At 03:08 PM 05-21-2002 +0100, Jack Campin you wrote: > >> I suggested an approach to this in the keep-it-simple spirit of ABC > >> some while ago. A lot of percussion scores use a one-line staff for > >> each instrument, with the note stems going up for the right hand and > >> down for the left. I suggested this could be done with a new kind > >> of key signature (as there already is for Highland pipes), say "K:P" > >> and two notes (as well as rests) "u" (stem-up, right) and "d" (stem- > >> down, left). > > It's fairly standard to have an empty rectangle instead as a clef > > for perc-stuff. Also if you notate a drumkit, it's nromally done in > > a regular five-line system with this drum-clef. I saw quite some > > drum-books that did it this way, and somewhere in the preface the > > author just defines what his "pitches" and symbols means. > >Yeah, but. That's instrument-specific to the drumkit (middling number >of instruments), whereas the single-line notation works for any old >drums/gongs/blocks/cymbals in any numbers from one to hundreds. Single- >line has more widespread use across a variety of genres. ABC tries not >to be instrument-specific unless it can't be helped.
ABC also doesn't use five-line or single-line staves. ABC doesn't use staves at all. So we have to find someway of representing percussion with ASCII in an ABC like manner.... Here are a few options.... % Using special "pitches", l and r, for the left and right hands... % I forget it r and z conflict with anything existing T: Ayyub M: 2/4 Q: 1/16 K:None |: rzzlrzlz | rzzlrzlz | rzzlrzlz | rzzlrzlz | rzzlrzlz | rzzlrzlz :| % Using standard pitches, chosen for mnemonic content (b for right, g for left) % This gives sort of an upstem-down stem feeling. T: Ayyub M: 2/4 Q: 1/16 K: none |: bzzgbzgz | bzzgbzgz | bzzgbzgz | bzzgbzgz | bzzgbzgz :| % A kit might have several instruments, or a single drum might be able to be hit in several ways % so a single "left hand/right hand" pitch doesn't necessarily work. % Let's try a pitch per instrument/technique. T: Karsilama M: 9/8 Q: 1/16 K:None % Note: D - Dum, B - tek, c - ka |: D2ccB2ccD2ccB2B2B2 :| I'm not sure anyone has thought specifically what the appropriate standard should be for percussion in ABC, but it'll probably end up looking something like that. >----------------------------------------------------------------------------- >Jack Campin * 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU, Scotland >tel 0131 660 4760 * fax 0870 055 4975 * http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/jack/ >food intolerance data & recipes, freeware Mac logic fonts, and Scottish music > > >To subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: >http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html To subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html
