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English (US)

MuseScore Studio Handbook

This handbook tells you everything you need to know about how to use the world’s most popular music notation program, MuseScore Studio, which is freely available for Windows, macOS, and Linux-based operating systems.

License

Except where otherwise noted, all text and images in the Handbook are copyright MuseScore Limited and contributors, and licensed . Linked or embedded content is subject to its own licensing terms.

Using GitBook

Overview

Organization

User content on GitBook is always owned by an Organization. In our case, that's MuseScore.

Space

Within an organization, you can create Spaces for different content. We currently have one space called English (US), which is for the handbook's English source text. We'll add more spaces later; one for each translation, including English (GB) if we want (or we could rename the main one "English").

Site / Docs site

To make a space viewable to the public, it must be added to a Docs site (aka 'site'). We currently have one site called MuseScore Studio Handbook. This site will be used for the source space and all translations.

When the handbook site is published, it will be available at:

https://musescore.gitbook.io/musescore-studio-handbook (site URL)
https://musescore.gitbook.io/ (alias because it's the default site for this organization)

We also have the option to use a custom subdomain of our own website, such as:

While a site is published, live edits on its spaces are disabled, so all changes must be made though change requests (or on GitHub if GitHub sync is enabled).

GitHub sync

The content within a space can be synced with a GitHub repository. In the repository, content is stored as Markdown files, with subfolders for each parent page or group.

The sync is two-way, so edits made in either place will be reflected in the other. This will enable us to:

Edit the source text on GitBook or GitHub.
Upload strings from GitHub to Transifex.
Download translations from Transifex to GitHub.
Sync translations back to GitBook.

While GitHub sync is enabled, live edits are disabled, so all changes must be made though change requests, or on GitHub via pull requests or direct commits to the repository.

Summary / Table of contents

On the left side of the screen is a list of groups, pages and subpages in the current space. This list is the summary or table of contents. If GitHub sync is enabled, the summary appears in a file called SUMMARY.md at the root of the space.

To prevent a specific page appearing in the summary, go to Page actions (⋮) > Hide page.

The page will still appear in search results and be accessible to anyone with the URL.

Page outine / On this page

On the right side of the screen, under the label "ON THIS PAGE", is a list of headings on the current page. This is the page outline. Only Heading 1 and Heading 2 headings are shown in the outline.

Heading 3 (not shown in page outline)

To hide the sidebar for the summary or page outline, go to Page actions (⋮) > Options.

The summary and page outline will remain visible on other pages.

Pages

You're viewing a page now. This page is actually a subpage of the main page. It's also possible to have subsubpages, and so on.

By default, parent pages are collapsed in the summary, so you can't see their subpages. Subpages become visible when you view the parent page or click the expansion arrow next to it in the summary.

Groups

Pages can also be nested under groups. Group names appear in BLOCK CAPITALS in the summary.

Unlike parent pages, groups are always expanded in the summary and cannot be collapsed. Also, groups cannot be nested under other groups or pages.

Groups are not pages and so cannot contain content of their own. If you try to visit a group URL, GitBook will redirect you to the first page in the group.

Editing

Live edits

GitBook has a live edit mode where you can edit content directly without creating a "branch" first. In this mode, you can add, move, rename, and delete pages, as well as edit content on existing pages.

Live edits are disabled while a site is published, or while GitHub sync is enabled.

If editing is disabled, many of the menus (⋮), options (⠿), and buttons (+) mentioned on this page will not be available until you start making a change request.

Change request (CR)

While live edits are disabled, the only way to make changes is via a change request, or ‘CR’. This creates a personal ‘branch’ on which editing is enabled. Your CR branch covers the entire space, so it’s possible to edit multiple files in a single CR if necessary, but this should only be done if the changes are related.

When you’re done editing, you can submit your CR for review, like a GitHub pull request (PR). Like PRs, change requests should always be given a meaningful title that describes the change made. Ideally, the title should be written in the imperative mood, which means it should complete the sentence “This change request will...”.

Example CR name

Rating

Comment

"shoogle's Nov 21 changes"

Default CR name. It's not descriptive enough.

"Metric modulations"

Bare minimum.

"Added images of metric modulations"

Better, but not in imperative mood.

"Add images of metric modulations"

This is in the imperative mode.

"Tempos: Add images of metric modulations"

In imperative mood and identifies the topic being edited.

In general, each change request should only do one thing. That thing might be:

"Add page: Rhythm"
"Rename 'Meters' page to 'Time signatures'"
"Installation on Linux: Remove unnecessary detail"
"Replace 'MuseScore 4' with 'MuseScore Studio' on all pages"

In naming your CR, if you can't avoid using the word "and" (as in "Do this and do that"), that's a clue you should consider splitting your edits across multiple CRs instead.

Resolving conflicts

While you’re waiting for your change request (CR) to be merged, the content it’s based on could change in the primary space (e.g. if someone else’s CR gets merged before yours). If this happens, GitBook will prompt you to update your change request to reflect the new primary content.

When you click the Update button in your CR, GitBook will alert you to any conflicts that it is not able to resolve automatically. This happens if you changed a block (i.e. a paragraph) that was also changed in the primary space. In this case, GitBook displays the two versions of the block side-by-side and asks you to pick one to keep: the primary version, or your changed version. If necessary, you can edit the block manually to incorporate elements of both versions.

Some types of conflict are not identified by GitBook. For example, if your edit refers to other content, such as an existing image or definition higher up the page, you should check that this content still exists after you update your CR. Also, if a page you edited was renamed in the primary space, when you update the CR you might find that you are left with two copies of the page, each with a different name and different content. If this happens, you’ll have to delete one copy of the page and potentially transfer some of its contents to the other copy.

Each change request should focus on a single topic. This makes it easier to review and merge quickly, which reduces the likelihood of conflicts occuring, and makes it easier to resolve conflicts if they do occur.

Creating new pages and groups

If you hover the cursor over an existing page or group in the summary, a More actions (⋮) button appears, which reveals a menu with the option to Insert subpage. This creates a new empty page nested under the parent page or group. Similarly, if you hover between pages in the summary, an Add (+) button appears, which enables you to insert a new page between neighboring pages.

To create a group, use the Add new option at the bottom of the summary. This button can also be used to create top-level pages (i.e. pages that are not subpages of another page or group). Once created, you can then drag the new page or group to the correct position in the summary.

If GitHub sync is enabled and you create a new subfolder or Markdown file in the repository, you must manually add it to SUMMARY.md for GitBook to become aware of it.

Importing pages from the old handbook

When you hover the cursor over an existing page or group in the summary, the More actions (⋮) menu button that appears also contains an option to Import subpages. Using this option, you can choose a Markdown or HTML file on your computer to upload and turn into a new subpage.

To create the Markdown or HTML file:

Visit a page of the old handbook and use the option to Edit.
Copy the title and source text and paste them at https://shoogle.github.io/gitbookify/.
Click "Convert" and save the resulting file somewhere on your machine.

Once on GitBook, the page will likely have problems, such as:

Links to other handbook pages are broken.
Images are "hotlinked" from MuseScore.org rather than uploaded to GitBook.
If importing HTML rather than Markdown:
- <h1> elements are incorrectly imported as Heading 2. (<h2> and <h3> are imported correctly.)
Some "dodgy" content added by the community.

These issues must be fixed manually, but we don't need to do it yet because we'll do another import later, after the old handbook has been frozen. Before then, we need to get used to GitBook ourselves and then inform the community about the migration.

Editing a page

GitBook uses a block-based editor somewhat similar to Squarespace and recent versions of Wordpress. You can try creating blocks on the Sandbox for experimenting page.

Content blocks

A new block is created for each:

Expand me

Some blocks can be nested within other blocks, such as this paragraph, which is nested inside an expandable section.

If you hover the cursor over an existing block, this reveals a plus (+) button to add a new block, as well as an options (⠿) button with options for the current block. The options button can also be dragged to reposition the block on the page.

Another way to create a block is to edit an existing block and press Enter or Return. This usually creates a new paragraph block below the first one, but it might create something else, such as a new list item or table row. If it's a list item, you can press Tab and Shift+Tab to change the level of nesting, and Enter or Return to convert it to a normal paragraph (this only work while the block is empty).

While editing an empty block, you can type a forward slash (/) to quickly convert it to a different type of block. If the block is not empty, typing slash (/) instead reveals options for inserting inline content.

Sandbox for experimenting

Feel free to add anything to this page. It will be deleted before we make the handbook public.

About the handbook

MuseScore versions covered

This handbook is valid for MuseScore version 4.0 and above.

If you're using a different version of the program, please consult the appropriate handbook for your version:

Exploring the handbook

Browsing chapters

Use the chapter links on the main page to explore content in each chapter of the handbook.

There is also a single-page view of the entire handbook, which can be used with your browser's find-in-page facility (shortcut: Ctrl+F, or Cmd+F on macOS).

Searching the handbook

To search the handbook, use the dedicated search field in the top right of each handbook page.

If you're not sure what to search for, try browsing the Glossary. It has pictures to help you to find things that you are unable to name.

You can also try a web search using this special syntax to only include results from MuseScore.org:

site:musescore.org your topic here

This works with most search engines. For example, perform a Google search for "site:musescore.org tempo markings".

If you still can't find the information you need, please ask for help in the Support Forum.

Reading in a different language

The handbook is translated into several languages, although translations are not always up-to-date with the English version. Pages are translated individually, so not every page is available in every language.

To read the handbook in a different language, use the languages dropdown displayed in the top right of each handbook page, directly below the Search field. If a particular language isn't available in the dropdown this means the page hasn't been translated into that language yet.

In case of doubt, please consult the English version of the handbook, or ask for help in one of the forums. Use the Support and bug reports forum if posting in English, otherwise use the appropriate forum for your language.

Downloading the handbook

To save a copy of the handbook to your computer for offline viewing:

Visit the single-page view of the entire handbook.
Open your browser's Print facility (shortcut: Ctrl+P, or Cmd+P on macOS).
Choose the option labelled Print to PDF, Save to PDF, or similar.
- Make sure you are saving a file rather than printing a physical copy.

If you require a physical copy, it's best to follow the above steps to create a PDF, then check the PDF is formatted correctly before you proceed to print it with a real printer. The handbook is quite long, so please don't print a physical copy unless you really need to.

Contributing to the handbook

The handbook is maintained and translated by the MuseScore community. If you'd like to help write content, please read Editing the handbook.

If you want to translate pages, please read How to translate the handbook.

Editing the Handbook

Guidelines for writing articles

So you'd like to contribute to the MuseScore 4 handbook – great! We're so happy you're here.

This page contains brief guidelines to get you started with writing articles. Please read this page carefully before editing anything in our handbook. This information is intended to help, but if you're in doubt about anything or have any questions, please join the discussion on the Documentation forum.

Structure - General principles

Each page should explain a single topic more or less completely. If a page feels like it is getting too long, try splitting it into separate pages.

Not every page is identical, but keeping the following in mind can help you structure your page content in a way that's easy to understand for the reader:

Start with an overview

Starting your page with an overview can help introduce a topic before launching into details. Overviews don't usually need a section heading.

Establish a hierarchy

Think about what most users will be trying to achieve, and why they might be coming to the handbook to look for information. Put solutions for the most common tasks towards the top of the page; less commonly needed information can go towards the bottom.

Group information logically

Related concepts should be discussed together. This may sometimes require less-commonly-used features to be discussed alongside more-commonly used ones, but that's okay.

Focus on user tasks, not just UI components

For instance, a section about "Creating custom key signatures" is better than a section called "Using the master palette".

Create a table of contents

Please be sure to enable the "Generate a table of contents" option for all Handbook pages.

Headings

In an effort to ensure consistency of style for community-written pages, we have already provided headings on many pages. Please organize your content within this structure. For pages that lack headings, feel free to create your own in a style similar to that used elsewhere.

For accessibility reasons, headings should never be formatted in regular bold text. All headings need to be formatted as tags with semantic meaning.

All pages start by default with a Heading 1. The first section heading you will enter will therefore always be a Heading 2. Please also don’t skip heading levels (By, for example, adding a heading 4 after a heading 2).

Heading level

Usage and MarkDown syntax

Heading 1

Default for all page headings (Not editable by contributors)

Heading 2

Use for the start of every section. MarkDown syntax: ## Heading name

Heading 3

Use for the start of every sub-section, and to introduce single-step instructions (I.e. where a list is not necessary). MarkDown syntax: ### Heading name

Heading 4

Use sparingly if additional sub-sections are required. MarkDown syntax: #### Heading name

Lastly, try to always start your headings with a verb. E.g. "Adding time signatures", rather than "Time signatures"

Content

The MuseScore handbook broadly contains two main types of information: descriptive material, and goal-oriented instructions.

Descriptive material

This is used to explain different areas of the program. For example,

A Palette is a folder containing musical symbols which can be applied to the score. MuseScore's default palettes contain collections of related symbols, but you can customize palettes to display almost any kind of symbol, line or text.

Descriptive material tends to be longer and more “fleshed out” than goal-oriented instructions, but we still ask that you use simple, plain language wherever you can.

Goal-oriented instructions

These explain how to perform a specific task. The instructions should be as short and direct as possible, generally taking the form of a numbered list. For example,

To create a new palette

Open the palettes tab
Click Add palettes
Click Create custom palette
Name your new palette and click Create

Notice that we use bold text for named components of the user interface, including menus. Keyboard shortcuts, such as Ctrl+S, are rendered with <kbd> tags (see Syntax).

When writing goal-oriented instructions, please:

Use only numbered lists (no dot points)
Begin each numbered instruction with a verb
Write only one task/direction per numbered item

For example, instead of writing this:

Open the palettes tab and click Add palettes

Please write this:

Open the palettes tab
Click Add palettes

Please be sure to include keyboard options for goal-oriented instructions, where such options exist. This is especially important for improving the program's accessibility.

Use of non-written media

The use of non-written media is encouraged as a supplement to written descriptions. This includes:

Animated GIFs
Screenshots of relevant parts of the user interface

Creating animated GIFs

Animated GIFs offer many advantages over screenshots and videos in that they expose in the shortest amount of time the sequence of actions required to achieve a particular task. There are lots of tools available for creating GIFs, however we recommend the following workflow to ensure crisp and clear image quality while maintaining as small as possible file size (ideally <2MB per GIF).

Use only the MuseScore 4 interface, and set its appearance to dark mode with blue highlights (to achieve consistency across the entire handbook)
Plan and rehearse the mouse clicks and keyboard shortcuts you will use, aiming to demonstrate the required steps in as short as possible time (ideally <10s)
Use a free tool like gifcap to record the contents of your screen
Use a free tool like KeyCastr to record keystrokes (where required)
Only show the amount of UI required demonstrate a particular task

Linking to other pages

It's really helpful to link to other pages in the handbook. You might do this wherever you mention a different part of the user interface, or even when referring back to previous versions of the handbook.

There is a specific process for adding links to other handbook pages, which will allow accurate redirects regardless of the language version being read.

Use the right syntax

[node:######,title="Name of the page you want to link to"]

or, to link to a specific heading within the page:

[node:######,fragment="heading-slug",title="Name of the page you want to link to"]

Link to the page's node number, not the page's URL

To find a page's node number:

Open the desired page in your browser
Click the "three dots" icon in the top-right of the page
Click Edit in the context menu that appears
Click on your browser's search bar to read the URL

You will find the page's node number in the URL address visible in this edit screen (yes, it only appears in the edit screen). It will look something like this:\

Use a bookmarklet to autogenerate links

You can use the following code snippet and add it as a bookmarklet to your bookmarks. To do this,

Select the code snippet
Drag it to your browser's bookmark bar

Alternatively, you can add a new bookmark to your browser and replace the bookmark's URL with the code snippet. If you are on a page within the handbook that you want to link to, click on the bookmarklet in your bookmarks and copy the displayed link.

javascript:void function(){prompt("",`[node:${drupalSettings.path.currentPath.replace("node/","")}${document.querySelector("meta[property=\"og:title\"]").content?`,title="${document.querySelector("meta[property=\"og:title\"]").content}"`:""}${window.location.hash?`,fragment="${decodeURIComponent(window.location.hash).replace("#","")}"`:""}]`)}();

Taken from node,title,fragment bookmarklet.

Syntax

The handbook is written in MarkDown with a few permitted HTML tags.

If you're not familiar with MarkDown, it doesn't take long to learn. Get started by reading this page first (a MuseScore account is required to properly view the content on that page, also note that you cannot use Filtered HTML anymore).

Examples for stuff beyond MarkDown

Keys
<kbd><kbd>A</kbd></kbd>, looks like A. (See Writing keyboard shortcuts below.)
Key combinations
<kbd><kbd>Shift</kbd>+<kbd>A</kbd></kbd>, looks like Shift+A. (See Writing keyboard shortcuts below.)
Buttons
<kbd><samp class="button">Advanced Style Properties…</samp></kbd>, looks like Advanced Style Properties…, but this particular form is not used in the MuseScore 4 handbook (instead use bold for text that appears in the program).
Menu entries
__File→Open__, looks like File→Open
Images
<img src="image URL" alt="File name description" width="500px"/>, can be a useful alternative to inline images, where the image width needs to be specified

Writing keyboard shortcuts

Use the <kbd> syntax described above and follow these guidelines:

For accessibility reasons, always use words instead of symbols for the names of all whitespace keys, arrow keys, and modifier keys.
- Good: Cmd+Space; Win+Return; Shift+Tab
- Bad: ⌘+ ; ⊞+⏎; ⇧+↹
For keys that represent printable characters, the appropriate character should be used (e.g. write $ not Dollar).
Use common abbreviations like Ctrl, Cmd, Esc, Del, PgDn. Don't abbreviate key names that are not normally abbreviated.
Except where it matters, prefer Return instead of Enter, and Del instead of Backspace.
For combinations, write modifier keys in this order: Win+Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Fn+… (Mac: Ctrl+Cmd+Option+Shift+Fn+…).

When in doubt, consult Default keyboard shortcuts for the canonical way to write key names and combinations.

Leaving a revision log message

Finally, whenever you make a change to a page (however big or small!), please leave a concise message that briefly describes the changes you made. For example,

Added content about xxx
Added images
Corrected content
Added keyboard tags

Leave this information in the Revision log message text field in the right panel of the Edit view for each page:

Style guide

General

Case

All text is to be written in sentence case. This includes all paragraphs, headings, group names and page titles.

GitBook renders some text in BLOCK CAPITALS, such as group names in the Summary on the left of the screen. However, you should use sentence case when editing this text.

Capital letters should be used in proper nouns (e.g. "MusicXML") and abbreviations ("UI") if this is the official or generally used form, but not for contractions of everyday speech (e.g. use "aka" rather than "AKA").

UI text

When writing instructions for the user, text that appears in MuseScore's UI should be copied verbatim and highlighted in bold (e.g. "Press the Not now button").

URLs

Within URLs, a plain domain name should be captilized like the brand name (e.g. MuseScore.org), but not when a longer URL is used (e.g. musescore.org/en/download).

Structure

Pages

You're currently viewing the Style guide page, which is a subpage of About the handbook.

Page titles

Page titles should be relatively short. Ideally the title should fit on one line in the Summary on the left of the screen, although this may not always be possible. Bear in mind that page titles may be significantly longer when translated to other languages besides English.

Tips to keep page titles short:

Avoid saying "score" (e.g. "Selecting elements", not "Selecting elements in the score")
Avoid saying "MuseScore" (e.g. "Upgrading", not "Upgrading MuseScore Studio")

Subpages

When subpages are used, only one level of subpages may be used. Never create a subsubpage.

Parent pages should have very short titles because its title appears in the URLs of all its subpages.

In general, we prefer to use groups rather than subpages, to avoid nesting in the Summary.

Groups

Groups are like chapters. They are CAPITALIZED in the Summary on the left of the screen.

Groups should have very short names. This is because the group name appears in the URLs of all pages within the group.

It is possible to edit the group slug to make it shorter than the actual group name. However, in general, this should not be done. Instead, the group name should be made as short as possible.

Introduction

Download and installation

To download MuseScore Studio for free (no account or subscription required), please follow the instructions for your specific operating system below.

Windows

Go to
Click the button marked Free Download

[This section needs completing]

macOS

Go to
Click the button marked Free Download

An application called MuseHub will be installed in your default download directory (usually the Downloads folder). This application makes it easy to install MuseScore Studio, as well as a range of sound libraries and effects plugins that can greatly enhance your music writing experience.

To install and open MuseHub:

Open the Finder and go to the Downloads folder
Double-click the application Muse_Hub.dmg
In the dialog that appears, drag the MuseHub application icon into your Applications folder
Double-click the Applications folder icon to look inside the folder
Double-click the MuseHub application to open it

During this process, you may need to grant MuseHub various permissions and access to folders. These permissions are required to ensure MuseHub installs correctly.

Now that you have MuseHub open in front of you, it's time to install MuseScore Studio:

Click on the Apps tab in the left panel
Locate MuseScore Studio and click the Free button beneath it to start the download and installation process
Once the app has been downloaded, click the Open button beneath the MuseScore Studio icon.

Now get writing some music!

Linux

AppImage

Install

The easiest way to install the program is by using an AppImage:

Under Linux→AppImage (recommended), click on the Download (64 bit) link
When the download is complete, right-click on the AppImage and select Properties
Switch to the Permissions tab
The next step varies depending on your file manager:
- Nautilus-based (Nemo, Files, Caja) : Check the “Allow executing file as program” box.
- Dolphin: Check the "Is executable" box.
- Thunar: Check the “Allow this file to run as a program” box.
- PCManFM: Change the “Execute” option in the drop down list to “Anyone”.
Exit the dialog.
Right-click inside the directory in which the AppImage is installed and select Open in Terminal
In the Terminal type, ./[file name] install (the dot and slash at the beginning are important!)

Steps 7 and 8 ensure that a MuseScore entry appears in the system’s menu and is linked to the new location of the AppImage (/home/[user name]/.local/bin). The correct file associations are also automatically made.

Note: Instead of steps 7 and 8 (above) you can, of course, install using the absolute file path instead. That is:

Open the Terminal
Type [file path] install

Tip: if you apply copy to the AppImage and press Ctrl+Shift+V in the terminal this will enter the absolute file path of the file that has just been “copied”.

Uninstall

No formal uninstall procedure is needed to remove the installed AppImage. Just delete menu entries and any shortcuts manually, then delete the App itself, and its links (which will be in ~/.local/bin).

Create your first score

We’ll start by creating a new score from a template (Alternatively, you can learn about creating a score from scratch in ).

To create a score from a template:

Click New score in the Scores screen
In the New score dialog that appears, browse templates by Category, or use the search bar to look up a template directly
Click Next to enter additional score information (or skip this step and let MuseScore pre-fill your score with default information, which you can always change later)
Click Done to create your new score

Entering score information

In the Additional score information screen, you can set:

The initial key signature (the default key signature contains no sharps or flats)
The initial time signature (the default time signature is 4/4)
The initial tempo (Click Tempo, then Show tempo marking on my score for this to appear)

Entering notes

The simplest way to enter notes in MuseScore is to:

Hit N on your keyboard to enter the note entry mode
Start typing note names (A, B, C, D, E, F, G)

You’re now engraving in MuseScore! You’ll notice the blue note input highlight, which indicates that you are in note input mode. It shows you where in the measure your next note will be entered.

You can specify the duration of each note you enter in the Note input toolbar. To change note duration:

Ensure you are in note input mode (See above)
Click on the desired note duration, or
Use shortcut keys 1 through 7 to select different note values

Adding items from the palettes

The Palettes panel contains almost every notational object you might need to add detail to your score. The simplest way to add palette items to your notation is to:

Select an existing object (or range of objects) in your score (e.g. a notehead, clef, measure, etc.)
In the Palettes panel, open a palette by clicking the triangular arrow button
Click once on a palette object

Making adjustments in Properties

The Properties panel can be revealed by clicking on the Properties tab on the left side of the screen:

(Users of MuseScore prior to version 4 will know this as the Inspector).

The properties panel will show settings that are specific to the object being selected. These settings usually affect the visual appearance of the selected object. Most of the time, changes you make in Properties will apply only to the object you have selected (e.g. you’ll change the selected hairpin, and not every hairpin in your score).

As you add details to your score, click on any object to see what settings are available.

Inserting and deleting measures

To insert a single measure:

Click on a measure to select it
In the Measure section of Properties, click Insert measures
Click the + button

This Measure section contains controls that allow you to insert multiple measures at once. Simply set the number of measures you wish to insert in the text field. You can also use the dropdown menu to change the point where new measures will be inserted.

To delete a measure or group of measures:

Select the measure(s) you wish to delete
In the Measures popup, click the trash can icon

Saving your score

To save your score locally to your computer's harddrive:

Select File→Save
In the dialog that appears, select folder and fill in the required info such as file name, click Save or OK

To save your score to the cloud on musescore.com:

Select File→Save to Cloud.
You may be asked to sign in to your account on musescore.com.
Fill in the Name of your score.
Set a Visibility. Private means only you may see your score. Unlisted means anyone with the correct link may see your score. Public means anyone may see your score.
Press Save.

Exporting your score

To export your score:

Select the Publish tab
Click Export
Select the parts you wish to export
Choose the file format for your exported file(s)
If exporting multiple parts, choose whether you want each part combined into one file or exported to as separate files
Click Export

Upgrading to MuseScore Studio 4 from earlier versions

If you’re coming to MuseScore Studio 4 from earlier versions, you’ll notice changes not only to the user interface, but also to many familiar features and ways of doing things. These changes have been designed to improve the user experience while providing much greater functionality. Here's a very quick overview of some of the major changes.

New user interface

MuseScore Studio 4 comes with a sleek new interface. Nearly every part of the application has been completely redesigned to be cleaner and easier to read. You can choose between light, dark and high contrast themes, as well as pick your preferred accent color. Changes to the appearance of the app can be made in .

Instruments and parts

A new allows you to hide, rearrange and customize your instruments without having to leave the score view.

The instruments panel integrates tightly with the process of creating , making it much easier to produce custom parts with any combination of available instruments. There’s now also a convenient button in the toolbar that allows you to quickly open any available part.

Inspector

The Inspector from earlier versions of MuseScore is now known as the . Every option in this panel has been re-organized and the entire experience has been streamlined. By default, the Properties panel displays multiple useful options, like the ability to show or hide empty staves and various other types of score markings. Whereas previously you needed to select single element types before you could make changes to them, MuseScore Studio 4 always displays relevant settings, regardless of how many different elements you have selected.

New playback and VSTi support

Playback improvements are the single largest change to MuseScore Studio 4. Apart from new sample libraries (Muse Sounds, available as a separate download), there’s now support for VSTi plugins, which can be applied to instruments using the new panel. The mixer also lets you easily switch between VSTi, and the Muse Sounds libraries, while also supporting VST effects. Sounds will now always be saved on a per-score basis, so there is no longer any need for the Synthesizer panel found in MuseScore 3 (this has been removed in MuseScore Studio 4). If you previously used SFZ files for playback in MuseScore 3, we now recommend that you use a free VST sampler, like or , both of which support SFZ playback.

Engraving improvements

MuseScore Studio 4 features many engraving improvements, some of which will have an effect on the appearance and layout of scores created in earlier versions. The most significant changes affect the placement of beams, slurs and ties, horizontal spacing, and page layout. There are far too many changes to list here, so those interested in learning more about the particularities may wish to read (link forthcoming) that explains and illustrates everything in detail.

An unavoidable consequence of having made such significant engraving improvements is that it will not be possible to open a score in MuseScore Studio 4 from an earlier version of MuseScore and have it look identical.

Cloud storage

Other changes

As you use the program, you’ll find lots of other small but significant changes that have been designed to make the process of composing and notating music just that bit easier. These include:

An expanded note input toolbar, with one-click access to frequently used elements like tuplets and articulation marks. There’s also a convenient “+” menu where you can quickly add everything from notes and intervals, to frames and text elements.
A streamlined experience for setting the language of the app
A new Learn center for instructional videos on how to get the most from the app

Navigation

Accessibility

Screen readers

MuseScore Studio supports NVDA on Windows and VoiceOver on macOS. JAWS is not currently supported. Support for other screen readers varies.

Speech on Windows

If speech isn't working in MuseScore, try pressing Alt+F to focus the File menu, then press Esc twice to return to where you were in the app, at which point the screen reader should start working again. This tends to be needed if you start the screen reader after MuseScore is already running.

As mentioned above, MuseScore's speech output with JAWS is not currently as complete as it is with Narrator or NVDA.

Screen Reader

Modifier key

On/off shortcut

Settings shortcut

Narrator (built-in)

Narrator = Caps Lock

Win+Ctrl+Enter

Win+Ctrl+N

NVDA = Ins / Caps Lock

Off: NVDA+Q Toggle: NVDA+S

NVDA+N

JAWS = Ins / Caps Lock

Off: JAWS+F4

JAWS+J

Speech on macOS

VoiceOver's Quick Nav mode must be turned off while using MuseScore 4. You can toggle Quick Nav on or off by pressing the Left and Right arrow keys simultaneously while VoiceOver is running, or via VoiceOver Utility > Commanders.

MuseScore's interface is navigable with the tab cursor as well as with VoiceOver's own cursor. In general it's best to use the tab cursor because this matches the interface on other platforms, hence is what you will find described in most documentation and tutorials. When using the tab cursor, remember to use the arrow keys as well as Tab as described in Navigating the UI. VoiceOver's cursor can be used to reach areas of the application that are not yet accessible to the tab cursor.

Screen Reader

Modifier key

On/off shortcut

Settings shortcut

VoiceOver (built-in)

VO = Ctrl+Opt / Caps Lock

Cmd+F5

VO+F8

Speech on Linux

On Linux it's necessary to start the screen reader running before you launch MuseScore, otherwise accessibility features will be disabled to save system resources (the same is true for all Qt applications on Linux). If you forget to do this, simply exit MuseScore and launch it again, this time with the screen reader running.

Orca is the most feature-complete screen reader available for Linux. Orca is built into the GNOME desktop environment, so it's recommended that Linux users with accessibility needs use a distribution based on GNOME or one of its derivatives.

Screen Reader

Modifier key

On/off shortcut

Settings shortcut

Orca (built-in to GNOME)

Orca = Ins / Caps Lock

Super+Alt+S

Orca+Space or run orca --setup

Keyboard access

Navigating the UI

MuseScore's UI (user interface) has a hierarchical system of keyboard navigation, which is different to what you may be used to in other applications. In MuseScore's system, the Tab key skips some controls to save time. If you want to reach these controls, you need to use the arrow keys as well as Tab.

Shortcut

Action

F6 / ` / Shift+F6 / Shift+`

Move between UI sections (` is the backtick or grave accent key, found near the Tab key or left Shift on most QWERTY keyboards).

Tab / Shift+Tab

Move between control groups.

Up / Down / Left / Right

Move between controls within a group.

Esc

Stop interacting with an editable text control (so you can move away from it with the arrow keys).

Enter / Return

Activate the current control.

Spacebar

Activate the current control or select an item in a list.

Please note that UI navigation shortcuts are fixed and cannot be changed, unlike the shortcuts for score navigation, which can be customized in Preferences.

Navigating the score

The following shortcuts are of particular value to accessibility users:

Shortcut

Action

Right / Left

Move to next or previous note, chord, or rest.

Alt+Right / Alt+Left

Move to next or previous element. These shortcuts enable you to visit all kinds of notation elements, not just notes and rests.

Alt+Up / Alt+Down

Move to note above or below. These shortcuts enable you to move between individual notes in a chord, and also to reach notes and rests in other voices and in other staves.

F2 / Alt+Shift+E

Edit selected element. Equivalent to double-clicking with the mouse. Use it to edit text objects or adjust the length of hairpins, slurs, and voltas (use the Tab key to change which end of the line you are adjusting). When you have finished editing, press Esc to return to Normal mode.

Menu / Shift+F10

Other aspects of keyboard navigation are described on pages throughout this handbook. All score navigation and manipulation shortcuts can be customized in Preferences.

Video tutorials

The following accessibility tutorials are designed to get you up and running with MuseScore, using your keyboard and screen reader. They don't cover every aspect of the program, but they should give you a solid foundation that will enable you can take full advantage of the rest of this Handbook.

Video

Topics covered

Installation of MuseScore on Windows, including Muse Hub and Muse Sounds. The process is similar on macOS and Linux, although on Linux you need to install Muse Hub and MuseScore separately.

Initial score setup, including choosing instruments, key signature, time signature, and other settings.

Basic note input.

Using the palettes to add markings (e.g. dynamics) to your score.

Main window of the program, so you can understand where all the different panels, toolbars, and controls are, and how to reach them by keyboard.

The user interface

Overview

MuseScore Studio's UI (user interface) consists of the main application window, as well as all associated dialogs, panels, and menus.

Main window

In the top left of MuseScore's main window are three tabs, labelled Home, Score and Publish.

Home tab

The Home tab contains the following pages:

My account

Create a new MuseScore account, or login to your existing account. With an active account, you can get technical assistance and report bugs in the forums at musescore.org. You can also save your files to the cloud on musescore.com.

Scores

This section allows you to set up a new score, or to open an existing one. Learn about creating new scores in Setting up your score.

Plugins

This window displays a list of available plugins. See the chapter on Plugins to learn about managing these useful add-ons.

Learn

This is where video tutorials are hosted. Clicking on any video tutorial opens it on the official MuseScore YouTube channel.

Score tab

This area is where you do most of your work in MuseScore, including adding music notation and listening to playback of your score. The workspace consists of several regions (numbered according to the diagram below):

Parts button: Located near the top center of the main window, this button opens the Parts dialog, where you can create, edit and delete instrumental part scores.
Mixer button: The button to the right of Parts opens and closes the Mixer panel, where you can control the sound and volume of each instrument individually.
Playback toolbar: Located in the top right, this toolbar enables you to play, pause, rewind and loop playback. Using the mouse, you can drag the six dots grip area (⠿) to undock this toolbar and expose additional options to seek and control playback tempo.
Note input toolbar: Extending across the top of the program window, just below the Parts and Mixer buttons, the note input toolbar includes essential notation elements used in score writing. Use it to set note duration, toggle accidentals, apply common articulations, enter tuplets, and switch between voices.
Left sidebar: The area on the left side of the program window contains various panels such as Palettes, Properties, and Instruments. These can be shown or hidden as desired, or undocked and dragged to the right sidebar; an equivalent area on the other side of the window.
Score view / notation view: This is the main central region that displays the current score or instrumental part as sheet music. This is where notation elements are added, edited, and deleted.
Status bar: This runs along the bottom of the window. The left side displays useful information about whatever elements are selected in the score. The right side contains controls for switching between workspaces, selecting concert or transposed pitch views, and specifying the page display and zoom factor (magnification).

Keyboard users can press Tab or F6 to navigate between these UI regions. Within each region, navigation is performed with the arrow keys and Tab.

Almost all panels and toolbars can be un-docked and repositioned according to your project requirements and workflow preferences. Learn more about this in Workspaces.

Publish tab

This tab allows you to view your score without the clutter of the note input toolbar or sidebar panels. There are options to print the score, and to export it in a variety of image, audio and document formats. When your score is finished, you can also publish it to musescore.com.

Throughout this handbook, you will come across instructions in the form Menu > Item. For example, File > Save is an instruction to open the File menu and select the Save item within that menu.

On macOS, MuseScore's menus are part of the system-wide menu bar located at the top of the screen. Keyboard users can press Ctrl+F2 to reach this area, and then navigate with the arrow keys or letter keys (e.g. press F for File).

On Windows and Linux, the menu bar is located at the top of each application window. Keyboard users can reach the menus by pressing the Alt key, optionally followed by a letter or number key (e.g. press Alt+F for File, followed by A for Save as). The relevant letter or number is known as the mnemonic access key; it's underlined in the menu while Alt is held. Arrow keys also work for navigation in the menus.

MuseScore's menu bar contains the following menus:

File

The File menu is used to create a new file, open and save files, import and export various formats, create and edit instrument parts, and print.

Edit

The Edit menu provides undo and redo options, copy/cut/paste options, and Find / Go to functionality.

View

The View menu is used to show or hide various palettes, dialogs, and other workspace elements.

Items under the Show submenu adjusts display of non-printing elements:

Show invisible: Show/hide elements depending on their Properties panel: Invisible setting. If this option is ticked, invisible elements are shown in the score window as light gray.
Show formatting: Show/hide Systems and horizontal spacing: System Breaks or Pages and vertical spacing: Page Breaks symbols.
Show frames: Show/hide the dotted outlines of Frames.
Show page margins: Show/hide Score size and spacing: Page margins.
Show irregular measures: A plus sign or minus sign at the top right of a measure indicates that its duration differs from that set by the time signature.

Add

The Add menu is used to add different kinds of elements to the score, such as notes, text, measures, etc.

Format

The Format menu is used to adjust global and local formatting of the score. It also allows you to stretch or contract the score, load and save score styles, and much more.

Tools

The Tools menu offers commands to manipulate the score or selected regions of it, including transpose, exchange voices, toggle slash notation, etc.

Plugins

The Plugins menu is used to run plugins. Plugins must be enabled before they will appear in this menu. Use the Manage plugins option to enable MuseScore's built-in plugins and any new plugins you have installed.

Help

The Help menu provides access to this handbook, as well as options to check for updates or restore factory settings. There's also an Ask for help option, which leads to a forum where you can ask questions or report bugs.

When posting on the forums, it's important to say which version of MuseScore Studio you are using. This can be found via Help > About MuseScore Studio on Windows and Linux, or via MuseScore Studio > About on macOS.

Context menus

In certain parts of the application, primarily in the Score tab, context menus are available with additional functionality, such as options to copy, edit, customise, delete, or view the properties of whichever item(s) were selected at the time you opened the menu.

To open the context menu for a particular item:

Right-click on the item with the mouse, or;
Select the item with the keyboard and press Shift+F10.
- Some PC keyboards also have a dedicated Menu or Copilot key near to the right Alt key (AltGr). In Windows 11, you may need to press and release this key quickly to avoid activating Microsoft Copilot.

Outside the score, the presence of a context menu is often indicated by a small button with three dots (⋮) or a settings cog (⛭). Press the button to open the menu. If the button is associated with a nearby item (e.g. in the Palettes), you can also right-click on that item or use Shift+F10.

Staff/Part/Measure properties

If you right-click on an empty region within a measure, the resulting context menu contains options for Staff/Part properties (used to rename a staff or replace its instrument) and Measure properties (used to change measure numbering or create incomplete measures).

To access these options via the keyboard:

Select a note or rest in the relevant staff or measure.
Hold down the Shift key and press Left or Right to create a range selection.
Press Shift+F10 (or the dedicated Menu key if your keyboard has one) to open the menu.

Navigating your score

Scrolling

Mouse wheel

Use the scroll wheel to move the view up and down.
Use Shift plus the scroll wheel to move the view left and right.
Use Ctrl plus the scroll wheel to zoom in and out.

Scrollbars

Scrollbars appear at the right-hand and bottom edges of the score view. Click and drag them to quickly move the score view up and down, or left and right. Scrollbars are usually hidden from view, but can be revealed by hovering over the edge of the score view with your mouse.

Keyboard

You can also scroll the score using the PgUp, PgDn, Home, and End keys on your keyboard. If your keyboard lacks dedicated keys for these functions, most systems will also allow you to access these functions by holding Fn or a similar key, then pressing Up, Down, Left, or Right respectively.

By themselves, PgUp and PgDn scroll one screenful at a time. This may be less than an actual page of your score. If you hold Ctrl (Mac: Cmd) while pressing PgUp or PgDn, it moves a full page at a time.

When a single element is selected in your score, it acts as a cursor. You can change the selection—and thus move the cursor—using common keyboard shortcuts.

The Left and Right keys will move horizontally through your score one chord or rest at a time. If you hold Ctrl (Mac: Cmd) while pressing Left or Right, you can navigate a full measure at a time.

To move the cursor vertically through the various notes, voices, and staves in your score, use the shortcuts Alt+Up and Alt+Down (Mac: Option+Up and Option+Down).

You can also use the shortcuts Alt+Left and Alt+Right (Mac: Option+Left and Option+Right) to select elements other than notes or rests. These commands allow you select almost any elements—including articulations, barlines, hairpins, and more—using the keyboard alone.

In addition, Ctrl+Home (Mac: Cmd+Home) will select the first element in your score, and Ctrl+End (Mac: Cmd+End) will select the last element. Again, for keyboards that lack dedicated Home and End keys, most systems provide the alternative of Fn+Left and Fn+Right respectively.

See Default keyboard shortcuts to learn more.

Navigator

The Navigator is a panel that displays thumbnails of score pages. To view or hide the Navigator, click View → Navigator.

The blue bounding box represents the area of the score currently in focus in the score view. Click on the box and drag it to move around your score.

Timeline

A navigation aid that shows instruments and score structure. For details, see Timeline.

Views

You can switch between different views of the score using the pop-up in the right-hand side of the status bar.

Page view

The score is shown as it will appear when printed or exported as a PDF or image file: that is, page by page, with margins. MuseScore applies system (line) and page breaks automatically, according to the settings made in Page settings and Style. In addition, you can apply your own system (line), page or section breaks.

Continuous view (horizontal)

The score is shown as one unbroken system. Even if the starting point is not in view, measure numbers, instrument names, clefs, time and key signatures will always be displayed on the left of the window.

Continuous view (vertical)

The score is shown as a single page with a header but no margins, and with an infinite page height. System (line) breaks are added automatically, according to the settings made in Page settings and Style. In addition, you can apply your own system (line) or section breaks.

Zoom

There are several ways to zoom the score in or out:

Zoom in

Ctrl++ (Mac: Cmd++) or scroll up with the mouse scroll wheel while holding Ctrl (Mac: Cmd).

Zoom out

Ctrl+- (Mac: Cmd+-) or scroll down with the mouse scroll wheel while holding Ctrl (Mac: Cmd).

Status bar zoom controls

To zoom in and out of your score from the Status bar controls:

Click on the magnifying glass icons in the right-hand area of the status bar
Click the number field to the right of these icons, then type a custom zoom level
Choose from one of the preset zoom levels in the pop-up list on the extreme right

Restoring 100% zoom

This restores the zoom to the default (100%) level.

Ctrl+0 (Mac: Cmd+0)

Find/Go to

The Find/Go to panel allows you to speedily navigate to a specific measure, rehearsal mark or page number in the score.

To show the panel:

Go to Edit → Find, or
Press Ctrl+F (Mac: Cmd+F).

To hide the panel:

Click the X (close) button on the left side of the panel, or
Press Esc while the panel has focus.

Navigating to a numbered measure

Enter the measure number (counting every measure, starting with 1, irrespective of pickup measures, section breaks or manual changes to measure number offsets).

Navigating to a numbered page

Enter the page number using the format pXX (where XX is the page number).

Navigating to a numerical rehearsal mark

Enter the number using the format rXX (where XX is the number of the rehearsal mark).

Navigating to an alphabetic rehearsal mark

Enter the name of the rehearsal mark (the search is not case sensitive).

Pro tip! It is best to avoid naming rehearsal marks with the single letters “R", “r", “P”, “p", or one of these letters with an integer (e.g. “R1” or “p3”), as this can confuse the search algorithm.

Timeline

Overview

Timeline is a navigation aid that displays at the bottom of the program window, giving you an overview of the instruments and main structural elements measure-by-measure. You can easily move about the score by clicking on a measure or a structural element.

There are four parts to the timeline:

Meta labels

This is found in the top left corner of the timeline. These are the names of the meta rows.

Instrument labels

This is found in the bottom left corner of the timeline. These are the names of the rows in the main grid.

Meta rows

This is found in the top right corner of the timeline. These hold the meta values of the score.

Main grid

This is found in the bottom right corner of the timeline. This holds multiple 'cells' (a specific measure and staff in the score represented as a square)

Meta elements

Meta elements are those found in the score that are not notes, but are still important to the score—such as key signature, time signature, tempo, rehearsal marks, bar lines, and jumps and markers.

Basic interactions

Selecting a measure

To select a measure in the timeline, press the mouse button on the cell. A blue box will appear around the selected cell and the respective measure in the score will be selected. The score view will place the selected measure in view.

Selecting multiple measures

Drag selection

Holding Shift and holding the left mouse button and dragging the mouse over the main grid will create a selection box. Upon releasing the mouse button, all the cells underneath the selection box will be selected, as well as all the measures in the score.

Shift selection

If a cell is already selected, holding Shift and selecting another cell in the timeline will stretch the selection to that new cell, similar to how the score does

Ctrl selection

If no cells are currently selected, holding Ctrl and selecting a cell will select the entire measure

Clearing a selection

To clear selection, holding Ctrl and clicking anywhere on the grid or the meta rows will clear any current selection.

Meta values selection

Selecting the meta values on the timeline will attempt to select the respective meta values in the score.

Scrolling

Standard scrolling

Scrolling the mouse wheel up or down will move the grid and instrument labels down or up respectively. The meta labels and rows do not move.

Shift scrolling

Holding Shift and scrolling the mouse wheel up or down will move the grid and meta rows left or right respectively. The meta labels and instrument labels do not move.

Alt scrolling

Holding Alt and scrolling the mouse wheel up or down will move the grid and meta rows left or right respectively, faster than Shift scrolling. The meta labels and instrument labels do not move.

Dragging

To drag the contents of the timeline, hold the left mouse button and move it around.

Labels interaction

Rearranging meta labels

All meta labels besides the measures meta may be rearranged in any way. By moving the mouse cursor onto one of the meta labels, small up and down arrows will appear. Click the left mouse button on the up arrow to swap the meta label with the one above it. Click the left mouse button on the down arrow to swap the meta label with the one below it.

Collapsing the meta labels

In order to hide all the meta labels while keeping all the meta information on the timeline, click the left mouse button on the measures meta to collapse all the currently visible meta rows into one row, where the meta values are staggered in that row. Click the left mouse button again on the measures meta to expand the meta rows.

Hiding instruments

All instruments--hidden or not--will be displayed on the timeline. To start this interaction, the mouse cursor is moved over an instrument label. A small eye will appear on the right side of the label that is open if the instrument is visible on the score, and closed if the instrument is hidden. Click the left mouse button on the eye to toggle between the two options.

Zooming

To zoom in or out of the score, hold Ctrl and scroll the mouse wheel up or down respectively (Mac: Cmd + scroll).

Braille

Overview

MuseScore Studio's braille panel displays the current measure in . It can also be used to enter notes and some musical symbols using Perkins-style 6-key braille input.

The content of the braille panel is similar to what you get if you via the File menu, but the braille panel updates live as you navigate through the score.

Terminology: braille vs. print

On this page, we refer to braille music notation as "braille", and ordinary stave notation as "print".

Print music is simply the traditional music notation that sighted musicians use on paper and electronic devices (i.e. sheet music). Braille can also be used on paper, but it's not printed with ink. Instead, it's embossed as raised dots that blind musicians read by touch. It's common in accessibility circles to use the word "print" to mean non-braille notation.

Output to a physical braille display

The contents of the braille panel can be displayed on a braille terminal connected to your computer (e.g. via Bluetooth or USB).

The following limitations apply when using a physical braille display:

NVDA must be used as the screen reader.
MuseScore’s braille panel must have keyboard focus.
- When the score has focus, the braille terminal will just show ordinary status text from the screen reader.
Braille navigation and 6-key input must be performed with the computer keyboard.
- Physical buttons on the braille terminal are not used, except to scroll within a measure that is too long to fit on your display.

Viewing braille

To open or close the braille panel

Go to Preferences > Braille.
Check (or uncheck) the Show braille panel box.

The braille panel appears directly below the score in MuseScore’s main window.

To focus the braille panel

With the braille panel open, press the Tab key while the score has focus. A caret (text cursor) will appear in the braille at the position of whatever element was selected in the score. For example, if a note was selected in the score, the text caret will appear on that note in the braille.

Press Shift+Tab at any time to leave the braille panel and return to the score. The braille panel will remain open so you can navigate to it again with Tab.

Navigating the braille

While the braille panel has focus, you can move the text caret around using the arrow keys. As the caret moves through the braille, the element to the right of the caret becomes selected in the score. If that element is a note, MuseScore will play the sound of the note.

The braille panel only shows one measure at a time, but it shows that measure for all instruments in the score. Each line of braille corresponds to a staff in the print notation, so grand staff instruments like the piano get two lines of braille, and the organ gets three lines.

If a staff has lyrics, these are written on another line of braille immediately below the line corresponding to that staff. If there are multiple lines of lyrics (e.g. for multiple verses), each line of lyrics is written on a separate line in the braille.

The following keyboard shortcuts are available for navigating the braille.

Writing braille

Turn braille input mode on or off

While the braille panel has focus, press N to toggle braille input mode on or off.

Constructing a braille cell

While in braille input mode, six letter keys on the computer keyboard are used to represent the six braille dots that make up a single braille cell (⠿).

The keys used are F, D, S for dots 1, 2, 3 down the first column of the cell, and J, K, L for dots 4, 5, 6 down the second column. The Space key is used to represent an empty braille cell (⠀), sometimes referred to as dot 0.

Up to six of these keys can be pressed in combination to construct any pattern of raised dots. For example, to enter a quarter note C, which in braille is ⠹ (i.e. dots 1, 4, 5, 6), press and hold F+J+K+L, then release these keys to confirm the pattern. The keys can be pressed and released in any order, providing at least one key is held at all times, until you have completed the pattern.

When the final key is released, MuseScore reads your braille pattern. If your pattern corresponds to a recognized note or musical symbol then this element is entered directly in the score, not in the braille panel, because print notation is the "ground truth" for MuseScore. Once the element is in the score, the braille panel automatically updates to reflect this change.

Sometimes in music braille, the same information can be expressed in multiple ways. For the sake of consistency, MuseScore always picks the same way regardless of how you entered the notation. Therefore, the braille that appears in the braille panel may not exactly match the pattern(s) you entered with the six keys, though it will have the same meaning.

Entering notes

Basic notes

In braille, eighth notes (quavers) and 128th notes are written as:

Additional dots are added to the above sequences to create other durations:

Hence a quarter note C is ⠹ (dots 1, 4, 5, 6) and is entered with F+J+K+L. This pattern is also used for a 64th note C.

16th notes and smaller

As mentioned above, 16th notes and smaller use the same dot patterns as larger durations. When reading braille, you can work out whether the shorter or longer duration is being specified by looking at the time signature as well as other notes in the measure. However, when writing braille, you need to tell MuseScore which durations you want to use.

By default, MuseScore enters group 1 durations (whole, half, quarter, eighth). To switch to group 2, enter dots 0, 2 (i.e. press Space+D). Nothing will appear in the braille panel, but any notes or rests you write from now on will be in group 2 (16th, 32nd, 64th, 128th). To switch back to group 1 durations, enter dots 0, 1 (i.e. press Space+F).

It's not currently possible to enter durations of 256th and smaller, or breve (double whole) and larger, via the braille panel.

Dotted notes

Braille uses ⠄(dot 3) to represent an augmentation dot, which is added in a new braille cell immediately following a note. No other cells are allowed to come between the note and its augmentation dot.

To create a dotted note in the braille panel, first write the main note duration using the rules above, then follow it with dot 3 (i.e. press S).

For example, a dotted quarter note C is ⠹⠄, which can be stated as dot pattern 1456-3, where the dash means to start a new cell. In terms of keys, this is F+J+K+L, S.

It's not currently possible to enter multiple dot 3s to create double and triple dotted notes via the braille panel.

Octave marks

Octave marks in braille serve a similar purpose to clefs in print music. If you see a note in print, you don't know what pitch it is until you look at the preceding clef. In braille, if you see ⠙ (dots 1, 4, 5) then you know the note is a C, but it could be a C in any octave. To determine the octave, you need to look at the preceeding octave mark (and also at any notes between that octave mark and the current note).

A standard 88-key piano has 7 complete octaves. Starting on the lowest C, which is called C1 in braille as well as in scientific pitch notation, the first complete octave of white notes is C1, D1, E1, F1, G1, A1 and B1. After B1 comes C2, which is the start of the second complete octave. This scheme continues up to the final complete octave, which starts with C7 and ends with B7.

In this system, C4 is middle C, and A4 is "concert A" (i.e. the note that the orchestra tunes to at the start of a performance). Enharmonic spelling is important, so B♯3 sounds the same as C4 despite being notated in a different octave, and C♭4 sounds the same as B3.

Even standard 88-key pianos have a few notes outside the range C1 to B7. Braille refers to the C0 octave as the "sub" octave, and the C8 octave as the "super" octave. These simply double the markings used for the first and seventh octaves.

When specified, octave mark are placed immediately prior to a note. So a middle C quarter note is ⠐⠹, or dots 5-1456, which is entered as K, F+J+K+L. No other cells are allowed to go between the octave mark and the note it belongs to.

Octave marks don't have to be given before every note. Octave marks are only required for the:

First note on each line of braille.
First note after a double bar line, number sign, word indicator, and certain other markings.
Second of two notes separated by a melodic interval of a sixth or more, regardless of their octaves.
Second of two notes separated by a melodic interval of a fourth or more, only if their octave numbers are different.

Basics

Setting up your score

Overview

To create a new score, use one of the following options:

In the tab, select New score, or click New (bottom right)
From the menu, select File→New
Use the keyboard shortcut, Ctrl+N (Mac: Cmd+N)

This will open the New Score dialog (more instructions about this dialog are below). Once you've finished setting up your score, it will be visible in the Score tab.

Instruments

When creating a new score, you can either choose instruments yourself or use a template that comes pre-configured with appropriate instruments (these can always be changed later).

Choose instruments

In the New Score dialog, make sure the Choose instruments tab is selected.

MuseScore contains over 500 instruments. Instruments are grouped into categories, and categories are organized into families. If you know what you’re looking for, you can type an instrument's name into the search bar. Alternatively, you can browse instruments by group from the Family dropdown menu.

Adding instruments

To add an instrument to your score:

Double-click on an instrument name, or
Click on the instrument name to select it, then click the → button

Instruments are automatically arranged according to the order shown in the dropdown menu under Your Score. From this menu, you can choose from a range of standard score configurations.

Changing order of instruments

To manually change the order of instruments:

Select an instrument in the Your Score panel
Click on ↑ or ↓ to change its position

Removing instruments

To delete an instrument from your score:

Select an instrument in the Your Score panel
Click the trash can button

You can also delete multiple instruments at once by first holding down Shift and selecting multiple instruments, then clicking the trash can button.

Create from template

Scores can also be created from pre-configured templates.

Templates are organized into categories based on musical style or ensemble configuration. Each template contains the instruments most commonly required for a particular type of score. Instruments are ordered and styled according to conventional practice.

To create a score from a template:

Click Create from template
Select a group of templates from the Category panel
Choose your desired template from the center panel
Click Done

You can also search across all available templates in the search bar.

Additional score information

Click Next in the New score dialog to specify additional information about your score.

Key signature

By default, new scores are created with a key signature containing no sharps or flats (C major). Specify a different key signature by clicking the button under Key signature. Major keys are shown first; minor keys can be displayed by selecting the Minor tab.

Time signature

New scores are created in 4/4 by default. Change this by clicking the button under Time signature. Change the number of beats per bar using the arrows in the spin box, and change the beat quality from the dropdown menu. You can also select common and cut-common (alla-breve) time signatures in this popup.

Tempo

By default, new scores will play at a tempo of quarter note (crotchet) = 120 beats per minute (bpm). Metronome markings are not automatically included in new scores.

To customize the starting playback tempo, and to show a metronome marking above the uppermost stave:

Click the button under Tempo
Tick Show tempo marking on my score
Select the desired beat value
Enter the desired number of beats per minute in the text field (or use the up and down arrows to scroll through the tempo range)

Measures

New scores are created with 32 measures and no pickup (anacrusis). To change the starting number of measures in your new score:

Click the button under Measures
Enter the desired number of measures in the Initial number of measures field

To start your score with a pickup:

Click the button under Measures
Tick Create pickup measure
Enter the desired number of beats for the pickup in the text field
Select the metrical value of the pickup measure from the drop-down menu

Title and other text

Enter text in the fields at the bottom of the New score dialog, and MuseScore will automatically place it in an appropriate format in your new score. You can enter text labels for the score's:

Title
Composer
Subtitle
Lyricist
Copyright

Once you've finished specifying additional score information, click Done to confirm your selections and create your score.

Changing instruments after score creation

There are three ways to change existing score instruments:

Use the keyboard shortcut I while in the Score tab

Entering notes and rests

This page explains music creation on standard staves only. See also the and pages.

Overview

To enter a note or rest, simply choose a duration in the toolbar, then type the pitch name (A–G) for a note or a 0 (zero) for a rest. MuseScore Studio supports inputting music via the computer keyboard, mouse, a MIDI keyboard, or MuseScore's own virtual piano keyboard.

MuseScore supports virtually unlimited undo history, so you don't have to worry about making mistakes. Just click the undo button on the far right of the toolbar, or use the standard keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Z (Mac: Cmd+Z).

Entering notes

This chapter explains the default input mode, step-time, where notes and rests are entered one at a time. For other modes of entry, see .

Selecting a start point

To add a note or rest to the score, start by selecting a location to begin entry. You can use the mouse or the .

Entering note input mode

Next, enter note input mode by pressing the pencil icon in the toolbar, or using the keyboard shortcut N. The note input cursor appears, indicating where the next note will be added in the score.

If you don't select a starting location first, MuseScore places the cursor at the last input position, or in some other logical place, so be sure the cursor is where you intend.

Once in note input mode, enter notes left to right by first selecting a duration and then entering a pitch or rest. When you are done entering notes in this location and are ready to do something else—for example, entering notes at a different location, adding other markings, or performing other operations like copy and paste—you can leave note input mode by clicking the note input button or pressing N again. You can also press Esc to return to normal mode from note input or any other mode.

Selecting duration

While in note input mode, select a note value for the next note to be entered by:

Clicking a corresponding note icon in the Note Input toolbar (directly above the score window)
Entering the keyboard shortcut 1–9 corresponding to the desired duration

The keyboard shortcuts are designed to be efficient and easy to remember. The most common note values are eighth, quarter, and half (UK: quaver, crochet, minim) and these are represented by the keys 4, 5, and 6 respectively (the middle row of a numeric keypad). Shorter note values are represented by smaller numbers, longer values by larger numbers. The full list is as follows:

64th (hemidemisemiquaver): 1
32nd (demisemiquaver): 2
16th (semiquaver): 3
Eighth (quaver): 4
Quarter (crotchet): 5
Half (minim): 6
Whole (semibreve): 7
Double whole (breve): 8
Longa: 9
Dot: . (changes the selection into a dotted note/rest)

Selecting pitch

Once you have selected a duration, you can enter pitches using the computer keyboard, mouse, MIDI keyboard, or virtual piano keyboard.

Selecting pitch using the computer keyboard

This is generally the most efficient way to enter notes in MuseScore.

To enter a note of a given pitch using the computer keyboard, simply press the corresponding letter (A–G) on your computer keyboard.

When entering notes by letter name, MuseScore will choose the octave that is closest to the previous note on that staff. This works well for passages that move mostly by steps and small leaps. If you need to change the octave for a larger leap, use Ctrl+↑ and Ctrl+↓ (Mac: Cmd+↑ and Cmd+↓) to raise or lower the pitch of the previously entered note by an octave.

Selecting pitch using the mouse

To enter a note using the mouse, position your mouse on the desired line or space in the staff, then click. The mouse cursor will show you a preview of the note you are about to enter to help you place it accurately.

If any notes already exist at the location where you are entering a new note, the new note will be added above or below it. To replace existing notes instead, press Shift while entering the new note.

It can be difficult to enter notes very far above or below a staff with this method, because MuseScore may interpret clicks far from the intended staff as an attempt to enter notes onto the staff above or below. Instead, try entering the note an octave lower or higher, then raise or lower the pitch by an octave using Ctrl+↑ and Ctrl+↓ (Mac: Cmd+↑ and Cmd+↓).

Note: Although one would normally enter notes left to right, the mouse entry method actually allows you to enter a note at any location where there is an existing note or rest to replace.

Selecting pitch using a MIDI keyboard

If you have a MIDI keyboard connected, you can enter notes while in note input mode by simply pressing the corresponding keys.

When playing notes on a MIDI keyboard, they are entered consecutively so long as you release each key fully before pressing the next. If you press a key before releasing the previous key, the new note is added above or below the previous note.

Notes entered via MIDI keyboard that are outside of the current key signature will have accidentals applied automatically, but the spelling of the accidental may not be what you intend. To change the enharmonic spelling of a note, press J.

Selecting pitch using the virtual piano keyboard

You can also input notes using the on-screen Piano keyboard window. To display this, use View→Piano keyboard or press the shortcut P. The window can be closed the same way.

To enter a note of a given pitch, simply click the appropriate piano key with your mouse.

As with the computer keyboard, notes entered in this way replace any existing notes or rests. To create chords instead, press and hold Shift while entering notes.

Note: To resize the keyboard, position the mouse within the window and hold Ctrl (Mac: Cmd) while scrolling up or down.

Entering chords

For the purpose of this section, chords are any combinations of multiple notes all starting at the same time, all sharing the same duration, and all sharing a single stem.

Just as for individual notes, chords can be entered by computer keyboard, mouse, MIDI keyboard, or virtual piano keyboard. Except for MIDI keyboard (where you can play multiple notes at once), the notes are still entered one at a time, but in a way that tells MuseScore to combine them into a chord rather than add them sequentially.

To add a note to a chord using the computer keyboard, press and hold Shift while entering the note
To add a note to a chord using the mouse, click the location where you wish to add the note
To add a note to a chord using a MIDI keyboard, either play all the notes at the same time, or play them one at a time but do not release one key before pressing the next
To add a note to a chord using the virtual piano keyboard, press and hold Shift while entering the note

To add an interval above the selected note, use one of the following:
- From the Note input toolbar, select Add→Intervals and choose an interval from the list
- Press Alt+1-9.

Entering rests

Rests can be entered using the computer keyboard or mouse. The duration is selected in the same way as for notes (e.g., using the toolbar or keyboard shortcuts 1–9). Then instead of entering a pitch as you would for a note, choose one of the following options.

From the computer keyboard: Press 0 (zero)
From the note input toolbar: Click the rest icon, then click in the score
Using a mouse: Right-click in the score

Accidentals

Standard accidentals (flat, natural, sharp, double flat, double sharp) can be entered either by selecting one before entering the pitch it applies to or by adding them to a note already entered.

Selecting an accidental before entering a pitch

To specify an accidental to be applied to the next note entered, you can use the buttons on the Note input toolbar above the score or the corresponding keyboard shortcuts. This can be done either before or after selecting the duration.

The default accidental shortcuts are:

Flat : -
Sharp : +
Natural : =

Unlike selecting duration—which applies to all subsequent notes until you change it—an accidental is applied only to the next note entered. But the usual rules of music notation apply, so if you apply a flat to a given note, any subsequent notes you enter of that same pitch within the same measure will be flatted as well, even though no explicit flat sign will be added in front of them.

Adding an accidental after entering a pitch

Appropriate accidentals are automatically added to a note when you increase or decrease its pitch:

Move pitch up a semitone (spells with sharps): ↑
Move pitch down a semitone (spells with flats): ↓

Adding courtesy/cautionary accidentals

Although the rules of music notation say that a barline cancels an accidental, and that any note on the same staff line or space in the next measure returns to the pitch indicated by the key signature, it is considered good practice to add a courtesy (also called cautionary) accidental anyhow. These do not change the pitch of the note, so they cannot be added with the ↑ and ↓ keys. However, any of the other methods described above work.

While parentheses or brackets are not required for courtesy accidentals, some editors do choose to use them. To add parentheses or brackets around an accidental, you will need to temporarily leave note input mode, select the accidental, then either use the Properties panel to select a bracket type, or click the parentheses or brackets in the More section of the Accidentals palette.

Ties

Because ties are always between notes of the same pitch, you do not need to enter the pitch for the second note. After entering the first note:

Select the duration for the second note
Click the tie button on the toolbar or use the shortcut T

The tie command adds the second note and ties it to the first in one step. If the first note you entered is part of a chord, then the tie command actually creates an entire second chord with the same pitches as the first and ties all of the notes.

Working with multiple voices

Overview

A MuseScore voice is a line of music on a staff that has its own rhythm independent of other music on the same staff. Other notation programs may refer to it as a "layer".

"Voice", in a different sense, may also refer to a pitch range in vocal music—soprano, alto, tenor, bass etc. It is important not to mix up the two meanings by assuming, for example, that the four "voices" in an SATB choir are equivalent to MuseScore "voices" 1–4 (see below); that would be to confuse chalk with cheese.

MuseScore allows up to four voices in one staff: Voice 1, Voice 2, Voice 3, and Voice 4. When writing music on a staff, one usually starts in voice 1 then moves on to voice 2. Voices 3 & 4 are less commonly used.

Two voices on the same staff are normally indicated using opposing stems—an upper voice with stems up and a lower voice with stems down:

In a four-part SATB arrangement on two staves, you would use voices 1 & 2 on the top staff for soprano and alto, and voices 1 & 2 on the bottom staff for tenor and bass:

Entering notes and rests in multiple voices

The first step to enter multiple voices is to determine whether you need to write notes as voices in one staff, or spread voices among multiple staffs such as four voices among two staffs of a piano, or among multiple instruments such as four voices on four string instruments. You should consider the design of MuseScore's notation function and your production needs. Do not base your decision merely on academic reasons.

MuseScore sets stem directions automatically based on the voice used and which voices are used in each measure. In measures where only Voice 1 is used, but no notes or rests are written on Voice 2, Voice 3 or Voice 4, stem directions of notes are determined by pitch; notes above the center line have stems pointing down, while notes below the center line have stems pointing up. Otherwise, the stem directions are determined according to the voice: up for Voice 1 and Voice 3, down for Voice 2 and Voice 4.
It's not yet possible to assign different sounds to individual voices, so you may have to use multiple instruments. For example, you cannot assign a Soprano VSTi to voice 1 and a Tenor VSTi to voice 2, only one or the other.

Using multiple instruments

Enter notes and rests in multiple voices in one staff

To enter new notes into a Voice:

Select your starting point in the score.
Select the desired voice using the toolbar icons or press one of the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl+Alt+1–Ctrl+Alt+4

You can repeat these steps to enter notes into other voices.

Editing notes and rests in multiple voices

Adjusting rests

To make sense notation wise, rests should be used in each existing voice whenever necessary to complete beats of a measure, Musescore creates them automatically. In measures containing multiple voices, rests are automatically added to voices of lower number whenever appropriate. MuseScore also automatically positions rests to avoid overlapping other score elements.

To hide, delete, or adjust the position of these rests to create better layout, use one of the following methods:

Hiding or deleting rests

Rests may be hidden by selecting them and unchecking the Visible box in the Properties panel or using the keyboard shortcut V.

Rests in voices 2-4 may also be deleted by selecting them and pressing Delete. However, this leaves a "hole" in the voice that can be difficult to edit later. To restore missing rests from a voice, you can use the commands in Tools→Voices to exchange the contents of the voice with those of voice 1, which will fill the holes with rests again. You can then use the same command to move the contents of the voices back where they were.

Note: to ensure the correct duration of each measure, voice 1 rests can be hidden, but they cannot be deleted.

Positioning rests

While MuseScore will normally avoid collisions with other voices, it can sometimes be helpful to move rests up or down to create more space or to clarify which voice they apply to.

To move a rest vertically, select it and press Up or Down to move it a staff space at a time.

You can also change the default vertical offset between rests and elements in other voices from 1 space to 2 spaces in Format→Style…→Rests

Changing voice of existing notes

Combining voices into chords

Separate chords into Voices

To separate a chord written in one voice into separate notes of different voices:

- Press the toolbar button to assign a Voice to selected notes, or use the Ctrl+Alt+1–Ctrl+Alt+4 Keyboard shortcuts.

Alternative note input methods

Accessing alternative note input methods

In addition to the default note entry method, there are several other methods by which notation can be entered in MuseScore.

To enter these alternative note input methods:

Click and hold the Note input button in the Note input toolbar.
Select from one of the available note input methods.

Keyboard users can get to the Note input button by pressing Shift+Tab or Shift+F6 a few times from the score. Screen readers will say something like "Note input toolbar: Default (step-time)". Press Space on this button to open a menu that contains all the available note input methods.

Note that the selected note input method remains in effect even when you leave note input mode and will be enabled the next time you enter note input mode. So if you change to the Re-pitch method for a single passage, be sure to change back to the Step time method when you are done.

Rhythm only

Select your starting point in the score.
Select the Rhythm note input method as described above.
Select a duration from the note input toolbar, or use the keyboard shortcuts 1-9, to add a note of the selected duration.
Add a dotted duration by pressing . and selecting/typing your desired duration. In this mode, the duration dot is toggled on/off for all subsequently entered durations. It's worth noting that the duration dot needs to be activated prior to entering the note value, rather than afterwards.
Enter rests by clicking the rest icon in the note input toolbar and select/type your desired duration. When the desired duration already has been selected (from the previous entered note), pressing 0 will enter the rest. Click the rest button to return to entering notes.
Continue pressing duration keys to enter notes with the chosen durations.

Re-pitch

The Re-pitch note input method allows you to change the pitches of a sequence of notes while leaving their durations unaltered.

Select your starting point in the score.
Select the Re-pitch note input method as described above, or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+I (Mac: Cmd+Shift+I).

The Re-pitch method can be an extremely efficient way of entering notes in music with repeated rhythmic patterns. Simply copy and paste an existing passage that uses the same rhythm as your new passage, then use re-pitch mode to alter the pitches. The same technique can be used to enter multiple instrumental or vocal parts that share the same rhythm but different pitches.

Real-time

You must pre-select the shortest duration you wish to use.
You cannot enter tuplets in Real-time note input.
You must enter notes onto a single staff and in a single voice, just as with other note input modes.
It is not possible to use a computer keyboard for Real-time note input.

These restrictions mean that MuseScore has very little guessing to do when working out how your input should be notated, which helps to keep these methods accurate.

Real-time (metronome)

With the Real-time (metronome) note input method, you play at a fixed tempo indicated by a metronome click. You can adjust the tempo by changing the delay between clicks from the menu: Edit→Preferences...→Note Input (Mac: MuseScore→Preferences...→Note Input).

Select your starting position in the score.
Select the Real-time (metronome) note input method as described above.
Select a duration from the note input toolbar to represent the metronome click.
Press and hold a MIDI key or virtual piano key to enter a note of the selected duration.
Listen for the metronome clicks—with each click the note grows by the selected duration.
Release the key when the note has reached the desired length.

Real-time (foot pedal)

Select your starting position in the score.
Select the Real-time (foot pedal) note input method as described above.
Select a duration from the note input toolbar to represent the metronome click.
Press and hold a MIDI key or virtual piano key.
Press the "Real-time Advance" shortcut with each press, the note grows by the selected duration.
Release the note when it has reached the desired length.

Real-time Advance shortcut

The "Real-time Advance" shortcut is used to start the metronome with the Real-time (metronome) method or to tap beats with the Real-time (foot pedal) method. It is called "Real-time Advance" because it causes the input position to move forward, or "advance", through the score.

The default key for Real-time Advance is Enter on the numeric keypad (Mac: Fn+Return), but it is highly recommended that you assign this to a MIDI key or MIDI pedal via MuseScore's MIDI remote control. The MIDI remote control is available from the menu: Edit→Preferences...→MIDI mappings (Mac: MuseScore→Preferences...→MIDI mappings).

Alternatively, if you have a USB footswitch or computer pedal which can simulate keyboard keys, you could set it to simulate Enter on the numeric keypad.

Insert

To insert a note:

Select your starting position in the score.
Select the Insert note input method as described above.
Enter a note or rest as you would in Step time mode. Each note is inserted before the current cursor position, and the measure duration is increased to compensate.

When the notes are entered they will be placed just before the selected starting element, which will be highlighted with a square blue marker. The start element and any subsequent notes or rests within the same measure will be shifted forward. You can move the insertion point forward and backward using the arrow keys → or ←, and the new insertion point will then be highlighted.

Alternatively, if you have only one or two notes to insert, you can do this directly with the default Step time note input method. Press Ctrl+Shift (Mac: Cmd+Shift) while adding the note by mouse or keyboard shortcut (A-G).

To insert a rest, first insert a note of the desired duration, then press Delete.

To delete a note or rest, use the shortcut Ctrl+Shift+Delete. The measure duration is decreased to compensate. The shortcut works with both the Step time and Insert note input methods.

Because inserting and notes may cause the measure duration to increase or decrease beyond what is specified by the time signature, a small "+" or "-" sign will be shown above the measure when this happens.

Adding and removing measures

Inserting measures

MuseScore allows you to insert or delete measures in the score using a variety of methods. Measures can be inserted:

After a selection
Before a selection
At the start of the score
At the end of the score

To insert one or more measures:

Right-click on a blank area of a measure
From the context menu, choose Insert measures
From the options presented, choose the location where you want the measure(s) inserted
Complete the dialog box and press OK.

The Properties panel

To insert one or more measures:

Click on a measure
Go to the Properties panel
Click Insert measures in the Measure section
Type the number of measures you wish to insert (or leave it as “1” to insert a single measure)
Select where you want the measure(s) to be inserted from the dropdown menu (or leave it as is to insert the new measure(s) after the selection point)
Click the + button

This popup remains open until you click another part of the user interface. As such, you can continue pressing the + button as many times as you need to insert further measures.

In addition, you can insert measures from one of two menus:

Select something in your score (can be anything except line objects)
Click the + button in the Note input toolbar
Navigate to Measures
Choose where you want the new measure(s) to be inserted

Select something in your score (can be anything except line objects)
Click the Add in the Menu bar
Navigate to Measures
Choose where you want the new measure(s) to be inserted

Inserting measures with keyboard shortcuts

To quickly insert one measure before the selection point:

Select something in your score (can be anything except line objects)
Press Ins

Insert more measures before the selection point by repeatedly pressing Ins.

To quickly insert multiple measures before the selection point:

Select something in your score (can be anything except line objects)
Press Ctrl+Ins (Mac: ⌘+Ins)
Type the number of required measures in the dialog that appears
Click OK

To append to the end of your score, you can use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+B (Mac: ⌘+B) for a single measure, or Alt+Shift+B (Mac: Option+Shift+B) for multiple measures.

Add measures to a frame

Click on the frame
Use one of the methods shown under "Note input toolbar" or "Menu bar", or a keyboard shortcut (above).

Deleting measures

To delete one or more measures using keyboard shortcuts:

Select a measure (or hold Shift and select multiple measures)
Type Ctrl+Backspace or Ctrl+Del (Mac: ⌘+Backspace or ⌘+Del).