Copying music

Using the clipboard is another way to copy (or cut) and paste music. When you paste, existing music is overwritten. This is the method commonly used when copying to a target region outside of the visible area or across documents.

1. Choose the Selection tool and highlight a region of measures. Or, highlight a region with any tool that allows regional selection. For details, see Selecting music.
2. Press CTRL+C to copy or CTRL+X to Cut. The music is loaded to the clipboard. If you chose to Cut the selection disappears. At this point, you can paste the copied material anywhere—either elsewhere in the same document, or into another document. If you want to paste to another document, open the document now, by using File > Open. You can’t, however, directly paste music into other programs such as word processing or graphics programs. For details on exporting music into another program, see Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) and Graphics tool.
3. Specify the musical elements you would like to copy in the Edit Filter dialog box. Or, to copy everything, ensure Edit Filter is unchecked under the Edit menu. (Tempo changes are the exception; they are not included when Use Filter is unchecked. See To copy tempo changes.)
4. Select a measure (or partial measure) that begins at the desired target and press CTRL+V to paste. Finale replaces whatever was in the target measures, starting at the left-most edge of the selected region, with a copy of the music you originally selected (as shown here). Pasting does not introduce any new measures into the “target” document, but replaces whatever was there with the contents of the Clipboard. (However, measures will be added on paste as needed if there are fewer measures in the target than in the source.

Noteman says: When clipboard-copying, Finale pastes the entire source content starting with the upper left target selection.

To paste multiple copies of the source material, simply CTRL+ALT+click the target measure (or, select the target and press Alt+CTRL+V ) to open the Paste Multiple dialog box where you can repeat the source material any number of times in the score, horizontally or vertically.

1. Specify the musical elements you would like to copy in the Edit Filter dialog box. Or, to copy everything, ensure Use Filter is unchecked under the Edit menu. (Tempo changes are the exception; they are not included when Use Filter is unchecked. See To copy tempo changes.)
2. With the Selection tool selected, highlight a region of measures. Or, highlight a region with any tool that allows regional selection. For details, see Selecting music.
3. Click and drag the source music so that it’s superimposed on the target measure(s).
4. When the black border surrounds the desired target region, release the mouse button to paste as shown below. Finale replaces whatever was in the target measures, starting at the position of the cursor, with a copy of the music you originally selected. In other words, if you drag to beat three of a certain measure, the pasted music will begin at beat three. If the measure is empty, the music will appear at the nearest beat following the cursor.
   
   

If the first target measure is not on-screen, instead of dragging, do the following:

1. With the source region selected, scroll until you see the desired target region.
2. While pressing CTRL, click the first target measure. The music appears in the target measure(s) with the same beat placement as the original (as shown below).
   
   

Alternatively, you can hold down both CTRL and SHIFT as you click to open the Edit Filter dialog box which allows you to specify elements of the source region you want to include.

Also, you can hold down CTRL and ALT to open the Paste Multiple dialog box which allows you to past additional copies of the source material.

Full measure stacksA selected region including full measures in every staff is called a measure "stack" and is indicated by highlighting extending from the top to the bottom staff, including the area between staves. can be copied using the clipboard or by dragging, replacing existing music or inserting between it. Here, a stack really refers to the measure settings including key signatures, measure widths, and barline styles. (See Edit Filter dialog box for details). Copy and paste/insert measure settings using the following criteria:

The source region selection:

• Must begin and end at a barline.
• Must include either a stack or the same number of staves as the target or greater. (A single staff full measure selection is a stack selection).

The target region selection:

• Must begin at a barline.
• Must consist of the same amount or fewer staves if the source is not a stack. (Fewer is possible with hidden staves or copying across documents. You can use Staff Sets to decrease the apparent number of staves in the target document to compensate for this. See Hiding Staves.)
• Can be any number of staves if the source is a stack.

To copy and paste/insert stacks, use the above definitions for "source" and "target" regions while following the directions under either To copy and paste using the clipboard, To copy and paste by dragging, To copy and insert using the clipboard, or To copy and insert by dragging. While drag-copying or drag-inserting, use the green border/insert cursor to confirm the target is a valid for transfer of measure settings.

When drag-copying, Finale displays a green border around the destination stack region if the region is eligible for stack-pasting (left). When dragging over a region that does not start on a barline and/or include the top staff, Finale displays a black border around the destination region indicating it is not eligible for a stack paste (right). If you release the mouse button in a region not eligible for stack pasting (black border), the music pastes normally and does not include measure-specific data.

Measure settings are copied if either the Source or Target region constitute a stack. The following examples illustrate these situations for drag-copying (the same applies for clipboard-copying and inserting):

Noteman says: Finale adds new measures to accommodate notes nudged beyond the final barline.

1. Specify the musical elements you would like to copy in the Edit Filter dialog box. Or, to copy everything, uncheck Use Filter under the Edit menu. (Tempo changes are the exception; they are not included when Use Filter is unchecked. See To copy tempo changes.)
2. With the Selection tool selected, highlight a region of measures. Or, highlight a region with any tool that allows regional selection. For details, see Selecting music.
3. Press CTRL+C. The music is loaded to the clipboard.
4. Select a measure (or partial measure) that begins at the desired target and press CTRL+I to insert. You indicate where you want the copied material to appear by selecting the notes or measures just after it. So, if you want the copied music to appear between measures 3 and 4, click measure 4. Finale inserts a copy of the selected music, nudging all subsequent notes in the staff (or staves) to the right the duration of the inserted material (see Rebarring music).
   
   

1. Specify the musical elements you would like to copy in the Edit Filter dialog box. Or, to copy everything, uncheck Use Filter under the Edit menu. (Tempo changes are the exception; they are not included when Use Filter is unchecked. See To copy tempo changes.)
2. With the Selection tool selected, highlight a region of measures. Or, highlight a region with any tool that allows regional selection. For details, see Selecting music.
3. While holding down the ALT key, click and drag the source music to position the vertical red line where you would like to insert.
4. Release the mouse button. Finale inserts a copy of the selected music starting at the position of the red insertion cursor, nudging subsequent notes in the staff (or staves) to the right the duration of the inserted material. Finale inserts a copy of the selected music just before the target region, nudging all subsequent notes in the staff (or staves) to the right the duration of the inserted material (see Rebarring music).
   
   

Full measure stacksA selected region including full measures in every staff is called a measure "stack" and is indicated by highlighting extending from the top to the bottom staff, including the area between staves. can also be inserted using the clipboard or by dragging, shifting all subsequent measures to the right in all staves. Rebar music does not apply when inserting stacks because the subsequent music is nudged in full measure increments (so notes cannot be nudged across barlines). In order to copy and insert a measure stack, the source region must include a stack selection.

1. Select a measure stack. A measure stack must include all staves and begin and end at a barline. See Selecting music.
2. Press CTRL+C. The stack is loaded to the clipboard.
3. Select a region beginning on a barline on the top staff and press CTRL+I to insert.
   
   

1. Select a measure stack. A measure stack must include all staves and begin and end at a barline. See Selecting music.
2. While holding down the ALT key, click and drag the source music to position the vertical insertion cursor at a barline on the top staff of the target region. The insertion cursor changes color to green indicating an eligible location to insert as shown in the figure below.
3. Release the mouse button. Finale inserts a copy of the selected music starting at the position of the green line, nudging subsequent measures in the staff (or staves) to the right the duration of the inserted material.
   

When copying between instruments in different registers (e.g. flute and tuba), Finale can automatically transpose the music into an octave within the range of the target instrument (so that as many notes as possible are within the range of the destination instrument). This is the case as long as "Respect Ranges when Copying or Changing Instruments" is checked in Preferences - Edit dialog box. For more information, see Ranges.

Noteman says: Be strongly cautioned that when this feature is enabled, music copied to a staff of the same instrument (including the source staff) is also transposed into the most playable octave.

1. Choose Edit > Preferences > Edit.
2. Check Respect Instrument Ranges When Copying or Changing Instruments.
3. Click OK, then copy music across instruments in different registers. The music transposes into the most playable octave for that instrument's range.
   
   
   
   In this example, after drag-copying, the flute part is transposed down three octaves.

Tip: Use the octave transposition Metatools, the 8 and 9 keys in the number row, to easily transpose up and down by octaves.

Generally, Finale includes all notes, entry items and measure items when you copy. However, by using Finale's filter you can specify which items you would like to copy—such as chord symbols or articulations—with or without affecting the notes themselves. (To learn about selecting measure regions, see Selecting music). You can easily choose any number of entry and measure items by doing the following:

1. Choose the Selection tool .

WARNING! The settings in the Edit Filter dialog box are program-wide. That means these settings apply to all documents, even after closing and restarting Finale. If you are unsure of previous settings be sure to review this dialog box prior to copying to ensure it is set up as desired.

2. Choose Edit > Edit Filter. The Edit Filter dialog box appears. All measure and entry items appear in this dialog box. If you want to copy everything—music, lyrics, measure widths, expression marks, and all—no action is necessary (all items are selected by default).
3. Uncheck any item you do not want to copy and click OK. Now, when you copy, only selected items appear in the target region. Notice Use Filter is now checked under the Edit menu. Uncheck this command to disable the filter and include all items (other than Tempo changes) while copying - (see To copy tempo changes).

   Finale actually always includes all items whenever you copy. The Edit Filter dialog box actually filters certain items from appearing when inserting or pasting. Therefore you could copy music, and subsequently change your selection in the Edit Filter dialog box to specify what you would like to include in the target region.

Tip: CTRL+SHIFT+click the target region to open the Edit Filter dialog box prior to pasting the selected music.

In order to copy time signature changes along with the music you must select the full stackA selected region including full measures in every staff is called a measure "stack" and is indicated by highlighting extending from the top to the bottom staff, including the area between staves. of measures. Time signatures also must be checked in the Edit Filter dialog box. See To copy and paste stacks.

If Time Signatures is not checked, and music is copied to a target region of a different time signature, Finale does not rebar the music. In other words, if the source contains full measures, the target measure(s) will either be unfilled or overfilled.

In the example below, the first measure has been copied to measure 2 and measure 3 with Time Signature unchecked in the Edit Filter dialog box.

To delete extra notes in overfilled measures (such as measure 3), navigate to them using the arrow keys using Speedy Entry or Simple Entry. Then press the DELETE key. To redistribute these extra notes into subsequent measures automatically, rebar music. To automatically fill empty portions of measures (such as beat 4 of measure 2 above) with rests, use Utilities > Check Notation > Fill with Rests.

Tempo changes include any tempo change added with TempoTap, the Tempo tool, the MIDI tool, or by importing a MIDI file that includes tempo data. Tempo change information is unique in that it is the only measure setting not included when copying without the Filter (Edit menu).

1. Choose Edit > Edit Filter. The Edit Filter dialog box appears.
2. Ensure that the "Tempo changes" box is checked.
3. Click OK.
4. Click the Edit menu and ensure Use Filter is checked. Now, when you copy, tempo data (other than tempo data included with expressions) will not be transferred to the target region.

1. Choose the Selection tool . Or, highlight a region with any tool that allows regional selection. For details, see Selecting music.
2. Select a region. Click or drag-enclose any region of music to select it.
3. The selection must occur on a single staff, not spanning multiple staves. Only rhythms and markings in the current layer of the source region are used for the pattern matching and painting process.
4. Choose Edit > SmartFind and Paint > Set SmartFind Source. A outline box appears around the selected region. If you selected the wrong region, choose Edit > Deselect SmartFind Source and try again.
5. Optional: select a target region to paint. If no region is selected, SmartFind will assume you wish to scan the entire document. You may include partial measures in your target region.
6. Choose Edit > SmartFind and Paint > Apply SmartFind and Paint. The SmartFind and Paint dialog box appears.
7. Check the box for the markings you want to copy. If you’ve already entered some markings into your document, you may wish to check “Delete Target Markings Before Paint.” With this box checked, SmartFind will erase the markings before painting the new markings, so you get an exact duplicate. Note that checking this option will only erase markings checked to paint. For example, if all markings to paint were checked except articulations, SmartFind would erase markings in the target but leave articulations untouched. The checked marking types will be deleted regardless of whether the markings appear in the source region.
8. Click Find. SmartFind shows you the first match, if any. SmartFind will look for matches in all layers of the target region, regardless of the source layer. SmartFind will search the first measure of the top staff selected to the last measure of the top staff in the region, then continue through layers, then down through the rest of the staves. SmartFind will search for a match based on the rhythmic or note durations and therefore will consider tied notes. SmartFind will ignore grace notes, Voice 2 and mirrored notes.
9. Click Paint to apply the markings to the match, or Paint All to apply the markings to all matches, or click Find Next to skip this match. SmartFind copies the select markings from the source region onto the rhythmic match target region. Only the first note of a tied note will receive copied markings.
10. When you’re finished, click Cancel or Close. You return to the document.

All entry and measure items can be copied and pasted or inserted across documents using the clipboard or by dragging. To view multiple documents simultaneously on your screen, from choose Window > Tile Vertically/Horizontally.

These instructions assume that Finale is currently open. To duplicate a Finale document when you’re not in Finale, select the desired file using Windows Explorer and choose File > Copy.

1. Open the document. Choose File > Save As. The Save dialog box appears, allowing you to name the copy. No two documents in the same folder may have exactly the same name.
2. Click Save. The copy of the document is left on the screen, and the original is automatically closed without saving any changes.

Although you could use the clipboard to copy individual regions of music from one document to another (see To copy and paste using the clipboard), Finale’s Clip Files feature gives you, in effect, multiple Clipboards, each containing a different passage of music. By making Clip Files, you can copy many sections from a single document before pasting them, one by one, into a new document. These files are stored on your hard disk, where you can easily retrieve them for use in any document—a handy feature when you want to re-use motifs. All items can be transferred from one document to another using Clip Files (see Edit Filter dialog box).

1. Select the region you would like to copy. See Selecting music.
2. Specify the musical elements you would like to copy in the Edit Filter dialog box. Or, to copy everything, ensure Edit Filter is unchecked under the Edit menu.
3. While pressing CTRL, choose Edit > Copy to Clip File. When you CTRL+Copy in this way, you tell Finale to place the copied material into a file of its own, called a Clip File, instead of on the invisible Clipboard. The Clip dialog box appears, asking you to name your Clip File.
4. Name the Clip File, and click Save (or press ENTER). Repeat the process with as many other sections as you want: select the region, choose Copy while pressing CTRL, name and save the Clip File.
5. Choose File > Open, and select the target document (if it’s not already open).
6. If you want to insert the copied music between two existing measures, click the measure just after the insertion point. While pressing CTRL, choose Edit > Insert from Clip File. Once again, the CTRL key tells Finale you intend to access a Clip File. When you choose Insert, the Paste dialog box appears, displaying the names of the Clip Files you’ve created. Double-click the name of the desired Clip File.
7. If you want the copied music to replace (overwrite) the music in the target document, select the beginning of the target region.
8. While pressing CTRL, choose Edit > Paste from Clip File. Double-click the name of the desired Clip File. If you want to Insert, instead of choosing Edit > Paste from Clip File, choose Edit > Insert from Clip File.

You can copy and paste or insert across documents just as you would copy within the same document (see To copy and paste using the clipboard). You could use these methods to merge two or more documents manually. However, if you would like to combine two or more separate files, such as several movements of a piece into a single document, there are many additional considerations beyond the musical elements that can be copied including measure numbers, staff settings, Score Lists, pagination, and more. Finale includes a tool called Score Merger which is specifically designed to allow you to combine several files into one automatically.

Noteman says: Score Merger also allows you to merge files vertically. To combine several parts into a conductors score, see To merge part files into a score with Score Merger.

1. Choose File > Score Merger. The Score Merger dialog box appears.
2. Click Add Files. The Open dialog box appears. Navigate to the files you would like to merge.
3. Select the files you would like to merge and click Open. Hold down CTRL and click to select multiple files. The files appear in the Score Merger list box alphabetically. Select a file and use the Move Up and Move Down buttons if you need to change the order.
4. Ensure that Merge These Files Into One File is selected. The subsequent check boxes allow you to append the merged files to the current open document, specify measure numbering, and customize how the staff merging is handled. If you check Edit Instrument Junction Between Files, you will be prompted to review and/or edit the way Score Merger deals with instrument staves individually. See Instrument Junction dialog box for details.
5. Click Merge. Finale prompts you to choose a location for the merged file.
6. Select a destination for the merged file and click Save. Score Merger processes the files based on your settings. If Edit Instrument Junction Between Files was checked, you are prompted with the instrument merging details for each file as it is merged. Make any desired changes and click Continue. When the merge is complete, the Score Merger Report appears with an overview of the results as shown below.
   
   
7. Click Close. The Score Merger Report closes and the merged document appears in the active window ready for your review.

There are a few more details to bear in mind while merging files with Score Merger:

• To insert the merged material at a selected region, the region must begin at beat one.
• If the selection is at the beginning of a staff system, that system and the subsequent one will appear after the inserted files after the merge, starting on a new page. (Page text and graphics remain attached to the initial page of the inserted files).
• If the selection in the middle of a staff system, the system will be split up, one piece before the inserted files, and the other after. Each piece is locked automatically.
• Because there can only be one definition for entries/text inserts in File Info (Score Manager), Score Merger resolves conflicts by retaining all File Info from the first merged file. Text inserts such as Title, Composer, and Copyright that conflict with those in the first file are automatically converted to regular text blocks upon merge. For example, if the title of file 1 is "Movement 1” and the title of file 2 is “Movement 2,” "Movement 1" is used for the Title insert in the merged file, and "Movement 2" is automatically converted to a regular text block. (If an insert is the same text in all the merged files, Score Merger retains the insert without changing any to regular text.) Score Merger uses the first file in the merge as a "template" for the rest of the document. In other words, other document-specific settings are automatically set to the first file in the merger. See Document Settings and Program Settings for a list of document-specific settings.
• Expect to make some adjustments to the page layout and other properties after merging files using Score Merger.

In addition to merging files horizontally, Score Merger can also consolidate several part documents into a single document in order to generate a conductor's score. Score merger can automatically assign groups, MIDI channels, and deals with expressions and page layout.

Noteman says: In order to use Score Merger to combine part files into a score, Special Part Extraction must be disabled in the part files. See Document/Special Part Extraction.

1. Choose File > Score Merger. The Score Merger dialog box appears.
2. Click Add Files. The Open dialog box appears. Navigate to the files you would like to merge.
3. Select the files you would like to merge and click Open. Hold down CTRL and click to select multiple files. The files appear in the Score Merger list box alphabetically. Select a file and use the Move Up and Move Down buttons if you need to change the order.
4. Select Merge These Parts Into One Score.
5. Click Merge. Finale prompts you to choose a location for the merged file.
6. Select a destination for the merged file and click Save. Score Merger processes the files based on your settings. When the merge is complete, the Score Merger Report appears with an overview of the results as shown below.
   
   
7. Click Close. The Score Merger Report closes and the merged document appears in the active window ready for your review.