Using a hidden measure to hold a count-off

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GarryW
Posts: 59
Joined: Fri Dec 22, 2017 9:13 am
Finale Version: 2014.5 and 26
Operating System: Windows

Post by GarryW » Tue Nov 20, 2018 9:04 am

Thanks to help gained here a couple days ago, I learned about Finale's "count off" feature, for use in playbacks. It works! But... it has some oddities. I want to see if I can perhaps improve on it.

In the attached sample, in bar 1 I have four countoff notes in red (i.e., four "potatoes"), followed by the main melody in black in measures 2 and 3. The clef, the key signature, and the time signature are explicitly forced "on" in measure 2.

Bars 4 to 6 are the identical thing, except I've taken the finishing step of hiding measure 4 using Staff Tool -> Staff -> Apply Staff Style To -> Score and Parts -> Force Hide Staff (Cutaway).

Which works great. Delete bars 1-3 and you have a nice controllable invisible count-off in Bar 4 for a playback. Except the explicit treble clef down in Bar 5 has disappeared. Any way to do this differently and get it back?


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Peter Thomsen
Posts: 6601
Joined: Fri Jul 25, 2003 6:47 pm
Finale Version: Finale v27.4
Operating System: Mac

Post by Peter Thomsen » Tue Nov 20, 2018 1:17 pm

One way to do it.

* See the attached Finale document

The third system is actually two systems next to each other.
I used the plug-in Create Coda System.
In the plug-in dialog box I separated the two systems by 18pt.
Mac OS X 12.6.9 (Monterey), Finale user since 1996

GarryW
Posts: 59
Joined: Fri Dec 22, 2017 9:13 am
Finale Version: 2014.5 and 26
Operating System: Windows

Post by GarryW » Tue Nov 20, 2018 11:15 pm

You're a genius!

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