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Category Designer dialog box

How to get there

  1. Click the Expression tool  image\Expression_Tool.gif, and double-click a note or measure. The Expression Selection dialog box appears.
  2. Click Edit Categories. Or, choose Document > Category Designer.

What it does

Because similar types of expressions usually share positioning and appearance characteristics, Finale separates the different types of expressions into independent categories (see Expressions). This dialog box displays text, positioning, and staff assignment settings for the expression category selected to the left.

Each category includes its own font, size, and style. When you create a new expression, Finale automatically assigns the category's font, size, and style to the text you type. Also, because some markings, particularly tempo marks, require multiple fonts, a category can include up to three different fonts, Text (e.g. Times New Roman), Music (e.g. Maestro), and Number.

Each category's positioning settings also apply to all expressions in the category. Review the preview beneath the positioning settings for an example of the positioning option chosen from the Horizontal/Vertical Alignment drop-down menu.

To accommodate markings that apply to the full score, but only appear on certain staves, some expression categories include a Score List. For example, tempo marks often appear above the top staff of a large score, as well as above the top staff in each instrumental section. Score Lists are also capable of automatically placing expressions properly when systems include hidden staves (see Score List dialog box).

Score Lists are not designed for dynamics. To quickly apply dynamic expressions to multiple staves, use the Assign drop-down menu in the Expression Selection dialog box.

Changes to the Category Designer dialog box apply to all expressions in the selected category, including those that already exist in the score, except those specifically defined to ignore category settings (see the Use Category Fonts and Use Category Positioning check boxes in the Expression Designer-Main dialog box, and the Expression Designer-Positioning dialog box).

See Also 

Expressions

Expression Selection dialog box

 

 

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