fingered tremolo

[hautbois baryton]

Hi all, what are your thoughts on the following fingered tremolo patterns (in 4/4)?

fingtrem1.jpg (103.94 KiB) Viewed 61937 times

The issues standing out to me are:

• A: The tremolos on the "and" of 2 can be confusing

• B: 3-beat tremolo hides beat 3 of the measure (this one looks okay to me)

• C: 2-beat tremolo hides beat 3 of the measure

[hautbois baryton]

(score page attached for context if you're interested)

[David Ward]

To me it all looks fine (and easy to read) in the score, but I suspect others may disagree.

[John Ruggero]

Looks good to me too. But I know what you mean about the syncopated ones (at A). Nothing I know to be done about it, though, since it's just the result of our system of writing tremolos.

[Shinohara Hoshi]

Generally speaking, I still feel it's better to break up tremolos rhythmically; personally, I also prefer to see things like this.

Tremolos.jpeg (885.65 KiB) Viewed 61858 times

Moreover, since other parts of your score are also broken up rhythmically, I think a uniform approach would be better. Doing so would allow the notes to align vertically, making them easier to read.
you need not worry about the breaks in the notation failing to represent a coherent performance; the phrase will still be played continuously and naturally in practice.

Additionally, I've noticed that the beams in the PDF you sent are too short, which is NG in engraving. It would be better to modify them to a uniform length for a more comfortable visual experience. However, if music engraving is not a concern, it might still be understandable as is.

NG.jpeg (307.27 KiB) Viewed 61907 times

[John Ruggero]

It may be a question of taste. To me, B and C lose some of the feeling of syncopation when the values are split up.

[Shinohara Hoshi]

If one strictly follows traditional music notation, the use of B and C is generally not practiced. In reality, the performance will sound continuous regardless, especially since a slur is added to indicate the phrasing, which is quite clear. Forcibly breaking the structure prescribed by the time signature could likely cause confusion for the conductor, leading to a loss amidst the beats.

However, I do not deny that this might be readable to some; I am merely offering my opinion. The specific approach you choose is up to you.

[hautbois baryton]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone! I will review this passage when I do the final pagination and cleanup.

[MichelRE]

Add my vote for making beat divisions clear.
I tend to avoid the use of too many syncopations.
I particularly dislike B and C in the OP's post.

[hautbois baryton]

Interesting that the "too short" issue with beams, pointed out by @Shinohara Hoshi above, seems to be built into the Easy Tremolos plug-in itself. When the second note has an accidental on it, the 16th and 32nd beams get excessively shortened.