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Multi Measure Rests

I'm having a peice I wrote played by the professional Philharmonic Orchestra in the town I live in played in a couple months. I want the individual parts to look neat as possible without having to write in multi measure rests by hand. It's really quite inconvinient that NWC doesn't support multi measure rests. I use letters to mark important spots in the peice so measure numbers are not an issue. I was wondering if there was a way to easily put in multi measure rests with text using numbers and if someone had a suggestion of what font to use and where exactly to put the numbers so that it looks neat. Otherwise, I'm in for a looooong process of marking the rests in by hand. I'd be greatful for anyone's input and/or suggestions.

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #1 –
G'day Shigglebiddy11, (need to learn to spell, sorry mate)
congratulations on the upcoming performance!

Now, have I got a deal for you!   :)

I assume you're aware of the user tool facility in NWC2?

If not, there is plenty of information on the forum and in the news group.  However, if you haven't already done so, I recommend that you:

For your immediate needs, download the starter kit, the "Multi Bar Rest" tool and the Boxmark2 font and install 'em.

Edited at 18:30
The purpose of the "Multi Bar Rest" tool is to automatically hide whole rests and barlines and to insert a text multi bar rest with the correct number within it (to match the number of bars/rests that were hidden).  It will act on either the entire staff or within a selection.  It stops counting when it encounters a decorated barline or special ending etc. and will restart at the next block of 2 or more whole rest bars. 

In every case when I have used it the result has been what I would have done had I performed the task manually.  I am quite impressed with it.

The "Multi Bar Rest" tool is written to use Boxmark2 as the User2 font (set in Page Setup).  The tool can be edited with notepad if you want to change this.  The comments within the file should be sufficient for you to do this.  Boxmark2 provides the characters you need.

If you want a little more character flexibility you could also consider one of my font suites: SwingDings, MusikDingsSans or MusikDingsSerif.  You'll see 'em listed above Boxmark2 on the Scripto.

The title font in each suite is an expanded version of Boxmark2 with some small differences in the multi bar rest symbols.  Vertical placement is different and there are characters that allow for the rest to be an unbroken line of variable length with the number above.

The multi bar rest in Boxmark2 is a broken one: |---12---| (the number is between the "rest bars/lines").   I have this type too (a straight one and a slanted one).  The suites have a character table and crossreference included.  The "Multi Bar Rest" tool is easily modified to use the different characters.
I plays 'Bones, crumpets, coronets, floosgals, youfonymums 'n tubies.

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #2 –
That's a lot of reading Lawrie is suggesting.  I'm attaching a file Multi-bar Rests.nwc you may find useful.  Just keep it open, and copy the appropriate hidden bars and visible text-based multi-bar rests into your song file. 

You'll need to have Lawrie's SwingDings font set up as UserFont 3, size 16. 

The last staff has a few symbols I find useful.  They require UserFont 2 to be Lawrie's SwingText, size 8.

You'll find Lawrie's SwingDings has rehearsal letters in boxes too.  They are also found in a different style in Boxmarks and Boxmark2. 

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #3 –
thanks very much gentlemen. it took quite a while to figure out exactly how to get everything installed. but it works. I do have one comment of reply however. The multi measure rests do make my parts look better David, but they have a very jazzy look about them. It contrasts a bit with the classical style fonts and stuff i use. is that just the way it is or was it made this way on purpose? thanks a million to both of you.

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #4 –
No problem to adapt to "legit" style.  Just use Lawrie's MusikDingsSerif instead as UserFont3, sized to match the size of the staffs in your page setup dialogue, normally 16.   

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #5 –
G'day Shigglebiddy,
to take David's reply a bit further...

If you install the entire font suite, you have matched set of fonts for everything that you need for NWC2.

  • NWC2MusikDingsSerif - the NWC2 system font
  • MusikTextSerif - All the standard text fonts
  • MusikDingsSerif - The extra 'goodies' for the multi bar rest, rehearsal marks &etc..
  • MusikChordSerif - For constructing text chords, you know C, F, Bbsus4 & etc..
  • MusikTextEuroSerif - A euro character version of MusikTextSerif - just in case...

This is a pretty straight Serif font, just as MusikDingsSans is a pretty straight Sans Serif font.  SwingDings is intended to be a Jazz/Swing style font.

Hope you found the "Multi Bar Rest" user tool useful.
I plays 'Bones, crumpets, coronets, floosgals, youfonymums 'n tubies.

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #7 –
David, after I installed the font you said, the bar lines weren't coming out as they did when I had swingdings installed. Is there a different text you have to use to make barlines with the new text?

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #8 –
G'day Shigglebiddy,
just thought I'd butt in while you are still online...

When you say barlines, do you really mean barlines or do you mean the rest symbols?

Barlines are unaffected by my fonts, they are drawn by NWC.

The characters for the rest symbols are consistent throughout all 3 of my suites - they are designed to be interchangeable, even to the horizontal space they consume.

Perhaps you can post a copy of part of the NWC file and I can have a look.
I plays 'Bones, crumpets, coronets, floosgals, youfonymums 'n tubies.
 

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #9 –
Warren, thanks for the reference - I didn't know Boxmarks and Boxmark2 could make boxed numbers, that's really cool.   Also your detailed printing preparation instructions are something I plan to read.  Looks like really good stuff. 

Shigglebiddy, I'd like to see what you mean too, please.

Lawrie is the person who's done all the hard work on this, I just reaped the benefits, and made a template using his version of the MBR instead of the Boxmark2 which I've been happily using for years.  It was only for a project I was working to make it easier for me, but I thought it come in handy for others. 

I have to agree with Lawrie - I can't see why there'd be a difference in the bar lines, unless you changed the bar line properties or staff style.  You could take a look at Tools/Options/Colours and see if you changed the colour of the Active Hidden Notation and  Inactive Hidden Notation, since my template uses hidden bar lines (i.e., Properties/Visibility = Never). 

Would you mind taking a screen shot of your score in the edit window and again in the print preview window, and then post these as attachments to your reply?  Use Alt and PrtScrn to capture the screen in your clipboard, then paste it into any image program, save it as GIF file, and attach that.

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #10 –
Thanks David. Lawrie helped me get it figured out. I did mean multi measure rests, not barlines. There wasn't anything wrong with the barlines. The problem was I didn't have the right font selected. Thanks for your help though.

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #11 –
Quote from: David Palmquist –
Use Alt and PrtScrn to capture the screen in your clipboard, then paste it into any image program, save it as GIF file, and attach that.

You ought not ask us lowly Members to attach things. We can't.
Registered user since 1996

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #12 –
Don't know if this is helpful, but here goes:

Quote
Users who are eligible to join the NWC2 Beta can now upgrade their community membership to receive additional privileges, such as posting attachments and modifying various profile settings. Simply complete the NWC2 Beta enrollment wizard...Some notes:  ...You can determine your eligibility for the NWC2 Beta from the NWC2 Beta Eligibility page

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #13 –
Quote from: David Palmquist –
Warren, thanks for the reference - I didn't know Boxmarks and Boxmark2 could make boxed numbers, that's really cool.   Also your detailed printing preparation instructions are something I plan to read.  Looks like really good stuff. 
Thank you, I'm glad to know it's useful.  It was originally a user tip on just multi-measure rests, but just expanded to where long rests would most likely be used.
Since 1998

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #14 –
Just a note about the "break" in the Multi-measure symbol in Boxmarks.

The font was built this way because that is how I use it.
However it was designed so that a unbroken symbol could be created simply by leaving out the number text.
The gap in the middle should be covered exactly by the measure rest.
The number can then be added above the symbol as text.

That was a long, long time ago and NWC still doesn't include multi-measure rests; an essential item in any notation software.

Re: Multi Measure Rests

Reply #15 –
Well David, you gave it a shot!