Hello,

Total newbie question. Is there a manual that explains how to use symbols that are included while typing in chords and what they do?

Like hold a chord. Sustain a chord for a number of beats through the next measure.

Things like this:

A..,A..,
^A

Thank you

The section is "Making a song" in the manual.
https://www.pgmusic.com/manuals/bbw2023full/chapter6.htm#chord-entry

The Chord Options dialog (right-click on chord sheet or Alt+F5) shows the ways that you can enter chords. The main things are pushes, rests, shots, and holds.

Pushes (also called anticipations) are chords that are played before the beat. For example, in Jazz Swing music, the piano player often "pushes" a chord change by playing the chord an eighth note before the beat.

To use keystrokes, type the caret symbol ^ before the chord. The caret symbol is located above the numeral 6 on your computer keyboard.
- Type a single caret to get a chord an eighth note before the beat, e.g., ^C7
- Type a double caret to get a chord a sixteenth note before the beat, e.g., ^^C7

Breaks are points in a song when one or more of the instruments rests, plays a shot, or holds a chord.

Rests specify any, some, or all instruments to rest at any bar. For example, you could rest all instruments except the bass for the first 4 bars, and then add the piano for 4 bars, and then add the entire band for the rest of the song. You may optionally disable the rests in the middle or final choruses (e.g., where you would likely have a solo, and rests may not be appropriate).

Shots specify certain instruments play a "shot," where the chord is played and then a rest follows. For example, the song “Rock Around the Clock” has a shot on beat 1 followed by a rest for 2 bars. The duration of “shots” is 60 ticks per beat.

Held chords specify that certain instruments hold a chord sustained for a certain number of bars. For example, you can have the bass and piano hold a chord sustained while the drums continue to play a pattern.

A break can be specified by adding a period after the chord.

C. indicates a C chord that is a REST.
C.. indicates a C chord that is a SHOT.
C... indicates a C chord that is a HELD CHORD.


You can specify that some instruments not be affected by the rhythm break.

The coded names for the instruments are:
B for Bass, D for Drums, P for Piano, G for Guitar, and S for Strings.

To type a rest for all instruments on a C chord type C.

To exempt instruments, add their letters following the break. For example, C.bd will put a rest on all instruments EXCEPT the bass and drums.

To indicate a held chord for all instruments except the piano, type C...p

Thank you Andrew I will give it a read.

Incidentally, a help chord has three periods following the Chord name, like this: C...
But you'll pick it all up from the integrated help which covers this topic very well.