Inputting chords

You can input chords during step input, when both note input and Chords are activated. You can input notes with a computer keyboard, by clicking with a mouse pointer, or by playing notes with a MIDI keyboard.

Procedure

  1. Start note input in any of the following ways:

    • Select the staff where you want to input notes and press Shift-N or Return.

    • Select the staff where you want to input notes and choose Write > Note Input.

    • Double-click the staff where you want to input notes.

  2. Select a note value in any of the following ways:

    • Press the number on your computer keyboard that corresponds to the rhythmic value you want. For example, press 6 for quarter notes (crotchets), 5 for eighth notes (quavers), 7 for half notes (minims), and so on.

    • Click the rhythmic value you want in the Notes panel on the left of the window.

  3. Activate the Chords input tool in any of the following ways:

    • Press Q.

    • Click Chords in the Notes toolbox on the left of the window.

    When Chords is activated, a + sign appears at the top of the caret. This allows you to input multiple notes at the same rhythmic position, according to the current position of the caret.

  4. Input the pitches you want in any of the following ways:

    • Press the letters on your keyboard that correspond to the notes you want to input at the caret position.

      Note

      Dorico automatically inputs notes above the highest note at the caret position when Chords is activated.

      You can input notes below the lowest note at the caret position instead by pressing Ctrl (macOS) or Ctrl-Alt (Windows) as well as the letter for the note name.

    • Click the staff at the rhythmic positions where you want to input notes.

      Tip

      A gray notehead appears when inputting with a mouse pointer to indicate where the note will be input.

    • Play the notes you want on a MIDI keyboard.

    Note

    When Chords is activated, notes are input at the same rhythmic position and above the previous note until you advance the caret manually.

  5. Optional: Advance the caret to input chords at other rhythmic positions.
  6. Deactivate Chords in any of the following ways:

    • Press Q again.

    • Click Chords again in the Notes toolbox on the left of the window.

Result

Multiple notes are input at the caret position.

If entering pitches by clicking with the mouse, you can put the same pitch into the chord twice by clicking again on the same line.

If entering pitches with the keyboard, repeated notes are automatically input an octave above. You can change the register of notes by forcing the register selection during note input, or by transposing them after they have been input.

Tip

You can deactivate Chords and immediately continue inputting notes as before, with a single note at each rhythmic position and the caret advancing automatically to the next rhythmic position.

Note

  • Chords cannot be activated at the same time as Insert mode.

  • When chords contain two pitches in the same register but with different accidentals, that is known as an altered unison. Altered unisons are shown with either single stems or with split stems, depending on your settings on the Accidentals page in Write > Notation Options.