Re: midiinstrument and clefs

[David Bobroff]

> Why does lilypond do small clefs in the middle of a line by default
> instead of regular? 

It is common engraving practice.  As to why it is common practice I can
only speculate that a full sized clef would appear bulky and out of
place, or that it would have appeared bulky and out of place to the
engravers who established the practice.

>  Aren't small clefs supposed to be for changing clef
> without having to change the key signature,

That is, in effect, what happens when you change clefs in the middle of
a system without changing keys.  But that is because the key isn't
changing.

>  so the whole idea is *not*
> to have a new key sig appear?  Isn't that what they're for?

No, the two are not really linked.  The small clefs are for mid-system
clef changes as per common engraving practice.  Clef changes are not
linked to key changes.

>   If you
> change keys in midstream, so to speak, don't you need a regular clef?

No.  You don't need a clef at all.

> So wouldn't \smallclef make more sense when you want no new key sig to
> appear,

This is what happens now, isn't it?  But again, you appear to be
assuming that the two are linked.  They are not.

>  and \key when you want both clef and key sig?

No.  \key and \clef do not always have to appear together.  At a
mid-line key change:

clef = no
key = yes

At a mid-line clef change:

clef = yes
key = no

\key and \clef are two different and separate bits of information.  The
\key indicates the basis of the harmonic structure of the piece (c
major, e minor, etc.).  The \clef simply indicates what absolute pitches
are represented by the lines/spaces of the staff.

-David