Katharine Cartwright,

You have posted in the forum for Feature Requests.

My guess is that you intended to post in the forum for Problems & Questions, but ended in this forum instead.

Anyway, I am unable to reproduce the problem.

In the Chord Suffix Editor I changed the font size, and it worked.

…  Actually, increase the entire chord size--suffix and symbol--would be helpful …

Increase the size of one particular chord symbol?

- or increase the size of all chord symbols?

Thanks. Unless I can figure out how to change such suffixes as "o" "ø" and triangle sufficiently (real chord symbols), I'm looking for a an improvement in the program. I'm using Finale 25.5  on Mac Sierra. Nothing I've tried (document options/fonts, chords/change suffix fonts; libraries/expanded Jazz et al) seems to help, short of increasing the size of the entire page (just changing the chord size doesn't do it)!  Or I'm trying to find a library that truly looks like a jazz "real" book, with fonts at least 24 point or--preferably--larger. Why is this so hard? What am I doing wrong? I do not want "Maj" or "min" or "m7(b5)" or any such nonsense that will prove to be a useless squished mess if there are four changes per bar.  Just clean large chords with the usual non-text symbols. Help!

As someone who has dabbled in this a bit, I suspect you have a demanding job ahead of you. Not only will you need to create your own library with the symbols you want so you can import the library into future scores (before you start), but you will also have to install your preferred version of each suffix in the position Finale defaults to when it attempts to recognize chord suffixes form keyboard input.

1. My first question would be what font you want the suffixes to be. I would guess a handwritten font, but certainly not everyone would want that.
2. Second, realize that changes to suffix size will not affect chords retroactively; only those entered after the changes have been made. But you can change the size of suffix symbols.
3. Be aware that when you change sizes of complex, multi-character suffixes, you will likely have to adjust the kerning, and the Finale suffix editor is a disaster when you try to do that.

(Set font size first; then choose the symbol(s).)

Good luck.

As Adrian says, the best way is to create your own library. A pain, but you only have to do it once.

The problems come when you have long strings of alterations: b5#9add13 and the like. Can you post a pic of a score from the book you’re trying to emulate? That will give us more of a clue to the various elements/

Thank you, Adrian! You're right. It's doable (more or less), but SO tedious. And my little ad hoc library still has a bunch of different fonts for different chords, so it ends up looking amateurish despite the extra labor; not perfect, even with the editing tool. I can't believe they don't have someone on staff who can develop a really good jazz lead-sheet template, including a built-in library with large readable chords that have all the symbol styles (∆7 / Maj7 / M7, etc.); suffixes lined up with chords, fonts all fixed ( a large Jazz font would work), etc. If they don't, they should hire somebody. There are plenty of literate jazz musicians in the world who'd be able to do it and could use the work... Please? :-)

As I'm sure you are aware, chord abbreviations (suffixes in particular) are not standardized; there are several versions in different parts of the country. So I am not surprised that Finale does not have all the options. Even Dorico, a new program, does not have all the versions of chord suffixes built in. So I guess we are on our own if we do not prefer one of the options Finale offers. At least Finale has a way to build new suffixes, as difficult as it is. Dorico (for example) does not yet offer that option.

You are more forgiving than I am, Adrien. There should be a library or libraries for at least 3 different chord suffix styles, I think. And the chord editing tool should be better constructed. I want my money back. Seriously. Some of the older versions of the program had better chords and editing capabilities. I don't know Dorico. Is it better than Sibelius? 

Just to play the devil’s advocate, why should it? Just because you want it? I have absolutely no need for one, much less three. And if it had the three, suppose the one I wanted wasn’t there? Why should they put time and effort into something I’ll never use?

Finale cannot be all things to all people. At least the capabilities of customizing it are there. 

No argument about the chord editing, though. That’s something that many people would like to see, and MM has said that it’s on the list for future improvement.