OK, I can see how that could be true when we look at the two cases in isolation.
But when I read the two bars next to each other, my brain definitely gets confused for a second. I would personally prefer consistency inside a single score. Either always use ties for syncopation or don’t use them at all.
That’s not the way custom and practice works
That much I understand, but I am still endlessly confused about which of the many customs and practices is “the best”.
For example, look at the “Eleanor Rigby” example at the bottom of this page:
https://musictheory.pugetsound.edu/mt21c/CommonRhythmicNotationErrors.html
Dorico’s defaults are slightly different:
To be perfectly clear, I don’t know what is the correct way and I don’t claim anything, just asking for explanations so that I can learn.
As I said earlier. Dorico’s algorithms generally follow Gould (Behind Bars).
(Edit: I don’t agree 100% with Gould, but in the particular case you quote I do agree. The dotted note is preferable)
