Yes, and the main reason is that a centred semibreve rest is practically identical to a semibreve rest on the second semibreve of a 4/2 bar. This is extremely confusing in contrapuntal writing, especially (but not exclusively) if multiple (two or three) voices are written on a single staff.
Andrew On 15 January 2011 02:23, Robert Patterson <rob...@robertgpatterson.com>wrote: > I sent a message about this from my iPhone but I think the list's spam > filter must have caught it. Ross suggests that industry practice > (obviously, > when he was writing) was to use double-whole rests for 4/2 and longer > meters. I would further extrapolate that quadruple whole (meaning a thick > line that spans both 2nd and 3rd space) should be used for 4/1 up to 8/1, > but that's a separate discussion. > > You can see an example in the *score* for the Brahms Requiem. All the empty > bars in 4/2 meter have centered double-whole rests. Interestingly, the > parts > do not use double-whole rests. Rather, in those cases where there is a > single bar of rest, a whole rest is used with a "1" centered over the > staff. > The "1" is never omitted, and that is an extremely significant detail, but > that's not what I'm here to talk about. > > To my eye, a whole rest in a 4/2 bar, even if it is centered, is ambiguous. > That is because it also appears as a half-bar rest in that meter. In no > shorter meter can a whole rest appear as a partial bar rest. Even in 6/2 or > 7/4, Ross prescribes the use of half rests for all sub-parts of the bar. > (Actually, Ross is silent about 7/4, but I am extrapolating from his > comments.) > > Obviously, ymmv, but as evidenced by the Brahms example, double-whole rests > were the industry standard for 4/2 meter in 19th century engraving. > > On Fri, Jan 14, 2011 at 9:26 AM, Darcy James Argue <djar...@earthlink.net > >wrote: > > > Really? Why? What is ambiguous about a centered whole rest in an empty > > measure of 4/2? > > > > If a whole rest appears in a non-empty measure, it won't be centered -- > it > > will be attached to a beat. And, you know, there will also be notes in > the > > measure. > > > > Cheers, > > > > - DJA > > ----- > > WEB: http://www.secretsocietymusic.org > > > > > > > > On 14 Jan 2011, at 4:13 AM, Andrew Moschou wrote: > > > > > On 14 January 2011 08:54, Darcy James Argue <djar...@earthlink.net> > > wrote: > > > > > >> Centered whole rests are fine (what could be less ambiguous?) for > empty > > >> measures in any meter. > > >> > > > > > > Not in 4/2. > > > _______________________________________________ > > > Finale mailing list > > > Finale@shsu.edu > > > http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > Finale mailing list > > Finale@shsu.edu > > http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale > > > _______________________________________________ > Finale mailing list > Finale@shsu.edu > http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale > -- Andrew Moschou Secretary Adelaide University Choral Society _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list Finale@shsu.edu http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
