1 @c -*- coding: utf-8; mode: texinfo; -*-
2 @c This file is part of lilypond.tely
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 top-most music system and the page header.
252 Default: @code{4\mm}.
255 @funindex page-top-space
257 Distance from the top of the printable area to the center of the
258 first staff. This only works for staves that are vertically
259 small. Big staves are set with the top of their bounding box
260 aligned to the top of the printable area. Default: @code{12\mm}.
263 @funindex paper-height
265 The height of the page. Default: the height of the current paper
266 size. For details, see @ref{Paper size}.
271 The margin between header and top of the page. Default:
279 The header and footer are created by the functions make-footer and
280 make-header, defined in \paper. The default implementations are in
281 ly/paper-defaults.ly and ly/titling-init.ly.
283 The page layout itself is done by two functions in the \paper block,
284 page-music-height and page-make-stencil. The former tells the
285 line-breaking algorithm how much space can be spent on a page, the
286 latter creates the actual page given the system to put on it.
288 You can define paper block values in Scheme. In that case mm, in, pt,
289 and cm are variables defined in paper-defaults.ly with values in
290 millimeters. That is why the value 2 cm must be multiplied in the
295 #(define bottom-margin (* 2 cm))
307 ragged-last-bottom = ##t
311 This second example centers page numbers at the bottom of every page.
315 print-page-number = ##t
316 print-first-page-number = ##t
317 oddHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line @{ " " @}
318 evenHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line @{ " " @}
319 oddFooterMarkup = \markup @{ \fill-line @{
320 \bold \fontsize #3 \on-the-fly #print-page-number-check-first
321 \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string @} @}
322 evenFooterMarkup = \markup @{ \fill-line @{
323 \bold \fontsize #3 \on-the-fly #print-page-number-check-first
324 \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string @} @}
328 You can also define these values in Scheme. In that case @code{mm},
329 @code{in}, @code{pt}, and @code{cm} are variables defined in
330 @file{paper-defaults.ly} with values in millimeters. That is why the
331 value must be multiplied in the example
335 #(define bottom-margin (* 2 cm))
339 The header and footer are created by the functions @code{make-footer}
340 and @code{make-header}, defined in @code{\paper}. The default
341 implementations are in @file{ly/@/paper@/-defaults@/.ly} and
342 @file{ly/@/titling@/-init@/.ly}.
344 The page layout itself is done by two functions in the
345 @code{\paper} block, @code{page-music-height} and
346 @code{page-make-stencil}. The former tells the line-breaking algorithm
347 how much space can be spent on a page, the latter creates the actual
348 page given the system to put on it.
353 @ref{Vertical spacing between systems}.
359 @node Horizontal dimensions
360 @unnumberedsubsubsec Horizontal dimensions
362 @warning{If @code{paper-width} is manually set, @code{line-width},
363 @code{left-margin}, @code{indent}, and @code{short-indent} may
364 have to be adjusted as well.}
366 There are a few variables that determine the horizontal dimensions
371 @item horizontal-shift
372 @funindex horizontal-shift
374 The amount that all systems (including titles and system
375 separators) are shifted to the right. Default: @code{0.0}.
380 The level of indentation for the first system in a score.
381 Default: @code{paper-width} divided by @code{14}, as determined by
382 @code{set-default-paper-size} or @code{set-paper-size}.
385 @funindex left-margin
387 The margin between the left edge of the page and the beginning of
388 each system. Default: @code{10\mm}, as determined by
389 @code{set-default-paper-size} or @code{set-paper-size}.
394 The width of music systems. Default: @code{paper-width} minus
395 @code{20\mm}, as determined by @code{set-default-paper-size} or
396 @code{set-paper-size}.
399 @funindex paper-width
401 The width of the page. Default: the width of the current paper
402 size. For details, see @ref{Paper size}.
405 @funindex short-indent
407 The level of indentation for all systems in a score besides the
408 first system. Default: @code{0}, as determined by
409 @code{set-default-paper-size} or @code{set-paper-size}.
421 The option @code{right-margin} is defined but doesn't set the
422 right margin yet. The value for the right margin has to be
423 defined by adjusting the values of @code{left-margin} and
427 @node Other layout variables
428 @unnumberedsubsubsec Other layout variables
430 These variables can be used to adjust page layout in general.
434 @item auto-first-page-number
435 @funindex auto-first-page-number
437 The page breaking algorithm is affected by the first page number
438 being odd or even. If set to true, the page breaking algorithm
439 will decide whether to start with an odd or even number. This
440 will result in the first page number remaining as is or being
441 increased by one. Default: @code{##f}.
445 FIXME: this variable is used, but I don't know what it does. -pm
446 @item blank-after-score-page-force
447 @funindex blank-after-score-page-force
453 @item blank-last-page-force
454 @funindex blank-last-page-force
456 The penalty for ending the score on an odd-numbered page.
459 @item blank-page-force
460 @funindex blank-page-force
462 The penalty for having a blank page in the middle of a
463 score. This is not used by @code{ly:optimal-breaking} since it will
464 never consider blank pages in the middle of a score. Default:
467 @item first-page-number
468 @funindex first-page-number
470 The value of the page number on the first page. Default:
473 @item page-breaking-between-system-padding
474 @funindex page-breaking-between-system-padding
476 Tricks the page breaker into thinking that
477 @code{between-system-padding} is set to something different than
478 it really is. For example, if this variable is set to something
479 substantially larger than @code{between-system-padding}, then the
480 page-breaker will put fewer systems on each page. Default: unset.
485 The number of pages to be used for a score. Default: unset.
487 @item page-limit-inter-system-space
488 @funindex page-limit-inter-system-space
490 If set to true, limits space between systems on a page with a lot
491 of space left. Default: @code{##f}. For details, see
492 @ref{Vertical spacing between systems}.
494 @item page-limit-inter-system-space-factor
495 @funindex page-limit-inter-system-space-factor
497 The factor used by @code{page-limit-inter-system-space}. Default:
498 @code{1.4}. For details, see
499 @ref{Vertical spacing between systems}.
501 @item page-spacing-weight
502 @funindex page-spacing-weight
504 The relative importance of page (vertical) spacing and line
505 (horizontal) spacing. High values will make page spacing more
506 important. Default: @code{#10}.
508 @item print-all-headers
509 @funindex print-all-headers
511 If set to true, this will print all headers for each \score in the
512 output. Normally only the piece and opus header variables are
513 printed. Default: @code{##f}.
515 @item print-first-page-number
516 @funindex print-first-page-number
518 If set to true, a page number is printed on the first page.
521 @item print-page-number
522 @funindex print-page-number
524 If set to false, page numbers are not printed. Default:
528 @funindex ragged-bottom
530 If set to true, systems will not spread vertically across the
531 page. This does not affect the last page. Default: @code{##f}.
533 This should be set to true for pieces that have only two or three
534 systems per page, for example orchestral scores.
537 @funindex ragged-last
539 If set to true, the last system in the score will not fill the
540 line width. Instead the last system ends at its natural
541 horizontal length. Default: @code{##f}.
543 @item ragged-last-bottom
544 @funindex ragged-last-bottom
546 If set to false, systems will spread vertically across the last
547 page. Default: @code{##t}.
549 Pieces that amply fill two pages or more should have this set to
552 It also affects the last page of book parts, ie parts of a book created
553 with @code{\bookpart} blocks.
556 @funindex ragged-right
558 If set to true, systems will not fill the line width. Instead,
559 systems end at their natural horizontal length. Default:
562 If the score has only one system, the default value is @code{##t}.
564 @item system-separator-markup
565 @funindex system-separator-markup
567 A markup object that is inserted between systems. This is often
568 used for orchestral scores. Default: unset.
570 The markup command @code{\slashSeparator} is provided as a sensible
573 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right]
574 #(set-default-paper-size "a6" 'landscape)
577 \relative { c1 \break c1 }
580 system-separator-markup = \slashSeparator
586 @funindex system-count
588 The number of systems to be used for a score.
601 The default page header puts the page number and the @code{instrument}
602 field from the @code{\header} block on a line.
604 The titles (from the @code{\header@{@}} section) are treated as a
605 system, so @code{ragged-bottom} and @code{ragged-last-bottom} will
606 add space between the titles and the first system of the score.
610 @section Music layout
613 * Setting the staff size::
618 @node Setting the staff size
619 @subsection Setting the staff size
621 @cindex font size, setting
622 @cindex staff size, setting
623 @funindex layout file
625 The default @strong{staff size} is set to 20 points.
626 This may be changed in two ways:
628 To set the staff size globally for all scores in a file (or
629 in a @code{book} block, to be precise), use @code{set-global-staff-size}.
632 #(set-global-staff-size 14)
636 This sets the global default size to 14pt staff height and scales all
639 To set the staff size individually for each score, use
644 #(layout-set-staff-size 15)
649 The Feta font provides musical symbols at eight different
650 sizes. Each font is tuned for a different staff size: at a smaller size
651 the font becomes heavier, to match the relatively heavier staff lines.
652 The recommended font sizes are listed in the following table:
655 @multitable @columnfractions .15 .2 .22 .2
658 @tab @b{staff height (pt)}
659 @tab @b{staff height (mm)}
701 @c modern rental material?
706 These fonts are available in any sizes. The context property
707 @code{fontSize} and the layout property @code{staff-space} (in
708 @rinternals{StaffSymbol}) can be used to tune the size for individual
709 staves. The sizes of individual staves are relative to the global size.
718 @ref{Selecting notation font size}.
726 @code{layout-set-staff-size} does not change the distance between the
731 @subsection Score layout
735 While @code{\paper} contains settings that relate to the page formatting
736 of the whole document, @code{\layout} contains settings for score-specific
743 \override VerticalAxisGroup #'minimum-Y-extent = #'(-6 . 6)
746 \override TextScript #'padding = #1.0
747 \override Glissando #'thickness = #3
755 @ref{Changing context default settings}.
767 * Optimal page breaking::
768 * Optimal page turning::
769 * Minimal page breaking::
771 * Using an extra voice for breaks::
776 @subsection Line breaking
779 @cindex breaking lines
781 Line breaks are normally determined automatically. They are chosen
782 so that lines look neither cramped nor loose, and consecutive
783 lines have similar density. Occasionally you might want to
784 override the automatic breaks; you can do this by specifying
785 @code{\break}. This will force a line break at this point. However,
786 line breaks can only occur at the end of @q{complete} bars, i.e.,
787 where there are no notes or tuplets left @q{hanging} over the bar
788 line. If you want to have a line break where there is no bar line,
789 you can force an invisible bar line by entering @code{\bar ""},
790 although again there must be no notes left hanging over in any of
791 the staves at this point, or it will be ignored.
793 The opposite command, @code{\noBreak}, forbids a line break at the
794 bar line where it is inserted.
796 The most basic settings influencing line spacing are @code{indent}
797 and @code{line-width}. They are set in the @code{\layout} block.
798 They control the indentation of the first line of music, and the
799 lengths of the lines.
801 If @code{ragged-right} is set to true in the @code{\layout} block,
802 then systems end at their natural horizontal length, instead of
803 being spread horizontally to fill the whole line. This is useful
804 for short fragments, and for checking how tight the natural
807 @c TODO Check and add para on default for ragged-right
809 The option @code{ragged-last} is similar to @code{ragged-right},
810 but affects only the last line of the piece.
822 @cindex regular line breaks
823 @cindex four bar music.
825 For line breaks at regular intervals use @code{\break} separated by
826 skips and repeated with @code{\repeat}. For example, this would
827 cause the following 28 measures (assuming 4/4 time) to be broken
828 every 4 measures, and only there:
831 << \repeat unfold 7 @{
832 s1 \noBreak s1 \noBreak
833 s1 \noBreak s1 \break @}
834 @emph{the real music}
839 A linebreaking configuration can be saved as a @code{.ly} file
840 automatically. This allows vertical alignments to be stretched to
841 fit pages in a second formatting run. This is fairly new and
842 complicated. More details are available in
856 @rinternals{LineBreakEvent}.
864 Line breaks can only occur if there is a @q{proper} bar line. A note
865 which is hanging over a bar line is not proper, such as
867 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
868 c4 c2 << c2 {s4 \break } >> % this does nothing
869 c2 c4 | % a break here would work
870 c4 c2 c4 ~ \break % as does this break
874 This can be avoided by removing the @code{Forbid_line_break_engraver}.
875 Note that manually forced line breaks have to be added in parallel
878 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,verbatim]
880 \remove Forbid_line_break_engraver
882 c4 c2 << c2 {s4 \break } >> % now the break is allowed
887 Similarly, line breaks are normally forbidden when beams cross bar
888 lines. This behavior can be changed by setting
889 @code{\override Beam #'breakable = ##t}.
893 @subsection Page breaking
895 The default page breaking may be overridden by inserting
896 @code{\pageBreak} or @code{\noPageBreak} commands. These commands are
897 analogous to @code{\break} and @code{\noBreak}. They should be
898 inserted at a bar line. These commands force and forbid a page-break
899 from happening. Of course, the @code{\pageBreak} command also forces
902 The @code{\pageBreak} and @code{\noPageBreak} commands may also be
903 inserted at top-level, between scores and top-level markups.
905 There are also analogous settings to @code{ragged-right} and
906 @code{ragged-last} which have the same effect on vertical spacing:
907 @code{ragged-bottom} and @code{ragged-last-bottom}. If set to
908 @code{##t} the systems on all pages or just the last page
909 respectively will not be justified vertically.
911 For more details see @ref{Vertical spacing}.
913 Page breaks are computed by the @code{page-breaking} function. LilyPond
914 provides three algorithms for computing page breaks,
915 @code{ly:optimal-breaking}, @code{ly:page-turn-breaking} and
916 @code{ly:minimal-breaking}. The default is @code{ly:optimal-breaking},
917 but the value can be changed in the @code{\paper} block:
921 #(define page-breaking ly:page-turn-breaking)
925 @c TODO Check this -td
926 The old page breaking algorithm is called
927 @code{optimal-page-breaks}. If you are having trouble with the new page
928 breakers, you can enable the old one as a workaround.
932 When a book has many scores and pages, the page breaking problem may be
933 difficult to solve, requiring large processing time and memory. To ease
934 the page breaking process, @code{\bookpart} blocks are used to divide
935 the book into several parts: the page breaking occurs separately on each
936 part. Different page breaking functions may also be used in different
945 %% In a part consisting mostly of text,
946 %% ly:minimal-breaking may be prefered
947 #(define page-breaking ly:minimal-breaking)
949 \markup @{ @dots{} @}
953 %% In this part, consisting of music, the default optimal
954 %% page breaking function is used.
956 subtitle = "First movement"
967 @funindex \noPageBreak
977 @node Optimal page breaking
978 @subsection Optimal page breaking
980 @funindex ly:optimal-breaking
982 The @code{ly:optimal-breaking} function is LilyPond's default method of
983 determining page breaks. It attempts to find a page breaking that minimizes
984 cramping and stretching, both horizontally and vertically. Unlike
985 @code{ly:page-turn-breaking}, it has no concept of page turns.
993 @node Optimal page turning
994 @subsection Optimal page turning
996 @funindex ly:page-turn-breaking
998 Often it is necessary to find a page breaking configuration so that there is
999 a rest at the end of every second page. This way, the musician can turn the
1000 page without having to miss notes. The @code{ly:page-turn-breaking} function
1001 attempts to find a page breaking minimizing cramping and stretching, but with
1002 the additional restriction that it is only allowed to introduce page turns
1003 in specified places.
1005 There are two steps to using this page breaking function. First, you
1006 must enable it in the @code{\paper} block, as explained in @ref{Page
1007 breaking}. Then you must tell the function where you would like to allow
1010 There are two ways to achieve the second step. First, you can specify each
1011 potential page turn manually, by inserting @code{\allowPageTurn} into your
1012 input file at the appropriate places.
1014 If this is too tedious, you can add a @code{Page_turn_engraver} to a Staff or
1015 Voice context. The @code{Page_turn_engraver} will scan the context for
1016 sections without notes (note that it does not scan for rests; it scans for
1017 the absence of notes. This is so that single-staff polyphony with rests in one
1018 of the parts does not throw off the @code{Page_turn_engraver}). When it finds
1019 a sufficiently long section without notes, the @code{Page_turn_engraver} will
1020 insert an @code{\allowPageTurn} at the final bar line in that section, unless
1021 there is a @q{special} bar line (such as a double bar), in which case the
1022 @code{\allowPageTurn} will be inserted at the final @q{special} bar line in
1025 @funindex minimumPageTurnLength
1026 The @code{Page_turn_engraver} reads the context property
1027 @code{minimumPageTurnLength} to determine how long a note-free section must
1028 be before a page turn is considered. The default value for
1029 @code{minimumPageTurnLength} is @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 1)}. If you want
1030 to disable page turns, you can set it to something very large.
1033 \new Staff \with @{ \consists "Page_turn_engraver" @}
1036 R1 | % a page turn will be allowed here
1038 \set Staff.minimumPageTurnLength = #(ly:make-moment 5 2)
1039 R1 | % a page turn will not be allowed here
1041 R1*2 | % a page turn will be allowed here
1046 @funindex minimumRepeatLengthForPageTurn
1047 The @code{Page_turn_engraver} detects volta repeats. It will only allow a page
1048 turn during the repeat if there is enough time at the beginning and end of the
1049 repeat to turn the page back. The @code{Page_turn_engraver} can also disable
1050 page turns if the repeat is very short. If you set the context property
1051 @code{minimumRepeatLengthForPageTurn} then the @code{Page_turn_engraver} will
1052 only allow turns in repeats whose duration is longer than this value.
1054 The page turning commands, @code{\pageTurn}, @code{\noPageTurn} and
1055 @code{\allowPageTurn}, may also be used at top-level, between scores and
1062 @funindex \noPageTurn
1064 @funindex \allowPageTurn
1065 @code{\allowPageTurn}.
1076 There should only be one @code{Page_turn_engraver} in a score. If there is more
1077 than one, they will interfere with each other.
1080 @node Minimal page breaking
1081 @subsection Minimal page breaking
1083 @funindex ly:minimal-breaking
1085 The @code{ly:minimal-breaking} function performs minimal computations to
1086 calculate the page breaking: it fills a page with as many systems as
1087 possible before moving to the next one. Thus, it may be preferred for
1088 scores with many pages, where the other page breaking functions could be
1089 too slow or memory demanding, or a lot of texts. It is enabled using:
1093 #(define page-breaking ly:minimal-breaking)
1103 @node Explicit breaks
1104 @subsection Explicit breaks
1106 Lily sometimes rejects explicit @code{\break} and @code{\pageBreak}
1107 commands. There are two commands to override this behavior:
1110 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-permission = ##f
1111 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'page-break-permission = ##f
1114 When @code{line-break-permission} is overridden to false, Lily will insert
1115 line breaks at explicit @code{\break} commands and nowhere else. When
1116 @code{page-break-permission} is overridden to false, Lily will insert
1117 page breaks at explicit @code{\pageBreak} commands and nowhere else.
1119 @lilypond[quote,verbatim]
1128 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-permission = ##f
1129 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn #'page-break-permission = ##f
1132 \repeat unfold 2 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1133 \repeat unfold 4 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1134 \repeat unfold 6 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1135 \repeat unfold 8 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \pageBreak
1136 \repeat unfold 8 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1137 \repeat unfold 6 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1138 \repeat unfold 4 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 } \break
1139 \repeat unfold 2 { c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 }
1151 @node Using an extra voice for breaks
1152 @subsection Using an extra voice for breaks
1154 Line- and page-breaking information usually appears within note entry directly.
1159 \repeat unfold 2 @{ c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 @}
1161 \repeat unfold 3 @{ c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 @}
1166 This makes @code{\break} and @code{\pageBreak} commands easy to enter but mixes
1167 music entry with information that specifies how music should lay out
1168 on the page. You can keep music entry and line- and page-breaking
1169 information in two separate places by introducing an extra voice to
1170 contain the breaks. This extra voice
1171 contains only skips together with @code{\break}, @code{pageBreak} and other
1172 breaking layout information.
1174 @lilypond[quote,verbatim]
1184 \repeat unfold 2 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1185 \repeat unfold 3 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1186 \repeat unfold 6 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1187 \repeat unfold 5 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1193 This pattern becomes especially helpful when overriding
1194 @code{line-break-system-details} and the other useful but long properties of
1195 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumnGrob}, as explained in @ref{Vertical spacing}.
1197 @lilypond[quote,verbatim]
1202 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1203 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 0))
1206 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1207 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 35))
1210 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1211 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 70))
1214 \overrideProperty "Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1215 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 105))
1219 \repeat unfold 2 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1220 \repeat unfold 3 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1221 \repeat unfold 6 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1222 \repeat unfold 5 { c'4 c'4 c'4 c'4 }
1231 @ref{Vertical spacing}.
1237 @node Vertical spacing
1238 @section Vertical spacing
1240 @cindex vertical spacing
1241 @cindex spacing, vertical
1243 Vertical spacing is controlled by three things: the amount of
1244 space available (i.e., paper size and margins), the amount of
1245 space between systems, and the amount of space between
1246 staves inside a system.
1249 * Vertical spacing inside a system::
1250 * Vertical spacing between systems::
1251 * Explicit staff and system positioning::
1252 * Two-pass vertical spacing::
1253 * Vertical collision avoidance::
1257 @node Vertical spacing inside a system
1258 @subsection Vertical spacing inside a system
1260 @cindex distance between staves
1261 @cindex staff distance
1262 @cindex space between staves
1263 @cindex space inside systems
1265 The height of each system is determined automatically. To prevent
1266 staves from bumping into each other, some minimum distances are set.
1267 By changing these, you can put staves closer together. This
1268 reduces the amount of space each system requires, and may result
1269 in having more systems per page.
1271 Normally staves are stacked vertically. To make staves maintain a
1272 distance, their vertical size is padded. This is done with the
1273 property @code{minimum-Y-extent}. When applied to a
1274 @rinternals{VerticalAxisGroup}, it controls the size of a horizontal
1275 line, such as a staff or a line of lyrics. @code{minimum-Y-extent}
1276 takes a pair of numbers, so
1277 if you want to make it smaller than its default @code{#'(-4 . 4)}
1281 \override Staff.VerticalAxisGroup #'minimum-Y-extent = #'(-3 . 3)
1285 This sets the vertical size of the current staff to 3 staff spaces on
1286 either side of the center staff line. The value @code{(-3 . 3)} is
1287 interpreted as an interval, where the center line is the 0, so the
1288 first number is generally negative. The numbers need not match;
1289 for example, the staff can be made larger at the bottom by setting
1290 it to @code{(-6 . 4)}.
1292 After page breaks are determined, the vertical spacing within each
1293 system is reevaluated in order to fill the page more evenly; if a page
1294 has space left over, systems are stretched in order to fill that space.
1295 The amount of stretching can be configured though the @code{max-stretch}
1296 property of the @rinternals{VerticalAlignment} grob. By default,
1297 @code{max-stretch} is set to zero, disabling stretching. To enable
1298 stretching, a sane value for @code{max-stretch}
1299 is @code{ly:align-interface::calc-max-stretch}.
1301 In some situations, you may want to stretch most of a system while
1302 leaving some parts fixed. For example, if a piano part occurs in the
1303 middle of an orchestral score, you may want to leave the piano staves
1304 close to each other while stretching the rest of the score. The
1305 @code{keep-fixed-while-stretching} property of
1306 @rinternals{VerticalAxisGroup} can be used to achieve this. When set
1307 to @code{##t}, this property keeps its staff (or line of lyrics) from
1308 moving relative to the one directly above it. In the example above,
1309 you would override @code{keep-fixed-while-stretching} to @code{##t} in
1310 the second piano staff:
1313 #(set-default-paper-size "a6")
1314 #(set-global-staff-size 14.0)
1318 ragged-last-bottom = ##f
1323 \override VerticalAlignment #'max-stretch = #ly:align-interface::calc-max-stretch
1330 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1331 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1332 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1337 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1339 \override VerticalAxisGroup #'keep-fixed-while-stretching = ##t
1346 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1347 \new Staff {c' d' e' f'}
1354 Vertical alignment of staves is handled by the
1355 @code{VerticalAlignment} object. The context parameters
1356 specifying the vertical extent are described in connection with
1357 the @code{Axis_group_engraver}.
1364 @c @lsr{spacing,page-spacing.ly},
1365 @c @lsr{spacing,alignment-vertical-spacing.ly}.
1367 Internals Reference:
1368 @rinternals{VerticalAlignment},
1369 @rinternals{Axis_group_engraver}.
1372 @node Vertical spacing between systems
1373 @subsection Vertical spacing between systems
1375 Space between systems are controlled by four @code{\paper} variables,
1379 between-system-space = 1.5\cm
1380 between-system-padding = #1
1382 ragged-last-bottom=##f
1386 When only a couple of flat systems are placed on a page, the resulting
1387 vertical spacing may be non-elegant: one system at the top of the page,
1388 and the other at the bottom, with a huge gap between them. To avoid this
1389 situation, the space added between the systems can be limited. This
1390 feature is activated by setting to @code{#t} the
1391 @code{page-limit-inter-system-space} variable in the @code{\paper}
1392 block. The paper variable @code{page-limit-inter-system-space-factor}
1393 determines how much the space can be increased: for instance, the value
1394 @code{1.3} means that the space can be 30% larger than what it would be
1395 on a ragged-bottom page.
1397 In the following example, if the inter system space were not limited,
1398 the second system of page 1 would be placed at the page bottom. By
1399 activating the space limitation, the second system is placed closer to
1400 the first one. By setting @code{page-limit-inter-system-space-factor} to
1401 @code{1}, the spacing would the same as on a ragged-bottom page, like
1405 #(set-default-paper-size "a6")
1408 page-limit-inter-system-space = ##t
1409 page-limit-inter-system-space-factor = 1.3
1411 oddFooterMarkup = \markup "page bottom"
1412 evenFooterMarkup = \markup "page bottom"
1413 oddHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line {
1414 "page top" \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string }
1415 evenHeaderMarkup = \markup \fill-line {
1416 "page top" \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string }
1418 \new Staff << \repeat unfold 4 { g'4 g' g' g' \break }
1419 { s1*2 \pageBreak } >>
1429 @node Explicit staff and system positioning
1430 @subsection Explicit staff and system positioning
1432 One way to understand the @code{VerticalAxisGroup} and @code{\paper}
1433 settings explained in the previous two sections is as a collection of
1434 different settings that primarily concern the amount of vertical padding
1435 different staves and systems running down the page.
1437 It is possible to approach vertical spacing in a different way using
1438 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details}. Where
1439 @code{VerticalAxisGroup} and @code{\paper} settings specify vertical padding,
1440 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details} specifies exact
1441 vertical positions on the page.
1443 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details} accepts an associative
1444 list of five different settings:
1447 @item @code{X-offset}
1448 @item @code{Y-offset}
1449 @item @code{alignment-offsets}
1450 @item @code{alignment-extra-space}
1451 @item @code{fixed-alignment-extra-space}
1454 Grob overrides, including the overrides for @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn}
1455 below, can occur in any of three different places in an input file:
1458 @item in the middle of note entry directly
1459 @item in a @code{\context} block
1460 @item in the @code{\with} block
1463 When we override @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn}, we use the usual
1464 @code{\override} command in @code{\context} blocks and in the
1465 @code{\with} block. On the other hand, when we override
1466 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} in the middle of note entry,
1467 use the special @code{\overrideProperty} command. Here are some
1468 example @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} overrides with the special
1469 @code{\overrideProperty} command:
1472 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1473 #'line-break-system-details #'((X-offset . 20))
1475 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1476 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 40))
1478 \overrideProperty NonMusicalPaperColumn
1479 #'line-break-system-details #'((X-offset . 20) (Y-offset . 40))
1481 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn
1482 #'line-break-system-details #'((alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1484 \override NonMusicalPaperColumn
1485 #'line-break-system-details #'((X-offset . 20) (Y-offset . 40)
1486 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1489 To understand how each of these different settings work, we begin
1490 by looking at an example that includes no overrides at all.
1492 @c \book { } is required in these examples to ensure the spacing
1493 @c overrides can be seen between systems. -np
1496 \header { tagline = ##f }
1497 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1507 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1510 \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' }
1517 This score isolates line- and page-breaking information in a dedicated
1518 voice. This technique of creating a breaks voice will help keep layout
1519 separate from music entry as our example becomes more complicated.
1520 See @ref{Using an extra voice for breaks}.
1522 Explicit @code{\breaks} evenly divide the music into six measures per
1523 line. Vertical spacing results from LilyPond's defaults. To set
1524 the vertical startpoint of each system explicitly, we can set
1525 the @code{Y-offset} pair in the @code{line-break-system-details}
1526 attribute of the @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} grob:
1529 \header { tagline = ##f }
1530 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1536 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1537 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 0))
1539 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1540 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 40))
1542 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1543 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 80))
1546 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1549 \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' }
1556 Note that @code{line-break-system-details} takes an associative list of
1557 potentially many values, but that we set only one value here. Note,
1558 too, that the @code{Y-offset} property here determines the exact vertical
1559 position on the page at which each new system will render.
1561 Now that we have set the vertical startpoint of each system
1562 explicitly, we can also set the vertical startpoint of each staff
1563 within each system manually. We do this using the @code{alignment-offsets}
1564 subproperty of @code{line-break-system-details}.
1567 \header { tagline = ##f }
1568 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1574 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1575 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 20)
1576 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1578 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1579 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 60)
1580 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1582 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1583 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 100)
1584 (alignment-offsets . (0 -15)))
1587 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1590 \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' }
1597 Note that here we assign two different values to the
1598 @code{line-break-system-details} attribute of the
1599 @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn} grob. Though the
1600 @code{line-break-system-details} attribute alist accepts many
1601 additional spacing parameters (including, for example, a corresponding
1602 @code{X-offset} pair), we need only set the @code{Y-offset} and
1603 @code{alignment-offsets} pairs to control the vertical startpoint of
1604 every system and every staff. Finally, note that @code{alignment-offsets}
1605 specifies the vertical positioning of staves but not of staff groups.
1608 \header { tagline = ##f }
1609 \paper { left-margin = 0\mm }
1615 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1616 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 0)
1617 (alignment-offsets . (0 -30 -40)))
1619 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1620 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 60)
1621 (alignment-offsets . (0 -10 -20)))
1623 \overrideProperty #"Score.NonMusicalPaperColumn"
1624 #'line-break-system-details #'((Y-offset . 100)
1625 (alignment-offsets . (0 -10 -40)))
1628 \new Voice { \repeat unfold 15 { c'4 c' c' c' } }
1631 \new Staff { \repeat unfold 15 { d'4 d' d' d' } }
1632 \new Staff { \repeat unfold 15 { e'4 e' e' e' } }
1639 Some points to consider:
1642 @item When using @code{alignment-offsets}, lyrics count as a staff.
1644 @item The units of the numbers passed to @code{X-offset},
1645 @code{Y-offset} and @code{alignment-offsets} are interpreted as multiples
1646 of the distance between adjacent staff lines. Positive values move staves
1647 and lyrics up, negative values move staves and lyrics down.
1649 @item Because the @code{NonMusicalPaperColumn #'line-break-system-details}
1650 settings given here allow the positioning of staves and systems anywhere
1651 on the page, it is possible to violate paper or margin boundaries or even
1652 to print staves or systems on top of one another. Reasonable values
1653 passed to these different settings will avoid this.
1662 @node Two-pass vertical spacing
1663 @subsection Two-pass vertical spacing
1665 @warning{Two-pass vertical spacing is deprecated and will be removed in
1666 a future version of LilyPond. Systems are now stretched automatically
1667 in a single pass. See @ref{Vertical spacing inside a system}.}
1669 In order to automatically stretch systems so that they should fill the
1670 space left on a page, a two-pass technique can be used:
1673 @item In the first pass, the amount of vertical space used to increase
1674 the height of each system is computed and dumped to a file.
1675 @item In the second pass, spacing inside the systems are
1676 stretched according to the data in the page layout file.
1679 The @code{ragged-bottom} property adds space between systems, while
1680 the two-pass technique adds space between staves inside a system.
1682 To allow this behavior, a @code{tweak-key} variable has to be set in
1683 each score @code{\layout} block, and the tweaks included in each score
1684 music, using the @code{\scoreTweak} music function.
1688 %% include the generated page layout file:
1689 \includePageLayoutFile
1694 %% Include this score tweaks:
1695 \scoreTweak "scoreA"
1696 { \clef french c''1 \break c''1 }
1698 \new Staff { \clef soprano g'1 g'1 }
1699 \new Staff { \clef mezzosoprano e'1 e'1 }
1700 \new Staff { \clef alto g1 g1 }
1701 \new Staff { \clef bass c1 c1 }
1704 piece = "Score with tweaks"
1706 %% Define how to name the tweaks for this score:
1707 \layout { #(define tweak-key "scoreA") }
1712 For the first pass, the @code{dump-tweaks} option should be set to
1713 generate the page layout file.
1716 lilypond -dbackend=null -d dump-tweaks <file>.ly
1726 @node Vertical collision avoidance
1727 @subsection Vertical collision avoidance
1729 @funindex outside-staff-priority
1730 @funindex outside-staff-padding
1731 @funindex outside-staff-horizontal-padding
1733 Intuitively, there are some objects in musical notation that belong
1734 to the staff and there are other objects that should be placed outside
1735 the staff. Objects belonging outside the staff include things such as
1736 rehearsal marks, text and dynamic markings (from now on, these will
1737 be called outside-staff objects). LilyPond's rule for the
1738 vertical placement of outside-staff objects is to place them as close
1739 to the staff as possible but not so close that they collide with
1742 LilyPond uses the @code{outside-staff-priority} property to determine
1743 whether a grob is an outside-staff object: if @code{outside-staff-priority}
1744 is a number, the grob is an outside-staff object. In addition,
1745 @code{outside-staff-priority} tells LilyPond in which order the objects
1748 First, LilyPond places all the objects that do not belong outside
1749 the staff. Then it sorts the outside-staff objects according to their
1750 @code{outside-staff-priority} (in increasing order). One by one, LilyPond
1751 takes the outside-staff objects and places them so that they do
1752 not collide with any objects that have already been placed. That
1753 is, if two outside-staff grobs are competing for the same space, the one
1754 with the lower @code{outside-staff-priority} will be placed closer to
1757 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
1760 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-priority = #1
1761 c4_"Text"\pp % this time the text will be closer to the staff
1763 % by setting outside-staff-priority to a non-number,
1764 % we disable the automatic collision avoidance
1765 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-priority = ##f
1766 \once \override DynamicLineSpanner #'outside-staff-priority = ##f
1767 c4_"Text"\pp % now they will collide
1770 The vertical padding between an outside-staff object and the
1771 previously-positioned grobs can be controlled with
1772 @code{outside-staff-padding}.
1774 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
1775 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-padding = #0
1776 a'^"This text is placed very close to the note"
1777 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-padding = #3
1778 c^"This text is padded away from the previous text"
1779 c^"This text is placed close to the previous text"
1782 TODO: this example doesn't work any more ?
1784 By default, outside-staff objects are placed without regard to
1785 their horizontal distance from the previously-positioned grobs. This
1786 can lead to situations in which objects are placed very close to each
1787 other horizontally. Setting @code{outside-staff-horizontal-padding}
1788 causes an object to be offset vertically so that such a situation
1791 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
1792 % the markup is too close to the following note
1795 % setting outside-staff-horizontal-padding fixes this
1797 \once \override TextScript #'outside-staff-horizontal-padding = #1
1808 @node Horizontal spacing
1809 @section Horizontal spacing
1811 @cindex horizontal spacing
1812 @cindex spacing, horizontal
1815 * Horizontal spacing overview::
1816 * New spacing area::
1817 * Changing horizontal spacing::
1819 * Proportional notation::
1823 @node Horizontal spacing overview
1824 @subsection Horizontal spacing overview
1826 The spacing engine translates differences in durations into stretchable
1827 distances (@q{springs}) of differing lengths. Longer durations get
1828 more space, shorter durations get less. The shortest durations get a
1829 fixed amount of space (which is controlled by
1830 @code{shortest-duration-space} in the @rinternals{SpacingSpanner}
1831 object). The longer the duration, the more space it gets: doubling a
1832 duration adds a fixed amount (this amount is controlled by
1833 @code{spacing-increment}) of space to the note.
1835 For example, the following piece contains lots of half, quarter, and
1836 8th notes; the eighth note is followed by 1 note head width (NHW).
1837 The quarter note is followed by 2 NHW, the half by 3 NHW, etc.
1839 @lilypond[quote,fragment,verbatim,relative=1]
1840 c2 c4. c8 c4. c8 c4. c8 c8
1844 Normally, @code{spacing-increment} is set to 1.2 staff space, which is
1845 approximately the width of a note head, and
1846 @code{shortest-duration-space} is set to 2.0, meaning that the
1847 shortest note gets 2.4 staff space (2.0 times the
1848 @code{spacing-increment}) of horizontal space. This space is counted
1849 from the left edge of the symbol, so the shortest notes are generally
1850 followed by one NHW of space.
1852 If one would follow the above procedure exactly, then adding a single
1853 32nd note to a score that uses 8th and 16th notes, would widen up the
1854 entire score a lot. The shortest note is no longer a 16th, but a 32nd,
1855 thus adding 1 NHW to every note. To prevent this, the shortest
1856 duration for spacing is not the shortest note in the score, but rather
1857 the one which occurs most frequently.
1860 The most common shortest duration is determined as follows: in every
1861 measure, the shortest duration is determined. The most common shortest
1862 duration is taken as the basis for the spacing, with the stipulation
1863 that this shortest duration should always be equal to or shorter than
1864 an 8th note. The shortest duration is printed when you run
1865 @code{lilypond} with the @code{--verbose} option.
1867 These durations may also be customized. If you set the
1868 @code{common-shortest-duration} in @rinternals{SpacingSpanner}, then
1869 this sets the base duration for spacing. The maximum duration for this
1870 base (normally an 8th), is set through @code{base-shortest-duration}.
1872 @funindex common-shortest-duration
1873 @funindex base-shortest-duration
1874 @funindex stem-spacing-correction
1877 Notes that are even shorter than the common shortest note are
1878 followed by a space that is proportional to their duration relative to
1879 the common shortest note. So if we were to add only a few 16th notes
1880 to the example above, they would be followed by half a NHW:
1882 @lilypond[quote,fragment,verbatim,relative=2]
1883 c2 c4. c8 c4. c16[ c] c4. c8 c8 c8 c4 c4 c4
1887 In the introduction (see @rlearning{Engraving}), it was explained that stem
1888 directions influence spacing. This is controlled with the
1889 @code{stem-spacing-correction} property in the
1890 @rinternals{NoteSpacing}, object. These are generated for every
1891 @rinternals{Voice} context. The @code{StaffSpacing} object
1892 (generated in @rinternals{Staff} context) contains the same property
1893 for controlling the stem/bar line spacing. The following example shows
1894 these corrections, once with default settings, and once with
1895 exaggerated corrections:
1897 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right]
1901 \override Staff.NoteSpacing #'stem-spacing-correction = #1.5
1902 \override Staff.StaffSpacing #'stem-spacing-correction = #1.5
1908 Proportional notation is supported; see @ref{Proportional notation}.
1915 Internals Reference:
1916 @rinternals{SpacingSpanner},
1917 @rinternals{NoteSpacing},
1918 @rinternals{StaffSpacing},
1919 @rinternals{SeparationItem}.
1924 There is no convenient mechanism to manually override spacing. The
1925 following work-around may be used to insert extra space into a score.
1927 \once \override Score.SeparationItem #'padding = #1
1930 No work-around exists for decreasing the amount of space.
1933 @node New spacing area
1934 @subsection New spacing area
1936 New sections with different spacing parameters can be started with
1937 @code{newSpacingSection}. This is useful when there are
1938 sections with a different notions of long and short notes.
1940 In the following example, the time signature change introduces a new
1941 section, and hence the 16ths notes are spaced wider.
1943 @lilypond[relative,fragment,verbatim,quote]
1946 c8 c c4 c16[ c c8] c4
1952 The @code{\newSpacingSection} command creates a new
1953 @code{SpacingSpanner} object, and hence new @code{\override}s
1954 may be used in that location.
1961 Internals Reference:
1962 @rinternals{SpacingSpanner}.
1965 @node Changing horizontal spacing
1966 @subsection Changing horizontal spacing
1968 Horizontal spacing may be altered with the
1969 @code{base-shortest-duration} property. Here
1970 we compare the same music; once without altering
1971 the property, and then altered. Larger values
1972 of @code{ly:make-moment} will produce smaller
1973 music. Note that @code{ly:make-moment} constructs
1974 a duration, so @code{1 4} is a longer duration
1977 @lilypond[verbatim,line-width=12\cm]
1980 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 d e f | g4 g g2 |
1981 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
1982 d4 d d d | d4 e f2 | e4 e e e | e4 f g2 |
1983 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
1988 @lilypond[verbatim,line-width=12\cm]
1991 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 d e f | g4 g g2 |
1992 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
1993 d4 d d d | d4 e f2 | e4 e e e | e4 f g2 |
1994 g4 e e2 | f4 d d2 | c4 e g g | c,1 |
1999 \override SpacingSpanner
2000 #'base-shortest-duration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2009 By default, spacing in tuplets depends on various non-duration
2010 factors (such as accidentals, clef changes, etc). To disregard
2011 such symbols and force uniform equal-duration spacing, use
2012 @code{Score.SpacingSpanner #'uniform-stretching}. This
2013 property can only be changed at the beginning of a score,
2015 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
2017 \override SpacingSpanner #'uniform-stretching = ##t
2034 When @code{strict-note-spacing} is set, notes are spaced without
2035 regard for clefs, bar lines, and grace notes,
2037 @lilypond[quote,ragged-right,relative=2,fragment,verbatim]
2038 \override Score.SpacingSpanner #'strict-note-spacing = ##t
2039 \new Staff { c8[ c \clef alto c \grace { c16[ c] } c8 c c] c32[ c32] }
2049 @subsection Line length
2052 @cindex breaking pages
2055 @funindex line-width
2056 @funindex ragged-right
2057 @funindex ragged-last
2059 @c Although line-width can be set in \layout, it should be set in paper
2060 @c block, to get page layout right.
2061 @c Setting indent in \paper block makes not much sense, but it works.
2063 @c Bit verbose and vague, use examples?
2064 The most basic settings influencing the spacing are @code{indent} and
2065 @code{line-width}. They are set in the @code{\layout} block. They
2066 control the indentation of the first line of music, and the lengths of
2069 If @code{ragged-right} is set to true in the @code{\layout} block, then
2070 systems ends at their natural horizontal length, instead of being spread
2071 horizontally to fill the whole line. This is useful for
2072 short fragments, and for checking how tight the natural spacing is.
2075 @cindex vertical spacing
2077 The option @code{ragged-last} is similar to @code{ragged-right}, but
2078 only affects the last line of the piece. No restrictions are put on
2079 that line. The result is similar to formatting text paragraphs. In a
2080 paragraph, the last line simply takes its natural horizontal length.
2081 @c Note that for text there are several options for the last line.
2082 @c While Knuth TeX uses natural length, lead typesetters use the same
2083 @c stretch as the previous line. eTeX uses \lastlinefit to
2084 @c interpolate between both these solutions.
2100 @node Proportional notation
2101 @subsection Proportional notation
2103 LilyPond supports proportional notation, a type of horizontal spacing
2104 in which each note consumes an amount of horizontal space exactly
2105 equivalent to its rhythmic duration. This type of proportional spacing
2106 is comparable to horizontal spacing on top of graph paper. Some late
2107 20th- and early 21st-century scores use proportional notation to
2108 clarify complex rhythmic relationships or to facilitate the placement
2109 of timelines or other graphics directly in the score.
2111 LilyPond supports five different settings for proportional notation,
2112 which may be used together or alone:
2115 @item @code{proportionalNotationDuration}
2116 @item @code{uniform-stretching}
2117 @item @code{strict-note-spacing}
2118 @item @code{\remove Separating_line_group_engraver}
2119 @item @code{\override PaperColumn #'used = ##t}
2122 In the examples that follow, we explore these five different
2123 proportional notation settings and examine how these settings interact.
2125 We start with the following one-measure example, which uses classical
2126 spacing with ragged-right turned on.
2128 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2130 \new RhythmicStaff {
2134 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2140 Notice that the half note which begins the measure takes up far less
2141 than half of the horizontal space of the measure. Likewise, the
2142 sixteenth notes and sixteenth-note quintuplets (or twentieth notes)
2143 which end the measure together take up far more than half the
2144 horizontal space of the measure.
2146 In classical engraving, this spacing may be exactly what we want
2147 because we can borrow horizontal space from the half note and conserve
2148 horizontal space across the measure as a whole.
2150 On the other hand, if we want to insert a measured timeline or other
2151 graphic above or below our score, we need proportional notation. We
2152 turn proportional notation on with the proportionalNotationDuration
2155 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2157 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 20)
2159 \new RhythmicStaff {
2163 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2169 The half note at the beginning of the measure and the faster notes in
2170 the second half of the measure now occupy equal amounts of horizontal
2171 space. We could place a measured timeline or graphic above or below
2174 The @code{proportionalNotationDuration} setting is a context setting that
2175 lives in @code{Score}. Recall that context settings appear in one of
2176 three locations in our input file -- in a @code{\with} block, in a
2177 @code{\context} block, or directly in music entry
2178 preceded by the @code{\set} command. As with all
2179 context settings, users can pick which of the three different
2180 locations they would like to set @code{proportionalNotationDuration}.
2182 The @code{proportionalNotationDuration} setting takes a single argument,
2183 which is the reference duration against which all music will be
2184 spaced. The LilyPond Scheme function make-moment takes two arguments
2185 -- a numerator and denominator which together express some fraction of
2186 a whole note. The call @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 20)} therefore produces a
2187 reference duration of a twentieth note. The values
2188 @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 16)}, @code{#(ly:make-moment 1 8)}, and
2189 @code{#(ly:make-moment 3 97)} are all possible as well.
2191 How do we select the right reference duration to pass to
2192 @code{proportionalNotationDuration}? Usually by a process of trial and error,
2193 beginning with a duration close to the fastest (or smallest) duration
2194 in the piece. Smaller reference durations space music loosely; larger
2195 reference durations space music tightly.
2197 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2199 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 8)
2201 \new RhythmicStaff {
2205 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2211 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2213 \new RhythmicStaff {
2217 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2223 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 32)
2225 \new RhythmicStaff {
2229 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2235 Note that too large a reference duration -- such as the eighth note,
2236 above -- spaces music too tightly and can cause note head collisions.
2237 Note also that proportional notation in general takes up more
2238 horizontal space that does classical spacing. Proportional spacing
2239 provides rhythmic clarity at the expense of horizontal space.
2241 Next we examine how to optimally space overlapping tuplets.
2243 We start by examining what happens to our original example, with
2244 classical spacing, when we add a second staff with a different type of
2247 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2249 \new RhythmicStaff {
2253 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2256 \new RhythmicStaff {
2258 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8
2264 The spacing is bad because the evenly notes of the bottom staff do not
2265 stretch uniformly. Classical engraving includes very few complex
2266 triplets and so classical engraving rules can generate this type of
2267 result. Setting @code{proportionalNotationDuration} remedies this
2268 situation considerably.
2270 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2272 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 20)
2274 \new RhythmicStaff {
2278 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2281 \new RhythmicStaff {
2283 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8
2289 But if we look very carefully we can see that notes of the second half
2290 of the 9-tuplet space ever so slightly more widely than do the notes
2291 of the first half of the 9-tuplet. To ensure uniform stretching, we
2292 turn on @code{uniform-stretching}, which is a property of
2293 @code{SpacingSpanner}.
2295 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2297 proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 20)
2298 \override SpacingSpanner #'uniform-stretching = ##t
2300 \new RhythmicStaff {
2304 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16 c'16
2307 \new RhythmicStaff {
2309 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8 c'8
2315 Our two-staff example now spaces exactly, our rhythmic
2316 relationships are visually clear, and we can include a measured
2317 timeline or graphic if we want.
2319 Note that the LilyPond's proportional notation package expects
2320 that all proportional scores set the SpacingSpanner's
2321 'uniform-stretching attribute to ##t. Setting
2322 proportionalNotationDuration without also setting the
2323 SpacingSpanner's 'uniform-stretching attribute to ##t will, for
2324 example, cause Skips to consume an incorrect amount of horizontal
2327 The SpacingSpanner is an abstract grob that lives in the Score
2328 context. As with our settings of proportionalNotationDuration,
2329 overrides to the SpacingSpanner can occur in any of three
2330 different places in our input file – in the Score \with block, in
2331 a Score \context block, or in note entry directly.
2333 There is by default only one @code{SpacingSpanner} per @code{Score}. This
2334 means that, by default, @code{uniform-stretching} is either turned on for the
2335 entire score or turned off for the entire score. We can, however,
2336 override this behavior and turn on different spacing features at
2337 different places in the score. We do this with the command
2338 @code{\newSpacingSection}. See @ref{New spacing area}, for more info.
2340 Next we examine the effects of the @code{Separating_line_group_engraver} and
2341 see why proportional scores frequently remove this engraver. The following
2342 example shows that there is a small amount of @qq{preferatory} space
2343 just before the first note in each system.
2345 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2358 The amount of this preferatory space is the same whether after a time
2359 signature, a key signature or a clef. @code{Separating_line_group_engraver}
2360 is responsible for this space. Removing @code{Separating_line_group_engraver}
2361 reduces this space to zero.
2363 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2369 \remove Separating_line_group_engraver
2377 Nonmusical elements like time signatures, key signatures, clefs and
2378 accidentals are problematic in proportional notation. None of these
2379 elements has rhythmic duration. But all of these elements consume
2380 horizontal space. Different proportional scores approach these
2381 problems differently.
2383 It may be possible to avoid spacing problems with key signatures
2384 simply by not having any. This is a valid option since most
2385 proportional scores are contemporary music. The same may be true
2386 of time signatures, especially for those scores
2387 that include a measured timeline or other graphic. But these scores
2388 are exceptional and most proportional scores include at least some
2389 time signatures. Clefs and accidentals are even more essential.
2391 So what strategies exist for spacing nonmusical elements in a
2392 proportional context? One good option is the @code{strict-note-spacing}
2393 property of @code{SpacingSpanner}. Compare the two scores below:
2395 @lilypond[quote,verbatim,ragged-right]
2397 \set Score.proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2407 \set Score.proportionalNotationDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 16)
2408 \override Score.SpacingSpanner #'strict-note-spacing = ##t
2418 Both scores are proportional, but the spacing in the first score
2419 is too loose because of the clef change. The spacing of the second
2420 score remains strict, however, because strict-note-spacing is
2421 turned on. Turning on strict-note-spacing causes the width of
2422 time signatures, key signatures, clefs and accidentals to play no
2423 part in the spacing algorithm.
2425 In addition to the settings given here, there are other settings
2426 that frequently appear in proportional scores. These include:
2429 @item @code{\override SpacingSpanner #'strict-grace-spacing = ##t}
2430 @item @code{tupletFullLength = ##t}
2431 @item @code{\override Beam #'breakable = ##t}
2432 @item @code{\override Glissando #'breakable = ##t}
2433 @item @code{\override TextSpanner #'breakable = ##t}
2434 @item @code{\remove Forbid_line_break_engraver in the Voice context}
2437 These settings space grace notes strictly, extend tuplet brackets to
2438 mark both rhythmic start- and stop-points, and allow spanning elements
2439 to break across systems and pages. See the respective parts of the manual
2440 for these related settings.
2445 @ref{New spacing area}.
2451 @node Fitting music onto fewer pages
2452 @section Fitting music onto fewer pages
2454 Sometimes you can end up with one or two staves on a second
2455 (or third, or fourth...) page. This is annoying, especially
2456 if you look at previous pages and it looks like there is plenty
2457 of room left on those.
2459 When investigating layout issues, @code{annotate-spacing} is an
2460 invaluable tool. This command prints the values of various layout
2461 spacing variables; for more details see the following section,
2462 @ref{Displaying spacing}.
2465 * Displaying spacing::
2466 * Changing spacing::
2470 @node Displaying spacing
2471 @subsection Displaying spacing
2473 @funindex annotate-spacing
2474 @cindex spacing, display of layout
2476 To graphically display the dimensions of vertical layout variables
2477 that may be altered for page formatting, set
2478 @code{annotate-spacing} in the @code{\paper} block:
2480 @c need to have \book{} otherwise we get the separate systems. -hwn
2481 @lilypond[verbatim,quote]
2482 #(set-default-paper-size "a6" 'landscape)
2485 \paper { annotate-spacing = ##t }
2490 All layout dimensions are displayed in staff spaces, regardless of
2491 the units specified in the @code{\paper} or @code{\layout} block.
2492 For example, @code{paper-height} has a value of 59.75 staff
2493 spaces, using the default staff size of 20 points, which is
2494 equivalent to 148 millimeters, the height of @code{a6} paper in
2495 landscape orientation. The pairs (@var{a},@var{b}) are intervals,
2496 where @var{a} is the lower edge and @var{b} the upper edge of the
2505 @node Changing spacing
2506 @subsection Changing spacing
2508 The output of @code{annotate-spacing} reveals vertical dimensions
2509 in great detail. For details about modifying margins and other
2510 layout variables, see @ref{Page formatting}.
2512 Other than margins, there are a few other options to save space:
2516 Force systems to move as close together as possible (to fit as
2517 many systems as possible onto a page) while being spaced so that
2518 there is no blank space at the bottom of the page.
2522 between-system-padding = #0.1
2523 between-system-space = #0.1
2524 ragged-last-bottom = ##f
2530 Force the number of systems. For example, if the default layout
2531 has 11 systems, the following assignment will force a layout with
2541 Avoid (or reduce) objects that increase the vertical size of a
2542 system. For example, volta repeats (or alternate repeats) require
2543 extra space. If these repeats are spread over two systems, they
2544 will take up more space than one system with the volta repeats and
2545 another system without. For example, dynamics that @q{stick out} of
2546 a system can be moved closer to the staff:
2548 @lilypond[verbatim,quote,relative=1]
2550 \override DynamicText #'extra-offset = #'( -2.2 . 2.0)
2555 Alter the horizontal spacing via @code{SpacingSpanner}. For more
2556 details, see @ref{Changing horizontal spacing}. The following
2557 example illustrates the default spacing:
2559 @lilypond[verbatim,quote]
2572 The next example modifies @code{common-shortest-duration} from a
2573 value of @code{1/4} to @code{1/2}. The quarter note is the most
2574 common and shortest duration in this example, so by making this
2575 duration longer, a @q{squeezing} effect occurs:
2577 @lilypond[verbatim,quote]
2589 \override SpacingSpanner
2590 #'common-shortest-duration = #(ly:make-moment 1 2)
2597 The @code{common-shortest-duration} property cannot be modified
2598 dynamically, so it must always be placed in a @code{\context}
2599 block so that it applies to the whole score.
2606 @ref{Page formatting},
2607 @ref{Changing horizontal spacing}.