Soloists singing same note with different duration

[Tim Mariott]

I am trying to put in a music score that includes several soloists and an SATB choir. My focus is on the choir parts but I do need to show the soloists as well. However I don't want to give each soloist a separate stave: in the printed score they all share one stave.

The problem comes when soloists overlap on the same note. Thus I have the situation where Soloist 1 finishes their bit on the first beat of a bar with a whole measure note on E. At the same time Soloist 2 starts on the same beat with an eighth-measure E before launching off into their bit.

In the printed score the whole measure E is printed slightly offset from the eight-measure E - but I cannot find anyway to achieve the same effect in Composer.

Is my only option to fudge it by putting the whole measure note as floating text?

[Sherry C]

Hi Tim,

Could you possibly post a picture of the formatting you're describing here? I'm not familiar with that type, and a picture would help me immensely.

Thanks!
Sherry

[Tim Mariott]

Hope this helps - and hope I have attached it correctly. Thanks

[Sherry C]

Hi Tim,

Thanks - that was very helpful indeed!

Composer does not support adding the same note of a different duration at the same location. It's not just drawing the notation, but actually playing it as well, and the MIDI playback doesn't allow two of the same note on the same staff and different durations. In this case even trying to enter it as a separate voice would not answer your need of having the duration that you need but having a spatial separation of the notation.

You're correct that you'll need to "fudge" it for the printed score by using the Text/Symbols. And it will need to be that first 8th note that gets fudged because we need to add the whole-note symbol to the Symbols dialog (sorry about that).

You can do the following to get this particular passage to look right (and sound pretty much correctly as well).

1. Add the 8th notes (except that first note) as Upper voice notes.

2. Now add the whole note as a Lower voice note.

3. Select the rest that is left for the first note, and click the "toggle hiding of rest" button in the Rests detail palette (it is the last button on the right).

4. Now use Text/Symbols, and click where you want to enter that first 8th note.

5. Select the 8th note from the dialog, and click "Ok."

6. You can then position the 8th note, as well as enlarge it if needed, where you want it in the score by dragging it around.

ttfn,
Sherry

[Tim Mariott]

Thank you. As always a most helpful reply which solved my problem - sadly only for another one to pop up!!