Steinberg Cubase Studio 4 Operation Manual Studio Manual

							41
The Project window
To select a track, click on it in the Track list.
A selected track is indicated by a light gray color in the Track list.
It is possible to select several tracks, by pressing [Ctrl]/[Command] and 
clicking them. To select a continuous range of tracks, use [Shift]-clicking.
To move a track, click and drag it up or down in the list.
To duplicate a track, complete with all contents and 
channel settings, right-click in the Track list and select 
“Duplicate tracks” from the context menu, or select “Dupli-
cate tracks” from the Project menu.
The duplicated track will appear below the original track.
You can select a default color for a track by activating 
“Show Track Colors” above the Track list and selecting a 
color from the Color pop-up menu on the toolbar. This 
color will be used for all events on the track and will also 
be shown in the Mixer. You can override the default track 
color for individual events and parts by using the Color 
tool or the Color Selector pop-up menu.
The option “Colorize Event Background” in the Preferences dialog (Event 
Display page) determines whether the backgrounds or waveforms of 
events will be colorized.
To remove a track, right-click on it in the Track list and 
select “Remove Selected Tracks” from the context menu.
You can also remove multiple selected tracks, by selecting “Remove Se-
lected Tracks” either from the Project menu or from the context menu. 
Furthermore, you can remove all tracks not containing any events by se-
lecting “Remove Empty Tracks” from the Project menu.
To change the track height of an individual track, click 
on its lower border in the Track list and drag up or down, 
see “Resizing tracks in the Track list” on page 37.
ÖNote that you can also automatically enlarge the se-
lected track, see “The Enlarge Selected Track option” on 
page 37.
Disabling tracks
Tracks can be disabled by selecting “Disable Track” from 
the Track list context menu. Disabling a track is similar to 
muting it (see “Muting events” on page 51), since a dis-
abled track will not be played back. However, disabling a 
track not only “zeroes” the output volume from the track, 
but actually shuts down all disk activity for it. See “About 
track disable/enable” on page 63 for more information.
Track folding
On the Project menu you will find the Track Folding sub-
menu, allowing you to quickly show, hide or invert what is 
displayed in the Project window event display. This en-
ables you for example to divide the project into several 
parts (by creating several folder tracks for the different 
project elements) and showing/hiding their contents by 
selecting a menu function (or using a key command). You 
can also fold in automation subtracks this way. The follow-
ing options are available:
Toggle Selected Track
When you select this menu option, the fold state of the selected track is 
reversed, i.e. if the track was folded in (its elements (subtracks) were hid-
den), it is now unfolded (all subtracks displayed) and vice versa.
Fold Tracks
Select this menu option to fold in all open folder tracks in the Project win-
dow. Please note that the exact behavior of this function depends on the 
“Deep Track Folding” setting in the Preferences, see below.
Unfold Tracks
Select this menu option to unfold all folder tracks in the Project window. 
Please note that the exact behavior of this function depends on the 
“Deep Track Folding” setting in the Preferences, see below.
Flip Fold States
Select this menu option to flip the fold states of the tracks in the Project 
window. This means that all tracks that were folded in will be unfolded 
and all unfolded tracks will be folded in, respectively.
ÖYou can assign key commands for these menu options 
in the Key Commands dialog (Project category).
In the Preferences (Editing–Project & Mixer page), you can 
find the following option affecting the track folding behavior:
Deep Track Folding
When this is activated, any folding settings you make in the Track Fold-
ing submenu of the Project menu also affect the sub-elements of the 
tracks, i.e. if you fold in a folder track which contains 10 audio tracks 5 of 
which have several automation subtracks open, all these audio tracks 
within the folder track will be folded in as well.
This track is selected. 
						

							42
The Project window
Dividing the Track list (Cubase only)
It is possible to divide the Track list into two parts. Both 
sections will have independent zoom and scroll controls (if 
needed), but resizing the window vertically will affect the 
lower section only (if possible). This is useful if you’re 
working with a video track along with multi-track audio for 
example. This way, you can place the video track in the 
upper Track list, letting you scroll the audio tracks sepa-
rately in the lower Track list, referencing them against the 
video track.
To divide the Track list, click the “Divide Track List” but-
ton in the top right corner of the Track list.
The “Divide Track List” button.
To revert to a single Track list, click the button again.
When the Track list is divided into two parts, the following 
applies:
If you add tracks from the Add Track submenu of the 
Project menu, Video tracks, Marker tracks and Arranger 
tracks will automatically be placed in the upper part of the 
Track list.
If the Track list already contains tracks of the type Video, Marker or Ar-
ranger, these will automatically be moved to the upper part when you di-
vide the Track list. All other types of tracks will be placed in the lower part.
If you add tracks from the context menu invoked by 
right-clicking in the Track list, tracks will be added to the 
part of the Track list in which you click.
You can move any type of track from the lower Track list 
to the upper and vice versa by right-clicking it in the Track 
list and selecting “Toggle Track List” from the context menu.You can resize the upper part by clicking and dragging 
the divider between the Track lists.
Switching between musical and linear time base
Tracks can be either musical (tempo) or linear (time) based.
On a track using linear time base, the events will be po-
sitioned on specific time positions – changing the play-
back tempo will not affect the time position of events.
On a track using musical time base, the positions of 
events are represented as meter values (bars, beats, 1/16th 
notes and ticks, with 120 ticks per 1/16th note). If you 
change the playback tempo, the events will play back at an 
earlier or later time.
In the Preferences (Editing page), you can find the op-
tion “Default Track Time Type” (Cubase only).
This allows you to specify the default track time type for new tracks (Au-
dio, Group/FX, MIDI and Marker tracks). When you change this setting, 
all new tracks will use the selected time type. You can choose between 
“Musical”, “Time Linear” and “Follow Transport Main Display”. Selecting 
“Musical” will cause all added tracks to be set to musical time type. 
When you select “Time Linear”, all new tracks will use linear time base. 
The third option uses the primary time format setting on the Transport 
panel. When this is set to “Bars+Beats”, tracks with musical time base 
will be added. When this is set to any of the other options (Seconds, 
Timecode, Samples, etc.), all new tracks will use linear time base. 
						

							43
The Project window
Whether to use musical or linear time base depends on 
the type of project and recording situation. You can always 
change this setting individually for each track, by clicking 
the musical/linear time base button in the Inspector or 
Track list. Musical time base is indicated by a note symbol, 
while linear time base is indicated by a clock symbol.
For more information about tempo changes, see “Back-
ground” on page 395.
Adding events to a track
There are a number of ways to add events to a track:
By recording (see “Basic recording methods” on page 
66).
This is possible for audio and MIDI tracks.
By selecting “Audio File…” or “Video File…” from the 
Import submenu on the File menu.
This opens a file dialog, allowing you to locate the file you wish to import. 
When you import a file this way, a clip is created for the file and an event 
that plays the whole clip is inserted on the selected track, at the position 
of the project cursor.
You can also import MIDI files by using the Import submenu, but this 
works in a slightly different way (see “Exporting and importing standard 
MIDI files” on page 458).
By grabbing audio CD tracks and converting them to au-
dio files (see “Importing audio CD tracks” on page 454).
By importing only the audio portion of a video file and 
converting it to an audio file (see “Extracting audio from a 
video file” on page 443).By using Copy and Paste on the Edit menu.
This allows you to copy all kinds of events between projects. You can 
also copy events within the project, from the Audio Part Editor or Sample 
Editor.
By drawing.
Some types of events (markers and automation events) can be drawn di-
rectly into the Project window. For audio and MIDI tracks, you can draw 
parts (see “Creating parts” on page 44).
By dragging files and dropping them on the track at the 
desired position.
You can create events by dragging and dropping from the following lo-
cations:
 The desktop.
 The MediaBay.
 The Pool.
 A library (a Pool file that is not attached to a project).
 The “Find media” dialog.
 The Project window of another open project.
 The Audio Part Editor of any open project.
 The Sample Editor of any open project – press [Ctrl]/[Com-
mand] and drag to create an event of the current selection, or 
click in the left column of the region list and drag to create an 
event from a region.
While you drag the clip in the Project window, its position will be indi-
cated by a marker line and a numerical position box. See also “By using 
drag and drop” on page 274.
Audio file import options
When you are importing audio files there are a number of 
options concerning how the files should be treated by Cu-
base: 
 You can choose to copy the file into the audio folder of the 
project and have the project make reference to the copied file 
rather than the original file. This helps you keep your project 
“self-contained”.
 You can choose to split stereo and multi-channel files into a 
number of mono files.
 Furthermore, you may want all files in the project to have the 
same sample rate and sample size (resolution).
!Internally, events on musical time based tracks use the 
same high precision for positioning (64 bit floating 
point values) as linear time based events. However, 
switching between linear and musical time base re-
sults in a very small loss of precision (introduced by 
the mathematical operations used for scaling values in 
the two different formats). Therefore you should avoid 
switching repeatedly between the two modes.
Linear time base selected
Musical time base selected 
						

							44
The Project window
The Preferences (Editing–Audio page) contains a setting 
that lets you decide which options, if any, to use. Select 
the desired option on the “On Import Audio Files” pop-up:
Open Options Dialog.
An Options dialog appears when you import, allowing you to select 
whether you want to copy the files to the Audio folder and/or convert them 
to the project settings. Note:
– When importing a single file of a format other than the project settings, 
you can specify which properties (sample rate and/or resolution) should be 
changed.
– When importing multiple files at the same time, you can select to convert 
the imported files automatically if necessary, i.e. if the sample rate is differ-
ent than the project’s or the resolution is lower than the project setting.
Use Settings.
No Options dialog will appear when you import. Instead, you can choose 
to make any of the options below the pop-up the standard action(s). Ac-
tivate any number of the following options to have them performed auto-
matically each time you import audio files:
Creating parts
Parts are containers for MIDI or audio events. If you record 
MIDI, a MIDI part is automatically created, containing the 
recorded events. You can also create empty audio or MIDI 
parts and later add events to them. There are two ways to do this:
Draw a part on a MIDI or audio track with the Pencil tool.
You can also draw parts by pressing [Alt]/[Option] and using the Arrow 
tool.
Double-click with the Arrow tool on a MIDI or audio 
track, between the left and right locator.
To add events to a MIDI part, you use the tools and func-
tions in a MIDI editor (see “The Key Editor – Overview” on 
page 339). Adding events to audio parts is done in the 
Audio Part Editor (see “Window overview” on page 265) 
by pasting or by using drag and drop.
You can also gather existing audio events into a part, by 
using the “Events to Part” function on the Audio menu.
This creates an audio part containing all selected audio events on the 
same track. To remove the part and make the events appear as indepen-
dent objects on the track again, select the part and use the “Dissolve 
Part” function on the Audio menu.
Auditioning audio parts and events
Audio parts and events can be auditioned in the Project 
window with the Speaker tool:
1.Select the Play tool.
Note that the Play tool and the Scrub tool share the same tool button. If 
the tool icon on the toolbar doesn’t show a speaker symbol, first click on 
the icon to select it, then click again and select “Play” from the pop-up 
menu that appears.
Option Description
Copy Files to 
Working 
DirectoryIf files are not already in the project’s audio folder they are 
copied there before being imported.
Convert and 
Copy to Project 
If NeededIf files are not already in the project’s audio folder they are 
copied there before being imported. Furthermore, if the 
files have a different sample rate or a lower resolution 
than the project settings, they are automatically con-
verted.
Split multi 
channel filesIf you import a multi-channel audio file (including two-
channel stereo files), it will be split into a number of mono 
files – one for each channel – which are placed on sepa-
rate, automatically created mono tracks.
!When auditioning, audio will be routed directly to the 
Control Room (Cubase only), if the Control Room is 
activated. 
When the Control Room is deactivated, the audio 
will be routed to the default output bus, bypassing 
the audio channel’s settings, effects and EQs. In Cu-
base Studio, the Main Mix bus is always used for 
monitoring. 
						

							45
The Project window
2.Click where you want playback to start, and keep the 
mouse button pressed.
Only the track on which you click is played back, starting at the click po-
sition. 
3.Release the mouse button to stop playback.
Scrubbing
The Scrub tool allows you to locate positions in the audio 
by playing back, forwards or backwards, at any speed:
1.Select the Scrub tool.
Note that the Play tool and the Scrub tool share the same tool button. If 
the tool icon on the toolbar doesn’t show a “scrub symbol”, first click on 
the icon to select it, then click again and select “Scrub” from the pop-up 
menu that appears.
2.Click at the desired position and keep the mouse but-
ton pressed.
The project cursor is moved to the position at which you click.
3.Drag to the left or right.
The project cursor follows the mouse pointer and the audio is played back. 
The speed and pitch of the playback depend on how fast you move the 
pointer.
You can adjust the responsiveness of the Scrub function 
in the Preferences (Transport–Scrub page).
ÖIt is also possible to “scrub” the whole project with the 
Jog wheel on the Transport panel (Cubase only). 
See “Project scrubbing – the Jog Wheel (Cubase only)” on page 63.
Note that scrubbing can be quite a burden on your sys-
tem. To avoid playback problems, you will find the “CPU 
Saving Scrub Mode” option in the Preferences (Trans-
port–Scrub page).
When you activate this option, scrubbing will be less demanding on the 
processor. This can be very useful when scrubbing in a large project, 
where the “normal” scrub behavior leads to processing overloads. When 
“CPU Saving Scrub Mode” is activated, the effects are disabled for 
scrubbing and the resampling quality is lower.
Editing parts and events
This section describes techniques for editing in the Project 
window. If not explicitly stated, all descriptions apply to both 
events and parts, even though we use the term “event” for 
convenience.
ÖWhen you are using the tools for editing, you can in 
many cases get additional functions by pressing modifier 
keys (e.g. pressing [Alt]/[Option] and dragging with the 
Arrow tool creates a copy of the dragged event). 
On the following pages, the default modifier keys are described – you 
can customize these in the Preferences (Editing–Tool Modifiers page), 
see “Setting up tool modifier keys” on page 480.
Selecting events
Selecting events is done using any of the following 
methods:
Use the Arrow tool.
The standard selection techniques apply.
Use the Select submenu on the Edit menu.
The options are:
Option Description
All Selects all events in the Project window.
None Deselects all events.
Invert Inverts the selection – all selected events are dese-
lected and all events that were not selected are se-
lected instead.
In Loop Selects all events that are partly or wholly between 
the left and right locator.
From Start 
to CursorSelects all events that begin to the left of the project 
cursor.
From Cursor 
to EndSelects all events that end to the right of the project 
cursor.
Equal Pitch These are available in the MIDI Editors (see “Selec-
ting notes” on page 345).
Select Controllers
in Note RangeThis is available in the MIDI Editors (see “Selecting 
controllers within the note range” on page 345).
All on Selected 
TracksSelects all events on the selected track.
Select Event This is available in the Sample Editor (see “Window 
overview” on page 235).
Left/Right Selection 
Side to CursorThese two functions are only used for range selection 
editing (see “Creating a selection range” on page 53).
!Note that these functions work differently when the 
Range Selection tool is selected (see “Creating a 
selection range” on page 53). 
						

							46
The Project window
Select all events on a track by right-clicking in its Track 
list and selecting “Select All Events” from the pop-up 
menu that appears.
You can also use the arrow keys on the computer key-
board to select the closest event to the left, right, above or 
below.
If you press [Shift] and use the arrow keys, the current selection will be 
kept, allowing you to select several events.
If the option “Auto Select Events under Cursor” is acti-
vated in the Preferences (Editing page), all events on the 
selected track(s) that are “touched” by the project cursor 
are automatically selected.
This can be helpful when rearranging your project, since it allows you to 
select whole sections (on all tracks) by selecting all tracks and moving 
the project cursor.
It is also possible to select ranges, regardless of the 
event and track boundaries.
This is done using the Range Selection tool (see “Range editing” on page 
53).
Note that in the Preferences (Editing page), you can 
find the option “Use Up/Down Navigation Commands for 
selecting Tracks only”.
By default, tracks are selected with the up/down arrow keys on the com-
puter keyboard. However, these are also used for selecting events (see 
above) which can lead to confusing results in some cases. Since track se-
lection is a most vital operation in both editing and mixing, you have the op-
tion to use the navigation controls for track selection only. The following 
applies:
 When this option is deactivated and no event/part is selected 
in the Project window, the up/down arrow keys on the com-
puter keyboard are used to step through the tracks in the 
Track list – just as you would expect this to work.
 When this option is deactivated and an event/part is selected in 
the Project window, the up/down arrow keys still step through 
the tracks in the Track list – but on the currently selected track, 
the first event/part will automatically be selected as well. If this 
is not the desired behavior, you have to activate “Use Up/Down 
Navigation Commands for selecting Tracks only”.
 When this option is activated, the up/down arrow keys are 
only used to change the track selection – the current event/
part selection in the Project window will not be altered.
Also in the Preferences (Editing–Tools page), you can 
find the Cross Hair Cursor options section.
This allows you to display a cross hair cursor when working in the Project 
window and editors, facilitating navigation and editing, especially when 
arranging in large projects. You can set up the colors for the line and the 
mask of the cross hair cursor, and define its width. The cross hair cursor 
works as follows:
 When the Selection tool (or one of its subtools) is selected, 
the cross hair cursor appears when you start moving/copying 
a part/event, or when using the event trim handles.
 When the Pencil tool, the Scissors tool or any other tool that 
makes use of this function is selected, the cross hair cursor ap-
pears as soon as you move the mouse over the event display.
 The cross hair cursor is only available for tools where such a 
function is of any use. The Mute tool for example does not use 
a cross hair cursor, as you have to click directly on an event to 
mute it.
Moving events
To move events in the Project window, use the following 
methods:
Click and drag to a new position.
All selected events will be moved, maintaining their relative positions. You 
can only drag events to tracks of the same type. If Snap is activated, this 
determines to which positions you can move the events (see “Snap” on 
page 56).
Note also that you can restrict movement to be either horizontal or vertical 
only, by holding down [Ctrl]/[Command] while dragging.
Select the event and edit the Start position in the info line.
Use the “Move to” functions on the Edit menu.
The following functions are available:
!You will note that there is a slightly delayed response 
when you move an event by dragging. This helps you 
avoid accidentally moving events when you click on 
them in the Project window. You can adjust this de-
lay with the Drag Delay setting in the Preferences 
(Editing page).
Function Description
Move  to  Cursor Moves the selected event to the project cursor position. If 
there are several selected events on the same track, the 
first event will start at the cursor, and the following will be 
lined up end-to-start after the first one.
Move to Origin Moves the selected events to their original positions, i.e. 
the positions at which they were originally recorded. 
						

							47
The Project window
Use the Nudge buttons in the toolbar.
These move the selected events to the left or right. The amount of move-
ment depends on the selected display format (see “The Project Setup di-
alog” on page 35) and the value set on the Grid pop-up menu.
Here, clicking this button will move the event 2 frames to the right.
ÖThe Nudge buttons are not visible in the toolbar by de-
fault. 
You can decide which items should be visible by right-clicking in the 
toolbar and checking them in the pop-up menu that appears. See “The 
Setup dialogs” on page 466 for more information.
Duplicating events
Events can be duplicated in the following ways:
Hold down [Alt]/[Option] and drag the event to a new 
position.
If Snap is activated, this determines to which positions you can copy the 
events (see “Snap” on page 56). 
Audio and MIDI parts can also be duplicated by press-
ing [Alt]/[Option] + [Shift] and dragging.
This creates a shared copy of the part. If you edit the contents of a 
shared copy, all other shared copies of the same part are automatically 
edited in the same way.
Shared copies are indicated by showing the name in italic text and an 
icon in the right corner of the part.
Note:
When you duplicate audio events, the copies are al-
ways shared. This means that shared copies of audio 
events always refer to the same audio clip (see “Audio 
processing” on page 217).
You can convert a shared copy to a real copy by select-
ing “Convert to Real Copy” from the Edit menu. This cre-
ates a new version of the clip (that can be edited indepen-
dently) and adds this to the Pool. Note that no new files are 
created by this operation – for that you need to use the 
“Bounce Selection” function from the Audio menu (see 
“Exporting regions as audio files” on page 280).
Selecting “Duplicate” from the Edit menu creates a 
copy of the selected event and places it directly after the 
original.
If several events are selected, all of these are copied “as one unit”, main-
taining the relative distance between the events.
Move to Front,
Move to BackThis function doesn’t actually change the position of the 
events, but moves the selected events to the front or 
back, respectively. This is useful if you have overlapping 
events, and want to see one that is partially obscured.
For audio events, this is an extra important feature, since 
only the visible sections of events will be played back. 
Moving an obscured audio event to front (or moving the 
obscuring event to back) will allow you to hear the whole 
event on playback (see also “Overlapping events” on 
page 266).
Note that it is also possible to use the “To Front” function 
on the event context menu for this (although this works in 
a different way, see “Create Events mode (Preferences)” 
on page 75).
!When the Range Selection tool is used, the Nudge 
buttons move the selection range (see “Moving and 
duplicating” on page 55).
Function Description
!If you hold down [Ctrl]/[Command] as well, move-
ment direction is restricted to either horizontal or ver-
tical. That means if you drag an event vertically it can 
not be moved horizontally at the same time. 
						

							48
The Project window
Selecting “Repeat…” from the Edit menu opens a dia-
log, allowing you to create a number of copies (regular or 
shared) of the selected event(s).
This works just like the Duplicate function, but you can specify the num-
ber of copies.
You can also perform the Repeat function by dragging: 
Select the event(s) to repeat, press [Alt]/[Option], click the 
handle in the lower right corner of the last selected event 
and drag to the right.
The longer to the right you drag, the more copies are created (as shown 
by the tooltip).
Selecting “Fill Loop” from the Edit menu creates a num-
ber of copies starting at the left locator and ending at the 
right locator.
The last copy is automatically shortened to end at the right locator posi-
tion.
Using Cut, Copy and Paste
You can cut or copy selected events, and paste them in 
again, using the functions on the Edit menu.
When you paste an event it is inserted on the selected 
track, positioned so that its snap point is aligned with the 
cursor position.
If the selected track is of the wrong type, the event will be inserted on its 
original track. See “Snap” on page 56 for information about the snap point.
If you use the “Paste at Origin” function, the event is 
pasted at its original position (the position from which you 
cut or copied it).
Renaming events
By default, audio events show the name of their clip, but 
you can enter a separate descriptive name for separate 
events if you like. This is done by selecting the event and 
typing in a new name in the “Description” field in the info 
line.
You can also give all events on a track the same name 
as the track by changing the track name, holding down a 
modifier key and pressing [Return].
See “Handling tracks” on page 40.
Splitting events
You can split events in the Project window in the following 
ways:
Click with the Scissors tool on the event you want to 
split.
If Snap is activated, this determines the exact split position (see “Snap” 
on page 56). You can also split events by pressing [Alt]/[Option] and 
clicking with the Arrow tool.
Select “Split at Cursor” from the Edit menu.
This splits the selected events at the position of the project cursor. If no 
events are selected, all events (on all tracks) that are intersected by the 
project cursor will be split.
Select “Split Loop” from the Edit menu.
This splits events on all tracks at the left and right locator positions.
ÖIf you split a MIDI part so that the split position inter-
sects one or several MIDI notes, the result depends on the 
option “Split MIDI Events” in the Preferences (Editing–
MIDI page). 
If the option is activated, the intersected notes will be split (creating new 
notes at the beginning of the second part). If it is deactivated, the notes 
will remain in the first part, but “stick out” after the end of the part.
Gluing events together
You can glue events together using the Glue Tube tool. 
There are three possibilities: 
Clicking on an event with the Glue Tube tool glues it to-
gether with the next event on the track. The events do not 
have to touch one another.
The result is a part containing the two events, with one exception: If you 
first split an event and then glue the two sections together again (without 
moving or editing them first), they become a single event again.
You can select several events on the same track and 
click on one of them with the Glue Tube tool.
A single part is created. 
						

							49
The Project window
When you hold down [Alt]/[Option] while clicking on an 
event with the Glue Tube tool, this event will be glued to-
gether with all following events on this track.
You can change the default key command for this in the Preferences 
(Editing–Tool Modifiers page).
Resizing events
Resizing events means to move their start or end positions 
individually. In Cubase, there are three types of resizing:
To select one of the resizing modes, select the Arrow tool 
and then click again on the Arrow tool icon on the toolbar. 
This opens a pop-up menu from which you can select one 
of the resizing mode options.
The icon on the toolbar will change, indicating the selected resizing mode.
The actual resizing is done by clicking and dragging the 
lower left or right corner of the event. If Snap is activated, 
the Snap value determines the resulting length (see 
“Snap” on page 56).
Normal sizing.
Sizing moves contents.
If several events are selected, all will be resized in the 
same way.
You can also resize events with the Scrub tool.
This works just the same as when resizing with the Arrow tool, but the 
audio under the pointer is played back (scrubbed) while you drag.
Resizing type Description
Normal Sizing The contents of the event stay fixed, and the start or end 
point of the event is moved to “reveal” more or less of the 
contents.
Sizing Moves 
ContentsThe contents follow the moved start or end of the event 
(see the figure below).
Sizing Applies 
Time StretchThe contents will be time stretched to fit the new event 
length (see the separate description on “Resizing events 
using time stretch” on page 50). 
						

							50
The Project window
It is also possible to resize events by using the Trim but-
tons (located in the Nudge palette) on the toolbar.
This will move the start or end position of the selected Event(s) by the 
amount set on the Grid pop-up menu. The sizing type currently selected 
applies to this method too, with the exception of “Sizing Applies Time 
Stretch” which is not possible with this method. You can also use key 
commands for this (by default, press [Ctrl]/[Command] and use the left 
and right arrow key).
ÖNote that the Nudge palette is not visible in the toolbar 
by default. See “The Setup dialogs” on page 466 for in-
structions on how to show and hide items in the toolbar.
Resizing events using time stretch
If you want to resize a part and make its contents “fit” the 
new size, you should use this option. Proceed as follows:
1.Click the Arrow icon on the toolbar and select the “Siz-
ing Applies Time Stretch” option from the pop-up menu.
2.Point close to the end point of the part you want to 
stretch.
3.Click and drag left or right.
When you move the mouse, a tooltip shows the current mouse position 
and length of the part. Note that the snap value applies, as with any part 
operation.
4.Release the mouse button.
The part is “stretched” or “compressed” to fit the new length.
For MIDI parts, this means that the note events are 
stretched (moved and resized).
Controller data will be moved.
For audio parts, this means that the events are moved, 
and that the referenced audio files are time stretched to fit 
the new length.
A dialog box shows the progress of the time stretch operation.
ÖYou can adjust which algorithm should be used for the 
time stretch algorithm in the Preferences (Editing–Audio 
page).
For more information about time stretch, see “Time Stretch” on page 225.
Sliding the contents of an event or part
You can move the contents of an event or part without 
changing its position in the Project window. By default, this 
is done by pressing [Alt]/[Option]+[Shift], clicking in the 
event or part and dragging to the left or right.
Grouping Events
Sometimes it is useful to treat several events as one unit. 
This can be done by grouping them: Select the events (on 
the same or different Tracks) and select “Group” from the 
Edit menu.
Grouped events are indicated by a group icon in the right corner.
!When sliding the contents of an audio event, you 
cannot slide past the start or end of the actual audio 
clip. If the event plays the whole clip, you cannot 
slide the audio at all.