To use Playback Controls

Playback Controls reside on a movable/dockable window. They give you several additional controls over the way your score plays back—for example, they contain Play, Stop, Rewind, and Fast Forward buttons. They also let you listen to any portion of the score, even if you’re viewing a different section on the screen.

1. Choose Window > Playback Controls. Playback Controls appears.

2. Adjust the Measure control, if necessary. This text box shows the first measure to be played. To change this number, either type in a new one, click the up or DOWN ARROWs, or click one of the large buttons on Playback Controls. (To edit the counter, the Current Counter Setting option must be checked in the Playback Settings dialog box). The button (Rewind to Beginning) enters 1 in the Measure text box. The and buttons quickly decrease or increase the number in the Measure text box, and the button (Fast Forward to End) puts the last measure’s number in the text box.
3. Click Play. The music plays. To Stop, click Stop; to pause, press the space bar again (or click Pause); when you’re ready to go on, click Pause again.

If, while you’re listening, you catch something you’d like to hear again, click the button for a few seconds; Finale will suspend playback, the Measure text box number will decrease (as the program “rewinds”). Release the button, and playback will begin again (with the number in the Measure text box). Similarly, you can click the , (Rewind to Beginning), and  (Forward to End) buttons at any time during playback.

4. For additional playback options, click the Playback Settings button The Playback Settings dialog box opens.

Using Always start at and Stop at, specify what range of measures you want Finale to play; the default settings tell Finale to play from Measure 1 displayed on the screen through the end of the piece. By changing these numbers, you can even tell Finale to play measures that aren’t on the screen. Or, by entering a small range and repeatedly clicking the Play button, you could, in effect, “loop” through a certain segment.

The Tempo control sets the playback tempo unless you’ve created tempo changes by recording them, by placing Expression marks, or by using the Tempo tool. The Base Key Velocity, on a scale from 0 (silent) to 127 (very loud), establishes the overall key velocity setting, from which all dynamics are measured. In other words, you can make the piece generally softer by decreasing this number, but individual dynamics within the piece will still have an effect.

For a discussion of Playback Controls, see Playback Controls. To make real-time adjustments to volume, panning, and other playback attributes, see To use real-time mixer controls (below). 

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