Smart Shape Tool

When you click this tool, Finale displays the floating Smart Shape Palette, containing an individual icon for each of several Smart Shapes - stretchable markings such as slurs, crescendo hairpins, 8va and 15ma markings, solid and dashed brackets and lines, and so on. (If the Smart Shape Palette doesn't appear, choose its name from the Window Menu.) In addition, handles appear on every smart shape marking in the score.

To place one of these markings into the score, position the cursor so that the tiny arrow points to the appropriate staff. If you’re placing a note-attached marking, the cursor will appear as a tiny note; just position the cursor over the note. If you’re placing a notehead-attached marking, the cursor will appear as a tiny notehead. Now double-click—but on the second click, keep the mouse button pressed and drag to the right. As you drag, the shape appears and grows to the right. Release the mouse when the shape is as long as you want it or highlights the appropriate end note.

For information regarding tuplets in scores with linked parts, see Smart Shapes in linked parts.

Tip: To place a note-assigned slur or curve between two consecutive notes in the score, double-click the first note; Finale draws the slur between the notes.

Click the Smart Shape icon on the Main Tool Palette to make handles appear on every Smart Shape in the score.
Click the primary square handle of a Smart Shape in the score to select it and display the editing handles. With these editing handles, you can move, stretch, or reshape the selected Smart Shape.
Press the Tab key to select the next secondary handle when a shape is being modified. Hit Esc to stop modifying the shape. Press the Tab key to select the next Smart Shape.
Press Command-A to select all Smart Shapes on the page. Drag-select Smart Shape handles to select multiple Smart Shapes. Shift-click to add a Smart Shape to the selection.
Click and drag (or use the arrow keys to nudge) a diamond editing handle on the tip of the slur to move the slur’s endpoint and attach the slur to a different note.
Click and drag (or use the arrow keys to nudge) a center curve diamond editing handle to change the slur’s arc height. Shift-click and drag the arc handle to change the arc height and the angle of the arc.
Drag or nudge an outer curve diamond editing handle to make asymmetrical changes to the slur’s arc and inset. These two handles control the Bezier curve control points.
Hold down option and drag an outer curve diamond editing handle for symmetrical changes to the slur’s arc and inset.
Hold down Shift while creating or editing a Smart Shape to constrain dragging.
Press option and then double-click and drag a bracket Smart Shape to create an inverted bracket with the hook pointing away from the staff instead of toward the staff. It will also change the text for ottavas below or above the staff.
Double-click or Option-click the Custom Line Tool to bring up the Smart Line Selection dialog box.

The Smart Shape Tool has a set of predefined Metatools—one-key equivalents for each tool—that can save you time if you want to temporarily switch to another tool.

To use a Smart Shape Metatool

To use a Smart Shape Metatool, hold down the appropriate key on your computer keyboard. With the key down, double-click and drag to create the desired shape. For slurs, glissandi, bends and tab slides, double-click and drag from note to note. The Smart Shape Metatools are defined as follows:

A	Artificial harmonic
B	Guitar bend
D	Dashed Line
E	Trill Extension/Vibrato
F	Glissando without text
G	Glissando with text
H	Hammer-on (H)
P	Pull-off (P)
R	Release (R)
U	Bend (B)
2	Hammer-on (H) - above slur or tie
3	Pull-off (P) - above slur or tie
4	Release (R) - above slur or tie
5	Bend (B) - above slur or tie
L	Solid line
M	Palm mute (P.M.)
N	Natural harmonic (N.H.)
S	Slur
T	Trill
V	Dashed slur
X	TAB slide
Y	Single hooked dashed line
Z	Double hooked dashed line
1	15ma/mb
6	Bend hat
8	8va/vb
L	Line
K	Single hooked line
O	Double hooked line
<	Crescendo
>	Decrescendo

To Program a Smart Shape metatool

You can assign a number or letter to any Smart Shape that exists in the Smart Line Selection dialog box. In addition, you can assign of these Smart Shapes to be measure or note-attached.

If you want to create a measure-attached Smart Shape metatool, first click the Custom Line Tool in the Smart Shape Palette. If you want to create a note-attached Smart Shape metatool, first click the Glissando Tool in the Smart Shape Palette. You will probably want to create a note-attached metatool for markings such as hammer-ons, pull-offs, glissandos, and other markings that extend from one note to the next, or items that need to be positioned relative to the note. Create a measure-attached metatool for items that extend over more than one note, or need to be positioned relative to the measure.
Hold down the Shift key and press a number or letter on the QWERTY keyboard. The Smart Line Selection dialog box appears.
Double-click to choose one of the available markings. The Smart Shape Metatool dialog box appears asking if you want to save the metatool.
Click Yes to save the metatool. Click No to dismiss the dialog box without creating the metatool. Note that all newly defined metatools are saved with the document.
If you assigned a note-attached Smart Shape, double-click the first of two notes or fret numbers to extend it to the next. If you assigned a measure-attached Smart Shape, double-click and drag to extend the marking manually.

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.

Menu item	What it does
Edit	Displays editing handles on selected smart shape
Delete	Removes selected smart shape
Align Horizontally	(Available for measure- attached Smart Shapes, such as Hairpins, Dash, Solid, & Custom Lines, Trills, 8vas, 15mas, Brackets) Aligns selected shapes along a horizontal line; for multiple staves, aligns selected shapes along a horizontal line at the same distance from the staff
Align Vertically	(Available for measure- attached Smart Shapes, such as Hairpins, Dash, Solid, & Custom Lines, Trills, 8vas, 15mas, Brackets) Aligns selected shapes’ end points along vertical lines by resizing the shapes
Make Horizontal Over System Break	(Slurs, Hairpins, Guitar Bends, Brackets, Dash, Solid, & Custom Lines, Glissandos, Bends and TAB Slides) Smart Shapes over system breaks will be horizontal
Maintain Angle Over System Break	(Slurs, Hairpins, Guitar Bends, Brackets, Dash, Solid, & Custom Lines, Glissandos, Bends and TAB Slides) Smart Shapes over system breaks will maintain angle (not horizontal)
Make Horizontal	(Hairpins, Dashed, Solid, & Custom Lines, and Brackets) Snaps shape into straight horizontal placement This menu item mirrors by default the Horizontal setting in the Smart Line Designer dialog box.
Remove Manual Slur Adjustments	(Slurs only) Slur will return to default values for placement and shape. Frozen engraver slurs will revert to engraver slur behavior.
Engraver Slur	(Slurs only) Choose from Automatic, On or Off. Automatic sets the slur to use whatever choice is selected is the Smart Slur Options dialog box. On sets the slur to always use an Engraver Slur. Off sets the slur to never use an Engraver Slur.
Avoid Accidentals	(Slurs only) Choose from Automatic, On or Off. Automatic sets the slur to use whatever choice is selected in the Smart Slur Options dialog box. On sets the slur to always Avoid Accidentals when Engraver Slurs are used. Off sets the slur to never Avoid Accidentals.
Direction	(Slurs and Bends) Choose from Flip, Automatic, Over and Under. Determines the direction of the slur. See SmartShape Menu.