Re: Issue 146 in lilypond: bar counters for normal bars

[Alexander Kobel]

On 2010-11-19 18:17, Valentin Villenave wrote:
> On Fri, Nov 19, 2010 at 3:48 PM, Alexander Kobel<address@hidden>  wrote:
> > (Note this is what I feel bar counters should look like, and it's similar to
> > what Werner implemented in the much simpler
> > <http://lsr.dsi.unimi.it/LSR/Item?id=473>.  For a proper enhancement, we
> > should have a look in some notation guidebook.)
>
> Werner's workaround is quite clever actually. Wouldn't it be enough to
> just create an easy-to-use macro around it?

Well, I appreciate the pragmatical solution, but IMHO it lacks three 
important things.

First, RehearsalMarks cannot (easily) be printed there, and I think they 
should be offered per default. I don't know if that'd be possible if we 
wrap the percent repeat voice into a separate context and add a 
\consists Mark_engraver, but I assume that should work.  Whether text 
scripts should be allowed - well, they don't do any harm, so we could do 
this, too.

Second, IIUC the PercentRepeat approach is (currently) unusable with 
time changes; the numbering always starts at 1 (or, rather, 2), since 
you have to start a new \repeat percent x { s[new-measure-length] } 
section.  Keeping up with the measure numbers would imply considerable 
tweaking, as in really reading out the current (global) measure number. 
 And imagine a piece with time change in every or nearly every bar (not 
too uncommon that, say, 3/2+2/2 renaissance or more modern music gets 
notated that way): That'd mean that no bar count is printed _at all_, 
since the PercentRepeats "lag" by one measure.

But IMHO the single big no-no to add this as a macro is that the user 
has to manually specify the length (and measure structure, for time 
changes) of the counted music.  That's unnecessarily complicated, just 
to print some property that is /already there/ globally, namely in 
measure numbers (and Score.RehearsalMarks, if you want them).  I would 
not want to cement such a highly redundant syntax.  What we actually 
want is some context that automagically extends over the whole piece, 
and which we can position like any staff or lyrics line.
(Um.  Context keeping themselves alive...  Sounds hard.)

If, however, this should be possible easily, then of course by all means 
do so.  And if the first two points can be easily accomplished, but the 
third does not look feasible in the medium-term, then do so as well.


Cheers,
Alexander