User guide

Manual

All of Maestro, chapter by chapter: from the first note to the printed score.

Shortcuts are shown for the Mac. On Windows ⌘ becomes Ctrl and ⌥ becomes Alt.

  1. 01

    Getting started

    The Maestro window, the Main Tool Palette, creating a new score, views, zoom, the Inspector and the main settings on Mac and Windows.

    The window · The Main Tool Palette · New score · Views and zoom · Inspector
  2. 02

    Entering notes

    How to enter music in Maestro with Simple Entry and Speedy Entry: durations, accidentals, chords, rests, dots, ties, tuplets, grace notes, layers and notes crossing between the two piano staves.

    Durations · Simple Entry · Speedy Entry · Accidentals · Notehead shape and beaming
  3. 03

    MIDI keyboard and virtual instruments

    Using a MIDI keyboard with Maestro: notes and chords in Speedy Entry and Simple Entry, real-time recording with quantization, the MIDI settings, on-screen virtual instruments (piano, drums, guitar neck) and notes from the microphone.

    Connecting the keyboard · In Speedy Entry · In Simple Entry · Pitch spelling and percussion · Real-time recording
  4. 04

    Editing

    Select notes and measures, copy, paste and transpose, delete, move dynamics and text by hand, use the Inspector, and undo your changes.

    The Selection tool · Selecting notes and measures · Changing the selected notes · The right-click menu · Copy, cut and paste
  5. 05

    Markings and text

    Articulations, dynamics, hairpins, slurs, glissandos, octave lines, trills, mordents, turns and tremolos, text, rehearsal marks, SMuFL symbols, lyrics, repeats and jumps.

    How markings are added · Articulations · Trills, mordents, turns, breath marks and caesuras · Tremolos · Arpeggios
  6. 06

    Chords and arranging

    Enter and analyze chord symbols, show guitar fretboards, harmonize a melody for a section, add cue notes to parts and check instrument ranges.

    Chord symbols · Analyze Chords · Guitar fretboards · Harmonize Section · Cue notes
  7. 07

    Instruments and staves

    Adding and removing instruments, transposing instruments, key and time signatures, clefs, measures, percussion, tablature, instrument changes and staff size.

    The staff menu · Adding and removing instruments · Score Instruments · Brackets, braces and names · Transposing instruments and concert pitch
  8. 08

    Layout and printing

    Page format, automatic and manual layout, staff distances, hiding empty staves, linked parts, multimeasure rests, music font and text fonts, printing and PDF export.

    Page View and Scroll View · Title, composer and heading · Flows · Page texts · Page format
  9. 09

    Playback and audio

    Listening to your score in Maestro: the playback bar, speed, swing, chord accompaniment, sounds, mixer, metronome, audio export and the tuner.

    The playback bar · Listening to the score · Speed and tempo · Swing · Playback style
  10. 10

    Files

    Opening and saving scores in Maestro, importing Finale, MuseScore, MusicXML, MIDI and PDF files, recognizing scanned scores (OMR), exporting PDF, images and audio, backups, recent files and setlists.

    Opening a score · Formats · PDFs exported from a notation program · Scanned scores (OMR) · Saving
  11. 10.5

    Scripts

    Automating Maestro with Lua scripts: the Scripts menu, the console, the score model (staves, measures, notes, markings), parameters, scripts on whole folders, the maestro-script command and assistants like Claude through MCP.

    The Scripts menu · Writing a script · Name, shortcut and parameters · On a whole folder · From the terminal: maestro-script
  12. 11

    Keyboard shortcuts

    Every Maestro keyboard shortcut for Mac and Windows, grouped by topic: files, editing, note entry, markings, view and playback.

    Files and windows · Editing and selection · Tools and layers · Speedy Entry · Simple Entry