Lyric Extenders on Long Vowels

For those who need help with notation issues. (Please use the other available forums for help with software issues.)
Post Reply
DatOrganistTho
Posts: 192
Joined: 19 Jan 2016, 17:30

Lyric Extenders on Long Vowels

Post by DatOrganistTho »

I'm typesetting this portion of the "Kyrie" for a composer, and I noticed he has long melismas on open vowels (see below).
Kyrie Eleison problem.png
Kyrie Eleison problem.png (173.19 KiB) Viewed 8796 times
Kyrie Eleison problem 2.png
Kyrie Eleison problem 2.png (115.71 KiB) Viewed 8796 times
My question is, is it acceptable to leave them without extenders? Technically that follows the "rules." Also, words that end in consonants but are not technically melismas (but end on a tied note) should also not be extended?
Kyrie Eleison problem 3.png
Kyrie Eleison problem 3.png (41.09 KiB) Viewed 8796 times
Thanks!
LilyPond Lover
Composer and Transcriber
Teacher and Performer
benwiggy
Posts: 834
Joined: 11 Apr 2016, 19:42

Re: Lyric Extenders on Long Vowels

Post by benwiggy »

I would suggest that it is not acceptable to do without extension lines. The work tends to look unfinished without. Whatever the merits or usefulness of the practice, it is what singers expect, and anything unexpected is a source of confusion.

Extensions should be used on the last syllable, if it has more than one note. Whether it is a vowel or a consonant is irrelevant.
DatOrganistTho
Posts: 192
Joined: 19 Jan 2016, 17:30

Re: Lyric Extenders on Long Vowels

Post by DatOrganistTho »

benwiggy wrote:I would suggest that it is not acceptable to do without extension lines. The work tends to look unfinished without. Whatever the merits or usefulness of the practice, it is what singers expect, and anything unexpected is a source of confusion.

Extensions should be used on the last syllable, if it has more than one note. Whether it is a vowel or a consonant is irrelevant.
Thank you for your input. I gather that is what is the case. I can't remember where I heard that "rule" but I just looked it up and it seems to be the case that extenders apply to all words, regardless if they end in consonants or vowels.
LilyPond Lover
Composer and Transcriber
Teacher and Performer
benwiggy
Posts: 834
Joined: 11 Apr 2016, 19:42

Re: Lyric Extenders on Long Vowels

Post by benwiggy »

I would have expected Lilypond to handle extensions correctly by default.

If you're looking for a good book of music engraving rules, I can recommend Elaine Gould's "Behind bars", from Faber Music.
User avatar
tisimst
Posts: 416
Joined: 08 Oct 2015, 17:57
Location: UT, USA
Contact:

Re: Lyric Extenders on Long Vowels

Post by tisimst »

benwiggy wrote:I would have expected Lilypond to handle extensions correctly by default.
The current LilyPond default requires you to manually indicate where the extensions should be. It's easy to do, but you do need to remember to when and where to do it. At least there's the flexibility.

There are a small handful of developers who are currently working on automatic lyric extension lines, but judging by the back-and-forth about it, I suspect it won't be incorporated into a development release for at least a few more micro releases.
Music Typeface Designer & Engraver - LilyPond | Sibelius | Finale | MuseScore | Dorico | SMuFL | Inkscape | FontForge
DatOrganistTho
Posts: 192
Joined: 19 Jan 2016, 17:30

Re: Lyric Extenders on Long Vowels

Post by DatOrganistTho »

benwiggy wrote:I would have expected Lilypond to handle extensions correctly by default.

If you're looking for a good book of music engraving rules, I can recommend Elaine Gould's "Behind bars", from Faber Music.
LilyPond isn't automated, but that's okay. I'm aware of the rules right now, and it wasn't LilyPond's fault but the engraver. :D

I have this book, and for some reason I could have sworn I saw what I mentioned earlier in it. I just checked it today (along with the Stone, Read, Heussenstamm, and Wood).
LilyPond Lover
Composer and Transcriber
Teacher and Performer
Post Reply