Re: Key and accidentals in Lilypond

[David Raleigh Arnold]

On Sat, 07 Dec 2002 00:15:51 Rune Zedeler wrote:
> (sorry sending reply to the wrong posting - for some reason I didn't
> receive the posting from s.abeccara)
> 
> Simon Bailey wrote:
> 
> > > | if i'm reading a piece in g major, then i
> > > | will read any note in the bottom space of the treble staff as an
> > > | f-sharp, not as an f. so i write "fis" for this note... :o)
> > >
> > > i don't agree. it is really not an f sharp, it is a natural f in the
> > > key of G, so nothing has to be added to it. if you are singing a piece
> > > and you aren't told which key it is in (unless you have an absolute
> > > ear) you will sing "sharp" notes completely automatically, like
> > > natural ones. :o)
> 
> Oh, so you mean that when playing a piece in g major on the piano the
> "left one of the 3 black keys" are to be called "f" - not "f sharp".
> This is perhaps common in italy (I don't know) - but it is definitely
> not common in english or the german group (danish, swedish, norwegian,
> dutch) of music notation.
> 
> If fis is really called 'f' when playing in g major, then - by the same
> argument - one should also call fis 'f' when playing in fis major.
> Actually, when playing a piece in fis major, all the notes would (after
> your definition) have the same names as if the piece was in f major.
> So - using your naming method - how does one tell whether the piece runs
> in f major or fis major - both would be called "f major" ???
> 
> I really don't understand.
> 
> 
> > > for people really playing and singing music, and not simply
> > > typesetting it, this is ridiculous.
> 
> I think that as good as everybody on this list "really play and sing
> music" - and for some reason we don't find it rediculous.
> 
> 
> -Rune

I think Laura's approach is the best one.  She is using ABC
and abc2ly together as an *editing tool*.

An editing tool which would make everyone able to have his
own way would simply substitute letters and then transpose.
For example, a f in key of g would be letter-changed to
b in the key of c and then transposed to g, giving a fis.

So you would type your notes, run the editing tool on it
and then have the proper lilypond notation which almost
everyone agrees it better to work with, although not
as quick, potentially anyway, to type out.

The advantage of the lilypond notation the way it is
now is partly in the ability to move things about
within the piece.  It is good if you don't have to
know what key something is in when reading the
lilypond input code.  This makes it easier to
make changes in the piece and edit it, especially
if you haven't looked at it for a while.

A tool that converted relative pitch to fixed
would be good too.

If you only typeset old music you don't have to
deal with revision so much, so you probably don't
often make sure that every note beginning a measure
has an explicit time value, for example.  If
you do original music you make fewer mistakes
that way.

It would be nice if there were a letter-change
tool and a transposition tool.  \transpose
is a process rather than an editing tool, which
is good, but an editing tool would be useful
too.  Even the ability to edit an octave
transposition would be very useful.

Am I being clear here?  An editing tool
produces valid lilypond *input*, specifically
a notes block.  DaveA