Music frame chains
A music frame chain is a collection of music frames that show the same selection of music in a set order, often in sequence. Music frame chains are automatically created when you input music frames and import page templates, and can include any number of frames, including only a single music frame.
You can control the players and flows shown in each music frame chain by using music frame selectors.
In Dorico Pro, there are different types of frame chains.
Page template frame chains
Page template frame chains can be created and fully edited only on page templates in the page template editor; you cannot change the flow and player filters for page template frame chains in individual layouts. Whenever you create a music frame on a page template, you automatically start a frame chain.
Frame chains that start with an “M”, such as “MA”, are page template frame chains. You can have multiple page template frame chains on each page, such as “MA” and “MH”.
The default page templates contain a single frame chain that is set to display all flows and all players in the layout. Therefore, Dorico Pro automatically creates enough pages and frames to display all flows in all the layouts that use those page templates.
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The Default page template determines the page template frame chains that Dorico Pro uses automatically. If the First page template does not contain a music frame assigned to the same frame chain as the Default page template, Dorico Pro cannot use it automatically; instead, all pages use the Default page template.
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All frames in the same music frame chain must display the same flows and players. For example, you cannot have the first frame in a frame chain show just the violin but have the second frame show all players.
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Dorico Pro shows flows in layouts as many times as you want, not only once. Therefore, if you want to change the formatting of some flows in a particular layout, such as showing them in layout frame chains instead of the page template frame chain, but do not want those flows to appear more than once, you must remove those flows from the Filter by Flows list on the page template frame chain. As this affects which flows are automatically displayed in all layouts that use the same page template, we recommend that in such cases you create a separate page template for the layout in which you want to change the formatting.
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Music frames on imported page templates are automatically assigned to their own frame chain, regardless of the frame chain to which they were originally assigned in their source page template set.
Layout frame chains
Layout frame chains can only be created and edited on individual pages in layouts. If you create a music frame and assign it to a layout frame chain in a layout, it is only displayed on that page in that layout and starts its own frame chain. If you want the music frame to be continued on subsequent pages, you must create music frames on all the pages in the layout on which you want the chain to appear and assign all of these frames to the same layout frame chain.
Frame chains that start with an “L”, such as “LA”, are layout frame chains. You can have multiple layout frame chains on each page, such as “LA” and “LB”.
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All frames in the same music frame chain must display the same flows and players. For example, you cannot have the first frame in a frame chain show just the violin but have the second frame show all players.
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Assigning flows to layout frame chains does not stop those flows also appearing in the page template frame chain, if the frame chain in the page template applied to the layout is set to include those flows. By default, page template frame chains are set to display all flows in the project.