note, however, will be hidden by default. This allows you to create sequences of multiple bends (such as bend-release combinations) using only the tablature stave, without needing to input notes in the standard stave. If you're working mainly in the standard stave, you may find it more convenient to hide these fret positions via the Invisible setting in the panel.
In all cases, the bend amount, being the intervallic distance between the starting and arrival notes, is reflected by the notated pitches on the standard stave, allowing you to see the shape of a melodic line, as it is affected by the presence of bent notes. On the tablature stave, the bend amount is given by a numerical indicator: "1" for a whole tone, "1/2" for a half-tone (semitone), "1/4" for a quarter-tone, etc.
To apply any type of bend to your score:
Select one or more notes and click the desired bend symbol in the Guitar palette
Drag the bend symbol from the Guitar palette on to a note
Select one or more notes, and enter the required keyboard shortcut (see details below)
Windows Alt+B | macOS Option+B
A standard bend connects two notes together: a ‘starting note’ and an ‘arrival note’. Standard bends are mostly used when it is desired to clearly specify the rhythm of the bend pattern.
When a bend is added to a note, it will automatically be drawn to the next note in the score (the arrival note). If a rest follows the starting note, MuseScore will replace the rest so that the bend has an arrival note to connect to.
Windows Ctrl+Alt+B | macOS Cmd+Option+B
Grace note bends can be used to indicate bends that don’t have a defined rhythmic duration; they are generally played quite quickly before the beat.
When you apply a grace note bend to a note, it will automatically be entered one diatonic step lower than the note it precedes.
No default keyboard shortcut: set your own shortcut in
Pre-bends indicate a string that has been bent prior to being struck. On the standard stave, it is represented as a stemless, parenthesised grace note. On the tablature stave, it is illustrated with a straight, rather than curved arrow.
No default keyboard shortcut: set your own shortcut in
Slight bends are the only bend type in MuseScore that do not connect to an arrival note.
They are always set to a pre-defined amount of a ¼ of a tone, and always bend upwards from the starting note.
A hold is indicated by a dashed horizontal line between two bends. It is only ever shown in the tablature stave.
Hold lines are drawn automatically where a bent note is subsequently tied to one or more notes.
In addition, you can manually show or hide hold lines where it makes sense to do so.
Select a bend in your score
Open the panel
Under Hold line, select either Show or Hide to force a hold line to be drawn, or to be hidden, respectively
Both the intervallic amount and playback speed of bends can be adjusted in MuseScore, either by modifying the pitch of bent notes on the standard stave, or adjusting the bend curve in the Properties panel.
To change the bend amount of a standard bend, grace note bend, or pre-bend in the standard stave, simply raise or lower the pitch of either the starting or arrival note in your score. The fractional indicator in any linked tablature stave will be adjusted automatically.
Both the bend amount and its playback speed can be adjusted via the Properties panel.
To adjust the bend amount:
Apply a bend to your score, using any of the methods outlined above
Select the bend
Open the panel
In the Customize bend graph, click and drag the end point of the curve up or down
The left-most point of the bend curve corresponds to the starting note in a bend. The right-most point corresponds to the arrival note.
Dragging the right-most (end point) of the curve upwards raises the arrival note in ¼-tone steps. In the same way, dragging the end point downwards lowers the pitch of the arrival note. The fractional indicator in the tablature stave, and the notated pitch in the standard stave, will be updated accordingly.
To adjust the playback speed of a bend:
Select a bend in your score
Open the panel
In the Customize bend graph, click and drag the start and end points of the curve left or right
Dragging a curve point horizontally changes only its playback speed, including the duration for which the starting and arrival notes are held (indicated with a horizontal line). It does not affect rhythmic notation in your score.
MuseScore also makes it possible to apply bends to chords, and to create unison bends.
To apply bends to chords:
Create a chord of two or more notes
Select the note(s) to which you want to apply a bend
Add the desired bend (see steps above)
To create a unison bend:
Create a chord containing two notes in unison (Add a unison interval to an existing note using Alt+1 on Windows, or Option+1 on macOS)
Select the note to which you wish a bend to apply
Add the desired bend (see steps above)
In the case of unison bends, it can be helpful to apply the bend in the tablature stave, where it can be easier to see which string exactly is being bent.
To customize the appearance of bends across an entire score:
Go to Format in the menu bar
Select Style...
In the dialog that appears, choose Bends from the list of categories on the left
In this dialog, you can modify:
Line thickness: the thickness of all bend lines in both standard and tablature staves
Arrow width and Arrow height: the width and height of the arrow heads on bend curves in tablature staves
Label for full bends: choose from displaying "1" or the word "full" to indicate a whole-tone bend in the tablature stave
Tablature fret numbers
///a
4
11
4
5
12
5
6
13
6
7
14
7
