Re: lyrics to music

[Phil Holmes]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Reinhold Kainhofer
To: Fr. Michael Gilmary, mma
Cc: address@hidden
Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2012 3:41 PM
Subject: Re: lyrics to music


On 20/11/2012 16:25, Fr. Michael Gilmary, mma wrote:

Hi everybody:


Here's a general question that's bothered me for some time ... because I'm 
not a musician or composer ---


when setting lyrics to music, is it ever acceptable to join eighth notes 
across syllables or even across words?





I have been told by a reliable expert (hi Rembrandt!) that joining the 
eighth notes across syllables/words is never done ... but I have examples 
like the second one here from a very accomplished composer. Maybe he just 
isn't familiar with how to prevent his program from joining them. It 
certainly makes for difficult reading of the lyrics, IMHO.

In the 18th and 19th century, melismas were indicated by beams, so back then 
the eights would never get beamed, unless they were a melisma (i.e. belonged 
to the same syllable).
However, modern and contemporary notation will use the same beaming as for 
instruments and instead indicate melismas with slurs.

So, it's basically a convention and your choice whether you want to use the 
traditional way (never beam notes across syllables) or the modern notation 
practice.

As a (classical) singer, I have to admit, I'm always confused by the modern 
notation and sight-reading takes much more effort than with the traditional 
notation. That might, however, also be due to me being used only to the 
traditional notation.

Cheers,
Reinhold
===========================================================

Even that's not the whole story.  My edition of Handel's Messiah (Watkins 
Shaw) - music of the 18th century - has lots of beamed notes, where each 
note (despite the bean) has its own syllable.  I think it was common in 
Baroque music, went out of fashion in the later Classical and Romantic 
periods, and came back again last century.

--
Phil Holmes