NoteWorthy Composer Forum

Forums => General Discussion => Topic started by: Greg Smith on 2005-11-16 02:03 AM

Title: Beam Highlight color
Post by: Greg Smith on 2005-11-16 02:03 AM
I really appreciate the updates in the new version (slurs, cres/dim) but was bummed out to discover that one of my pet peeves still exists: the beam on beamed notes does not accept the highlight color.  I use highlight color all the time for optional notes in salsa charts.  It is a small problem, but one that puzzles me as to why the beam itself would remain the default color.

Greg Smith
Title: Re: Beam Highlight color
Post by: Ewan Harwood on 2005-11-16 08:43 PM
Yes - I use light grey for cued parts as my work-around for small notes.  The players have learned to live with black beams!

I think it happens because the beams are drawn as graphics, rather than being sourced from a font.
Title: Re: Beam Highlight color
Post by: Rick G. on 2005-11-16 09:26 PM
If you put your notes on a grey staff and layer it with a normal staff with hidden rests, I think you will get the effect you are looking for.

I could post an example in the newsgroup if you can access it.
Title: Re: Beam Highlight color
Post by: Ewan Harwood on 2005-11-17 01:20 AM
Excellent!  The order of staves in the layer is important, but it doesn't take much to figure it out.

I've also been using colour for analysis - magenta, red, brown, and blue beams are now possible!!
Title: Re: Beam Highlight color
Post by: Warren Porter on 2005-11-18 04:25 PM
There is an example in https://forum.noteworthycomposer.com/?topic=2316 on using the same font as NWC to insert cued notes.  Won't work for beamed notes or changing stem direction, though.
Title: Re: Beam Highlight color
Post by: Ewan Harwood on 2005-11-20 07:22 PM
Yeah, I've tried just about every suggestion going for cue notes.  Changing colour is the best compromise I could find - the players need the cue notes to look like real music too, so faking notes with fonts won't work - then need beaming.  Grace notes don't work, as the spacing has to be correct.

In my view, reading music shouldn't be a mind-bender!  When the notation gets in the way of the notes, there's something wrong.

I'm hoping that in the full release of NWC, scaling (i.e. reducing or expanding by a user-defined percentage) becomes a standard part of the edit box for all objects.  I'd love to see it on the Visibility tab.  "Oh, look!  Was that a flock of pigs?", he writes humourously, hoping that the NWC people won't take offence.