Finale’s Speedy Entry Tool
Why I Prefer The Speedy Entry Tool
(Scroll down to find the video)
The Speedy Entry tool is still my favorite tool when it comes to writing music in Finale. Yes, you can play music into Finale in real time with the
Playing music into Finale may be ok for very simple music. However, when the music is more complex you probably will spend more time cleaning up the mess than you would have spent entering it with the Speedy Entry tool in the first place.
The Speedy Entry tool has also one huge advantage over the Simple Entry tool. When you click a staff with the Speedy Entry tool you get to hear the instrument that’s associated with that staff. That’s really important when you are composing or arranging right in Finale.
This said, I think the Simple Entry tool is great when you don’t use an external midi keyboard, which is unthinkable for me. The Simple entry tool may also be fine for music copy work on the go.
Important thinks to check out when working with the Speedy Entry Tool
Check out all the Speedy Entry menu entries. There is a lot of stuff you can check and uncheck to make it behave the way you prefer. Be sure you also open the Speedy Entry Options dialog box where you can further customize it.
What to do when the midi keyboard doesn’t respond
Besides making sure your keyboard is physically connected to your computer, there are two places you need to check in Finale in case that your keyboard doesn’t work:
A. In your Midi/Internal Speaker Setup settings where you can select your keyboard (you find it in the Midi/Audio menu),
B. in the Speedy Entry Menu where “Use Midi Device For Input” needs to be checked.
How to input music with the Speedy Entry Tool
Click on the play button in the image below to play the video tutorial. It shows you how to input music with the Speedy Entry Tool and a midi keyboard. This video is all about how to input rests and notes. I will create more videos with more advanced music examples soon.
