Finale staff positioning help?
  • Kathy
    Posts: 5,509
    Trying to engrave a few melody-only things on Finale, I've run across an issue that I've had before and have never been able to solve.

    The default positions of the systems running down the page vertically seem too wide, and nothing I do seems to bring the systems together.

    The closest I've come to success is dragging a system or two by their "handles," but this is imprecise and also doesn't work for the top and bottom systems, which seem anchored in place.

    I haven't found the answers I need on the Finale forums, so I thought I'd ask here if anyone has discovered solutions.

    Thanks very much!
  • Marc Cerisier
    Posts: 537
    The quick and dirty fix is to grab just the lower right handles of the system boxes (in page layout), and then use the up arrow to change them all at once. You can also go to the manage score layout (not at computer—it’s in a submenu), change the values to what you’d like them to be, and then redefine the pages (in page layout tool menu).
    Thanked by 1BruceL
  • Kathy
    Posts: 5,509
    Thanks, Marc! I tried this but the systems still seem locked.

    I wonder if being melody-only, there may be a lock acting as a placeholder for the missing lower staff.

    Edit: Yes, I think that's it. In Edit-Preferences-Edit, I unchecked Automatic Instrument Family Group Brackets, and now I'm able to move the systems closer together. Thanks!
  • Jeffrey Quick
    Posts: 2,086
    "plug-ins--Scoring and arranging -- Space systems" works well.
  • Kathy
    Posts: 5,509
    Thanks! What I really needed was Plug-ins--Scoring and arranging--Vertical collision remover.

    Values can be set in a dialogue box for white space between systems.
  • Jeffrey Quick
    Posts: 2,086
    Ah, different problem!
    I use the collision remover (or rather, ALLOWING collisions) for early music editions. One can have incipts and ranges, and then some blank space before the real Measure 1, by creating 2 "half staves" and then dragging them in line with each other.
    Thanked by 1Kathy
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