1 @c -*- coding: utf-8; mode: texinfo; -*-
4 Translation of GIT committish: FILL-IN-HEAD-COMMITTISH
6 When revising a translation, copy the HEAD committish of the
7 version that you are working on. See TRANSLATION for details.
15 Negative numbers are allowed:
16 > Are you sure? The following works well
18 > first-page-number = -2
20 > and prints page number -1 on the second page, for example.
23 In 5.2.1 the @refbugs (line 495 in spacing.itely on master) it
26 "@code{layout-set-staff-size} does not change the distance between
30 Could we add a sentence:
31 "Use instead the pair fontSize = #@var{N}
32 \override StaffSymbol #'staff-space = #(magstep
34 inside the Staff context to change the size of the font and the
36 staff lines accordingly."
38 Actually I found, that the @internalsref{StaffSymbol} at line 481
39 sends to an uncomplete
40 documentation. The property staff-space is not explained here. I
41 thought Y-extent might be of
42 help, but it is in turn explained by x-space which again is
43 missing from the list. Who has the
44 knowledge to fix this?
48 http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/detail?id=68
54 @chapter Spacing issues
56 The global paper layout is determined by three factors: the page layout, the
57 line breaks, and the spacing. These all influence each other. The
58 choice of spacing determines how densely each system of music is set.
59 This influences where line breaks are chosen, and thus ultimately, how
60 many pages a piece of music takes.
62 Globally speaking, this procedure happens in four steps: first,
63 flexible distances (@q{springs}) are chosen, based on durations. All
64 possible line breaking combinations are tried, and a @q{badness} score
65 is calculated for each. Then the height of each possible system is
66 estimated. Finally, a page breaking and line breaking combination is chosen
67 so that neither the horizontal nor the vertical spacing is too cramped
70 Settings which influence layout may be placed in two blocks.
71 The @code{\paper @{...@}} block is placed outside any
72 @code{\score @{...@}} blocks and contains settings that
73 relate to the entire document. The @code{\layout @{...@}}
74 block is placed within a @code{\score @{...@}} block and
75 contains settings for that particular score. If you have
76 only one @code{\score @{...@}} block the two have the same
77 effect. In general the commands shown in this chapter can
85 * Horizontal spacing::
86 * Fitting music onto fewer pages::
91 @section Paper and pages
93 This section deals with the boundaries that define the area
94 within which music can be printed.
103 @subsection Paper size
108 Two functions are available for changing the paper size:
109 @code{set-default-paper-size} and @code{set-paper-size}.
110 @code{set-default-paper-size} must be placed in the toplevel
111 scope, and @code{set-paper-size} must be placed in a @code{\paper}
115 #(set-default-paper-size "a4")
120 #(set-paper-size "a4")
125 @code{set-default-paper-size} sets the size of all pages, whereas
126 @code{set-paper-size} only sets the size of the pages that the
127 @code{\paper} block applies to. For example, if the @code{\paper}
128 block is at the top of the file, then it will apply the paper size
129 to all pages. If the @code{\paper} block is inside a
130 @code{\book}, then the paper size will only apply to that book.
132 Common paper sizes are available, including @code{a4},
133 @code{letter}, @code{legal}, and @code{11x17} (also known as
134 tabloid). Many more paper sizes are supported by default. For
135 details, see @file{scm/@/paper@/.scm}, and search for the
136 definition of @code{paper-alist}.
138 @c TODO add a new appendix for paper sizes (auto-generated) -pm
140 @warning{The default paper size is @code{a4}.}
142 Extra sizes may be added by editing the definition of
143 @code{paper-alist} in the initialization file
144 @file{scm/@/paper@/.scm}, however they will be overridden on a
150 If the symbol @code{'landscape} is supplied as an argument to
151 @code{set-default-paper-size}, pages will be rotated by 90
152 degrees, and wider line widths will be set accordingly.
155 #(set-default-paper-size "a6" 'landscape)
158 Setting the paper size will adjust a number of @code{\paper}
159 variables, such as margins. To use a particular paper size with
160 altered @code{\paper} variables, set the paper size before setting
166 @file{scm/@/paper@/.scm}.
172 @node Page formatting
173 @subsection Page formatting
175 Margins, headers, and footers and other layout variables are
176 automatically set according to the paper size.
178 This section lists and describes a number of paper variables that
182 * Vertical dimensions::
183 * Horizontal dimensions::
184 * Other layout variables::
188 @node Vertical dimensions
189 @unnumberedsubsubsec Vertical dimensions
191 These variables are used to set different vertical dimensions on a
198 @item after-title-space
199 @funindex after-title-space
201 The amount of space between the title and the first system.
202 Default: @code{5\mm}.
204 @item before-title-space
205 @funindex before-title-space
207 Amount of space between the last system of the previous piece and the
208 title of the next. Default: @code{10\mm}.
210 @item between-system-padding
211 @funindex between-system-padding
213 The minimum amount of white space that will always be present
214 between the bottom-most symbol of one system, and the top-most of
215 the next system. Default: @code{4\mm}.
217 Increasing this will put systems whose bounding boxes almost touch
220 @item between-system-space
221 @funindex between-system-space
223 The distance between systems. It is the ideal distance between
224 the center of the bottom staff of one system and the center of the
225 top staff of the next system. Default: @code{20\mm}.
227 Increasing this value will provide a more even appearance of the
228 page at the cost of using more vertical space.
230 @item between-title-space
231 @funindex between-title-space
233 Amount of space between consecutive titles (e.g., the title of the
234 book and the title of a piece). Default: @code{2\mm}.
237 @funindex bottom-margin
239 The margin between footer and bottom of the page. Default:
242 @item foot-separation
243 @funindex foot-separation
245 Distance between the bottom-most music system and the page
246 footer. Default: @code{4\mm}.
248 @item head-separation
249 @funindex head-separation
251 Distance between the header markup (@code{oddHeaderMarkup} and
252 @code{evenHeaderMarkup}) and the title markup
253 (@code{bookTitleMarkup}, @code{title}, and others). If the header
254 markup and title markup are not present, it is the distance
255 between @code{top-margin} and the spot where the title markup
256 would normally appear. Default: @code{4\mm}.
259 @funindex page-top-space
261 Distance from the top of the printable area to the center of the
262 first staff. This only works for staves that are vertically
263 small. Big staves are set with the top of their bounding box
264 aligned to the top of the printable area. Default: @code{12\mm}.
267 @funindex paper-height
269 The height of the page. Default: the height of the current paper
270 size. For details, see @ref{Paper size}.
275 The margin between header and top of the page. Default:
283 The header and footer are created by the functions make-footer and
284 make-header, defined in \paper. The default implementations are in
285 ly/paper-defaults.ly and ly/titling-init.ly.
287 The page layout itself is done by two functions in the \paper block,
288 page-music-height and page-make-stencil. The former tells the
289 line-breaking algorithm how much space can be spent on a page, the
290 latter creates the actual page given the system to put on it.
292 You can define paper block values in Scheme. In that case mm, in, pt,
293 and cm are variables defined in paper-defaults.ly with values in
294 millimeters. That is why the value 2 cm must be multiplied in the
299 #(define bottom-margin (* 2 cm))
311 ragged-last-bottom = ##t
315 This second example centers page numbers at the bottom of every page.
319 print-page-number = ##t
320 print-first-page-number = ##t
321 oddHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line @{ " " @}
322 evenHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line @{ " " @}
323 oddFooterMarkup = \markup @{ \fill-line @{
324 \bold \fontsize #3 \on-the-fly #print-page-number-check-first
325 \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string @} @}
326 evenFooterMarkup = \markup @{ \fill-line @{
327 \bold \fontsize #3 \on-the-fly #print-page-number-check-first
328 \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string @} @}
332 You can also define these values in Scheme. In that case @code{mm},
333 @code{in}, @code{pt}, and @code{cm} are variables defined in
334 @file{paper-defaults.ly} with values in millimeters. That is why the
335 value must be multiplied in the example
339 #(define bottom-margin (* 2 cm))
343 The header and footer are created by the functions @code{make-footer}
344 and @code{make-header}, defined in @code{\paper}. The default
345 implementations are in @file{ly/@/paper@/-defaults@/.ly} and
346 @file{ly/@/titling@/-init@/.ly}.
348 The page layout itself is done by two functions in the
349 @code{\paper} block, @code{page-music-height} and
350 @code{page-make-stencil}. The former tells the line-breaking algorithm
351 how much space can be spent on a page, the latter creates the actual
352 page given the system to put on it.
357 @ref{Vertical spacing between systems}.
363 @node Horizontal dimensions
364 @unnumberedsubsubsec Horizontal dimensions
366 @warning{If @code{paper-width} is manually set, @code{line-width},
367 @code{left-margin}, @code{indent}, and @code{short-indent} may
368 have to be adjusted as well.}
370 There are a few variables that determine the horizontal dimensions
375 @item horizontal-shift
376 @funindex horizontal-shift
378 The amount that all systems (including titles and system
379 separators) are shifted to the right. Default: @code{0.0}.
384 The level of indentation for the first system in a score.
385 Default: @code{paper-width} divided by @code{14}, as determined by
386 @code{set-default-paper-size} or @code{set-paper-size}.
389 @funindex left-margin
391 The margin between the left edge of the page and the beginning of
392 each system. Default: @code{10\mm}, as determined by
393 @code{set-default-paper-size} or @code{set-paper-size}.
398 The width of music systems. Default: @code{paper-width} minus
399 @code{20\mm}, as determined by @code{set-default-paper-size} or
400 @code{set-paper-size}.
403 @funindex paper-width
405 The width of the page. Default: the width of the current paper
406 size. For details, see @ref{Paper size}.
409 @funindex short-indent
411 The level of indentation for all systems in a score besides the
412 first system. Default: @code{0}, as determined by
413 @code{set-default-paper-size} or @code{set-paper-size}.
425 The option @code{right-margin} is defined but doesn't set the
426 right margin yet. The value for the right margin has to be
427 defined by adjusting the values of @code{left-margin} and
431 @node Other layout variables
432 @unnumberedsubsubsec Other layout variables
434 These variables can be used to adjust page layout in general.
438 @item auto-first-page-number
439 @funindex auto-first-page-number
441 The page breaking algorithm is affected by the first page number
442 being odd or even. If set to true, the page breaking algorithm
443 will decide whether to start with an odd or even number. This
444 will result in the first page number remaining as is or being
445 increased by one. Default: @code{##f}.
449 FIXME: this variable is used, but I don't know what it does. -pm
450 @item blank-after-score-page-force
451 @funindex blank-after-score-page-force
457 @item blank-last-page-force
458 @funindex blank-last-page-force
460 The penalty for ending the score on an odd-numbered page.
463 @item blank-page-force
464 @funindex blank-page-force
466 The penalty for having a blank page in the middle of a
467 score. This is not used by @code{ly:optimal-breaking} since it will
468 never consider blank pages in the middle of a score. Default:
471 @item first-page-number
472 @funindex first-page-number
474 The value of the page number on the first page. Default:
477 @item max-systems-per-page
478 The maximum number of systems that will be placed on a page. This
479 is currently supported only by the @code{ly:optimal-breaking} algorithm.
482 @item min-systems-per-page
483 The minimum number of systems that will be placed on a page. This
484 may cause pages to be overfilled if it is made too large. This is
485 currently supported only by the @code{ly:optimal-breaking} algorithm.
488 @item page-breaking-between-system-padding
489 @funindex page-breaking-between-system-padding
491 Tricks the page breaker into thinking that
492 @code{between-system-padding} is set to something different than
493 it really is. For example, if this variable is set to something
494 substantially larger than @code{between-system-padding}, then the
495 page-breaker will put fewer systems on each page. Default: unset.
500 The number of pages to be used for a score. Default: unset.
502 @item page-limit-inter-system-space
503 @funindex page-limit-inter-system-space
505 If set to true, limits space between systems on a page with a lot
506 of space left. Default: @code{##f}. For details, see
507 @ref{Vertical spacing between systems}.
509 @item page-limit-inter-system-space-factor
510 @funindex page-limit-inter-system-space-factor
512 The factor used by @code{page-limit-inter-system-space}. Default:
513 @code{1.4}. For details, see
514 @ref{Vertical spacing between systems}.
516 @item page-spacing-weight
517 @funindex page-spacing-weight
519 The relative importance of page (vertical) spacing and line
520 (horizontal) spacing. High values will make page spacing more
521 important. Default: @code{#10}.
523 @item print-all-headers
524 @funindex print-all-headers
526 If set to true, this will print all headers for each \score in the
527 output. Normally only the piece and opus header variables are
528 printed. Default: @code{##f}.
530 @item print-first-page-number
531 @funindex print-first-page-number
533 If set to true, a page number is printed on the first page.
536 @item print-page-number
537 @funindex print-page-number
539 If set to false, page numbers are not printed. Default:
543 @funindex ragged-bottom
545 If set to true, systems will not spread vertically across the
546 page. This does not affect the last page. Default: @code{##f}.
548 This should be set to true for pieces that have only two or three
549 systems per page, for example orchestral scores.
552 @funindex ragged-last
554 If set to true, the last system in the score will not fill the
555 line width. Instead the last system ends at its natural
556 horizontal length. Default: @code{##f}.
558 @item ragged-last-bottom
559 @funindex ragged-last-bottom
561 If set to false, systems will spread vertically across the last
562 page. Default: @code{##t}.
564 Pieces that amply fill two pages or more should have this set to
567 It also affects the last page of book parts, ie parts of a book created
568 with @code{\bookpart} blocks.
571 @funindex ragged-right
573 If set to true, systems will not fill the line width. Instead,
574 systems end at their natural horizontal length. Default:
577 If the score has only one system, the default value is @code{##t}.
579 @item system-separator-markup
580 @funindex system-separator-markup
582 A markup object that is inserted between systems. This is often
583 used for orchestral scores. Default: unset.
585 The markup command @code{\slashSeparator} is provided as a sensible
588 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right]
589 #(set-default-paper-size "a6" 'landscape)
592 \relative { c1 \break c1 }
595 system-separator-markup = \slashSeparator
601 @funindex system-count
603 The number of systems to be used for a score.
606 @item systems-per-page
607 @funindex systems-per-page
609 The number of systems that should be placed on each page.
610 This is currently supported only by the @code{ly:optimal-breaking} algorithm.
623 The default page header puts the page number and the @code{instrument}
624 field from the @code{\header} block on a line.
626 The titles (from the @code{\header@{@}} section) are treated as a
627 system, so @code{ragged-bottom} and @code{ragged-last-bottom} will
628 add space between the titles and the first system of the score.
632 @section Music layout
635 * Setting the staff size::
640 @node Setting the staff size
641 @subsection Setting the staff size
643 @cindex font size, setting
644 @cindex staff size, setting
645 @funindex layout file
647 The default @strong{staff size} is set to 20 points.
648 This may be changed in two ways:
650 To set the staff size globally for all scores in a file (or
651 in a @code{book} block, to be precise), use @code{set-global-staff-size}.
654 #(set-global-staff-size 14)
658 This sets the global default size to 14pt staff height and scales all
661 To set the staff size individually for each score, use
666 #(layout-set-staff-size 15)
671 The Feta font provides musical symbols at eight different
672 sizes. Each font is tuned for a different staff size: at a smaller size
673 the font becomes heavier, to match the relatively heavier staff lines.
674 The recommended font sizes are listed in the following table:
677 @multitable @columnfractions .15 .2 .22 .2
680 @tab @b{staff height (pt)}
681 @tab @b{staff height (mm)}
723 @c modern rental material?
728 These fonts are available in any sizes. The context property
729 @code{fontSize} and the layout property @code{staff-space} (in
730 @rinternals{StaffSymbol}) can be used to tune the size for individual
731 staves. The sizes of individual staves are relative to the global size.
736 @ref{Selecting notation font size}.
744 @code{layout-set-staff-size} does not change the distance between the
749 @subsection Score layout
753 While @code{\paper} contains settings that relate to the page formatting
754 of the whole document, @code{\layout} contains settings for score-specific
761 \override VerticalAxisGroup #'minimum-Y-extent = #'(-6 . 6)
764 \override TextScript #'padding = #1.0
765 \override Glissando #'thickness = #3
773 @ref{Changing context default settings}.
785 * Optimal page breaking::
786 * Optimal page turning::
787 * Minimal page breaking::
789 * Using an extra voice for breaks::
794 @subsection Line breaking
797 @cindex breaking lines
799 Line breaks are normally determined automatically. They are chosen
800 so that lines look neither cramped nor loose, and consecutive
801 lines have similar density. Occasionally you might want to
802 override the automatic breaks; you can do this by specifying
803 @code{\break}. This will force a line break at this point. However,
804 line breaks can only occur at the end of @q{complete} bars, i.e.,
805 where there are no notes or tuplets left @q{hanging} over the bar
806 line. If you want to have a line break where there is no bar line,
807 you can force an invisible bar line by entering @code{\bar ""},
808 although again there must be no notes left hanging over in any of
809 the staves at this point, or it will be ignored.
811 The opposite command, @code{\noBreak}, forbids a line break at the
812 bar line where it is inserted.
814 The most basic settings influencing line spacing are @code{indent}
815 and @code{line-width}. They are set in the @code{\layout} block.
816 They control the indentation of the first line of music, and the
817 lengths of the lines.
819 If @code{ragged-right} is set to true in the @code{\layout} block,
820 then systems end at their natural horizontal length, instead of
821 being spread horizontally to fill the whole line. This is useful
822 for short fragments, and for checking how tight the natural
825 @c TODO Check and add para on default for ragged-right
827 The option @code{ragged-last} is similar to @code{ragged-right},
828 but affects only the last line of the piece.
840 @cindex regular line breaks
841 @cindex four bar music.
843 For line breaks at regular intervals use @code{\break} separated by
844 skips and repeated with @code{\repeat}. For example, this would
845 cause the following 28 measures (assuming 4/4 time) to be broken
846 every 4 measures, and only there:
849 << \repeat unfold 7 @{
850 s1 \noBreak s1 \noBreak
851 s1 \noBreak s1 \break @}
852 @emph{the real music}
857 A linebreaking configuration can be saved as a @code{.ly} file
858 automatically. This allows vertical alignments to be stretched to
859 fit pages in a second formatting run. This is fairly new and
860 complicated. More details are available in
874 @rinternals{LineBreakEvent}.
882 Line breaks can only occur if there is a @q{proper} bar line. A note
883 which is hanging over a bar line is not proper, such as
885 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
886 c4 c2 << c2 {s4 \break } >> % this does nothing
887 c2 c4 | % a break here would work
888 c4 c2 c4 ~ \break % as does this break
892 This can be avoided by removing the @code{Forbid_line_break_engraver}.
893 Note that manually forced line breaks have to be added in parallel
896 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,verbatim]
898 \remove Forbid_line_break_engraver
900 c4 c2 << c2 {s4 \break } >> % now the break is allowed
905 Similarly, line breaks are normally forbidden when beams cross bar
906 lines. This behavior can be changed by setting
907 @code{\override Beam #'breakable = ##t}.
911 @subsection Page breaking
913 The default page breaking may be overridden by inserting
914 @code{\pageBreak} or @code{\noPageBreak} commands. These commands are
915 analogous to @code{\break} and @code{\noBreak}. They should be
916 inserted at a bar line. These commands force and forbid a page-break
917 from happening. Of course, the @code{\pageBreak} command also forces
920 The @code{\pageBreak} and @code{\noPageBreak} commands may also be
921 inserted at top-level, between scores and top-level markups.
923 There are also analogous settings to @code{ragged-right} and
924 @code{ragged-last} which have the same effect on vertical spacing:
925 @code{ragged-bottom} and @code{ragged-last-bottom}. If set to
926 @code{##t} the systems on all pages or just the last page
927 respectively will not be justified vertically.
929 For more details see @ref{Vertical spacing}.
931 Page breaks are computed by the @code{page-breaking} function. LilyPond
932 provides three algorithms for computing page breaks,
933 @code{ly:optimal-breaking}, @code{ly:page-turn-breaking} and
934 @code{ly:minimal-breaking}. The default is @code{ly:optimal-breaking},
935 but the value can be changed in the @code{\paper} block:
939 #(define page-breaking ly:page-turn-breaking)
943 @c TODO Check this -td
944 The old page breaking algorithm is called
945 @code{optimal-page-breaks}. If you are having trouble with the new page
946 breakers, you can enable the old one as a workaround.
950 When a book has many scores and pages, the page breaking problem may be
951 difficult to solve, requiring large processing time and memory. To ease
952 the page breaking process, @code{\bookpart} blocks are used to divide
953 the book into several parts: the page breaking occurs separately on each
954 part. Different page breaking functions may also be used in different
963 %% In a part consisting mostly of text,
964 %% ly:minimal-breaking may be prefered
965 #(define page-breaking ly:minimal-breaking)
967 \markup @{ @dots{} @}
971 %% In this part, consisting of music, the default optimal
972 %% page breaking function is used.
974 subtitle = "First movement"
985 @funindex \noPageBreak
995 @node Optimal page breaking
996 @subsection Optimal page breaking
998 @funindex ly:optimal-breaking
1000 The @code{ly:optimal-breaking} function is LilyPond's default method of
1001 determining page breaks. It attempts to find a page breaking that minimizes
1002 cramping and stretching, both horizontally and vertically. Unlike
1003 @code{ly:page-turn-breaking}, it has no concept of page turns.
1011 @node Optimal page turning
1012 @subsection Optimal page turning
1014 @funindex ly:page-turn-breaking
1016 Often it is necessary to find a page breaking configuration so that there is
1017 a rest at the end of every second page. This way, the musician can turn the
1018 page without having to miss notes. The @code{ly:page-turn-breaking} function
1019 attempts to find a page breaking minimizing cramping and stretching, but with
1020 the additional restriction that it is only allowed to introduce page turns
1021 in specified places.
1023 There are two steps to using this page breaking function. First, you
1024 must enable it in the @code{\paper} block, as explained in @ref{Page
1025 breaking}. Then you must tell the function where you would like to allow
1028 There are two ways to achieve the second step. First, you can specify each
1029 potential page turn manually, by inserting @code{\allowPageTurn} into your
1030 input file at the appropriate places.
1032 If this is too tedious, you can add a @code{Page_turn_engraver} to a Staff or
1033 Voice context. The @code{Page_turn_engraver} will scan the context for
1034 sections without notes (note that it does not scan for rests; it scans for
1035 the absence of notes. This is so that single-staff polyphony with rests in one
1036 of the parts does not throw off the @code{Page_turn_engraver}). When it finds
1037 a sufficiently long section without notes, the @code{Page_turn_engraver} will
1038 insert an @code{\allowPageTurn} at the final bar line in that section, unless
1039 there is a @q{special} bar line (such as a double bar), in which case the
1040 @code{\allowPageTurn} will be inserted at the final @q{special} bar line in
1043 @funindex minimumPageTurnLength
1044 The @code{Page_turn_engraver} reads the context property
1045 @code{minimumPageTurnLength} to determine how long a note-free section must
1046 be before a page turn is considered. The default value for
1047 @code{minimumPageTurnLength} is @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 1)}. If you want
1048 to disable page turns, you can set it to something very large.
1051 \new Staff \with @{ \consists "Page_turn_engraver" @}
1054 R1 | % a page turn will be allowed here
1056 \set Staff.minimumPageTurnLength = #(ly:make-moment 5 2)
1057 R1 | % a page turn will not be allowed here
1059 R1*2 | % a page turn will be allowed here
1064 @funindex minimumRepeatLengthForPageTurn
1065 The @code{Page_turn_engraver} detects volta repeats. It will only allow a page
1066 turn during the repeat if there is enough time at the beginning and end of the
1067 repeat to turn the page back. The @code{Page_turn_engraver} can also disable
1068 page turns if the repeat is very short. If you set the context property
1069 @code{minimumRepeatLengthForPageTurn} then the @code{Page_turn_engraver} will
1070 only allow turns in repeats whose duration is longer than this value.
1072 The page turning commands, @code{\pageTurn}, @code{\noPageTurn} and
1073 @code{\allowPageTurn}, may also be used at top-level, between scores and
1080 @funindex \noPageTurn
1082 @funindex \allowPageTurn
1083 @code{\allowPageTurn}.
1094 There should only be one @code{Page_turn_engraver} in a score. If there is more
1095 than one, they will interfere with each other.
1098 @node Minimal page breaking
1099 @subsection Minimal page breaking
1101 @funindex ly:minimal-breaking
1103 The @code{ly:minimal-breaking} function performs minimal computations to
1104 calculate the page breaking: it fills a page with as many systems as
1105 possible before moving to the next one. Thus, it may be preferred for
1106 scores with many pages, where the other page breaking functions could be
1107 too slow or memory demanding, or a lot of texts. It is enabled using:
1111 #(define page-breaking ly:minimal-breaking)
1121 @node Explicit breaks
1122 @subsection Explicit breaks
1124 Lily sometimes rejects explicit @code{\break} and @code{\pageBreak}
1125 commands. There are two commands to override this behavior:
1128 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-permission = ##f
1129 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'page-break-permission = ##f
1132 When @code{line-break-permission} is overridden to false, Lily will insert
1133 line breaks at explicit @code{\break} commands and nowhere else. When
1134 @code{page-break-permission} is overridden to false, Lily will insert
1135 page breaks at explicit @code{\pageBreak} commands and nowhere else.
1137 @lilypond[quote,verbatim]
1146 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-permission = ##f
1147 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'page-break-permission = ##f
1150 \repeat unfold 2 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1151 \repeat unfold 4 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1152 \repeat unfold 6 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1153 \repeat unfold 8 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \pageBreak
1154 \repeat unfold 8 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1155 \repeat unfold 6 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1156 \repeat unfold 4 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1157 \repeat unfold 2 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 }
1169 @node Using an extra voice for breaks
1170 @subsection Using an extra voice for breaks
1172 Line- and page-breaking information usually appears within note entry directly.
1177 \repeat unfold 2 @{ c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 @}
1179 \repeat unfold 3 @{ c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 @}
1184 This makes @code{\break} and @code{\pageBreak} commands easy to enter but mixes
1185 music entry with information that specifies how music should lay out
1186 on the page. You can keep music entry and line- and page-breaking
1187 information in two separate places by introducing an extra voice to
1188 contain the breaks. This extra voice
1189 contains only skips together with @code{\break}, @code{pageBreak} and other
1190 breaking layout information.
1192 @lilypond[quote,verbatim]
1202 \repeat unfold 2 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1203 \repeat unfold 3 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1204 \repeat unfold 6 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1205 \repeat unfold 5 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1211 This pattern becomes especially helpful when overriding
1212 @code{line-break-system-details} and the other useful but long properties of
1213 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumnGrob}, as explained in @ref{Vertical spacing}.
1215 @lilypond[quote,verbatim]
1220 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1221 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 0))
1224 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1225 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 35))
1228 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1229 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 70))
1232 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1233 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 105))
1237 \repeat unfold 2 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1238 \repeat unfold 3 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1239 \repeat unfold 6 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1240 \repeat unfold 5 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1249 @ref{Vertical spacing}.
1255 @node Vertical spacing
1256 @section Vertical spacing
1258 @cindex vertical spacing
1259 @cindex spacing, vertical
1261 Vertical spacing is controlled by three things: the amount of
1262 space available (i.e., paper size and margins), the amount of
1263 space between systems, and the amount of space between
1264 staves inside a system.
1267 * Vertical spacing inside a system::
1268 * Vertical spacing between systems::
1269 * Explicit staff and system positioning::
1270 * Two-pass vertical spacing::
1271 * Vertical collision avoidance::
1275 @node Vertical spacing inside a system
1276 @subsection Vertical spacing inside a system
1278 @cindex distance between staves
1279 @cindex staff distance
1280 @cindex space between staves
1281 @cindex space inside systems
1283 The height of each system is determined automatically. To prevent
1284 staves from bumping into each other, some minimum distances are set.
1285 By changing these, you can put staves closer together. This
1286 reduces the amount of space each system requires, and may result
1287 in having more systems per page.
1289 Normally staves are stacked vertically. To make staves maintain a
1290 distance, their vertical size is padded. This is done with the
1291 property @code{minimum-Y-extent}. When applied to a
1292 @rinternals{VerticalAxisGroup}, it controls the size of a horizontal
1293 line, such as a staff or a line of lyrics. @code{minimum-Y-extent}
1294 takes a pair of numbers, so
1295 if you want to make it smaller than its default @code{#'(-4 . 4)}
1299 \override Staff.VerticalAxisGroup #'minimum-Y-extent = #'(-3 . 3)
1303 This sets the vertical size of the current staff to 3 staff spaces on
1304 either side of the center staff line. The value @code{(-3 . 3)} is
1305 interpreted as an interval, where the center line is the 0, so the
1306 first number is generally negative. The numbers need not match;
1307 for example, the staff can be made larger at the bottom by setting
1308 it to @code{(-6 . 4)}.
1310 After page breaks are determined, the vertical spacing within each
1311 system is reevaluated in order to fill the page more evenly; if a page
1312 has space left over, systems are stretched in order to fill that space.
1313 The amount of stretching can be configured though the @code{max-stretch}
1314 property of the @rinternals{VerticalAlignment} grob. By default,
1315 @code{max-stretch} is set to zero, disabling stretching. To enable
1316 stretching, a sane value for @code{max-stretch}
1317 is @code{ly:align-interface::calc-max-stretch}.
1319 In some situations, you may want to stretch most of a system while
1320 leaving some parts fixed. For example, if a piano part occurs in the
1321 middle of an orchestral score, you may want to leave the piano staves
1322 close to each other while stretching the rest of the score. The
1323 @code{keep-fixed-while-stretching} property of
1324 @rinternals{VerticalAxisGroup} can be used to achieve this. When set
1325 to @code{##t}, this property keeps its staff (or line of lyrics) from
1326 moving relative to the one directly above it. In the example above,
1327 you would override @code{keep-fixed-while-stretching} to @code{##t} in
1328 the second piano staff:
1331 #(set-default-paper-size "a6")
1332 #(set-global-staff-size 14.0)
1336 ragged-last-bottom = ##f
1341 \override VerticalAlignment #'max-stretch = #ly:align-interface::calc-max-stretch
1348 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1349 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1350 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1355 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1357 \override VerticalAxisGroup #'keep-fixed-while-stretching = ##t
1364 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1365 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1372 Vertical alignment of staves is handled by the
1373 @code{VerticalAlignment} object. The context parameters
1374 specifying the vertical extent are described in connection with
1375 the @code{Axis_group_engraver}.
1382 @c @lsr{spacing,page-spacing.ly},
1383 @c @lsr{spacing,alignment-vertical-spacing.ly}.
1385 Internals Reference:
1386 @rinternals{VerticalAlignment},
1387 @rinternals{Axis_group_engraver}.
1390 @node Vertical spacing between systems
1391 @subsection Vertical spacing between systems
1393 Space between systems are controlled by four @code{\paper} variables,
1397 between-system-space = 1.5\cm
1398 between-system-padding = #1
1400 ragged-last-bottom=##f
1404 When only a couple of flat systems are placed on a page, the resulting
1405 vertical spacing may be non-elegant: one system at the top of the page,
1406 and the other at the bottom, with a huge gap between them. To avoid this
1407 situation, the space added between the systems can be limited. This
1408 feature is activated by setting to @code{#t} the
1409 @code{page-limit-inter-system-space} variable in the @code{\paper}
1410 block. The paper variable @code{page-limit-inter-system-space-factor}
1411 determines how much the space can be increased: for instance, the value
1412 @code{1.3} means that the space can be 30% larger than what it would be
1413 on a ragged-bottom page.
1415 In the following example, if the inter system space were not limited,
1416 the second system of page 1 would be placed at the page bottom. By
1417 activating the space limitation, the second system is placed closer to
1418 the first one. By setting @code{page-limit-inter-system-space-factor} to
1419 @code{1}, the spacing would the same as on a ragged-bottom page, like
1423 #(set-default-paper-size "a6")
1426 page-limit-inter-system-space = ##t
1427 page-limit-inter-system-space-factor = 1.3
1429 oddFooterMarkup = \markup "page bottom"
1430 evenFooterMarkup = \markup "page bottom"
1431 oddHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line {
1432 "page top" \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string }
1433 evenHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line {
1434 "page top" \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string }
1436 \new Staff << \repeat unfold 4 { g'4 g' g' g' \break }
1437 { s1*2 \pageBreak } >>
1447 @node Explicit staff and system positioning
1448 @subsection Explicit staff and system positioning
1450 One way to understand the @code{VerticalAxisGroup} and @code{\paper}
1451 settings explained in the previous two sections is as a collection of
1452 different settings that primarily concern the amount of vertical padding
1453 different staves and systems running down the page.
1455 It is possible to approach vertical spacing in a different way using
1456 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details}. Where
1457 @code{VerticalAxisGroup} and @code{\paper} settings specify vertical padding,
1458 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details} specifies exact
1459 vertical positions on the page.
1461 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details} accepts an associative
1462 list of five different settings:
1465 @item @code{X-offset}
1466 @item @code{Y-offset}
1467 @item @code{alignment-offsets}
1468 @item @code{alignment-extra-space}
1469 @item @code{fixed-alignment-extra-space}
1472 Grob overrides, including the overrides for @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn}
1473 below, can occur in any of three different places in an input file:
1476 @item in the middle of note entry directly
1477 @item in a @code{\context} block
1478 @item in the @code{\with} block
1481 When we override @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn}, we use the usual
1482 @code{\override} command in @code{\context} blocks and in the
1483 @code{\with} block. On the other hand, when we override
1484 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} in the middle of note entry,
1485 use the special @code{\overrideProperty} command. Here are some
1486 example @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} overrides with the special
1487 @code{\overrideProperty} command:
1490 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1491 #'line-break-system-details #'((X-offset . 20))
1493 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1494 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 40))
1496 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1497 #'line-break-system-details #'((X-offset . 20) (Y-offset . 40))
1499 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1500 #'line-break-system-details #'((alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1502 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1503 #'line-break-system-details #'((X-offset . 20) (Y-offset . 40)
1504 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1507 To understand how each of these different settings work, we begin
1508 by looking at an example that includes no overrides at all.
1510 @c \book { } is required in these examples to ensure the spacing
1511 @c overrides can be seen between systems. -np
1514 \header { tagline = ##f }
1515 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1525 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1528 \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' }
1535 This score isolates line- and page-breaking information in a dedicated
1536 voice. This technique of creating a breaks voice will help keep layout
1537 separate from music entry as our example becomes more complicated.
1538 See @ref{Using an extra voice for breaks}.
1540 Explicit @code{\breaks} evenly divide the music into six measures per
1541 line. Vertical spacing results from LilyPond's defaults. To set
1542 the vertical startpoint of each system explicitly, we can set
1543 the @code{Y-offset} pair in the @code{line-break-system-details}
1544 attribute of the @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} grob:
1547 \header { tagline = ##f }
1548 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1554 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1555 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 0))
1557 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1558 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 40))
1560 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1561 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 80))
1564 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1567 \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' }
1574 Note that @code{line-break-system-details} takes an associative list of
1575 potentially many values, but that we set only one value here. Note,
1576 too, that the @code{Y-offset} property here determines the exact vertical
1577 position on the page at which each new system will render.
1579 Now that we have set the vertical startpoint of each system
1580 explicitly, we can also set the vertical startpoint of each staff
1581 within each system manually. We do this using the @code{alignment-offsets}
1582 subproperty of @code{line-break-system-details}.
1585 \header { tagline = ##f }
1586 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1592 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1593 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 20)
1594 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1596 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1597 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 60)
1598 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1600 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1601 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 100)
1602 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1605 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1608 \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' }
1615 Note that here we assign two different values to the
1616 @code{line-break-system-details} attribute of the
1617 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} grob. Though the
1618 @code{line-break-system-details} attribute alist accepts many
1619 additional spacing parameters (including, for example, a corresponding
1620 @code{X-offset} pair), we need only set the @code{Y-offset} and
1621 @code{alignment-offsets} pairs to control the vertical startpoint of
1622 every system and every staff. Finally, note that @code{alignment-offsets}
1623 specifies the vertical positioning of staves but not of staff groups.
1626 \header { tagline = ##f }
1627 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1633 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1634 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 0)
1635 (alignment-offsets . (0 -30 -40)))
1637 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1638 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 60)
1639 (alignment-offsets . (0 -10 -20)))
1641 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1642 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 100)
1643 (alignment-offsets . (0 -10 -40)))
1646 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1649 \new Staff { \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' } }
1650 \new Staff { \repeat unfold 15 { e'4 e' e' e' } }
1657 Some points to consider:
1660 @item When using @code{alignment-offsets}, lyrics count as a staff.
1662 @item The units of the numbers passed to @code{X-offset},
1663 @code{Y-offset} and @code{alignment-offsets} are interpreted as multiples
1664 of the distance between adjacent staff lines. Positive values move staves
1665 and lyrics up, negative values move staves and lyrics down.
1667 @item Because the @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details}
1668 settings given here allow the positioning of staves and systems anywhere
1669 on the page, it is possible to violate paper or margin boundaries or even
1670 to print staves or systems on top of one another. Reasonable values
1671 passed to these different settings will avoid this.
1680 @node Two-pass vertical spacing
1681 @subsection Two-pass vertical spacing
1683 @warning{Two-pass vertical spacing is deprecated and will be removed in
1684 a future version of LilyPond. Systems are now stretched automatically
1685 in a single pass. See @ref{Vertical spacing inside a system}.}
1687 In order to automatically stretch systems so that they should fill the
1688 space left on a page, a two-pass technique can be used:
1691 @item In the first pass, the amount of vertical space used to increase
1692 the height of each system is computed and dumped to a file.
1693 @item In the second pass, spacing inside the systems are
1694 stretched according to the data in the page layout file.
1697 The @code{ragged-bottom} property adds space between systems, while
1698 the two-pass technique adds space between staves inside a system.
1700 To allow this behavior, a @code{tweak-key} variable has to be set in
1701 each score @code{\layout} block, and the tweaks included in each score
1702 music, using the @code{\scoreTweak} music function.
1706 %% include the generated page layout file:
1707 \includePageLayoutFile
1712 %% Include this score tweaks:
1713 \scoreTweak "scoreA"
1714 { \clef french c''1 \break c''1 }
1716 \new Staff { \clef soprano g'1 g'1 }
1717 \new Staff { \clef mezzosoprano e'1 e'1 }
1718 \new Staff { \clef alto g1 g1 }
1719 \new Staff { \clef bass c1 c1 }
1722 piece = "Score with tweaks"
1724 %% Define how to name the tweaks for this score:
1725 \layout { #(define tweak-key "scoreA") }
1730 For the first pass, the @code{dump-tweaks} option should be set to
1731 generate the page layout file.
1734 lilypond -dbackend=null -d dump-tweaks <file>.ly
1744 @node Vertical collision avoidance
1745 @subsection Vertical collision avoidance
1747 @funindex outside-staff-priority
1748 @funindex outside-staff-padding
1749 @funindex outside-staff-horizontal-padding
1751 Intuitively, there are some objects in musical notation that belong
1752 to the staff and there are other objects that should be placed outside
1753 the staff. Objects belonging outside the staff include things such as
1754 rehearsal marks, text and dynamic markings (from now on, these will
1755 be called outside-staff objects). LilyPond's rule for the
1756 vertical placement of outside-staff objects is to place them as close
1757 to the staff as possible but not so close that they collide with
1760 LilyPond uses the @code{outside-staff-priority} property to determine
1761 whether a grob is an outside-staff object: if @code{outside-staff-priority}
1762 is a number, the grob is an outside-staff object. In addition,
1763 @code{outside-staff-priority} tells LilyPond in which order the objects
1766 First, LilyPond places all the objects that do not belong outside
1767 the staff. Then it sorts the outside-staff objects according to their
1768 @code{outside-staff-priority} (in increasing order). One by one, LilyPond
1769 takes the outside-staff objects and places them so that they do
1770 not collide with any objects that have already been placed. That
1771 is, if two outside-staff grobs are competing for the same space, the one
1772 with the lower @code{outside-staff-priority} will be placed closer to
1775 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
1778 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-priority = #1
1779 c4_"Text"\pp % this time the text will be closer to the staff
1781 % by setting outside-staff-priority to a non-number,
1782 % we disable the automatic collision avoidance
1783 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-priority = ##f
1784 \once \override DynamicLineSpanner #'outside-staff-priority = ##f
1785 c4_"Text"\pp % now they will collide
1788 The vertical padding between an outside-staff object and the
1789 previously-positioned grobs can be controlled with
1790 @code{outside-staff-padding}.
1792 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
1793 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-padding = #0
1794 a'^"This text is placed very close to the note"
1795 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-padding = #3
1796 c^"This text is padded away from the previous text"
1797 c^"This text is placed close to the previous text"
1801 By default, outside-staff objects are placed only to avoid
1802 a horizontal collision with previously-positioned grobs. This
1803 can lead to situations in which objects are placed very close to each
1804 other horizontally. The vertical spacing between staffs can
1805 also be set so that outside staff objects are interleaved.
1806 Setting @code{outside-staff-horizontal-padding}
1807 causes an object to be offset vertically so that such a situation
1810 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
1811 % the markup is too close to the following note
1815 % setting outside-staff-horizontal-padding fixes this
1817 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-horizontal-padding = #1
1829 @node Horizontal spacing
1830 @section Horizontal spacing
1832 @cindex horizontal spacing
1833 @cindex spacing, horizontal
1836 * Horizontal spacing overview::
1837 * New spacing area::
1838 * Changing horizontal spacing::
1840 * Proportional notation::
1844 @node Horizontal spacing overview
1845 @subsection Horizontal spacing overview
1847 The spacing engine translates differences in durations into stretchable
1848 distances (@q{springs}) of differing lengths. Longer durations get
1849 more space, shorter durations get less. The shortest durations get a
1850 fixed amount of space (which is controlled by
1851 @code{shortest-duration-space} in the @rinternals{SpacingSpanner}
1852 object). The longer the duration, the more space it gets: doubling a
1853 duration adds a fixed amount (this amount is controlled by
1854 @code{spacing-increment}) of space to the note.
1856 For example, the following piece contains lots of half, quarter, and
1857 8th notes; the eighth note is followed by 1 note head width (NHW).
1858 The quarter note is followed by 2 NHW, the half by 3 NHW, etc.
1860 @lilypond[quote,fragment,verbatim,relative=1]
1861 c2 c4. c8 c4. c8 c4. c8 c8
1865 Normally, @code{spacing-increment} is set to 1.2 staff space, which is
1866 approximately the width of a note head, and
1867 @code{shortest-duration-space} is set to 2.0, meaning that the
1868 shortest note gets 2.4 staff space (2.0 times the
1869 @code{spacing-increment}) of horizontal space. This space is counted
1870 from the left edge of the symbol, so the shortest notes are generally
1871 followed by one NHW of space.
1873 If one would follow the above procedure exactly, then adding a single
1874 32nd note to a score that uses 8th and 16th notes, would widen up the
1875 entire score a lot. The shortest note is no longer a 16th, but a 32nd,
1876 thus adding 1 NHW to every note. To prevent this, the shortest
1877 duration for spacing is not the shortest note in the score, but rather
1878 the one which occurs most frequently.
1881 The most common shortest duration is determined as follows: in every
1882 measure, the shortest duration is determined. The most common shortest
1883 duration is taken as the basis for the spacing, with the stipulation
1884 that this shortest duration should always be equal to or shorter than
1885 an 8th note. The shortest duration is printed when you run
1886 @code{lilypond} with the @code{--verbose} option.
1888 These durations may also be customized. If you set the
1889 @code{common-shortest-duration} in @rinternals{SpacingSpanner}, then
1890 this sets the base duration for spacing. The maximum duration for this
1891 base (normally an 8th), is set through @code{base-shortest-duration}.
1893 @funindex common-shortest-duration
1894 @funindex base-shortest-duration
1895 @funindex stem-spacing-correction
1898 Notes that are even shorter than the common shortest note are
1899 followed by a space that is proportional to their duration relative to
1900 the common shortest note. So if we were to add only a few 16th notes
1901 to the example above, they would be followed by half a NHW:
1903 @lilypond[quote,fragment,verbatim,relative=2]
1904 c2 c4. c8 c4. c16[ c] c4. c8 c8 c8 c4 c4 c4
1908 In the introduction (see @rlearning{Engraving}), it was explained that stem
1909 directions influence spacing. This is controlled with the
1910 @code{stem-spacing-correction} property in the
1911 @rinternals{NoteSpacing}, object. These are generated for every
1912 @rinternals{Voice} context. The @code{StaffSpacing} object
1913 (generated in @rinternals{Staff} context) contains the same property
1914 for controlling the stem/bar line spacing. The following example shows
1915 these corrections, once with default settings, and once with
1916 exaggerated corrections:
1918 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right]
1922 \override Staff.NoteSpacing #'stem-spacing-correction = #1.5
1923 \override Staff.StaffSpacing #'stem-spacing-correction = #1.5
1929 Proportional notation is supported; see @ref{Proportional notation}.
1936 Internals Reference:
1937 @rinternals{SpacingSpanner},
1938 @rinternals{NoteSpacing},
1939 @rinternals{StaffSpacing},
1940 @rinternals{NonMusicalPaperColumn}.
1945 There is no convenient mechanism to manually override spacing. The
1946 following work-around may be used to insert extra space into a score,
1947 adjusting the padding value as necessary.
1949 \override Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn #'padding = #10
1952 No work-around exists for decreasing the amount of space.
1955 @node New spacing area
1956 @subsection New spacing area
1958 New sections with different spacing parameters can be started with
1959 @code{newSpacingSection}. This is useful when there are
1960 sections with a different notions of long and short notes.
1962 In the following example, the time signature change introduces a new
1963 section, and hence the 16ths notes are spaced wider.
1965 @lilypond[relative,fragment,verbatim,quote]
1968 c8 c c4 c16[ c c8] c4
1974 The @code{\newSpacingSection} command creates a new
1975 @code{SpacingSpanner} object, and hence new @code{\override}s
1976 may be used in that location.
1983 Internals Reference:
1984 @rinternals{SpacingSpanner}.
1987 @node Changing horizontal spacing
1988 @subsection Changing horizontal spacing
1990 Horizontal spacing may be altered with the
1991 @code{base-shortest-duration} property. Here
1992 we compare the same music; once without altering
1993 the property, and then altered. Larger values
1994 of @code{ly:make-moment} will produce smaller
1995 music. Note that @code{ly:make-moment} constructs
1996 a duration, so @code{1 4} is a longer duration
1999 @lilypond[verbatim,line-width=12\cm]
2002 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 d e f | g4 g g2 |
2003 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
2004 d4 d d d | d4 e f2 | e4 e e e | e4 f g2 |
2005 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
2010 @lilypond[verbatim,line-width=12\cm]
2013 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 d e f | g4 g g2 |
2014 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
2015 d4 d d d | d4 e f2 | e4 e e e | e4 f g2 |
2016 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
2021 \override SpacingSpanner
2022 #'base-shortest-duration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2031 By default, spacing in tuplets depends on various non-duration
2032 factors (such as accidentals, clef changes, etc). To disregard
2033 such symbols and force uniform equal-duration spacing, use
2034 @code{Score.SpacingSpanner #'uniform-stretching}. This
2035 property can only be changed at the beginning of a score,
2037 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
2039 \override SpacingSpanner #'uniform-stretching = ##t
2056 When @code{strict-note-spacing} is set, notes are spaced without
2057 regard for clefs, bar lines, and grace notes,
2059 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
2060 \override Score.SpacingSpanner #'strict-note-spacing = ##t
2061 \new Staff { c8[ c \clef alto c \grace { c16[ c] } c8 c c] c32[ c32] }
2071 @subsection Line length
2074 @cindex breaking pages
2077 @funindex line-width
2078 @funindex ragged-right
2079 @funindex ragged-last
2081 @c Although line-width can be set in \layout, it should be set in paper
2082 @c block, to get page layout right.
2083 @c Setting indent in \paper block makes not much sense, but it works.
2085 @c Bit verbose and vague, use examples?
2086 The most basic settings influencing the spacing are @code{indent} and
2087 @code{line-width}. They are set in the @code{\layout} block. They
2088 control the indentation of the first line of music, and the lengths of
2091 If @code{ragged-right} is set to true in the @code{\layout} block, then
2092 systems ends at their natural horizontal length, instead of being spread
2093 horizontally to fill the whole line. This is useful for
2094 short fragments, and for checking how tight the natural spacing is.
2097 @cindex vertical spacing
2099 The option @code{ragged-last} is similar to @code{ragged-right}, but
2100 only affects the last line of the piece. No restrictions are put on
2101 that line. The result is similar to formatting text paragraphs. In a
2102 paragraph, the last line simply takes its natural horizontal length.
2103 @c Note that for text there are several options for the last line.
2104 @c While Knuth TeX uses natural length, lead typesetters use the same
2105 @c stretch as the previous line. eTeX uses \lastlinefit to
2106 @c interpolate between both these solutions.
2122 @node Proportional notation
2123 @subsection Proportional notation
2125 LilyPond supports proportional notation, a type of horizontal spacing
2126 in which each note consumes an amount of horizontal space exactly
2127 equivalent to its rhythmic duration. This type of proportional spacing
2128 is comparable to horizontal spacing on top of graph paper. Some late
2129 20th- and early 21st-century scores use proportional notation to
2130 clarify complex rhythmic relationships or to facilitate the placement
2131 of timelines or other graphics directly in the score.
2133 LilyPond supports five different settings for proportional notation,
2134 which may be used together or alone:
2137 @item @code{proportionalNotationDuration}
2138 @item @code{uniform-stretching}
2139 @item @code{strict-note-spacing}
2140 @item @code{\remove Separating_line_group_engraver}
2141 @item @code{\override PaperColumn #'used = ##t}
2144 In the examples that follow, we explore these five different
2145 proportional notation settings and examine how these settings interact.
2147 We start with the following one-measure example, which uses classical
2148 spacing with ragged-right turned on.
2150 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2152 \new RhythmicStaff {
2156 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2162 Notice that the half note which begins the measure takes up far less
2163 than half of the horizontal space of the measure. Likewise, the
2164 sixteenth notes and sixteenth-note quintuplets (or twentieth notes)
2165 which end the measure together take up far more than half the
2166 horizontal space of the measure.
2168 In classical engraving, this spacing may be exactly what we want
2169 because we can borrow horizontal space from the half note and conserve
2170 horizontal space across the measure as a whole.
2172 On the other hand, if we want to insert a measured timeline or other
2173 graphic above or below our score, we need proportional notation. We
2174 turn proportional notation on with the proportionalNotationDuration
2177 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2179 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 20)
2181 \new RhythmicStaff {
2185 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2191 The half note at the beginning of the measure and the faster notes in
2192 the second half of the measure now occupy equal amounts of horizontal
2193 space. We could place a measured timeline or graphic above or below
2196 The @code{proportionalNotationDuration} setting is a context setting that
2197 lives in @code{Score}. Recall that context settings appear in one of
2198 three locations in our input file -- in a @code{\with} block, in a
2199 @code{\context} block, or directly in music entry
2200 preceded by the @code{\set} command. As with all
2201 context settings, users can pick which of the three different
2202 locations they would like to set @code{proportionalNotationDuration}.
2204 The @code{proportionalNotationDuration} setting takes a single argument,
2205 which is the reference duration against which all music will be
2206 spaced. The LilyPond Scheme function make-moment takes two arguments
2207 -- a numerator and denominator which together express some fraction of
2208 a whole note. The call @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 20)} therefore produces a
2209 reference duration of a twentieth note. The values
2210 @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 16)}, @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 8)}, and
2211 @code{#(ly:make-moment 3 97)} are all possible as well.
2213 How do we select the right reference duration to pass to
2214 @code{proportionalNotationDuration}? Usually by a process of trial and error,
2215 beginning with a duration close to the fastest (or smallest) duration
2216 in the piece. Smaller reference durations space music loosely; larger
2217 reference durations space music tightly.
2219 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2221 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 8)
2223 \new RhythmicStaff {
2227 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2233 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2235 \new RhythmicStaff {
2239 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2245 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 32)
2247 \new RhythmicStaff {
2251 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2257 Note that too large a reference duration -- such as the eighth note,
2258 above -- spaces music too tightly and can cause note head collisions.
2259 Note also that proportional notation in general takes up more
2260 horizontal space that does classical spacing. Proportional spacing
2261 provides rhythmic clarity at the expense of horizontal space.
2263 Next we examine how to optimally space overlapping tuplets.
2265 We start by examining what happens to our original example, with
2266 classical spacing, when we add a second staff with a different type of
2269 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2271 \new RhythmicStaff {
2275 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2278 \new RhythmicStaff {
2280 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8
2286 The spacing is bad because the evenly notes of the bottom staff do not
2287 stretch uniformly. Classical engraving includes very few complex
2288 triplets and so classical engraving rules can generate this type of
2289 result. Setting @code{proportionalNotationDuration} remedies this
2290 situation considerably.
2292 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2294 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 20)
2296 \new RhythmicStaff {
2300 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2303 \new RhythmicStaff {
2305 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8
2311 But if we look very carefully we can see that notes of the second half
2312 of the 9-tuplet space ever so slightly more widely than do the notes
2313 of the first half of the 9-tuplet. To ensure uniform stretching, we
2314 turn on @code{uniform-stretching}, which is a property of
2315 @code{SpacingSpanner}.
2317 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2319 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 20)
2320 \override SpacingSpanner #'uniform-stretching = ##t
2322 \new RhythmicStaff {
2326 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2329 \new RhythmicStaff {
2331 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8
2337 Our two-staff example now spaces exactly, our rhythmic
2338 relationships are visually clear, and we can include a measured
2339 timeline or graphic if we want.
2341 Note that the LilyPond's proportional notation package expects
2342 that all proportional scores set the SpacingSpanner's
2343 'uniform-stretching attribute to ##t. Setting
2344 proportionalNotationDuration without also setting the
2345 SpacingSpanner's 'uniform-stretching attribute to ##t will, for
2346 example, cause Skips to consume an incorrect amount of horizontal
2349 The SpacingSpanner is an abstract grob that lives in the Score
2350 context. As with our settings of proportionalNotationDuration,
2351 overrides to the SpacingSpanner can occur in any of three
2352 different places in our input file – in the Score \with block, in
2353 a Score \context block, or in note entry directly.
2355 There is by default only one @code{SpacingSpanner} per @code{Score}. This
2356 means that, by default, @code{uniform-stretching} is either turned on for the
2357 entire score or turned off for the entire score. We can, however,
2358 override this behavior and turn on different spacing features at
2359 different places in the score. We do this with the command
2360 @code{\newSpacingSection}. See @ref{New spacing area}, for more info.
2362 Next we examine the effects of the @code{Separating_line_group_engraver} and
2363 see why proportional scores frequently remove this engraver. The following
2364 example shows that there is a small amount of @qq{preferatory} space
2365 just before the first note in each system.
2367 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2380 The amount of this preferatory space is the same whether after a time
2381 signature, a key signature or a clef. @code{Separating_line_group_engraver}
2382 is responsible for this space. Removing @code{Separating_line_group_engraver}
2383 reduces this space to zero.
2385 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2391 \remove Separating_line_group_engraver
2399 Nonmusical elements like time signatures, key signatures, clefs and
2400 accidentals are problematic in proportional notation. None of these
2401 elements has rhythmic duration. But all of these elements consume
2402 horizontal space. Different proportional scores approach these
2403 problems differently.
2405 It may be possible to avoid spacing problems with key signatures
2406 simply by not having any. This is a valid option since most
2407 proportional scores are contemporary music. The same may be true
2408 of time signatures, especially for those scores
2409 that include a measured timeline or other graphic. But these scores
2410 are exceptional and most proportional scores include at least some
2411 time signatures. Clefs and accidentals are even more essential.
2413 So what strategies exist for spacing nonmusical elements in a
2414 proportional context? One good option is the @code{strict-note-spacing}
2415 property of @code{SpacingSpanner}. Compare the two scores below:
2417 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2419 \set Score.proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2429 \set Score.proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2430 \override Score.SpacingSpanner #'strict-note-spacing = ##t
2440 Both scores are proportional, but the spacing in the first score
2441 is too loose because of the clef change. The spacing of the second
2442 score remains strict, however, because strict-note-spacing is
2443 turned on. Turning on strict-note-spacing causes the width of
2444 time signatures, key signatures, clefs and accidentals to play no
2445 part in the spacing algorithm.
2447 In addition to the settings given here, there are other settings
2448 that frequently appear in proportional scores. These include:
2451 @item @code{\override SpacingSpanner #'strict-grace-spacing = ##t}
2452 @item @code{tupletFullLength = ##t}
2453 @item @code{\override Beam #'breakable = ##t}
2454 @item @code{\override Glissando #'breakable = ##t}
2455 @item @code{\override TextSpanner #'breakable = ##t}
2456 @item @code{\remove Forbid_line_break_engraver in the Voice context}
2459 These settings space grace notes strictly, extend tuplet brackets to
2460 mark both rhythmic start- and stop-points, and allow spanning elements
2461 to break across systems and pages. See the respective parts of the manual
2462 for these related settings.
2467 @ref{New spacing area}.
2473 @node Fitting music onto fewer pages
2474 @section Fitting music onto fewer pages
2476 Sometimes you can end up with one or two staves on a second
2477 (or third, or fourth...) page. This is annoying, especially
2478 if you look at previous pages and it looks like there is plenty
2479 of room left on those.
2481 When investigating layout issues, @code{annotate-spacing} is an
2482 invaluable tool. This command prints the values of various layout
2483 spacing variables; for more details see the following section,
2484 @ref{Displaying spacing}.
2487 * Displaying spacing::
2488 * Changing spacing::
2492 @node Displaying spacing
2493 @subsection Displaying spacing
2495 @funindex annotate-spacing
2496 @cindex spacing, display of layout
2498 To graphically display the dimensions of vertical layout variables
2499 that may be altered for page formatting, set
2500 @code{annotate-spacing} in the @code{\paper} block:
2502 @c need to have \book{} otherwise we get the separate systems. -hwn
2503 @lilypond[verbatim,quote]
2504 #(set-default-paper-size "a6" 'landscape)
2507 \paper { annotate-spacing = ##t }
2513 All layout dimensions are displayed in staff-spaces, regardless
2514 of the units specified in the @code{\paper} or @code{\layout} block.
2515 In the above example, @code{paper-height} has a value of 59.75
2516 @code{staff-spaces}, and the @code{staff-size} is 20 points (the
2517 default value). Note that:
2519 @multitable {1 staff-space} {staff-size)/4 * (25.4/72.27) mm}
2522 @tab = (25.4/72.27) mm
2525 @tab = (@code{staff-size})/4 pts
2527 @tab = (@code{staff-size})/4 * (25.4/72.27) mm
2532 In this case, one @code{staff-space} is approximately equal to
2533 1.757mm. Thus the @code{paper-height} measurement of 59.75
2534 @code{staff-spaces} is equivalent to 105 millimeters, the height
2535 of @code{a6} paper in landscape orientation. The pairs
2536 (@var{a},@var{b}) are intervals, where @var{a} is the lower
2537 edge and @var{b} the upper edge of the interval.
2541 @ref{Setting the staff size}
2546 @node Changing spacing
2547 @subsection Changing spacing
2549 The output of @code{annotate-spacing} reveals vertical dimensions
2550 in great detail. For details about modifying margins and other
2551 layout variables, see @ref{Page formatting}.
2553 Other than margins, there are a few other options to save space:
2557 Force systems to move as close together as possible (to fit as
2558 many systems as possible onto a page) while being spaced so that
2559 there is no blank space at the bottom of the page.
2563 between-system-padding = #0.1
2564 between-system-space = #0.1
2565 ragged-last-bottom = ##f
2571 Force the number of systems. This can help in two ways. Just
2572 setting a value, even the same value as the number of systems
2573 being typeset by default, will sometimes cause more systems to
2574 be fitted onto each page, as an estimation step is then bypassed,
2575 giving a more accurate fit to each page. Also, forcing an actual
2576 reduction in the number of systems may save a further page. For
2577 example, if the default layout has 11 systems, the following
2578 assignment will force a layout with 10 systems.
2587 Avoid (or reduce) objects that increase the vertical size of a
2588 system. For example, volta repeats (or alternate repeats) require
2589 extra space. If these repeats are spread over two systems, they
2590 will take up more space than one system with the volta repeats and
2591 another system without. For example, dynamics that @q{stick out} of
2592 a system can be moved closer to the staff:
2594 @lilypond[verbatim,quote,relative=1]
2596 \override DynamicText #'extra-offset = #'( -2.2 . 2.0)
2601 Alter the horizontal spacing via @code{SpacingSpanner}. For more
2602 details, see @ref{Changing horizontal spacing}. The following
2603 example illustrates the default spacing:
2605 @lilypond[verbatim,quote]
2618 The next example modifies @code{common-shortest-duration} from a
2619 value of @code{1/4} to @code{1/2}. The quarter note is the most
2620 common and shortest duration in this example, so by making this
2621 duration longer, a @q{squeezing} effect occurs:
2623 @lilypond[verbatim,quote]
2635 \override SpacingSpanner
2636 #'common-shortest-duration = #(ly:make-moment 1 2)
2643 The @code{common-shortest-duration} property cannot be modified
2644 dynamically, so it must always be placed in a @code{\context}
2645 block so that it applies to the whole score.
2652 @ref{Page formatting},
2653 @ref{Changing horizontal spacing}.