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Topic: Measures and Lines (Read 7249 times) previous topic - next topic

Measures and Lines

The particular music I am working with (religious music) is usually written so that each line is not, usually, a complete measure. This is possible because the music doesn't have a time signature. When the line does not end with a complete measure, a dotted bar line usually appears at the end of the line. I know for a fact that other notation softwares can handle this, and I was wondering whether Noteworthy was capable of using dotted bar lines. If not, that would be a good option to write into the next upgrade.

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #1 –
Noteworthy doesn't handle partial bars. There isn't much point in trying to force this condition, as partial bars are not a real viable convention in music notation. The solution to avoiding those is to write bigger or smaller so that you can end a line with a bar line. Windows programs handle fonts well enough that there is no reason to wish for this facility.

Maybe I'm old-world, but where's the lure in this? Why would this ever be wished for? It's the result of a lack of ability to make it fit in the space provided.

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #2 –
This ability is wished for because I want to space the music out with words instead of notes. In this particular situation most of the choir members know the notes, so they have to read the words. It's easier to read words that are evenly spaced.

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #3 –
Kent, you're not *old-world* enough :-)
In case of psalmody, what Zach requires is needed indeed. And adding a decorated bar line which would be partial would save him/us from the trouble he's in.
And |O| notes (double whole or "ronde carrée") would help much too ! This kinda note have no specific duration, it's used to sing all the text that needs to be sung. Usually the note change is indicated by an underlined letter... which is not easy to do (yet).

Zach, by the way, there is something that you can use though : put a normal bar line where you want the staff to break, and adjust the margins until it is just off of the printing area... It's tricky but does work ! But do it when you finished everything else on that score, since you'd probably have to do it again if you change something elsewhere.

Hope this helps

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #4 –
The partial bar line problem is related to forcing line breaks at specific places. Most people using Noteworthy have wished the ability to force a line break at a specific measure. But if I understand what Zach wants to do, he wants to force line breaks within a staff of unmeasured music and then decorate the end of the lines with the dotted bar. I don't think that would be a trivial fix.

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #5 –
So long as you don't accidentally press Audit Bar Lines, I think NWC handles unmeasured music fine with normal bar lines. Why not just use those (and explain their use to you choir readers for now), and put on the wish list the ability to decorate the bar line as a "dotted" bar?

Andrew

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #6 –
Zach,
in the cases you need a partial bar line but not at the end of a score line, you can "draw" it :
insert a teXt item using the "|" character, font "Page Small Text". Either use one, Staff pos. 0, or use two (staff pos. 2 and staff pos. -2), the first preserving width in order to be over the 2nd item.

Hope this helps,
                  Dominique

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #7 –
i need help on quarter notes and quarter rest and whole notes and whole rest

Re: Measures and Lines

Reply #8 –
Quarter notes are entered by moving the cursor up or down to the correct position, then pressing 3 and enter.  The next quarter note, you just press enter.

Quarter rests are done with 3 and space.

Whole notes are the same, except then number 1 is used instead of 3.

Does this answer your question?