In documents that need to switch back and forth between swing and straight rhythms, you will need to create two expressions to trigger it on and off. Below are the steps to accomplish this in the most efficient way possible.
- First, choose the Expression Tool
and double-click the first swing measure to open the Expression Selection dialog box. You will need to choose a category that allows assignment of expressions to all staves, like the Miscellaneous category. - Once in the selected category, choose Create Misc Expression… to open the Expression Designer dialog box. In the Text field, label this first expression “Swing on” or “Moderate Swing” or whatever terminology works best for your piece.
- Select the Playback tab and choose Swing in the Type drop-down box.
- In the Effect section, choose Set to Value. Select from the Standard Swing Values… Again, whatever works best for your piece.
- Click OK, then click the chevron next to Assign and choose Assign to All Staves.
- Now there are as many Swing expressions on that measure as there are staves. To avoid cluttering your score, drag-select all expressions under the top staff with the Expression Tool still selected.
- Press CTRL + ALT + SHIFT + H (Windows) or COMMAND + OPTION + SHIFT + H (Mac) to hide all of these expressions.
- Repeat this process to create a “Swing off” expression. Just change the text to reflect no swing, and change the swing value to be None.