At 09:14 PM 8/1/2008, John Howell wrote: >You know, I've really tried to understand this particular complaint, >and I'm afraid I really can't. When we did everything by hand we >all, always, entered duration and pitch simultaneously, right? >(Placement on the staff = pitch; note shape/color = duration.) Which >means that ALL the computer programs have taken a single act (but one >often requiring several pen strokes) and divided it into two separate >acts, right? > >So why should one way be "better" than the other (whatever "better" >means)? It isn't as if we're hardwired by nature to think one way or >the other, is it?
Obviously reasonable people will disagree about this. And I disagree with your characterization that when writing by hand we entered duration and pitch simultaneously. I would describe my thought process as moving my pencil to a place on the staff (i.e., choosing a pitch) and then writing a duration at that location. Duration and then pitch just feels wrong to me.
This is the same way I play music. I don't recognize the duration first and then the pitch -- I see the pitch first, finding the correct fingering, and then worry about the duration.
YMMV, of course. Aaron. _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
