Steinberg Cubase 6 Manual

							581
Entering and editing notes
Notes that you have put on the clipboard by cutting or 
copying can be inserted into the score again as follows:
1.Activate the desired staff.
2.Move the project cursor to the position where you 
want the first note to appear.
This is done by holding down [Alt]/[Option] and [Shift] and clicking at the 
desired position in the score.
3.Select Paste from the Edit menu (or use a key com-
mand, by default [Ctrl]/[Command]-[V]).
The notes are pasted in, beginning at the project cursor. If the cut or cop-ied notes come from different staves, they are also inserted on different 
staves. Otherwise, the notes are inserted on the active staff. They keep the 
pitch and relative positions they had when you cut or copied them. 
Editing pitches of individual notes
By dragging
The simplest way to edit the pitch of a note is to drag it up 
or down. Remember to hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] to 
avoid moving the note sideways as well.
•If the “Keep moved notes within key” option is activated 
in the Preferences dialog (Scores–Editing page), notes 
are transposed within the current key only.
•To avoid accidentally moving the note into another staff, 
activate the Lock button (see 
“Moving across staves – the 
Lock button” on page 579).
•When you drag the mouse up and down before releas-
ing the button, accidentals are shown beside the note to 
indicate the current pitch.
This helps you verify the vertical position for the note.
Using the Transpose Palette
The Transpose Palette on the toolbar contains buttons for 
transposing the selected notes up or down in steps of one 
semitone or one octave.
•To show the Transpose Palette, right-click the toolbar 
and activate “Transpose Palette” on the context menu.
Using key commands
Instead of transposing the note with the mouse, you can 
assign key commands for this.
•The commands for which you can assign key commands 
are found in the Nudge category in the Key Commands 
dialog.
The commands are listed as “Top” (transpose one semitone up) and 
“Bottom” (transpose one semitone down).
Using the info line
You can use the info line to change the pitches (and other 
properties) of one or several notes numerically, see 
“The 
info line” on page 43.
•If you have several notes selected and change the pitch 
on the info line, the changes are relative.
That is, all selected notes are transposed by an equal amount.
•If you have several notes selected, hold down [Ctrl]/
[Command] and change the pitch on the info line, the 
changes are absolute.
That is, all selected notes are set to the same pitch.
Via MIDI
Proceed as follows:
1.On the toolbar, activate the MIDI Input button and the 
Record Pitch button to the right.
If you also want to change the note-on and/or note-off velocity of the notes 
via MIDI, this can be done by also activating the corresponding velocity 
buttons, as described in the chapter 
“The MIDI editors” on page 374.
To edit notes via MIDI (pitches only), set up the buttons like this.
2.Select the first note that you want to edit.
3.Press a key on your MIDI keyboard.
The note takes on the pitch of the key you pressed. The program then se-
lects the next note.
4.To change the pitch of the next selected note, simply 
press the desired key.
In this manner you can change the pitches of as many notes as you wish, 
by simply pressing the relevant keys. You can also use key commands 
(by default the left and right arrow key) to pass from one note to the 
other. For example, if you make a mistake, you can step back to the pre
-vious note by pressing the left arrow key. 
						

							582
Entering and editing notes
Changing the length of notes
When it comes to note lengths, the Score Editor is special 
in that it does not necessarily display the notes with their 
actual length. Depending on the situation, you may want to 
change the “physical length” of the notes or the “display 
length”.
Changing the “physical” length
This changes the actual length of the notes. The change is 
audible when you play back the music.
By using the extended toolbar
Using the extended toolbar is another quick way to set a 
number of notes to the same length:
1.Select the notes that you want to change.
2.Hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] and click on one of the 
note icons on the extended toolbar.
All the selected notes now get the note value on which you clicked.
By using the info line
You can also edit length values numerically on the info 
line. The same rules apply as when changing the pitch of 
notes (see 
“Using the info line” on page 581).
Lengthening a note by gluing two notes together
You can create unusual note length values by gluing notes 
of the same pitch together.
1.Insert the notes that you want to glue together (if they 
do not already exist).
2.Select the Glue tool on the toolbar or context menu.
3.Click on the first note.
This note is now tied to the first following note with the same pitch.
4.If you want to glue more notes, click again.
By gluing together a quarter note, an eighth note and a sixteenth note…
…you get a double dotted quarter note.
Changing the display length
If you want to change the displayed length of notes with-
out affecting how they play back, the first thing to try is to 
adjust Display Quantize, either for the whole staff or for a 
separate section, using the Display Quantize tool (see 
“In-
serting Display Quantize changes” on page 571). 
But you can also make display length adjustments to indi-
vidual notes in the Set Note Info dialog:
1.Double-click on the note.
The Set Note Info dialog opens.
2.Locate the “Length” setting.
By default, this is set to “Auto”, which means that the note is displayed 
according to its actual length (and the Display Quantize settings).
3.Double-click in the value field and enter a new length 
value (displayed in bars, beats, sixteenth notes, and ticks).
To set the display length to “Auto” again, scroll the value down to zero.
4.Click Apply and close the dialog.
The note is now displayed according to its display length setting. However, 
the Display Quantize settings still apply!
Splitting a note in two
If you have two notes strung together by a tie, and click on 
the “tied” note head with the Split tool, the note is divided 
into two, with the length of the “main” and the tied note, 
respectively.
Before and after splitting a tied note
!Remember that the appearance of notes and rests in 
the score is determined by the Display Quantize set
-
tings on the Staff page of the Score Settings dialog. 
Depending on the Notes and Rests values, notes 
may be displayed as if they were longer than they re
-
ally are (see “Display Quantize” on page 553).
!Make sure that you have Display Quantize values for 
notes and rests that allow you to display notes of the 
created note value. 
						

							583
Entering and editing notes
Working with the Display Quantize 
tool
There are instances when you want different staff settings 
for different sections of the track. The settings on the Staff 
page of the Score Settings dialog are valid for the entire 
track, but by using the Display Quantize tool you are able 
to insert changes and exceptions wherever you like. This 
is described in detail in the section 
“Inserting Display 
Quantize changes” on page 571.
Split (piano) staves
Setting up the split staff
Proceed as follows:
1.Make a staff active.
2.Open the Score Settings dialog on the Staff page and 
select the Polyphonic tab.
3.From the Staff Mode pop-up menu, select Split.
4.Set the Splitpoint value to a suitable note.
All notes below this note value are put on the lower clef, all above are put 
on the upper clef.
Split mode selected.
•If the default piano clef settings for the upper and lower 
staff are not what you want, you can adjust these settings 
now (or you can make key and clef adjustments directly in 
the score, see 
“Setting clef, key, and time signature” on 
page 562).
5.Make whatever additional staff settings you need.
These apply to both the upper and lower staves of the split system.
6.Click Apply.
Changing the split point
Proceed as follows:
1.Make sure that the system you are working on is active.
2.Open the Score Settings and select the Staff page.
3.Select the Polyphonic tab.
4.Change the Splitpoint value.
5.Click Apply.
Now, some notes that were previously on the lower staff 
are on the upper, or vice versa.
Strategies: Multiple staves
As described above, when you have parts on several tracks 
selected in the Project window, these are put on one staff 
each, when you open the Score Editor. This allows you to 
work on several staves in parallel.
Working with several staves is not much different from 
working with one. Below follow some guidelines that apply 
specifically to working with multiple staves.
Score settings dialog, Staff page
The settings on the Staff page of the Score Settings dia-
log are local to each staff. You can have the Score Set-
tings dialog open and select each staff in turn to make 
settings – just remember to click Apply before selecting 
another staff, otherwise your changes are lost.
Before and after setting a split at C3 
						

							584
Entering and editing notes
If several staves share settings, you can save some time 
by using staff presets. Set up the staff settings for the first 
staff, and save them as a preset. This preset can then be 
applied to any of the other staves, one at a time, see 
“Working with staff presets” on page 587 for details.
Selecting notes
You can select notes from one or several staves at the 
same time, using any of the selection methods, see 
“Se-
lecting notes” on page 578.
Adding notes
This is done just as on a single system, see “Adding and 
editing notes” on page 576. Please note the following:
•When you enter a note, use the Mouse Note Position dis-
play (in the status line) to determine the pitch. Whether it 
ends up on the upper or lower staff has nothing to do with 
where you aim with the mouse. The Splitpoint setting al
-
ways decides if a note goes on the upper or lower staff. If 
you change the splitpoint, this affects existing notes, see 
below.
•Sometimes a fixed splitpoint is not good enough. You 
might want to put two notes with the same pitch on differ
-
ent staves in different parts of the score. To achieve this 
you need to use polyphonic voicing, see 
“Polyphonic voic-
ing” on page 593.
•You can add notes to any staff by clicking on it with the 
Insert Note tool. The active staff rectangle moves to the 
staff where you input the note.
•If you need to enter a note with a very high or low pitch, 
which makes it wind up on the wrong staff when you click, 
first enter a note with the wrong pitch, and then edit its 
pitch as described in the section 
“Editing pitches of indi-
vidual notes” on page 581.
Inserting and editing clefs, keys, or 
time signatures
It is possible to insert a change of clef, key, or time signa-
ture anywhere in the score.
Inserting a symbol on one staff
Proceed as follows:
1.In the Symbols Inspector, open the “Clefs etc.” tab.
This contains clef, key, and time signature symbols.
2.Select the symbol that you want to insert.
When you move the mouse over the score display, the pointer takes on 
the form of a pencil (see also 
“About the Pencil tool” on page 622).
3.Move the mouse over the staff where you want to in-
sert a new symbol.
Use the Mouse Time Position display in the status line to find the exact 
location. The Mouse Note Position, i. e. the vertical position is of no rele-
vance as long as you click somewhere in the staff. Time signature 
changes can only be inserted at the beginning of a bar.
4.Click the mouse button to insert the symbol.
Inserting a symbol on all staves
If you hold down [Alt]/[Option] when you insert a symbol 
with the Pencil tool, it is inserted at this position on all 
staves currently being edited in the Score Editor.
•Time signature changes are always inserted on all 
tracks in the score.
Or rather, they are inserted on the signature track, which affects all tracks.
•For key changes, Display Transpose is taken into 
account.
This allows you to set all staves to a new key and the staves set to Dis-
play Transpose still show the correct key after the key change.
!Inserting a symbol at position 1.1.1.0 is the same as 
changing the staff settings which are stored in the 
track. Inserting anywhere else adds the change to 
the part. 
						

							585
Entering and editing notes
ÖIf some of the staves are bracketed (straight brackets 
only, as set up in the Score Settings dialog on the Layout 
page, see 
“Adding brackets and braces” on page 672), 
inserting a symbol for one of these staves inserts it for all 
other staves within the bracket. Staves outside the 
bracket are not affected.
Editing clefs, keys, and time signatures
If you double-click on a symbol, a dialog appears allowing 
you to change the settings for it.
If you hold down [Alt]/[Option] when double-clicking, all 
symbols at the same position are changed accordingly. 
With key signatures, the Display Transpose value is taken 
into account as described above.
•In the Score Settings dialog on the Project page (Nota-
tion subpage), you can find several options for how clef, 
key, and time signature changes are displayed.
You can also adjust the automatic spacing between these symbols in the 
Spacings subpage. See the dialog help for details.
Moving clefs
Clefs inserted into the score have an effect on how notes 
are displayed. If you for example insert a bass clef in the 
middle of a treble staff, the staff switches to show bass 
pitches. Therefore it is very important where you insert the 
clef.
If you want to move the clef graphically, without disturbing 
the relation between the clef and the notes, proceed as 
follows:
1.Select the Layout tool on the toolbar or context menu.
Note that this tool is available in Page Mode only.
2.Click on the clef and drag it to the desired position.
Now the clef is moved, but the score is still interpreted as if it remained in 
its original position.
ÖWhen you insert a clef change in the score, you can 
decide whether this has the same size as the first (default) 
clef symbol or whether it is displayed with a smaller sym
-
bol. Simply right-click the symbol and activate or deacti-
vate “Display Clef Changes as small Symbols”.
ÖWhen “Warnings for new Clefs at Line Breaks” is ac-
tivated on the Clef context menu and you inserted a clef 
change at a line break in the score, the Clef change sym
-
bol is inserted in the last bar before the staff break. When 
this is deactivated, the symbol is inserted in the first bar of 
the next staff line.
Deleting notes
Using the Erase tool
Proceed as follows:
1.Select the Erase tool on the toolbar or context menu.
2.One at a time, click on the note(s) you want to erase, 
or enclose them in a selection rectangle, and click on any 
of the notes.
Using the Delete menu option or the keyboard
Proceed as follows:
1.Select the notes that you want to delete.
2.Select Delete from the Edit menu, or press [Delete] or 
[Backspace] on the computer keyboard. 
						

							5
Staff settings 
						

							587
Staff settings
About this chapter
In this chapter you will learn:
• How to make staff settings.
• How to work with staff presets.
Staff settings
Below follows a run-through of all staff settings, more de-
tailed information about the ones already described and 
references to other places in the manual for some options.
The Staff page has four tabs – here, the Main tab is selected.
Making settings
1.Open the Score Settings and select the Staff page.
2.With the dialog open, make the desired staff active.
Click anywhere in a staff to make it active, or use the up and down arrow 
keys to step from staff to staff.
3.Select the desired tab and make all necessary settings.
The settings for regular staves are found on the Main and Options tab, 
the Polyphonic tab contains settings for split systems and polyphonic 
voices while the Tablature tab lets you set up tablature scores.
4.When you have made the desired settings, click Apply.
ÖIf the “Apply closes Property Windows” option is acti-
vated in the Preferences dialog (Scores–Editing page), 
clicking Apply also closes the dialog.
•To make settings for another staff, simply make it active 
in the score (by clicking anywhere in the staff or by using 
the up/down arrow keys on the computer keyboard).
However, please note that you need to click Apply before making an-other staff active – otherwise your settings are lost!
Working with staff presets
Making staff settings for your scores can be time-consum-
ing. Staff presets allow you to reuse those settings when-
ever you work with a staff similar to one you have worked 
on before. A staff preset contains all the settings from the 
Staff page of the Score Settings dialog, except for the key.
•To store the current settings (including the settings on 
the Options tab, see below) click the Store button in the 
Presets section of the Staff page.
Enter a name for the preset in the name dialog that appears, and click OK. 
The preset is now available on the Presets pop-up menu (in all projects).
•There are a number of staff presets available, set up to 
suit various instruments, etc. The presets are accessed 
from the Presets pop-up menu on the Staff page of the 
Score Settings dialog or from the staff context menu, 
opened by right-clicking on the blue rectangle to the left 
of a staff. 
Use them as they are, or as starting points for your own settings. Note 
that this loads the settings in the preset into the dialog – to apply these 
to a staff you must click the Apply button as usual. You can also apply 
staff presets directly in the score – see below.
•To remove a preset, select it from the pop-up menu and 
click the Remove button.
Applying a preset directly in the score
If you right-click on the blue rectangle to the left of a staff, 
a context menu appears, listing all available presets. Se
-
lect one to apply it to the staff.
!Staff settings can be saved in the track presets. For 
more information, see the chapter 
“Working with 
track presets” on page 331. 
						

							588
Staff settings
How staff presets are stored
The staff presets are stored as individual files in the Pre-
sets–Staff Presets folder within the Cubase program 
folder. The presets are available for selection in any proj
-
ect you create or edit.
Staff names
These fields allow you to specify a “long” and a “short” 
name for the staff. The long name is shown for the very 
first system for this staff in the score (at the start of the 
project), while the short name is shown for the remaining 
systems.
•Whether the names are shown at all is set in the Score 
Settings dialog, on the Layout page (see 
“Staff names” on 
page 653).
•If you only want the “long name” to be shown (i.e. if you 
do not want a name shown for each system in the score), 
simply delete the short name.
•If the “Show Long Staff Names on new Pages” option is 
activated in the “Staff Names” section of the Score Set
-
tings dialog (Project page), the long name is shown at the 
beginning of each new page.
•You can also specify two separate subnames by dou-
ble-clicking the staff name and entering them in the upper 
and lower text entry fields in the dialog that appears. 
Note that this is only displayed correctly, if you are in Page Mode and if 
“Show Track Names to Left of staff” is activated in the Score Settings di
-alog, on the Project–Notation Style subpage (Staff Names category).
Key and clef
The basic key and clef settings are described in detail in 
the section 
“Setting clef, key, and time signature” on page 
562. There is also a Lower Staff checkbox which is only 
used in conjunction with split (piano) staves and poly-
phonic voicing (see “In a split system” on page 564).
•If you want to set a different key symbol, e.g. when scor-
ing for french horn, activate the “Local Keys” option.
Display Quantize and Interpretation 
Options
These two sections of the dialog contain a number of set-
tings used to determine how the notes are interpreted. 
While these settings are more critical to making MIDI re
-
corded music appear as legible as possible it is still impor-
tant to have them set correctly when entering notes using 
the mouse. Below you can find descriptions of the set
-
tings – for further details, see “Adding Display Quantize 
changes” on page 571.
There are “fixed” Display Quantize values plus an “Auto” 
option which should only be used when your music con
-
tains mixed straight notes and triplets. For background in-
formation about Display Quantize, see “Display Quantize” 
on page 553. 
						

							589
Staff settings
Display Quantize values
Notes and Rests
•Generally, the Notes value should be set to a value equal 
to, or smaller than, the “smallest note position” that you 
want to be shown in the score.
•The Rests value should be set to a value equal to, or 
smaller than, the smallest note value (length) you want to 
be displayed for a single note, positioned on a beat.
•If the score contains only triplets, or mostly triplets, se-
lect one of the Triplet options.
Auto Quantize
•If the project contains no triplets or only triplets, deacti-
vate this option.
•If the project contains mixed triplets and straight notes, 
activate this option (see below).
Deviation and Adapt
•When Deviation is activated, triplets/straight notes are 
detected even if they are not exactly “on the beat”. How
-
ever, if you know your triplets/straight notes are perfectly 
recorded (quantized or entered by hand), deactivate this 
option.
•When Adapt is activated, the program “guesses” that 
when one triplet is found, there are probably more triplets 
surrounding it. Activate this option if not all of your triplets 
are detected.
If your music only contains “straight” notes or triplets
1.Specify a Notes value.
For example, if you have notes on odd sixteenth note positions, the Notes 
value should be set to 16 (sixteenth notes). The “T” values on the pop-up 
menu are for triplets.
2.Specify a Rests value.
For example, if you want a single short note on a beat (quarter note posi-
tion) to be displayed as a quarter note, set the Rests value to 4 (quarter 
notes).
3.Deactivate the Auto Quantize option.
4.Set all the Interpretation Options.
These are described in detail below.
5.Examine the score.
6.If necessary, use the Display Quantize tool to insert 
“exceptions” to the staff settings.
See “Inserting Display Quantize changes” on page 571.
If your music contains mixed straight notes and triplets
1.Examine the score and decide if it mainly contains trip-
lets or mainly “straight” notes.
2.Set the Notes value accordingly.
If the score is mainly triplets, select the smallest triplet note position used 
in the score. If it is mainly straight notes, select the smallest “ordinary” 
note position.
3.Set the Rests value as described above.
4.Activate the Auto Quantize option.
5.Activate the Deviation and Adapt flags if you need 
them.
Interpretation Options
Syncopation
Activate Syncopation when the program adds more ties to 
notes crossing beats and bar lines than you prefer. The 
following options are available:
OptionDescription
RelaxWhen Syncopation is “relaxed”, the program applies syn-copation in a number of common cases.
FullSyncopation is on.
OffSyncopation is off, with no exceptions. 
						

							590
Staff settings
For a “modern” notation of syncopated notes, activate 
Syncopation.
Without and with Syncopation
Again, without and with Syncopation
Note that you can insert “exceptions” to the Syncopation 
setting in the Score Settings dialog on the Staff page, by 
using the Display Quantize tool. You can also create tied 
notes in various combinations by using the Cut Notes tool.
Consolidate Rests
Activate this when you want small consecutive rests 
joined into one (an eight note rest and a sixteenth note 
rest joined to a dotted eighth note rest for example). 
Consolidate Rests deactivated and activated
Clean Lengths
When this option is activated, the program interprets the 
length of your notes differently. A note’s length (in the dis
-
play only) might be extended to the beginning of the next 
note or to the next Rests “position” for Display Quantize. 
An example:
• If a note is too short, you may get a rest just after it.
• When Clean Lengths is activated, the rest disappears.
A slightly short eighth note without and with “Clean Lengths”.
If using Clean Lengths does not help in a particular situa-
tion, you can manually resize the offending note(s) or use 
the Display Quantize tool (see 
“Inserting Display Quantize 
changes” on page 571).
No Overlap
When notes starting at the same position have different 
lengths, the program tends to add more ties than you may 
want. This can be avoided by using No Overlap.
This recording in the Key Editor…
…is displayed like this when No Overlap is deactivated…
…and like this when No Overlap is activated.
You can insert “exceptions” to the No Overlap setting on 
the Staff page of the Score Settings dialog, by using the 
Display Quantize tool.
Shuffle
In jazz it is very common to score a shuffled beat as 
straight notes, simply to make it more legible. 
When the Shuffle flag is activated, the program searches 
for eighth note or sixteenth note pairs where the second 
note is played late (with a “swing feel” or as the third note 
in a triplet). Such pairs are displayed as regular eighth or 
sixteenth notes instead of triplet-based figures.
Without and with Shuffle
!Please note that there may be situations when neither 
of these alternatives is ideal. If you run into such a sit
-
uation, it can probably be resolved by using poly-
phonic voices, see “Polyphonic voicing” on page 593.