Re: Beam positions and time signature spacing

[Phil Holmes]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kieren MacMillan" <address@hidden>
To: "Urs Liska" <address@hidden>
Cc: "Lilypond-User Mailing List" <address@hidden>
Sent: Monday, November 11, 2013 2:12 PM
Subject: Re: Beam positions and time signature spacing


> In 19th century song notation (e.g. look at all old Peters editions of 
> Schubert/Schumann etc. songs) slurs were used to indicate melismas - but 
> they were usually used _in combination_ with beams.

It’s not just "19th century notation": it persisted as the standard in 
operas and musicals written/engraved well into the second half of the 20th 
Century.
And — unimaginably — there are still people in our 21st Century worlds who 
still swear [strongly] by it, and consciously use it in their own 
writing/engraving.

> I have come to _very much_ disagree to this _very common_ practice. Apart 
> from being redundant this is "evil" because I have to tell virtually any 
> singer (of any level) that these slurs do _not_ have any articulatory 
> meaning. It's very hard to convince them on the intellectual level and 
> even harder making them _really_ ignore them.

Worse than “redundant”, it’s counterproductive and an impediment to 
sightsinging and proper phrasing.
“Evil” does really come closest to describing it.

Of the many nuances of music engraving, this is the only one for which I 
have a really tall soapbox.  =)

Cheers,
Kieren.

===========================================

Not sure which practice you hate: slurs or beams?  For myself, a singer who 
sings for 10s of hours a week, I like slurs to indicate melisma and think 
beaming for the same purpose is irritating in the extreme.

--
Phil Holmes