Kathleen
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You can do a quick internet search to find free music notation software.
MuseScore is one option. There are several others that will pop up with a simple Google search.
Hi Mary and thanks for your question.
I follow the same rules with word sign expressions for choral ensemble music as I do for instrumental ensemble music. So yes, long word sign expressions can be placed above the parallel between the lyrics and the first line of the music score.
Hi Robert,
This looks correct to me! (Except for your first octave indicators in the vocal line and right hand should be 4 not 3.)
Kathleen
Hi Susan! I'll jump in, too! Since there is a comma after the time signature, you'll use the dot 6 literary comma. Follow this by a space and then use the music code terminator, dots 56, 23 directly before the next braille word - this switches back to UEB.
Kathleen
Hi there,
I honestly have never used braille-only repeats in my transcriptions! But I think what you've done looks correct!
Hi there! Thank you for your patience while my committee and I hashed out these questions!
The consensus is that the time signature change should come before the measure. Before any repeats or Volta indicators. One indication of this is that we place the "heads up" meter changes on the line above when there is room - signaling that it is preceding the measure, not a part of it. (The only time we would place the meter change in the middle of a measure is if the meter actually changes mid-measure - which is indeed very rare.)
So the order would be: Hand signs - Meter/Key change - forward repeat sign - Volta - measure.
When I have a long word expression that coincides with the start of a first or second ending, I usually remove it to a line above the parallel in order to avoid using the hyphen after the voltas.
In the "Come Together" example, the forward repeat should come before the volta and I would not use the measure number repeat. It took me a few seconds longer than I would have like to figure out what was going on. The measure 1 repeat looks like another first ending. And when the order of signs is adjusted, the dropped 1 will look even more confusing after the dropped 3. I suppose if the reader has already encountered several repeats of measure 1 they might be prepared for it and it wouldn't look confusing, but I'm not sold on the idea.
If you end up choosing to use the measure number repeat here anyway, the full measure repeat after it would be better as another measure 1 repeat. I find it frustrating to send a reader back to a spot that is itself a different repeat device (even if it is just next door). If you braille out that first measure though, the full measure repeat would be fine.
And in the last example - I would not use the measure number repeat to show a repeat of measure 2. A couple of reasons - as I stated above, it looks like a second ending. And measure 2 is not at the margin, so it would most likely take longer for the reader to figure out that it is a measure number repeat and then find measure 2 again than it would for them to just read the braille for that measure. (It's not a complicated measure, anyway)
Always remember that just because you can use a repeat device or a shortcut doesn't mean you should. Clarity and ease of reading far surpasses saving two lines on a braille page.
I hope I answered all of your questions clearly! Please let me know what you think.
Thanks!
Kathleen
Hi Hollie,
Yes, that is the correct order. The hand signs in percussion are treated the same way as fingerings for other instruments. So they directly follow the note.
Yeah, that was what I thought it meant, as well. (I'm glad to know my musical instincts are still sharp!)
It's actually not logical according to the notation, as the player would normally hold onto the note through the tied 8th notes, but here the composer wants the release on the beat, so in essence, removing the tied note. (I've never encountered this in instrumental music, but it is a frequent occurrence in vocal music.)
This will require a transcriber's note, no matter what you choose to do. I think I might enclose the tied notes below the numbers in parentheses. That way the player knows it's there in print, but the indication is to cut off on that note rather than hold it. If you do this and explain what print looks like, you can then omit the number from the music line.
Let me know what you think!
Interesting - I have not seen this in Baritone music either. (I've seen it in string music but the baritone can't shift hand position so it certainly doesn't mean that!!)
My best guess is that it means to cut off on beat 4 and beat 3, respectively, but that's just my initial interpretation based on the music. I wouldn't dream of putting that in as the way it should be interpreted. I think in this case you can use your judgement as to how you want to indicate it. Either as a footnote with a TN explaining at each instance or as a word sign expression in parentheses following the note. If you use parentheses, you may want to add a TN before the music saying that you've done that. Otherwise the reader will have no idea that it comes above the notes and is not enclosed in parentheses in print.
Hope that helps!
Kathleen
Good morning!
Your braille is very close! Instead of the lower cell numbers for the verses, use upper cell numbers enclosed in UEB parentheses. Check out example 35.7.3-1 in the Code.
(And you need a blank cell after the dot 3 measure continuation number! The dot 3 only takes the place of the blank cell in bar over bar keyboard format.)
Thanks!
Kathleen
Good morning!
I don't see anything in the Code that prohibits a run-over in the right hand when you have chord symbols with piano music. Of course, you wouldn't be able to use a run-over in the left hand, so I would try and keep it to a minimum in the right hand as well.
The page turn indicator would go on a line by itself indented two cells after the hand signs if it doesn't fit in both lines aligned. So your placement is correct in your examples! (Remember that you do not need the actual page number unless there are two or more print page turns on a single braille page.)
Kathleen
Hi there!
Couple of things I noticed - in vocal music, measure number repeats are not used. So at the lyrics "If I'd been out till..." you can't use the lower-cell 5-6. You must braille it out. (see Music Braille Code 35.8)
I usually put CODA fully caps, at the start of the word line, not enclosed in word-sign indicators (to match what we do with REFRAIN and CHORUS etc.)
The verse numbers of just text at the end should be enclosed in literary parentheses, not word-sign indicators.
Ok - now to your actual question! If I start to struggle figuring out the repeat structure and which lyrics go where, I will braille it out completely, rather than have several lines of two verses together - and in this case the song has three verses, so that's not really a possibility! I tend to use more measure numbers than is "required" by the Code. Especially if there are Brailled-out repeats - having more frequent measure numbers can help the reader figure out where they are. And if they also have the piano score, which has numbers for every parallel, there will be more points of connection if the vocal score has measure numbers as well. (FYI - in choral music and ensemble music I put measure numbers on every line! It helps a great deal when a braille-reading musician is collaborating with print-reading musicians who can easily say, let's start at measure 14!)
So basically, once these pop songs start adding more than one verse with more than one Volta, I braille everything out. You'll find it doesn't require that much more space and will reduce complications a bunch.
All the best!
Kathleen
Hi there,
I agree that in a piano-dominant format, showing the different syllable elision for a 2nd or 3rd verse seems unnecessarily complicated. If you are only doing the vocal part, perhaps it's worth it to show the differences in the verses, though.
I think your idea of adding "VERSE" and "VERSE ENDS" looks helpful. These pop songs with complicated repeat patterns are tricky enough as it is! I think readers would be thankful for a little extra help navigating.
(Just noticed that in the pickup measure, you have a half rest instead of a quarter rest!)
Hope that helps!
Kathleen
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Hi there! Thanks for the pdfs!</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Reminder - in bar-over-bar format, a backward-numeral repeat may only be used if the original and the repeat are in the same parallel. (See Music Braille Code 19.7) So you can’t use the 4/3 repeat at measure 5. You can, however, use a measure number repeat – you could use the lower number 1-3 to show that those three measure repeat. If you do that, definitely braille out the right hand of measure 3. It’s too complicated to send the reader back to a repeat that has a different repeat in it!</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">The use of the bar line between 19 and 20 is appropriate, since there is a coinciding blank space in all 3 lines of the parallel in the middle of the measure. And yes, also use the hyphens here, too. Not overkill at all – it’s actually helpful, I believe. Same at measure 55. The way you’ve transcribed this is correct.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Just a couple of things that I spotted while looking over this for your specific question - You don’t need to use the page number within the music line after measure 67. It’s the only page turn over on the braille page, so the number isn’t necessary.</p>
<p style="font-weight: 400;">Be sure your dot 3 separators after your hand signs are indeed dot 3s and not dot 6s! (m. 67 popped out)</p>
Hope that helps!Kathleen
