Cantorum, a text font for plainchant notation

Dorico
21

Thanks for your interest in the font. There are a number of online resources I found via Google. Here’s one: http://www.ldysinger.com/@books1/Berry/Berry_Plainchant.pdf

Yes, the notation should match the Liber Usualis exactly.

There’s no playback, since this is actually a font, not “notes.” And unfortunately, the puncta cava (white to erase the staff line behind it) is not working, due to a Qt issue with export. But other than that, the font works beautifully.

I would be glad to hear your feedback on it. Thanks!

22

@dan_kreider
Thanks very much Dan. I’ll certainly let you know how I get on with it. It’s really good to have this font given that the demise of Finale may put Medieval2 in doubt - I have often thought about purchasing that but the price has seemed a tad steep and it just doesn’t compliment a mainly Dorico workflow.

23

Thanks, I’ll send you a PM.

24

Hey, look at page 30 of Berry:
image

The lines are visible behind the puncta cavum!

So this Qt error must already have existed in 1979 :upside_down_face:

25

Thanks! Ok @Romanos, I feel vindicated. :wink:

26

I wouldn’t count another computer failure as evidence of ‘good practice’. lol

27

But… where would the erased staff lines have come from? Scribes would have written an outlined note directly over a staff line, right?

Is this an invention of GABC?

28

What a joy, for those who have always seen Dorico’s playback features as an annoying deviation from pure engraving!

I’m not one of them, but I confess feeling a particular emotion in dealing with this purely graphic notation tool, disconnected from synthetic sounds.

Playback can in any case be done with the usual trick of a ghost track to be hidden from the layout prepared for printing.

Paolo

29

The example above was done on a computer, unless I’m very much mistaken.

My 52’ liber (which was clearly done on a press):

image
image3024×4032 1.91 MB

image
image3024×4032 2.32 MB

Versus psalmorum et canticorum:

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image3024×4032 1.97 MB

St. Dunstan Plainsong Psalter:

image
image3024×4032 1.94 MB

Communio with English Verses:

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image3024×4032 2 MB

Graduale Simplex (official Vatican)

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image3024×4032 1.89 MB

30

Yes, but I’m talking about pre-computer. When did puncta cava start? If they were pre-computer, how were the staff lines erased? Or maybe they weren’t.

Im not saying it’s invalid, just trying to gauge how important it is, historically.

31

Historically every syllable had at least a punctum. These likely came in to play in the 19th c. when tables of formulæ were put into front matter. (But after 2 centuries, they are certainly commonplace now.)

32

Would you happen to know of any examples of this open note with an erased staff line that were made by hand? I’m still curious as to how it was achieved before GABC.

33

These engraved examples remind me: Notice the cava in every case is circular, rather than the shape of the outline. Some larger, some smaller, but always a circle.

This makes me think: Could this be accomplished – and block the staff line – with an overlaid white circle?

34

Unfortunately not. At least I don’t think so. I keep getting foiled at every turn, like this and this.

Very open to suggestions!

35

I neglected to respond that these examples are lovely, BTW. The beauty of chant on the page was what inspired this to begin with.

36

I don’t think this was done until the solesmes reforms. (I’d be gladly proven wrong.)

37

That’s not quite true. In most examples I have above yes, but I have many that aren’t.

38

This font look really good, even for polyphony like Viderunt Omnes here,

Image
Image1418×745 20.3 KB

but something weird happend in dorico when i zoom in ?
image2
image2125×102 1.2 KB

39

I’ve never seen that before. Can you send me the file?

40

Viderunt omnes_facsimile.dorico (1.3 MB)