Re: Key Signatures on Lilypond

[Cameron Horsburgh]

On Wed, Sep 13, 2006 at 12:16:52PM +0000, Karen wrote:
> Hello
> 
> I have recently started using Lilypond to typset quite a lot of songs and 
> have a
> comment...
> 
> When a key signature has been entered, it would be great if the notes could
> automatically be recognised as they would appear on the page, for example in 
> the
> key of F major (one flat in the key signature) it is irritating to have to
> always put 'bes' for the b flat note, when on the printed page it of course
> appears without an accidental sign before it.  That's OK for notes needing
> accidentals, but in keys with 2 or more sharps or flats it's a lot more 
> typing!!
> 
> Is anyone working on this?  Could it be an optional command to be used under
> "score"?
> 
> Otherwise, I love it - thanks so much for the hard work.
> 
> Karen

Welcome to Lilypond!

This question has come up a few times, and you're right--the extra
typing can be very annoying. But this behaviour is a feature, not a
bug. The manual explains:

***
LilyPond makes a sharp distinction between musical content and
layout. The alteration (flat, natural or sharp) of a note is part of
the pitch, and is therefore musical content. Whether an accidental (a
flat, natural or sharp sign) is printed in front of the corresponding
note is a question of layout. Layout is something that follows rules,
so accidentals are printed automatically according to those rules. The
pitches in your music are works of art, so they will not be added
automatically, and you must enter what you want to hear.

.
.
.
Adding all alterations explicitly might require a little more effort
when typing, but the advantage is that transposing is easier, and
accidentals can be printed according to different conventions. See
Automatic accidentals, for some examples how accidentals can be
printed according to different rules.

***

In other words, you tell Lily what note you want. She'll decide how
it should look.

At first this seems silly (I think everyone on this list thought that
the first time they tried it!) but it makes sense when you are trying
to transpose or change the ruleset you're using when defining what
notes get accidentals and which don't.

Having said all that, Han-Wen (the lead developer) may consider adding
some sort of switch like you suggest if you're willing to sponsor the
work. (Of course, it goes against the grain of everything LilyPond, so
it might be a BIG price tag!) 

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Cameron Horsburgh

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