Verse-chorus-verse with repeat, multiple ending, pick-up, and varying rhythm

[Christopher R. Maden]

Finally had an excuse to learn this excellent tool.  I set a simple
four-verse English folk song, with a concertina arrangement.  It looks
pretty darn good... but it could look better, and I couldn’t figure out
how to bring in those last bits.

This seems to be related to many FAQs, but I couldn’t find clear answers
that applied to this case.  This is with LilyPond 2.12.3, installed from
the package manager on Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx.

Files [*]:
<URL: http://crism.maden.org/ambletown.ly >
<URL: http://crism.maden.org/ambletown.pdf >

1) Verse pick-ups.  I’d like verses 2–4 to start in the first
alternative ending on the pickups there, rather than before the start of
the repeat.  I tried a few things that resulted in text below the
concertina line or duplication of the alternatives, but the only
solution I could contemplate was to \skip the entire chorus for every
verse.  If that’s the only way, I’ll do it, but surely there is a better
way to get the lyrics to follow the actual flow of the notes.

2) Alternate rhythms.  There are a lot of small differences in the
rhythms of the verses.  You can see this implicit in the current score,
where there are same-pitch melisata and skipped notes.

I would like instead to have the first verse’s rhythm in full-size
notation, with variations for subsequent verses in small notes or rests.

For cases where one pitch is re-used, or where two notes are slurred for
one syllable, I could use a dotted tie or slur.  The problem is that
then the lyrics engine treats them as real ties or slurs, and
mis-assigns the shorter syllables; I can then quote them to force them
on to the same note, but then the alignment is off.  A way to easily
draw the dotted ties or slurs without changing the rhythm for lyrics
would be acceptable; a way to indicate varying rhythm on the different
verses would be even better.

This is the kind of thing I see in commercial songbooks and pop/folk
sheet music; I would be surprised if no one had a template, but I
couldn’t find it.

Thanks in advance,
crism

[*] Sorry, folks; I tried to make a tiny example but failed.  Not too
long, though; just two 8½×11" pages, and it’s only that long because
it’s got four verses blowing out the vertical spacing.  The multiple
issues involve the interaction of all four verses at different points in
the song.
-- 
Chris Maden, text nerd  <URL: http://crism.maden.org/ >
“Those in power write the history, while those who suffer
 write the songs.” — Frank Harte
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