How to add and edit brackets in Flat
Last updated November 4, 2026
A bracket in Flat is the vertical line that joins several staves at the left of a system to show they belong together - the flutes, the clarinets, a choir. Flat lets you add brackets, stretch them over the parts you want, nest one bracket inside another, and keeps them up to date when your instruments follow a sorting style.
How do I add a bracket?
Click a note in one of the parts you want to group, open the Notation tab in the left panel, and click Add/Edit Brackets in the Measures and brackets section. Flat adds a bracket over that part and the next one, already selected so you can stretch it straight away.
A bracket always groups at least two instruments, so the button is only available when your score has two parts or more. It is also greyed out when there is no room for a new bracket around the selected part.
How do I resize, duplicate, nest, or delete a bracket?
Click a bracket on the score to select it. A round handle appears at each end, and a small menu opens next to it with three buttons: Add bracket, Nest bracket, and Remove. Click anywhere else on the score to deselect the bracket.
- Resize: drag the round handle at either end to stretch or shorten the bracket. It snaps to the nearest instrument when you let go.
- Add bracket: adds a new bracket of the same length in the next free position, already selected.
- Nest bracket: adds a bracket inside the selected one, to group some of its instruments, such as two violin sections inside the strings.
- Remove: deletes the selected bracket. You can also press Delete.
Editing a bracket by hand switches the sorting style of the score to Custom, so Flat stops rebuilding brackets for new instruments. Pick a sorting style again to let Flat restore the standard brackets.
What are the rules for brackets?
Flat keeps brackets valid for engraving, and adjusts the other brackets rather than blocking you when an edit would break a rule:
| Rule | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| At least two instruments | A new bracket covers two parts. A bracket left over a single instrument, because the other one was removed or moved out, is deleted. |
| Nesting needs three instruments | Nest bracket is available on a bracket that spans three parts or more. |
| Two levels at most | A bracket can hold nested brackets, but a nested bracket cannot hold another one. |
| No partial overlap | Two brackets never half-cover each other. If you stretch a nested bracket past its parent, the parent grows to contain it. |
Deleting a bracket that holds nested brackets keeps the nested ones as ordinary brackets. Deleting a nested bracket leaves its parent as it was.
Frequently asked questions
How do I group three or more parts in one bracket?
On the website and desktop app, select the bracket and drag the round handle at its end down to the last part of the group; it snaps to the instrument when you let go. In the mobile app, switch on the grouping between each pair of neighbouring parts inside the group.
Do brackets follow the parts when I reorder them?
With a sorting style on, Flat rebuilds the brackets for you whenever instruments are added or replaced. In Custom order, brackets stay where they are, and moving an instrument out of a bracket removes it from that bracket, so check them after reordering your instruments.
Why did my score switch to Custom sorting?
Because you edited a bracket by hand. Adding, nesting, resizing, or deleting a bracket tells Flat you want your own layout, so it stops managing brackets and sets the sorting style to Custom. Pick a sorting style again to restore the standard order and brackets.