Spacing issues with unusual features

[davidsills]

I am creating an arrangement of the "Deux juifs" movement from Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. Unfortunately, the spacing is completely out of whack. Every time I try to adjust it manually, I seem to do something wrong, triggering Finale's automatic spacing, which returns it to out of whack. I tried to attach a PDF file that shows what it comes up with by itself, but the forum software apparently won't let me. While it is understandable that it is not comfortable with such an unusual rhythmic structure, I need to find a way to make the score readable and can't seem to find anything on the web. Does anyone have any ideas where I can look to get enough information to completely control the spacing on my own?

Thanks! This forum has already been very helpful once and I'm hoping to strike gold once again. Best wishes to all!

[Peter Thomsen]

Instead of attaching a PDF file it is much better for us with a .mus sample document, since we can better troubleshoot when we have an actual Finale document to examine.

Before you can attach a .mus document in this forum, you must compress it, e. g. as a .zip file.
And the file size must not be more than max. 100 KB.



By the way:
Do you have the movement in its original key signature with 5 flats (= not transposed)?

In the middle section there are a lot of double-flats.
It might be a good idea to respell the middle section enharmonically to sharps, with a key signature of 3 sharps.

[davidsills]

Many thanks for the advice. I have attached the original file, of which I have completed only the first page. I had intended to use enharmonic spelling for ease of reading as you suggested, but the movement is still in its original key of B-flat minor, yes.

[Peter Thomsen]

1) You must be copying from a score with sloppy engraving:
In measure 1, in the clarinets, the note values do not add up to 4/4, and I think I can explain why.

There exist two slightly different versions of this movement.
The two versions have different tempo marks, but the main difference is the rhythm in meas. 1.
There exists
one version without a triplet in meas. 1 (and 64th note pickups),
and
another version with a triplet in meas. 1 (and 32nd note pickups).

The score you are copying from, has mixed up the two versions, thus creating a rhythmically incorrect meas. 1.

I attach a fixed document where I have removed the triplet from meas. 1.
This step corrects the rhythm in meas. 1, and the rhythm is now precisely as in the version without
the meas. 1 triplet.

Pictures at an Exhibition Deux juifsFixed.mus.zip

(55.09 KiB) Downloaded 147 times

2) The strings are mirrored from the clarinets, by using the Mirror Tool.
I have taken the liberty of breaking the mirrors so that the strings are no longer linked to the clarinets.
You can re-establish the mirrors if you like.


3) You are creating the initial pickup measure by using Finale's feature "Pickup Measure".
This way of creating pickup measure is one the very old features in Finale, and it has its flaws.
One of its flaws is the spacing of 64th note pickup (as you have found out).
Another flaw you can hear in playback:
The pickup measure is not a real pickup measure, but rather a full 4/4 measure with invisible
Mirror Tool "placeholder rests" at the beginning of the measure.

In my fixed document I have instead created the pickup measure with the Time Signature Tool.
That fixes the pickup spacing.


4) You might get better results with different settings for the music spacing.
In the document settings for music spacing you have chosen to let Finale "Ignore" Manual Positioning.
I have changed this to "Clear", since this will give you a "fresh start".
Generally I recommend that you do not enable Finale's automatic function called "Automatic Music Spacing", since it will sometimes do a music spacing when you do not want it.
Instead you can always do a music spacing "manually".
In that way the spacing will only happen when and where you want it.

In my fixed document I have cleared Manual Positioning.

I have also increased the Reference Width to 36 Points which in my opinion gives a better spacing in rhythms like these.

Furthermore I have reduced the Scaling Factor from the default Fibonacci constant to the square root of 2 (= 1,4141).
This gives a tighter spacing that you often see in scores where the spacing is problematic.
You may not like this tighter spacing - many find the Fibonacci spacing more beautiful.


5) Your page size (= Letter) may be too small for a such big score.
The staves are very small.
My guess is that most conductors would prefer staves, that are a little taller.

[Peter Thomsen]

Just for the fun of it I attach a copy of the other version - with triplets in measure 1.
Note the middle section's enharmonical key signature respelling.

[davidsills]

Many thanks for your help. I took some of your suggestions and made other choices in a few places, but your advice was extremely helpful in giving me some sense for how Finale works, which is really what I want to learn. Again, thanks a lot!

David