Steinberg Cubase 8 Manual

							Polyphonic voicing
Moving notes between voices
1171
4. Click OK.
The notes are distributed to different voices.
RELATED LINKS
The Explode function on page 1124
Alternative ways of handling voices
Below we suggest further “advanced” ways of putting notes into voices. This is 
based on the relation between voices and MIDI channels, so please make sure that 
you understand how this connection works.
•Cubase Pro only: You can use the Logical Editor to put notes into voices, 
based on other more complex criteria, like for example their pitch and length. 
This is done by setting up the Logical Editor so that the notes that meet the 
criteria get their MIDI channel changed to that of their voice.
• When you enter notes using step input you can change the MIDI channel on 
your input device and directly enter notes into separate voices.
• You can play back each voice on a different MIDI channel, simply by setting 
the track to Any. This can be used as a convenient way of “proof-hearing” 
each voice separately.
• You can use the Input Transformer to assign a certain key range to a MIDI 
channel, and thereby automatically put notes into voices when recording.
• For brass and vocals, you might record each voice on its own track, and use 
the “Merge All Staves” function to automatically copy each recording to a 
separate voice on a new track.
• When you have assigned parts to voices, you can use the Extract Voices 
function to create one track out of each voice.
RELATED LINKS
The Logical Editor, Transformer, and Input Transformer on page 859
Automatic polyphonic voicing – Merge All Staves on page 1175
Converting voices to tracks – Extract Voices on page 1176
Option Description
Split Note Use this to move all notes below a certain pitch to another 
voice.
Lines To Tracks Use this when you want all musical “lines” to be put in one 
voice each. The notes with the highest pitch goes to the 
first voice, the notes with the second highest pitch goes to 
the second, and so on.
Bass To Lowest Voice When this is activated, the lowest notes always ends up in 
the lowest voice. 
						

							Polyphonic voicing
Handling rests
1172
Handling rests
With polyphonic voices, you often get more rest symbols than desired.
• If a voice does not need any rests at all, you can deactivate rests separately 
for this voice on the Polyphonic tab of the Staff page in the Score Settings 
dialog.
• If you only need rests from one voice on a staff, activate Rests–Center for that 
voice (this is done in the same dialog). If two or more voices have rests, 
deactivate Rests–Center. The program then automatically makes sure the 
rests do not “collide” in the score, by adjusting their vertical position.
• To avoid having several rests displayed in empty bars, you can activate the 
Rests–Reduce option for all voices (that have rests) except one. This option 
causes the program to hide rests in empty bars.
• You can use the Hide feature to totally remove individual superfluous rests 
from the score.
• You can use the Object Selection tool to manually move rests up/down or 
sideways to adjust the “picture”.
• If needed you can add “rest symbols” (rests that do not affect the playback 
data in any way) by using the symbols.
RELATED LINKS
Hiding/showing objects on page 1283
Voices and Display Quantize
When you insert Display Quantize changes, you can either apply the settings to all 
voices (by [Alt]/[Option]-clicking with the tool) or to the current voice only.
IMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANT
If 
						

							Polyphonic voicing
Creating crossed voicings
1173
• Insert Display Quantize “exceptions” anywhere in the score, independently for 
each voice.
PROCEDURE
1. Make sure that the “Display Quantize Tool affects all Voices” option is 
deactivated.
2. Select the voice for which you want to insert a Display Quantize event.
This is done by clicking at the corresponding voice button on the extended toolbar as 
described above, or by selecting a note that belongs to this voice.
3. Select the Display Quantize tool.
4. Click at the position at which you want to insert the event.
The Display Quantize dialog appears.
5. Fill out the dialog.
6. Click Apply.
RELATED LINKS
Inserting Display Quantize changes on page 1122
Display Quantize and Interpretation Options on page 1155
Creating crossed voicings
Often, for example in vocal scoring, you have crossed voicings on one system. You 
can of course move notes manually into voices to get the stem direction and other 
note properties right, but there is a quicker way. Let’s explain how to do this by 
example. Without using polyphonic voicing, you have entered this:
PROCEDURE
1. Open the Score Settings dialog on the Staff page and select the Polyphonic 
tab.
2. From the Staff Mode pop-up menu, select Polyphonic.
3. Activate voice 1 and 2 only, and make settings for them as in the picture 
below. 
						

							Polyphonic voicing
Creating crossed voicings
1174
4. Click Apply.
The staff is in Polyphonic staff mode, but all notes are still in the same voice.
5. Open the Scores menu and select “Explode” from the Functions submenu.
6. In the dialog that appears, select the “To Polyphonic Voices” option and 
activate “Lines To Tracks”.
Leave the other options off.
7. Click OK.
The notes have now been split in two “lines”, each in a separate voice. However, from 
the middle of the bar, notes that are in voice 1 should be in voice 2 and vice versa.
8. Select the two notes that you want to be moved from voice 1 to voice 2.
Two notes in voice 1 selected.
9. Move the notes to voice 2.
The quickest way to do this is to press [Ctrl]/[Command] and click the voice Insert [2] 
button on the extended toolbar.
Two notes moved to the right voice.
10. Select the two notes that you want to be moved to voice 1 and move them, 
too.
All notes in the right voices.
RESULT 
The voicing is now correct, as you can tell from the stem directions. However, there 
is still some work to do on the notes graphical positions and the display of stems 
and beams for some of the notes. When you have made those adjustments, the 
score may look like this: 
						

							Polyphonic voicing
Automatic polyphonic voicing – Merge All Staves
1175
After making graphical adjustments.
RELATED LINKS
Graphic moving of notes on page 1198
Manual adjustment of beams on page 1195
Automatic polyphonic voicing – Merge All Staves
If you have already created some tracks which look and play back as they should, 
and you want to combine these into one track with polyphonic voices, there is a 
special function on the Scores menu for this:
PROCEDURE
1. Open the tracks (up to four) in the Score Editor.
2. Open the Scores menu and select “Merge All Staves” from the Functions 
submenu.
Now a new track is created and shown in the score. The track has polyphonic voices 
activated, and the four original tracks are assigned to one voice each (voices 1, 2, 5 
and 6 are used).
Before…
…and after merging the staves
Furthermore, all non-linked symbols that belong to the staff that become the first 
polyphonic voice in the merged staff are copied. They have the same positions as the 
original symbols.
IMPORTANT
When you later play back the music, you need to mute the four original tracks, or you 
get double notes. 
						

							Polyphonic voicing
Converting voices to tracks – Extract Voices
1176
Converting voices to tracks – Extract Voices
This function does the opposite of “Merge All Staves” – it extracts polyphonic 
voices from an existing track and creates new tracks, one for each voice.
PROCEDURE
1. Open a track containing 2 to 8 polyphonic voices in the Score Editor.
2. Open the Scores menu and select “Extract Voices” from the Functions 
submenu.
A number of new tracks is created and added to the display of the Score Editor. Each 
track contains the music from one polyphonic voice. If there were non-linked symbols 
in the original track, each new track gets a copy of these symbols.
IMPORTANT
When you later play back the music, you need to mute the original track (the one with 
polyphonic voices), or you get double notes. 
						

							1177
Additional note and rest 
formatting
About this chapter
In this chapter you will learn:
• How to control stem direction.
• How to control beaming, and create cross-staff beaming.
• How to make detailed adjustments to note appearance.
• How to perform “graphic moving” of notes.
• How to create grace notes.
• How to create tuplets.
Background: Note stems
The direction of stems is governed by five things:
• How notes are grouped under beams.
• Any manual manipulation of beams.
• The Flip Stems function.
• How the note information is set for each note.
• How the Polyphonic tab on the Staff page of the Score Settings dialog is set 
up (if you use polyphonic voices).
The order of this list corresponds to the priority of the settings, i. e. on conflict, the 
grouping under beams has the highest priority and the settings made on the 
Polyphonic tab the lowest.
IMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANT
If you have edited the stem length of a note and then flip it, the stem is reset to 
default length. 
						

							Additional note and rest formatting
Setting stem direction
1178
IMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANTIMPORTANT
If you have activated the “Fixed Stems” option on the Staff page of the Score 
Settings dialog (Options tab), a lot of the automatic stem length settings are 
ignored. However, you can still edit the stem length and direction of individual notes.
RELATED LINKS
Fixed Stems on page 1162
Setting stem direction
In polyphonic voices
In the Score Settings dialog, on the Staff page (Polyphonic tab), the stem direction 
can be set separately for each voice.
Using Flip Stems
Flipping the stem of one or several notes
PROCEDURE
1. Select the notes.
2. Click the Flip icon on the extended toolbar.
All the stems in the selection are now flipped. Those that pointed up now point down 
and vice versa.
The Flip icon
You can also assign a key command for this. In the Key Commands dialog on the File 
menu, the command is called “Flip” and is found in the Score Functions category.
You can also right-click a note or a selection of notes and select the Flip option from 
the context menu. 
						

							Additional note and rest formatting
Setting stem direction
1179
Flipping the stems of notes grouped under a beam
PROCEDURE
1. Select any note in the group.
2. Invoke Flip as described above.
The entire group is now flipped.
Before and after the flip. No matter which note you select, the entire group is flipped.
IMPORTANT
This does not work if you have adjusted the slanting of the beam by dragging. If you 
have, you must first reset the beam.
RELATED LINKS
Stem length on page 1180
Independent stem direction under a beam
If you need stems attached to the same beam to go in different directions, this is 
achieved by dragging the beam’s start and end points. This feature is available in 
Page Mode only.
Independent stem direction under a beam
RELATED LINKS
Manual adjustment of beams on page 1195
Stem direction in the Set Note Info dialog
The Set Note Info dialog can be opened by double-clicking on a note head. In its 
lower left corner you can find a pop-up menu for setting stem direction. 
						

							Additional note and rest formatting
Stem length
1180
• Setting this pop-up menu to Up or Down is the same as using Flip Stems.
• Setting this pop-up menu to Auto makes the program set the stem direction 
automatically.
RELATED LINKS
Using Flip Stems on page 1178
Stem length
Adjusting stem length (Page Mode)
PROCEDURE
1. Click on the end of the stem so that a handle appears.
2. If you want to change the lengths of several stems at the same time, hold 
down [Shift] and select these stems as well.
3. Drag the stem handle (on one of the selected stems) up or down.
All selected stems are lengthened or shortened by the same amount.
Resetting stem length and beam slants
PROCEDURE
1. Make sure that the filter bar is visible.
If the filter bar is not visible, click the “Set up Window Layout” button on the toolbar 
and select the Filters option.