GABC Sharp

madorganist

Gregorio Users,
Is there an option in GABC to produce a sharp that looks like the one in modern notation (similar to a "pound" or "hashtag" sign) rather than the one shown here that looks more like a double-sharp? Or an easy work-around to accomplish the same thing?

CHGiffen

Why try to alter something that has been traditional for ages in chant (and other) early music notation? The sharp symbol shown in your link is the traditional one for chant notation and has been for as long as I can remember (recall that I am older than the hills). The modern symbol for a sharp symbol appears to have been derived from the old one, b a rotation through 45 degrees. The modern or "hashtag" or "pound" symbol for a sharp has no place in chant/plainsong notation. Never had, doesn't now, and never will.

Cf. the attached Hassler cantus part for Dixit Maria, from the original Hassler Cantiones Sacrae partbook publication, for comparison. The sharp symbol is evident already in the first line - where it cancels flat-sign ... its other and more frequent use, even in Gregoran/plainchant notation.

Dixit_Dominus_44

CHGiffen,

You misread the post.

madorganist is not asking whether somebody thinks it is a good idea for XYZ, he's asking how to accomplish XYZ.

I would assume madorganist wants a symbol more recognizable, as the “semiological” books are doing these days; instead of using what looks like a double-sharp.

But why madorganist wants to do it is none of my business. He is asking how to do it.

We need to be careful here; I have noticed a tendency we must guard against. Someone comes here asking how to do something, and a bunch of folks start acting as if the poster was asking their opinion on whether they should do something.

I would also like to know whether it is possible to generate the kind of sharp madorganist describes.

madorganist

Thanks, CHGiffen. I was totally unaware of this! My objective was to get the kind of marking that appears in the Graduale novum and on the Gregor und Taube website.

CCooze

Someone comes here asking how to do something, and a bunch of folks start acting as if the poster was asking their opinion on whether they should do something.

Someone might truly not know better or be asking the question the right way.
Offering insight isn't necessarily something to "guard against."

I found the background information interesting and enlightening.
If someone so chooses, they can then say, "thank you for that information, but do you know if there's a way to work around it to include ____?"
They also can say, "I don't care about your opinion, this is what I want," which might be an attitude to steer clear of, as well.

CHGiffen

Sorry that I went off half-cocked. I'm just a traditionalist when it comes to such notation. Please accept my apologies.

M. Jackson Osborn

Chuck, you have done nothing to apologise for.
Your comment, in contrast to a certain other one, was spot on and informative of relevant scholarly data.

chonak

I found some information in the archives of the gregorio-users mailing list (which is the best place to ask about obscure details of gabc).

This issue has been addressed by the gregorio developers:
https://github.com/gregorio-project/gregorio/issues/1399

This brief instruction appeared in the release announcement for v5.1.0 (3/11/2018):
- A more modern-looking sharp symbol has been added to the `greciliae` font. To switch to this, use `\grechangeglyph{Sharp}{greciliae}{.modern}\grechangeglyph{SharpHole}{greciliae}{.modern}` in your TeX file. See [#1399](https://github.com/gregorio-project/gregorio/issues/1399).

So if you are running v5.1.0 or later, that character should be available to you as an option.

chonak

And thanks to Dixit_Dominus_44 for your kindly and solicitous observation, and the good advice accompanying it.

Technical questions deserve technical answers, not crabby complaints.

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