Thanks for posting this. I was out most of yesterday and didn't have time to do it. I'd intended to do it this morning (UK time) but found you'd got there first.
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Thursday, January 12, 2017, 4:07:18 AM, you wrote:
> | I've added the missing text with a sidebar:
> On Wed 11 Jan 2017 at 05:03:21 (-0700), ptoye wrote:
>> Thanks all for putting me right. I have to say that the documentation is very
>> confusing as to the syntax. From the Learning manual:
> | A variable is assigned as follows:
> | namedMusic = { ... }
> So "..." is typically a sequence of notes or a sequence of music expressions.
> The {} indicate a seqeunce rather than simultaneous expressions << >>.
>> which implies that the brackets are needed, but it's followed by:
> | violin = \new Staff {
> | \relative {
> | a'4 b c b
> | }
> | }
> Here { a'4 b c b } is a music _expression_, \relative is a command that
> controls how LP interprets the notes' octavation, and \new is a
> command that wraps one _expression_ in the Staff context.
> You could write
> violin = \new Staff
> \relative {
> a'4 b c b
> }
> just as you could write
> cello = \new Staff d'
> because d' is one _expression_.
>> and later by:
> | width = 4.5\cm
> Here you should read up the Notation Reference §3.1.5.
> width is not a music _expression_, so you couldn't write, say,
> { \namedMusic \width }
> So \width needs to be interpreted in something like \paper { \width
> and other things }. What you set a variable to (ie the right hand side)
> determines where you can later use it.
>> which don't have the brackets.
>> How does the parser know when the variable definition has finished if it can
>> be on multiple lines?
> If there are no braces (or equivalent), then it'll be a single item,
> but that item could be a command with its own argument following it.