>>>>> "James" == James Allwright <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
James> My understanding of the a>b construct is that it is
James> specially for hornpipes and so you can use it for a 2:1
James> ratio if that is what you want elsewhere. If you want 3:1,
James> then you can write a3/2b/2.
The standard says:
standard> To get shorter notes, either divide them -
standard> e.g. in 3/4, A/2 is a
standard> sixteenth note, A/4 is a thirty-second note - or change
standard> the default note length with the L: field.
standard> Alternatively, if the music has a broken rhythm,
standard> e.g. dotted eighth note/sixteenth note pairs, use broken
standard> rhythm markers (see below). Note that A/ is shorthand
standard> for A/2.
standard> Broken rhythms
standard> ==============
standard> A common occurrence in traditional music is the use of a
standard> dotted or broken rhythm. For example, hornpipes,
standard> strathspeys and certain morris jigs all have dotted
standard> eighth notes followed by sixteenth notes as well as
standard> vice-versa in the case of strathspeys. To support this
standard> abc notation uses a > to mean `the previous note is
standard> dotted, the next note halved' and < to mean `the
standard> previous note is halved, the next dotted'. Thus the
standard> following lines all mean the same thing (the third
standard> version is recommended):
standard> L:1/16
standard> a3b cd3 a2b2c2d2
standard> L:1/8
standard> a3/2b/2 c/2d3/2 abcd
standard> L:1/8
standard> a> b c<d abcd
I've never seen any documentation anywhere, that suggests that the a>b
notation is specifically for hornpipes and not for other dotted
constructions. And as several people have pointed out, strathspeys
and many other dotted constructions are typically played with the dot
meaning less time on the shorter note than A or B would imply, not
more time as abc2midi is playing it.
James> Remember that abc2midi is intended chiefly to produce
James> playable MIDI files, not for back-conversion into notation
James> programs.
And I don't think the abc2midi documentation says this, either. You
do document the way you mangle the > construction, but this is more
than a third of a way down the abcguide.txt file:
abcguide> Rhythm field and Broken Rhythm Notation
abcguide> ---------------------------------------
abcguide> R:hornpipe causes notes written in straight time to be
abcguide> played in dotted time. The symbol > can be used to
abcguide> achieve a similar effect.
abcguide> a> b is notated as a3/2b/2 but played as a4/3b2/3.
abcguide> The symbols < >> << >>> <<< have similar meanings:
I really think the > is not special purpose for hornpipes as people
actually write ABC; I remember reading that sentence in the standard
about it being the preferred construction for dotted rhythms and
agreeing that:
a>b
is more readable than:
a3/2 b1/2
and always doing it that way. My personal use of MIDI is largely for
proofreading, but the reason I put it up on my website is so that
other people can use it as a source for back-conversion into other
notation programs.
I really think there should be an option (preferably the default)
that implements the dotted rather than the triplet interpretation of
the > construction.
--
Laura (mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] , http://www.laymusic.org/ )
(617) 661-8097 fax: (801) 365-6574
233 Broadway, Cambridge, MA 02139
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