I’m working with a very large full score inwhich I have a vocal line written in 2/4 meter while the instruments are written in 6/8. I’ve successfully entered the 6/8 bars by initializing the bar as 6/8 with a pickup of 4 beats, then setting up the remaining bars as 2/4 with hidden time signatures - All good so far. Problem is that the 6/8 parts treat the first bar as a p/u and, therefore, drop the bar count. Bottom line - the full score has 1385 bars while the parts have 1383 (there’s another instance of the difference in meters). Is there a setting I’m missing that will count the “p/u” bar?
Try adding a bar number change in the second bar.
You’ll need to hide the bar number in the vocal part.
As far as I understood, the following has to be taken into account when making polymeter with the pick-up technique: with this technique, if a measure is smaller than displayed (e.g. 6/8 with 4 eights), it does not take part of the measure count; if it is bigger (e.g. 2/4 with 6 eights), it does. Which means that when you want to have 6/8 and 2/4 together, to avoid measure counting issues, you should fake the 2/4 (2/4,3 = considered as a real measure) rather than the 6/8 (6/8,4 considered as a pick-up, i.e. not counted). Am I right? (not at my computer to check right now)
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Dear Aaron:
Thanks for this. I found a solution which is described in Defining partial bars as pick-up bars or irregular bars Defining partial bars as pick-up bars or irregular bars. By selecting the time signatures which are used to introduce the “p/u” bar and then unchecking “Group first bar as Pick Up”, the bar count adjusts. I now have 1385 bars in full score and parts.
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Fantastic – I didn’t know about that option!
Yes, looks like this is right – but if you have most of the orchestra in 2/4 and just one or two in 6/8, it’s a lot easier for 2/4 to be the “real” time sig and only need to use tuplets for the 6/8 instruments.
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I did not know this either! So, this is an answer to my question, somehow.
@dhcfield You credited me with the solution, but I am not the one who found it!
dhcfield, if you edit your post to insert a space between the in and https, the link will become visible and “clickable” in your forum post.
