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Topic: Triplet Brackets (Read 3511 times) previous topic - next topic

Triplet Brackets

An oddity that doesn't seem to have come up before.

If you turn a quaver crotchet combination into a triplet then the bracket only extends as far as the crotchet, whereas Alfred shows clearly that it should extend to the end of the triplet range – i.e. as if there were three quavers.

Re: Triplet Brackets

Reply #1 –
I not only don't think that's necessary, I think it could be misleading. It could cause you to read the crochet as if it were a quaver. Remember that clarity and ease of reading for the performer is always the primary goal of good notation.

Re: Triplet Brackets

Reply #2 –
If you absolutely must have this look:

Code: (nwc) [Select · Download]
!NoteWorthyComposerClip(2.74974,Single)
|Note|Dur:8th,Triplet=First|Pos:0|Opts:Stem=Up
|RestChord|Dur:8th,Triplet|Opts:Stem=Down,ArticulationsOnStem,HideRest|Dur2:4th|Pos2:2
|Note|Dur:8th,Triplet=End|Pos:-3z|Opts:Stem=Up,StemLength=0,Muted
!NoteWorthyComposerClip-End

Play back won't be quite right, though...

Re: Triplet Brackets

Reply #3 –
William, I don't understand your comment at all. There is absolutely no danger of it looking like a quaver, and it is much more misleading to have a three quaver triplet in one part seemingly of a different length to a triplet quaver crotchet in the other.

It seemed wrong when I was transcribing it, so I looked it up in Alfred where the correct treatment is very clearly shown.

Re: Triplet Brackets

Reply #4 –
Gotta say I'm with Bill on this one.  Seeing that bracket ending in the middle of nowhere would certainly have me looking for the missing whatever.

That said, I did check with Alfred's and a couple of others I found online and they all agree, but in practice I'm not sure I've ever seen it in the real world.  Although, thinking about that, I'm not sure I've seen quaver/crotchet triplets in real life either... I've certainly seen crotchet/quaver ones but there would be no bracket gap for that anyway.

I plays 'Bones, crumpets, coronets, floosgals, youfonymums 'n tubies.

Re: Triplet Brackets

Reply #5 –
Here's the word from the Music Publishers' Association, as stated in their pamphlet "Standard Music Notation Practice" (Music Publishers' Association of the United States, Inc., 1966 and 1993):
Quote
In complex modern music it is often necessary to place [tuplet] brackets in rhythmically correct positions for clearer reading.
I've attached a screen capture of the relevant part of the document, including the musical illustration, which shows the situation that Peter describes.

That said, and having tried it both ways in NWC, I still find quaver-crochet triplet brackets easier to read without the extension - although I can see the possibility of exceptions in particularly complex situations. And the MPA does say "it is often necessary," not "it is required." I think NWC's practice is fine the way it is.