Re: best way to code music with instrument-switch

[Paul Scott]

Kieren MacMillan wrote:
> [Lilypond 2.11.49]
>
> Hello all!
>
> I need to write out some scores and parts that have multiple
> instrument switches (e.g., flute to alto flute to piccolo) per movement.
>
> I like to keep my key signature stuff in a \global variable, but then
> each new key signature does not appear correctly (i.e., transposed)
> for the transposing instrument(s).  =\
>
> So what I've been doing instead is splitting my music up into
> sections, with a new section any time there is an instrument switch --
> as you can imagine, this makes for ugly Lily-code.
>
> Is there an obvious way to handle this -- using a combination of
> \transposition and \transpose -- which would allow me to:
>     1.  have a single \global variable;
>     2.  enter each player's music, in concert pitch, in a single
> variable; and,
>     3.  output a C score and a transposed score (and parts), with the
> correct key signatures in each Staff?
Interesting!  I always do this manually even if I put the concert key in
a global block.  It wouldn't occur to me to break up the whole piece
into sections for this reason since of course the different players
ofter make switches at different places which I agree would make ugly
code.  I do break music into sections for other structural reasons.

Some of this might depend on where one is starting.  A composer
conceiving of all of this in concert key might have a different approach
than I do when I often rearrange music for groups which don't have the
exact instrumentation as the original composition.

(Thanks for reminding me to use \transposition for midi output).

Paul Scott