Caret

In Dorico Pro, the caret is a vertical line that extends above and below five-line staves but appears shorter on percussion staves and tablature. It shows the rhythmic position at which notes, chords, or notation items are input.

A caret is a mark that is commonly used when proofreading published text to denote the position at which something should be inserted or added, for example, a missing letter or a word. In software, the caret shows where something is inserted. The caret is also known as an “insertion point” or “cursor”. In this documentation, we use “caret” to refer to the line that appears during note input, and “cursor” to refer to the line that appears during text input.

If you are inputting notes, the caret advances to the next rhythmic position automatically. If you are inputting chords or notes on tablature, the caret does not move automatically, and you must move it to the next rhythmic position manually. The caret has a note symbol beside it, which indicates the stem direction and type of the currently selected voice. It is accompanied by a + symbol if the voice is new.

Figure 1. The caret

The appearance of the caret changes depending on the input mode and the currently selected voice number.

Multiple staves

The caret extends vertically across all the staves onto which notes and notations will be input. This allows you to input, for example, the same dynamics or playing techniques on multiple staves simultaneously or play in chords on a MIDI keyboard and distribute the notes in those chords onto multiple staves. The note symbol and rhythmic grid also appear for each included staff.

Figure 2. Caret when inputting notes onto multiple staves
Insert

The caret shows V and inverted V shapes at the top and bottom. In Insert mode, inserted notes shift all music in the current voice after the caret along by the input duration instead of replacing existing notes. Similarly, reducing the duration of notes with Insert mode activated pulls them closer together without leaving rests between the notes.

Figure 3. Caret in Insert mode
Chords

The caret shows a plus symbol at the top left. During chord input, you can input multiple notes at the same rhythmic position.

Figure 4. Caret when inputting chords
Lock to Duration

The caret is dashed. Lock to Duration allows you to repitch notes without changing their duration or rhythm.

Figure 5. Caret when Lock to Duration is activated
Grace Notes

The caret is shorter than the default caret. It allows you to input grace notes at the caret position.

Figure 6. Caret when inputting grace notes
Voices

If you input multiple voices, the caret shows the following:

  • A plus symbol at the bottom left

  • The voice number into which you are inputting notes

  • An up-stem note or a down-stem note symbol to indicate the stem direction of the voice

Figure 7. Caret when inputting notes into a new down-stem voice
Figure 8. Caret when inputting notes into a new, second up-stem voice
Slash voices

The note beside the caret indicates a slash notehead.

If you input multiple slash voices, the caret shows the following:

  • A plus symbol on the left at the bottom

  • The number of the slash voice into which you are about to input notes

  • An up-stem slash note or a down-stem slash note symbol indicating the stem direction of the voice, and whether it has stems or is stemless

Figure 9. Caret when inputting notes into an up-stem slash voice
Figure 10. Caret when inputting notes into a new, second up-stem slash voice
Figure 11. Caret when inputting notes into a new, stemless slash voice
Percussion kits

The caret appears significantly smaller than usual when inputting notes into percussion kits. The name of the kit instrument into which you are currently inputting notes is shown above the rhythmic grid.

Figure 12. Caret when inputting notes into percussion kits
Tablature

The caret appears significantly smaller than usual when inputting notes into tablature. On tablature, the caret behaves as if chord input is always active, meaning you must advance the caret and move it to other string lines manually.

Figure 13. Caret when inputting notes on tablature