Articulation Tool

Use this tool to enter one-character articulation markings (such as accents, staccato marks, fermatas, and so on) into your score. You attach an articulation to a single note in a single staff (by clicking on, above, or below it); if the note moves, the articulation moves with it.

You can also define an articulation for playback; it can affect either the timing or the volume (key velocity) of the note on which it appears.

To learn about how articulations are handled in linked parts, see Articulations in linked parts. See also Articulations.

Click on, above, or below a note or rest to display the Articulation Selection dialog box, from which you can select an articulation marking you want to insert. (If you are using voices, click above the staff for Voice 1 and below for Voice 2.)
Click or shift-click articulation handles to select one (or additional) articulations, respectively.
Click and drag to select multiple handles.
Press command-A to select all the handles.
Drag a selected handle to move all selected articulations.
Press delete, or control-click the handle and select Delete from the contextual menu to remove an articulation (or all selected articulations).
Double-click an articulation handle (or select the handle and press return), or right-control-click the handle and select Edit Articulation Definition from the contextual menu to display the Articulation Designer dialog box, where you can edit the character used for an articulation marking, including its playback definition, font, and automatic-placement options.
Drag-enclose a series of notes to bring up the Apply Articulation dialog box. Hold down delete and drag-enclose note to remove the articulations.
Option-click and hold a handle of an articulation to highlight the note to which it is assigned.

You can create Articulation Metatools—one-key equivalents for articulation markings—that can save you time if you need to insert many expression markings into your score (because you bypass the Articulation Selection dialog box).

To program an Articulation Metatool

Click the Articulation Tool. Press shift and a letter or number key. Finale displays the Articulation Selection dialog box; double-click the marking you want to correspond to the letter or number you pressed (or, click the desired articulation and then click Select).

To use an Articulation Metatool

Click the Articulation Tool. While pressing the number or letter key to which the desired marking was programmed, click on, above, or below a note or rest. The marking appears at the place you clicked.

You can also press a metatool key and drag-enclose the desired notes to apply the articulation to those notes.

To enter an articulation while entering notes in Simple Entry, see Adding Articulations in the Simple Entry chapter.

Contextual menus are reached by control-clicking on the handle of an object. A contextual menu will be displayed where you can select various items.

Articulation handles

Menu item	What it does
Edit Articulation Definition	Display the Articulation Designer dialog box
Show	Check this option to show, or uncheck to hide (on the printed page)
Relink to Score (parts only)	Restore the link to its corresponding score item
Unlink In All Parts (score only)	Break the link between the score and this item in all parts
Relink In All Parts (score only)	Restore the link to all corresponding items in parts
Delete	Removes selected articulations