Respelling notes

You can change the enharmonic spelling of notes so they are shown as their enharmonic equivalents; for example, to show the stepwise movement in a phrase clearly, or to avoid altered unisons in a chord. You can do this for all layouts or only in the current part layout.

By default, Dorico Pro uses an algorithm that automatically decides the spelling of pitches, based on key signature and context.

There are always at least three options for every pitch, as Dorico Pro allows enharmonic spellings to show up to two accidental glyphs. This means the same note can be spelled four ways if the original pitch can be spelled with the note name either two notes below or two notes above, using a maximum of two accidental glyphs. For example, B is a possible enharmonic spelling of G♯ because a triple-flat uses a single accidental glyph, whereas an F♯ uses two accidental glyphs.

Procedure

  1. In the music area, open the layout in which you want to respell accidentals. You can do this in Write mode and Engrave mode.
    Note

    By default, respelling notes in score layouts also affects their spelling in all other layouts, but respelling notes in part layouts only affects their spelling in the current part layout.

  2. Select the notes you want to respell.
    Note

    If you want to respell individual noteheads in tie chains, you must be in Engrave mode.

  3. Respell the selected notes in any of the following ways:

    • To respell them upwards, press Alt/Opt-= or click Respell Using Note Name Above in the Keyboard panel toolbar.

    • To respell them downwards, press Alt/Opt-- or click Respell Using Note Name Below in the Keyboard panel toolbar.

    • To respell them automatically, choose Write > Respell > Respell Notes Automatically to open the Respell Notes Automatically dialog.

  4. Optional: If you opened the Respell Notes Automatically dialog, change the settings for respelling as required, then click OK to close the dialog and respell the selected notes.

Result

The enharmonic spelling of the selected notes is changed.

Tip

You can change the default spelling of notes in atonal key signatures in Note Input Options > MIDI Input > Note Spelling.

Example

Figure 1. A G sharp
Figure 2. When respelled downwards, the G sharp becomes an F triple-sharp
Figure 3. When respelled upwards, the G sharp becomes an A flat
Figure 4. When respelled upwards again, the G sharp becomes a B triple-flat

After Completing This Task

You can copy note spellings to other layouts, such as if you respelled notes in a part layout but want the same spelling to appear in the full score layout.