Multimeasure Rests

Multimeasure Rests provides additional options beyond those built into Finale for creating multimeasure rests in a linked part or score. It is also more aggressive than Finale in recognizing when a multimeasure rest can be created. Specifically, if measures on staves containing music have been hidden with Hide Staff or Force Hide Staff, the plugin will create a multimeasure rest where Finale does not. This is particularly useful in linked parts that contain cue-staves.

The plugin has a base menu as displayed below. Finale mixes any Saved Settings alphabetically into this menu.

Create. Creates multimeasure rests as needed throughout the region selected in the current part or score. If no region is selected, it creates them throughout the entire current part or score.

Delete. Deletes any multimeasure rests in the selected region. This includes removal of expressions used for special positioning of multimeasure rest numerals.

Force Create. Creates a single multimeasure rest over the entire selected region in the current part or score. This happens irrespective of time changes, key changes, whether there is music in any of the staves, or any other consideration. If there is music in the first bar of the selected region, the result will not actually show a multimeasure rest but instead the first bar of music. You can use this behavior to your advantage. See Recommendations for more information about possibile uses for this option.

Refresh. Updates with the current settings each existing multimeasure rest in the selected region. However, it does not alter their measure width.

Starting with v5.12 during Create, the plugin examines text expressions assigned to each bar. If it encounters one with the description "MultimeasureRests: skip" it skips the bar entirely. The result is as if that bar contained music, even if it does not. The description must be exactly "MultimeasureRests: skip" regardless of the language Finale may be running in. These descriptions have no effect when running Force Create. See Recommendations for more information about why you would use this instead of Finale's built-in Break Multimeasure Rests option for expressions.

Settings... Allows you to configure the options for multimeasure rests created by the plugin. Pressing OK on this dialog saves the options chosen but it does not create any multimeasure rests. Use Create or Force Create to do that. (NOTE: If the dialog is invoked with a Saved Setting, it does go on and create multimeasure rests according to the options in the saved setting.)

Shape Choose... Provides a shortcut for setting the document's multimeasure rest shape ID. Pressing this button is equivalent to navigating to Document Options->Multimeasure Rests->Shape (Select...). The button here allows you to select or modify the shape without exiting the plugin's dialog.

Adjust Start Point • Adjust End Point. Use these values to adjust the start and end points of the shape used for the multimeasure rest. Changing these values lengthens or shortens the shape. Enter positive values to shift the shape’s start or end point to the right; enter negative values to shift the start or end point to the left.These values correspond to the identical options in Finale's Document Settings.

End Adjustment for Clef. The value in this box replaces the value in Adjust End Point for multimeasure rests where a clef change occurs going into the following measure.

Never Use Symbols with Clef. If this option is selected, the plugin ignores the Symbols settings when there is a clef change at the end and instead always uses the Shape ID. This option is offered because there is no way (as of Finale 2014d) to place symbols off-center to make room for a clef.

Adjust Centered Measure Ranges. Select this option to keep measure-number ranges centered with the shape. It only comes into effect for multimeasure rests using the Shape ID. It is ignored if the multimeasure rest uses symbols. A measure number is adjusted if its Measure Number Region (in the current part of score view) meets the following criteria.

Use this option with caution. As of Finale 25.5, plugins cannot unlink position adjustments made to measure numbers. It is highly recommended to manually unlink affected measure numbers before running the plugin with this option. Otherwise, the position adjustments made here could erroneously appear on the measure numbers in other parts or the score.

Number Adjustment: Font... Provides a shortcut for setting the document's multimeasure rest font. Pressing this button is equivalent to navigating to Document Options->Fonts->Notation->Multimeasure Rests and changing the font there. The button here allows you to select or modify the font without exiting the plugin's dialog. It also updates any existing expressions that have been used instead of multimeasure rest numbers.

Horizontal: • Vertical. Set the horizontal and vertical position of the rest number by entering values (in measurement units) in the Number Adjustment fields. Enter a positive value in H: to move the number to the right. Enter a positive value in V: to raise the rest number higher on the staff.These values correspond to the identical options in Finale's Document Settings.

Start Number At. If the number of measures rest is less than this number, no multimeasure rest is created. This corresponds to the identical option in Finale's Document Settings.

Measure Width. The measure width for multimeasure rests. This corresponds to the identical option in Finale's Document Settings.

Use Expressions For Single Bar Rests | Non-Standard Staves | Multistaff Systems. These options cause the plugin to create  expression and use them instead of displaying the multimeasure rest numerals. The new expressions match the font and positioning of actual multimeasure rest numbers. For single bar rests, no multimeasure rest is created. This prevents a range from displaying below a single rest. For Non-Standard Staves (perhaps most often single-line staves), the number is placed closer to the top line of the staff, rather than being positioned for a standard 5-line staff. For multistaff systems, the number is centered vertically between the staves.

Use Symbols for Rests Less Than ___ Measures. This corresponds to the identical option in Finale's Document Settings.

Space Between Symbols (Document Setting). This corresponds to the identical option in Finale's Document Settings. However, in this plugin it is only used if the number of measures results in two symbols. (It is also used if there is only one symbol, but in that case it has no effect.)

Space Between 3 or More Symbols. This value is used instead of the Space Between Symbols option if the number of measures must be represented with three or more symbols.

Extra Measure Width Per Symbol Above 3. When a number of bars results in four or more symbols, this value is added to the final measure width (including any offsets for clefs) for each symbol above the count of three. For example, if the number of bars is fifteen (which results in five symbols) then if the value here is 36 EVPU, the plugin would add 72 EVPU to the resultant measure width.

Extra Measure Width Per Clef ___ When More Than ___ Symbols. This is an alternative to Never Use Symbols with Clef. Either option mitigates the fact that Finale provides no way to offset the horizontal placement of symbols to make room for a clef. With this option you add to the overall measure width when there is a clef change in the following bar. You can also choose how many symbols there must be before the option takes effect.

Delete Existing Multimeasure Rests. With this option checked, the plugin first deletes any existing multimeasure rests in the selected region before creating new ones.

Use Force Create With Saved Setting. Saving this value with a Saved Setting determines whether invoking the saved setting uses the Create or Force Create menu option.

Skip Hidden Expressions. If an expression with "Breaks Multimeasure Rest" is hidden, the plugin will ignore it. This may be useful if such an expression appears midway through a long series of rests in a particular part. You can hide the expression in that part, and then the plugin will create a multimeasure rest over the entire series.

Use Minimum Measure Width for Single Measure Rests. Checking this option causes the plugin to create "multimeasure rest" for single measures with width equal to the Minimum Measure Width in Document Settings for Music Spacing. That is, for single measures it ignores the value in "Measure Width" and uses instead the document's Minimum Measure Width.

Update Document Settings. If the checkbox is checked, when the user presses OK the plugin updates the Document Settings with the values from this dialog that correspond to Document Settings.

Save Settings... brings up the Save Settings dialog.

Revert To Document Settings. Pressing this button updates the values on this dialog with the values stored in Finale's Document Settings. Only the fields that correspond to Document Settings are updated.

Recommendations.

Create.

Force Create.

Expression Description "MultimeasureRests: skip".

One of the primary use cases for this is Grand Pause expressions. (I.e. "G.P.") If you set "Break Multimeasure Rest" on such an expression, Finale (and this plugin) break multimeasure rests on the left barline where the expression occurs. But if a particular part has further empty measures after the G.P. measure, the multimeasure rest does not break on the right barline. Instead, you end up with a multimeasure rest of which the G.P. bar is the first bar of many. "Break Multimeasure Rest" does not guarantee that G.P. bars stand alone. By contrast, (starting with v5.12) if you set the G.P. expression's description field to "MultimeasureRests: skip", this plugin breaks the multimeasure rest on both left and right.

Saved Settings.

If you have questions, comments, or suggestions about the operation of Multimeasure Rests, please feel free to contact me.