1 article(FAQ - GNU LilyPond FAQs)()()()
3 DEFINEMACRO(question)(1)(subsect(ARG1))
7 question(HELP! I'm stuck!)
9 Please read this document carefully. If you are still at loss,
10 send your questions to the bf(mailing list), and not to authors
13 Note: relative paths are meant to be relative to the source directory
17 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
18 question(If I install the .exe file on my DOS/windows 3.11 machine, it doesn't work)
20 The DOS port is done with the cygnus gnu/windows32 port of the GNU utils.
21 It does em(not) work with windows 3.x; you need Windows-NT (95/98?). This
22 is not a recommendation, however. We recommend you use Unix, in
23 particular, use GNU/Linux. For further information see file(README-W32).
25 question(Where is guile-config)
27 RedHat RPMS don't include guile-config. You need guile-config as it
28 was produced during the RPM build run. Build the RPM from source
29 (file(.src.rpm)), and use the guile-config that is in
30 file(/usr/src/redhat/BUILD/guile-1.3/guile-config/).
33 question(I get all kinds of errors while compiling file(parser.cc))
35 LilyPond uses features of bison version 1.25. Please confirm that
36 you are using a version 1.25 or better, that is bf(GNU) bison
37 bf(1.25). Don't forget to do "make clean" after installing it. Don't
38 forget to remove the stale file(bison.simple) as well.
40 If the problem persists, then please send a bug report to the mailing list.
42 question(I upgraded by applying a patch, and now my configure/build breaks.)
44 Patches don't include automatically generated files, i.e.
45 file(configure) and files generated by file(configure). Regenerate them
51 You might need to create some extra "out" directories. Do this with
55 question(Some of your neat scripts fail, what directories do you use:)
57 [This only applies if you don't do code(make install), and develop out
58 of the source directory]
60 I have a directory which contains all our development projects
65 which looks like file(/usr/)
76 The directory file(~/usr/src/) contains something like
77 includefile(../stepmake/Documentation/layout.yo)
80 ~/usr/src/bin is in the PATH, and contains symbolic links to the
83 question(Is there an emacs mode?)
85 Yes. It is included with the source archive as mudela-mode.el. If
86 you have an rpm it is in /usr/doc/lilypond-X/. You have to install it
89 question(How do i create the file(.tfm) files?)
91 You don't. The file(.tfm) files should be generated automatically by
92 Metafont when you run TeX(). Check your TeX() installation, or ask
93 your local TeX() guru. The supplied file(.afm) files are intended to
94 be used by LilyPond, not by any other programs.
99 question(Why is the documentation/website/etc. so lousy?)
101 LilyPond development is moving quite fast, documentation will often
102 lag a bit behind. We must always make a choice between writing more
103 doco, writing more code and answering email.
105 If you think you can make a correction, or devised a solution that
106 should be documented, please do so and send in a patch.
108 sect(Language: mudela)
110 question(Why can't you type code(#c) in stead of code(cis) ?)
112 We think that code(#c) looks as if you are entering the symbols to
113 print (which you are not; remember, you're entering the musical
117 question(Why do I have to type the accidentals to the note if I specified them?)
123 Independently of how it was written and what the current key was, you
124 would say that you are playing and reading "two C-sharp" notes. We
125 have tried to make the language somewhat context-free. Of course
126 sheet music is not context-free. Unfortunately, sheet music is also 2
127 dimensional, and ASCII is not.
129 Technically it would be feasible to have the Interpreting phase do
130 tricky things to add (or leave out) the accidentals, but we think that
131 it is impractical: it hampers the readability and portability of your
132 source, since you need LilyPond to fill in the details and actually
136 question(What is code(cis) anyway)
138 code(cis) is the dutch naming for C-sharp. The notes are named
139 a, b,.., g. The suffix -is means sharp, and -es flat. This system is
140 common in a number of languages (such as swedish, dutch, german.)
141 Certain other languages (such as English, French and Italian) just add
142 the word for "sharp" to the notename.
144 We chose the Dutch system, because we're dutch. You are free to chose
145 whatever names you like; they are user definable.
148 question(Why are [] around the notes, and () inbetween?)
150 [] designate beams, a note can only be in one beam at the same
151 time. () is a slur, which connects notes. You need to be able to
157 question(I want to insert some TeX commands.)
159 You shouldn't: it's against LilyPond philosophy to have typesetting
160 commands in the mudela source. Moreover, this would be difficult.
161 LilyPond uses TeX like a glorified output engine: the output consists
162 of (x,y) positions and symbols. You can only sensibly do TeX stuff in
163 the symbol string. You can access the symbol string easily for some
164 symbols (notably lyrics and code(^"text") commands).
167 sect(Do you support ...)
169 question(Do you support pop songs (chords, single staff, lyrics)?)
171 Yes, see the file(twinkle-pop) example.
174 question(Do you support guitar chord diagrams?)
176 No. Go ahead and send a patch.
178 We ourselves don't play guitar, and don't know the fine points of this
179 notation. We would welcome anyone who could give this a try.
181 question(Do you support TAB notation?)
183 No. The same as for the previous question goes, but TAB is a lot
184 more work than diagrams (TAB needs modification of Parser, Lexer,
185 Staff, Notehead, Stem code and all the code that creates these graphic
188 question(Do you support multiple staff-sizes?)
190 Yes. At this time you can choose between 11, 13, 16, 19, 20, 23 and
191 20 pt staff-size. Use the staffLineLeading property for setting the
192 size of the staff, and fontSize for setting the size of the glyphs.
194 question(Do you support Gregorian chant notation?)
198 question(Do you support grace notes?)
200 Yes. See file(input/test/grace.ly)
205 question(How do I change the TeX layout?)
207 See file(lilyponddefs.tex), it has some comments. Or use file(ly2dvi).
209 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
210 question(How do I place lyrics under em(each) of the staves in a score, as choral music. I can work out how to put lyrics for each line all under the top line, or at the bottom but not between!)
212 You change the order lyrics and staves. You have to name all
213 staves (lyric and melodic), otherwise they will end up in the same
217 < \melodic \type Staff = "treble" \trebleMelody
218 \lyric \type Lyrics = "tlyrics" \trebtext
219 \type Staff = "bass" \melodic \bassMelody
220 \lyric \type Lyrics = "blyrics" \basstext
226 question(How do I put more than one marking on a note.)
232 or use spacing-notes to put markings at different horizontal positions
235 { s4\ff s4^"text" s4-\marcato s4 }
238 This also works for crescendi, eg,
246 question(How do I get bar numbers?)
248 See file(input/test/bar-scripts.ly).
253 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
254 question(Could you implement feature XXXX? It is really easy, just extend the syntax to allow YYYY!)
256 If it is reasonable, I'll add XXXX to the TODO list. In general
257 finding a cute syntax (such as YYYY) isn't very hard. The complicated
258 issue how to adapt the internals to do XXXX. The parser is really a
259 simple front end to the complicated internals.
261 question(Can I join in on LilyPond development? How do I do this?)
263 LilyPond development is open for anyone who wants to join. We try
264 to use a Bazaar style development model for LilyPond, see
265 lurl(http://locke.ccil.org/~esr/writings/cathedral.html.) This means:
266 frequent releases, everyone can send in a patch or do suggestions and
267 all development discussions are public.
269 To be precise, discussions take place on the gnu-music-discuss mailing
270 list, which is open for subscription to everyone.
273 question(I want to implement XXXX! Should I do this?)
275 There might be better ways of doing XXXX, so it's a good thing to
276 ask about this before you start hacking. If you want to keep in touch
277 with current developments, you should subscribe to the mailing list
278 (see the "links" section of the documentation).
281 question(Is there a GUI frontend? Should I start building one?)
283 LilyPond currently has no graphical interface. The authors seriously
284 doubt if a simple-minded approach (dragging and dropping notes) is any
285 easier or quicker to use than mudela. But for composing a graphical
286 environment probably is indispensable.
288 In any case email(Derek Wyatt)(wyatt@scar.utoronto.edu) is working on
289 GTK based editor, but that effort practically died. (see
290 lurl(http://harmonia.scar.utoronto.ca).
292 Matthew Hiller is working on extending Midiscore to handle mudela.
293 lurl(http://zoo.cs.yale.edu/~meh25/MISClily/MISClily-0.0.3.tar.gz)
296 There is also a GUI package RoseGarden that could be extended to
299 If you want to work on this, please send e-mail to the mailing list
300 email(gnu-music-discuss@gnu.org).
304 question(I want to implement XXXX! How should I do this?)
306 Your best bet of getting us to include code, is to present it as a
307 "fait accompli", i.e., to send a patch to the mailing list.
310 question(I made some code, how do I get you to include it?)
314 diff -urN old-file new-file > patch
318 diff -urN old-directory/ new-directory/ > patch
320 Alternatively, you can use issue the command
325 Don't forget to put your name and e-mail address
326 in the file(AUTHORS.pod) file, or you won't get credits :-]
329 em(Please) always send a bf(-u) diff, even if it is larger than the
332 question(How do I learn the C++ code?)
334 The entry point is in code(main()). Good luck. :-)
336 Seriously, read, reread and reread internals and CodingStyle, and
339 Anywhere? Well, most of the comment doco are in the header files, so
340 your best bet would be code(less lily/include/*.hh). Some of the most
341 important data-structures are to be found in:
360 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
361 question(Your make system does not adhere to GNU coding standards, could you please fix it?)
363 No. We have evaluated the standard GNU combination for compiling
364 programs (autoconf, automake, libtool) and found to be inadequate in
365 several respects. More detailed argumentation is included with
366 LilyPond's generic make package code(StepMake)
367 (see file(stepmake-x.x.x/Documentation/automake.urgh))
369 LilyPond already compiles into a different directory ((the different
370 directory is called out/, there is one in every source directory).
371 make distclean essentially reduces to file(rm -f out/*) in every directory
373 question(gdb crashes when I debug!)
377 question(Why do I need g++ >= 2.8 / EGCS-1.1 ?)
379 Supporting more compilers than EGCS/G++ 2.8 is unlikely to make
380 LilyPond run on more platforms. It would give us an enormous headache
381 in detecting and catering for every variant of every compiler: not
382 having to support other compilers saves us a em(lot) of trouble.
388 question(I use dvilj4, and there are lots of warning messages for the printing)
390 You should use dvips and ghostscript to print the code(dvi) output:
391 the slurs and beams are PS code(\special) commands.
394 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
395 question(My symbols are all messed up after I upgraded, I get the wrong symbols and dvi-checksum errors!)
397 We obviously mucked with the fonts in the upgrade. Remove em(all)
398 previous fonts, including the file(.pk) and file(.tfm) fonts in
399 file(/var/lib/texmf). A script automating this has been included, see
400 file(buildscripts/clean-fonts.sh).
402 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
403 question(all the pk and tfm fonts are created in the directory where the mudela file is, not in "/var/spool/texmf" where I think they should be.)
405 Mats Bengtsson <mats.bengtsson@s3.kth.se> writes:
407 The simple solution used by Anthony Fok in the Debian distribution of
408 Lilypond is to link the mf/ directory to
409 /usr/lib/texmf/fonts/source/public/lilypond Depending on what
410 distribution of teTeX and Linux you have installed, there might also
411 be other places like /usr/local/lib/texmf/fonts/source/public/lilypond
412 or /var/spool/texmf//fonts/source/public/lilypond
414 Wherever you put it, don't forget to run mktexlsr (or texhash for
415 older installations) afterwards, so that TeX will find the files.
416 Also, don't forget to remove all old .tfm and .*pk files when the font
417 is updated (as it will be in version 1.1.40, for example).
419 question(Are there scalable versions of the font?)
421 Yes, they are type-3 fonts. In the file(mf/)
425 ) in the mf/ subdirectory. This will also make file(mfplain) for metapost.
426 The file(pfa)s will be in the subdirectory file(out/).
428 question(How does PS output work?)
432 Generate the PostScript Type-3 fonts.
434 Run lilypond with option tt(-f ps):
438 it() To view the file(.ps) output with GhostView, set GS_FONTPATH to the
439 directory containing the file(pfa)s, and set GS_LIB to the directory containing the file(.ps) library files of LilyPond. In the source tree, these are file(mf/out/) and file(ps/).
442 i.e. do something like:
444 export GS_FONTPATH=$HOME/usr/src/lilypond/mf/out
445 export GS_LIB=$HOME/usr/src/lilypond/ps
450 Direct PS output is still experimental. For creating nice looking ps
451 output, use TeX() and code(dvips).
454 question(The beams and slurs are gone if use the XDvi magnifying glass!?)
456 The beams and slurs are done in PostScript. XDvi doesn't show
457 PostScript in the magnifying glass. Complain to the XDvi maintainers.
460 question(I don't get midi-output, even if I use bf(-M)!)
462 Your \score should include a \midi block, eg.
465 \melodic { c4 c g g }
468 output = "myfile.midi";
473 The bf(-M) option was added to LilyPond because processing the \paper
476 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
477 question(A lot of musical stuff doesn't make it to the MIDI file, eg. dynamics, articulation, etc.)
479 The MIDI output was originally put in as a proof that MIDI could be
480 done, and as a method of proof"reading" the input. The MIDI support
481 is by no means finished. Patches appreciated.
486 COMMENT(look out: can't have line breaks in subsect() macro)
487 question(How does copyright for sheet music work? Can I enter and spread my newly bought Bach urtext?)
489 Silas S. Brown <ssb22@hermes.cam.ac.uk>:
491 There are several aspects to sheet music copyright:
493 1. The music itself - copyright for the composer's life plus 70 years (so
494 not applicable to Bach).
496 2. If the music is an arrangement, then the arranger holds copyright on
497 that arrangement. However, you can produce your own arrangement using
498 that arrangement as a reference point. Obviously your arrangement must be
499 sufficently different to be called your own arrangement - you need to do
500 more than change one note!
502 3. In some countries, the same applies for editions. This could be
503 relevant to the Bach example. If a modern person has edited the music,
504 then they hold the copyright on the edition. This does not stop you from
505 removing the editorial features - remove all editorial slurs, phrasemarks,
506 ornaments etc and only leave those that you know to be original. You can
507 then add some of your own if you want to be your own editor.
509 4. If there are lyrics, then the lyricist also holds copyright. This
510 does not stop you from using the music without the lyrics if it is
511 otherwise out of copyright.
513 5. The copyright of the printed page is held by the publisher for 30
514 years after printing (25 in some countries). This stops you from
515 photocopying (unless it's "fair use" eg. you're partially sighted and need
516 to enlarge the music) or otherwise reproducing the typesetting that is
517 used on it. But the copyright is only held over the typesetting work, not
518 the music itself. Since Mudela specifies the notes, independently of any
519 typesetting work that went into your reference copy, you are not
520 duplicating any of the publisher's work.
522 6. If you want to violate copyright, there are two main cases where you
523 may do so: fair use, and with permission. The former is rather fuzzily
524 defined, but it includes such things as including small extracts of a
525 score in a critique, and making a large print or Braille copy for a blind
526 or partially-sighted performer (many people argue that in this case it
527 should always be kept with the original copy and/or destroyed after it is
528 no longer needed). The latter is obvious: You can always write to the
529 composer, arranger, editor, lyricist or publisher in question and ask if
530 you can do whatever it is you're trying to do. Some will respond more
531 readily than others, but anything that they say will override any copying
532 restrictions imposed on you.
535 References - best one I know is the UK-based Performing Right Society,
536 lurl(http://www.prs.co.uk/) (especially "membership") and their links to other
537 international equivalents.
541 Juergen Reuter <reuterj@ira.uka.de>:
543 [More information can be had at: ]
545 lurl(http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/)
548 lurl(http://fairuse.stanford.edu/)
549 (meta site about copyright with many links to other resources)
551 lurl(http://host.mpa.org/crc.html)
552 (copyright from the viewpoint of the USA music publishers' association)
554 lurl(http://www.wipo.int)
555 (World Intellectual Property Organization (a UNO agency); with
556 information about international copyright)
561 See lurl(http://www.geocities.com/Vienna/Studio/1714/harpsichord.html)
562 for a summary of copyright relative to old music, also for the
563 expert forum for such questions.
565 Werner Lemberg <sx0005@sx2.HRZ.Uni-Dortmund.DE>:
567 This is not correct. Urtext editions per se are em(not) copyrighted
568 -- if you print exactly what the composer has written, how can there
569 some copyright be added? Copyrighted are usually only the `Critical
570 notes', the foreword, and the cadenzas some editors have added.
572 This means that the `Photocopying forbidden' sign in many scores is
573 not always correct for e.g. J.S. Bach -- you are allowed to copy the
574 pages which don't contain editorial stuff which is probably
577 A very unfortunate situation for the publishers.
583 question(I downloaded the windows32 port, and it doesn't match the website!)
585 The website is usually made from the latest snapshots. Binary releases,
586 in particular the windows32 binaries, are only made every once in a while.
587 They may lag several versions behind the latest version.
589 question(But i want a native DOS/Windows-NT/95 port)
591 Reconsider. Try Linux. It's fun!