Positions of chord symbols

In layouts where chord symbols are shown, they are positioned either above all instrument staves set to show chord symbols or only above the top staff in each system.

By default, chord symbols are centered horizontally on the middle of the front notehead in the first voice column at their rhythmic position.

Note

The front notehead is the notehead on the correct side of the stem at that rhythmic position.

Alignment of chord symbols relative to notes and chords

You can change whether chord symbol text is left-aligned above the notehead, center-aligned above the notehead, or right-aligned above the notehead, although right-aligned typically produces unclear results.

You can change the horizontal alignment of chord symbols by choosing an option for Horizontal alignment relative to note, chord or rest in the Position section of the Chord Symbols page in Engraving Options.

You can also override this for an individually selected chord symbol by activating Alignment in the Chord Symbols group of the Properties panel and selecting an option from the menu.

Alignment of chord symbols across the system

Chord symbols are aligned at the same vertical position across the width of the system by default. You can deactivate Align chord symbols across width of system in the Position section of the Chord Symbols page in Engraving Options if you want each chord symbol to be positioned above the staff independently.