Importing Music Graphics That Match
You have learned to use Christian Worship: Service Builder (CW:SB) and are just discovering all the resources there. You have no desire to add to those resources for your local use. Great! No reason to read more of this article. But if you have learned to use Christian Worship: Service Builder (CW:SB) and you have found yourself wanting to add something that you use locally in the same format as everything else in the new hymnal suite, keep reading.
When Christian Worship: Service Builder (CW:SB) was released, inquirers understandably asked for information about which font was used for the unalterable text of the music graphics, so that they could match that font with the font of the balance of text printed in bulletins. CW:SB music graphics use the Meta font family for lyrical text, the same font used for the print hymnal/psalter. This document provides details if you wish to purchase the Meta font. For users who do not desire to purchase that font, a similar free font that can be used is Adobe Source Sans Pro and Source Serif Pro (see the sample of the music graphic in the addendum to this article).
Years ago, before learning to use notation software myself, a nagging issue was how to acquire crisp and clean music graphics to include in the bulletin. Those were the somewhat challenging days when scanning and cropping seemed to be the only recourse (while low quality scans and copyright compliance certainly tended to complicate matters). Digital editions of Christian Worship (1993) and Christian Worship: Supplement (2008) were a beginning of getting past such hurdles. Purchasers finally had licensed, consistent-looking graphics they could include in bulletins.
With the advent of CW:SB and its ability to import the music graphics of hymns and psalms and canticles, some of the same issues have, to a degree, surfaced. Some users would like to be able to import additional music graphics into the CW:SB “My Worship Resources” that match all of the other graphic assets in the software. This article will provide some information about how to generate or acquire such graphics.
Please understand that the thinking behind this article may well involve finding an individual who knows how to work with notation software. Many congregations may not have a single member proficient in a notation program (such as Finale) that generates these files. Networking with others who have identified such a human resource can be very helpful (see the last paragraph of this article for a specific way of doing so). One good source is a university student who is majoring in music—some of these students have to work extensively with notation software. If the specifics below go well past your personal knowledge of or interest in such things, please also understand that what is written is meant to be shared with those who might be willing and able to assist you in this area.
How to import the text and music of external files into CW:SB is fully covered in this one-hour webinar entitled “Adding Custom Hymns,” one of ten CW:SB webinars available on the Northwestern Publishing House website. Another webinar entitled “Bulletin Preparation” shares information about the CW:SB “bulletin format” function, where you can set the desired font (such as Meta or other fonts on your system) beyond the common web fonts that appear in CW:SB by default.
With specifications based in Finale notation software, here are some details that will help you match imported graphics with those in CW:SB and can be shared with those who are able to help you out with building the actual graphic files.
Sample file for reference (text font – Meta):
Tune-only: CW:SB uses tune-only graphics primarily to enable its stanza selection feature. While two-staff (treble and bass clef) systems are importable, they will not allow stanza selection.
Lyrics: As can be seen in the sample above, all desired stanzas/verses of hymns and psalms must be included in the Finale file if they are to be fully utilized in CW:SB, namely, when choosing only selected stanzas. As can be seen in its “prepare bulletin” view, CW:SB has a maximum of five stanzas that are included beneath the music; additional stanzas are exported as text-only stanzas. Thus, formatting the file as shown above, with all the stanzas/verses beneath the staff, allows for a selection of verses such as 1, 2, 3, 9, 10, and the refrain, all of which would appear beneath the music.
Page size/margins: These two settings are in Finale’s Page Layout menu. Under “Page Size…,” set the page width at 5.8”. The page height of the file needs to accommodate the total height of the entire selection on a single page (since CW:SB will import a single page graphic). For example, the Finale file for the longer canticle Gloria in Excelsis in Setting Two has a height of 16”. Set the page height at whatever quantity will put everything on one Finale page. Under “Page Margins…/Edit Page Margins…,” the settings that matter most are the left and right side. Set them at 0.4”. (When CW:SB imports a graphic file with these precise page size and page margin settings, the first thing it will ask for is “width.” Filling in 5.8” will result in a cropped music file exactly 5” wide.)
Text alignment: All of the music graphic files in the print hymnal and psalter were recast before their inclusion in CW:SB. (The main reason this had to be done was to include all the stanzas beneath the music, as mentioned above.) The print hymnal and psalter files have the first word in each line of music left justified and left aligned on the note, for a consistent and clean vertical look in print. The music graphic files in CW:SB have the first word in each line of music center aligned and center justified on the note for a consistent horizontal look when selecting specific stanzas in CW:SB.
Leading: Leading (ˈlediNG) is the space between multiple lines of verse text. Achieving the desired line spacing is one of the more complex processes in Finale. These specifications are unique to the use of the Meta font, and, in combination, they result in both a font size that matches non-music text in the print hymnal/psalter and consistent line spacing of lyrical text in the graphic file. Document/Document Options/Fonts/Lyrics/Verse/Set Font at 15. Page Layout/Resize Staff Systems (System Reduction)…/Staff Sizing/Staff Height at 0.245”. Lyrics/Lyric Window/Text/Font/Size at 13. The variance of having the default font size in Document Options set at 15 and the actual font size in the Lyric Window set at 13 is intentional. Then, in Lyrics/Adjust baselines…, when the first stanza baseline is set as needed just below the lowest note heads and stems, clicking “Set Piece Offsets to Default Font” automatically yields correct and consistent line spacing for the balance of the stanzas. (In combination, the specific Staff Height setting above actually yields a resultant font size of 10 point, rather than 13 point, for the lyrical text in the graphics file.)
Stanza/Verse Numbers: Finale’s automated option of adding verse numbers includes a period after each number. Adding verse numbers that can be aligned independently without a period attached is accomplished by adding a hidden rest in Layer 4 and attaching stanza/verse numbers to that rest, while all other lyrical text is attached to the notes in Layer 1.
Music font: The files in CW:SB use the standard notation font in Finale called Maestro. One variation is in Document/Document Options/Fonts/Notation/Clef, where the clef font is set to EngraverFontSet.
Graphic type and resolution: When ready to export the finished Finale graphic, choose the .tiff format at 600dpi. In Finale, it’s easiest to select “Graphics/Export pages…” rather than “Export selection…” This will export the entire single page file, margins and all, and the graphic thus generated will then retain the desired dimensions when imported into and cropped in CW:SB (width set at 5.8” as noted above).
All of the above settings are included in this downloadable Finale file of the sample hymn above. Finale users will be familiar with the location of most of these settings. (Use of the Meta font is understood; use of a different font will require adjustment to some settings). If you are seeking to implement this process, the easiest way might well be to share the Finale file of the above sample hymn and have your assistant simply “save as” and adjust the notation, key signature, time signature, lyrics, as needed. If they use Finale, they’ll know how to do so, including simplifying and saving the file as a general template.
Kindly note that all of these specifications are the exact settings of the CW:SB graphics files. There are always little custom tweaks that music engravers use to put finishing touches on such files, chief among them being nudging individual words or syllables horizontally for a better fit. I consider the pricing for the various weights of the Meta font to be a very worthwhile long-term investment. Even if you can generate/acquire graphics that are a close but not perfect match to the specifications shared here, your bulletins can have imported graphics that merge nicely with those in CW:SB.
On August 26, 2024, I and thousands of others received a surprising email with “End of Finale” in the subject line. We can all continue to use this notation software, but updated versions and continued support of the program will not be forthcoming. Finale has partnered with the producers of a notation software program called Dorico. The specifications in this article can be replicated in Dorico, though the actual way to do so in Dorico is markedly different. Finale still works fine, for now. This is just a heads-up that music engravers will be moving to Dorico or other programs in the years ahead.
Building a library of additional hymns and psalms in the “My Worship Resources” section of CW:SB will be desirable for some and seen as unnecessary by others. Another item to keep in mind, however, is that, once entered in CW:SB, such additional files are completely shareable. CW:SB can export a link to its “My Worship Resources” hymns and psalms that can be sent to another user who imports the file into their CW:SB account. This means that, beyond finding someone to actually do the detailed notation software work for you locally, you also have the option of networking with colleagues in ministry who already have such personnel/resources in place. For those who have become familiar with the process of generating these graphic files, it is not a burdensomely lengthy process. Sharing imported files (and completely planned services) in this way is a fully intended and extremely helpful feature of CW:SB. Here is a link for a public domain text and tune pairing (referenced in a previous article) that you could import into your CW:SB account. It has the specifications cited in this article.
Addendum:
Section of sample file for font comparison (text font – Source Serif Pro); generated from the same Finale file that produced the sample graphic above, with the single function of Plug-ins/Miscellaneous/Change Fonts…
This article in Devote Yourself was contributed by the team that previously created and distributed Worship the Lord. View past worship-related articles at worship.welsrc.net/downloads-worship/worship-the-lord.
Devote Yourself
Volume 2, Number 5
May 2025
Tags: Worship
Michael Schultz
Rev. Michael Schultz has served WELS congregations in Flagstaff, Ariz., and Lawrenceville, Ga. He chaired the hymns committee for Christian Worship: Supplement and served as project director for the WELS Hymnal Project. He enjoys working on arrangements that combine piano and guitar. Michael currently serves as a parish pastor in Tallahassee, Fla., and is the chairman of the WELS Commission on Worship.