At 8:14 AM -0400 6/14/12, Dennis Bathory-Kitsz wrote: >On Thu, June 14, 2012 7:36 am, Florence + Michael wrote: >> Here's what Elaine Gould writes >> "To keep the stave as uncluttered as possible > >Just curious: Do you use 'stave' for the singular form? It sounds odd to me, >even though it's apparently correct. I hadn't heard this singular form until >recently, and wondered if it's regional?
It may well be a cross-the-pond difference, as some seem to think that a choice between "bar" and "measure" is. (I've always used both terms interchangeably.) To me it's always been obvious that a single staff is a staff, and the plural is staves. "Stave" as a singular feels like an incorrect derivation. But that's just me. I'm also careful to use "medium" as the singular of "media"; "datum" as the singular of "data"; and "timpano" as the singular of "timpani." Since piano uses a grand "staff" (not a grand "stave"), Elaine probably should have written "to keep the staves as uncluttered as possible" since she's referring to both of them. A "nice" point, Dennis! John -- John R. Howell, Assoc. Prof. of Music Virginia Tech Department of Music School of Performing Arts & Cinema College of Liberal Arts & Human Sciences 290 College Ave., Blacksburg, Virginia 24061-0240 Vox (540) 231-8411 Fax (540) 231-5034 (mailto:[email protected]) http://www.music.vt.edu/faculty/howell/howell.html "Machen Sie es, wie Sie wollen, machen Sie es nur schön." (Do it as you like, just make it beautiful!) --Johannes Brahms _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
