To rotate text in Finale, use a line with zero thickness, and put the text on the end of the invisible line.

You can create the line in the Shape Designer - and use the new shape as a shape expression or a shape articulation.

You can also create the line with the Smart Shape Tool, using the sub-tool Custom Line Tool.

I cannot find a way to rotate text created in shape designer or rotate expressions/articulations created from shapes. Please elaborate, if this is possible.

This works using the custom line tool, thanks. However, you can only attached it to pages that have staves. What about title pages, which contain no staves, but only text (and/or graphics)?

Do it on a staff, export what you want as a PDF graphic, and import it back in to your new doc.

Thanks, Mike. That comes out much cleaner than creating the graphic in another program.

As a side note, for anyone else who comes across this, after cropping my exported page, the re-imported image looked the best when I left the white background in place, rather than removed it to create a transparent background.

I cannot find a way to rotate text created in shape designer or rotate expressions/articulations created from shapes. Please elaborate, if this is possible …

You can not “rotate expressions/articulations”.

You can only rotate text in the Shape Designer, and then use the shape (with already rotated text) as an expression or articulation.

To rotate text (create vertical text) in the Shape Designer:

Click the sub-tool Line Tool.

Shape Designer menu > Line Thickness > None

Shape Designer menu > Arrowheads…

In the dialog box Arrowheads, in the pop up menu Start, choose Custom Arrowhead

In the dialog box Custom Arrowhead Selection, choose Create…

You get to a special version of the Shape Designer, with a line showing.

Use the sub-tool Text Tool to create a text block with the text you need to rotate.

Begin the text block at the Origo (0;0).

Click OK 3 time, to return to the “normal” version of the Shape Designer.

Draw a vertical line (with Thickness set to None).

Since the line itself is invisible, you will only see the arrowhead with the (vertical) text.

Thanks for the explanation.