Re: Barlines in early choral music

[Juergen Reuter]

Han-Wen wrote on 30-09-2000:

> address@hidden writes:
> > This e-mail probably isn't going to be terribly clear, as I can't
> > remember the name for the notation that I'm after.
> > 
> > Is it possible in Lilypond to have barlines going between the staves
> > in a system, but not actually on the staves? Something like:
>
> No.
>
> > 
> > If not, which bits of the source should I look at to include this
> > option?
>
> grep the C++ source for Span_bar.
>
> You could also do a kludge: insert staffs without stafflines between
> the normal staffs.  The barlines won't touch the real staffs, though.



On essentially the same subject, Han-Wen wrote on 24-11-1999:

> address@hidden writes:
> > Firstly, bars are not drawn across staff lines (where the notes usually
> > go), but rather between them (where the lyrics usually go).
>
> That can be accomplished now already; remove the Bar_engraver from
> the Staff context, and put a Bar_engraver in the Lyrics context. 

I tried this with 1.3.86.  Since there have been some changes since then,
I actually tried the following:

...
\score {
    % Adding a Span_bar_engraver to a ChoirStaff is counter-productive;
    % hence use StaffGroup instead of ChoirStaff.
    \context StaffGroup <
        \discantusNotes
        \discantusText
        \altusNotes
        \altusText
        % etc. ...
    >
    \paper {
        \paper_sixteen
        gourlay_maxmeasures = 12.0;
        \translator {
            \StaffContext
            % Removing the bar engraver from the StaffContext results
            % in lots of "programming error" messages.
            \remove "Bar_engraver";
        }
        \translator {
            \LyricsContext
            \consists "Bar_engraver";
        }
    }
}

Mmmh.  This results in lots of:
programming error: Infinity or NaN encountered (Continuing; cross thumbs)

and (probably caused by the first error) in a few:
programming error: spanner with negative length (Continuing; cross thumbs)

The resulting output does not show any bar line.

Is this just a small bug or I am trying to request a feature from lily
that it was not designed for?  Specifically, in a StaffGroup, are bar
lines painted from top to bottom as a single line or as several lines?

Greetings,
           Juergen