At 11:38 AM 7/8/05 +0200, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > >Christopher Smith <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes >>But then later, you are playing some triplets which work out perfectly, >>but you ONLY NEED FIVE OF THEM, not six. > >... so you mark 5/8: no big deal.
That's not the same thing, nor is a quintuplet. As for the math ... compare, in order of length (longest to shortest actual time of measure): 1. You have a measure of 5 eighth notes (Ken's 5/8) 2. You have a measure of 4 eighth notes, and quintupletize them (which might be what Ken meant, 5:8) 3. You have a measure starting as an equivalent to 4 eighth notes, you tripletize them, then you lop one off (Christopher) An eighth note in option #1 is N long and the measure is 5N long. An eighth note in option #2 is 0.8N long and the measure is 4N long. An eighth note in option #3 is 0.67N long and the measure is 3.33N long. As for the feel ... there are five notes in each case, but the feel of each group of five is very different. The first will probably be played 5=3+2 or 5=2+3, the second as an even quintuplet (for those who can play quintuplets), and the third in two different ways, depending on the notation -- as a triplet plus a truncated triplet, or as an even group of five sixth notes (shorter than 5:8). These difference are, in the big picture of a composition, crucial to making it 'sound'. It seems to me that tuplets are useful in such a simple example above, but can quickly break down if they're nested even once -- what's the feel of a nested triplet starting on the third note of a triplet and a truncated triplet? On the other hand, what's the feel of a triplet beginning on the third note of a 5/6 measure? Much easier! Why is it so hard to graduate from division by halves? A basic 'feel' for measure divisions and their notation with denominators of /3 /6 /9 and /12 is easy ... with /5 /7 following in difficulty. Admittedly it gets very tough with big numbers like /11 and /13 and big subdividables like /15 /18 and /20, but it's only the same practice we put in to learn all meters. If students start with the easy small numbers, soon tupletted full measures will start to look anachronistic and quaint, i.e., "How did we ever make music out of that convoluted notation?" or "A triplet in a quintuplet... um, oh, I see, a triplet in a measure of 5/6! Why didn't they write that?" Dennis _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list Finale@shsu.edu http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
