22. VOCAL MUSIC

22.1. This section deals with the method of transcribing songs of every kind (including recitative) written for one voice, and it includes single voice parts in solo or choral ensembles, which are discussed in Par. 22.36-22.37.

22.2. In print, the music for a solo voice is printed on a single staff, and the signs in Tables 1-12, and15-18 are all used as far as they are needed. The special signs and adaptations for such music are given in Table 22.

22.3. In general, the vocal staff should be transcribed exactly as it stands, with one important difference. In print such directions as "rit.", "accel.", "a tempo", etc., are not usually given in the voice part since they can be easily read by the singer from the piano part, but, as this is not possible for the blind reader, these directions should be included in the braille transcription of the voice part, since they affect more than any other nuances the relation between singer and accompanist.

22.4. The arrangement of the braille score is an imitation of print usage, except that the words are given first. A line of words is alternated with the corresponding line of music, this latter being indented two spaces.

22.5. (11-97) Uncontracted braille should be used for the English word text of classical and popular songs. Two types of songs are exempt from this rule. Songs or chants in hymnals should remain in grade 2 braille, and school materials for grades K-6 are also exempt from this rule.

22.6. A line-by-line rule should generally be maintained. Experience, however, has shown that a too rigid adherence to this principle can prove quite impractical, as when a single line of words results in an inordinately short line of music, or vice versa. Accordingly, a kind of controlled relaxation of the line-by-line rule is permissible under appropriate circumstances.

22.7. The first note in every line of music must have a special octave mark.

22.8. Measure numbers are not usually included in the braille transcription, the word text serving as the point of reference. In music in which word phrases are repeated many times, however, an occasional measure number, placed at the beginning of the word line, may be helpful to the reader.

22.9. The portamento sign is placed between notes at the point indicated in the print. If there is also a syllabic slur, the portamento sign should be placed after it.

22.10. The breath signs are placed at the points where they occur in the print, being inserted in the music text without intervening spaces or special octave marks for the following notes. (See Examples 22.12.5-1 and 22.12.5-2)

22.11. The treatment of hyphens and of ties and slurs as they relate to the end of one parallel and the beginning of another needs very careful attention on the part of the transcriber.

22.12. A clear distinction must be made between the normal division of a word at the end of a line and rather abnormal division of a syllable whose vowel content is to be sustained into the next parallel.

"(th)ey- -ey ", "I- -i", "we- -e", "y(ou)- (ou)", "fe- -ence", "doo- -oor", "tau- -au(gh)t".

22.12.4. In the music lines, the carrying over of the vowel sound is shown by syllabic slurs (single or double) and ties. If a vowel sound is to be carried from the last note of one music line to the first note of the next corresponding line, a slur is written after the last note and before the first of their respective lines. The tie is treated in the same manner. When three or more of a group of notes, through which a vowel sound is sustained, are at the end of a line, the double slur is used after the first, regardless of the number of carry-over notes in the next line.

22.12.5. If doubling the syllabic slur is warranted at the beginning of the next line, the double slur should be used after the first note of the syllable, even if that note is the last note of its line. Doubling the syllabic slur at the beginning of a line is warranted if there are four or more notes through which the vowel is continued. Termination of such doubling is indicated in the usual way. Restated syllabic slurs and ties must precede all other signs, with the exception of voice initials, parenthetical expressions, strain repeats, and key and time signatures.

Half breath

Full Breath

22.13. Apart from print repeats in the music text, the only braille repeats used are the measure repeat, simple part-measure repeats, and the braille segno, this latter being available for very long and very obvious repeats of words or music or both (e.g. the final repetition in an aria after the middle section).

22.14. (11-97) The repeat sign for words or phrases is placed before and after the word or phrase to be repeated, in both instances without intervening spaces. To avoid confusion, the "in" contraction should not be used at the beginning or end of a word, unless the word beginning with "in" is capitalized, italicized, or preceded by punctuation marks, and the ending with "in" is followed by punctuation. Under these conditions, as well as in the middle of a word or as a whole word, the contraction may still be used. Contractions are not used in songs except for hymns, chants and music for grades K-6.

22.15. If the word or phrase is sung twice, the sign stands as in Table 22. If it is sung three times, the sign is doubled before (but not after) it, and on the rare occasions when a word or phrase is given more than three times to music and words occupying only one braille line and its extension (if a run-over line is used), the sign is preceded by a number with numeral prefix showing the number of repetitions.

22.16. It frequently happens, especially in Italian texts, that two or three syllables or vowels are merged together on one note and the sign for this device is placed after the note affected. In the word text, the syllables or vowels are enclosed in quotation marks. If punctuation follows the merge, it is placed after the closing quotation mark. Merged syllables should be indicated in braille only when they are marked in print

(b) is transcribed as it stands, either with stem signs (1) or with in-accord (and, if necessary, measure-division) signs (2).

(1) .DD ]'FFCED_BCJB_B

(2) .DD ]'FFCE.K.DJB"1.DCJ

22.18. The sign _C may be similarly used for a variation of syllables in one or more verses of a hymn or strophic song.

22.19. When, as in French texts, a mute syllable is merged into the following one and is therefore not actually sung, it is followed by dot 3.

22.20. The relaxation of the line-by-line rule in transcribing strophic songs, referred to in Par. 22.6, occurs at the end of the first verse: (a) when details are supplied about the endings of the remaining verses; (b) when the words of the remaining verses are given without any music text. The following example shows the method to be used in such songs.

(The remaining verses should follow in order as shown above.)

22.21. If in a strophic song a variation of syllables or a mark of expression, etc., occurs in the second or following verses, the measure or part measure is written again after an in-accord sign, preceded by the number of the verse (written in the lower part of the cell with the numeral prefix) in which the change occurs. Small variations in the actual melody may also be treated in this way.

22.22. (11-97) When songs are transcribed into braille in any other language than that of the country in which the braille is published, the word text of that language must be transcribed in uncontracted braille. In this case, the accented letters should be shown with their appropriate signs--thus, umlauts in German and the various special accents for French, Italian, Spanish, etc. Uncontracted braille must also be used for the English word text. See Par. 22.5.

22.23. An outline of the voice part should be included in the accompaniment to assist the player in memorizing his part. This outline is placed above the right-hand part marked "> . Only notes, ties and rests are necessary in this outline. General directions such as "Tempo I" or "piu mosso" should be placed above this solo outline. Directions should not appear between the solo outline and the right-hand part.

Method: Bar over Bar

22.24. If the key and compass are to be indicated, this information should be given on a separate line, above the line which gives the tempo, the key and time signatures, etc. The compass is shown in music notation, with the lowest note (preceded by the music prefix) followed immediately by the highest, closed by a double bar, thus:

22.25. In chant or canticles, the reciting note is written as provided in Table 1. The text to be sung on the reciting note is enclosed in a special bracket (Table 22), and the pointing sign that looks like a print accent or prime symbol, is represented by the appropriate sign, between spaces (Table 22).

22.26. The format for ensemble vocal music must conform to that of solo music. The layout of ensemble vocal music is a logical extension of the format for solo music, the chief difference being the variable multiplication of lines. Thus the word line(s) will always appear above the music lines in each parallel.

22.27. When two languages are given, the original language is written closest to the music. For ensemble music in two languages, all lines of each language are blocked together. Text lines of the translated language begin in cell 1, original language text lines begin in cell 3, and music lines begin in cell 5. (See Example 22.38.1-1.)

22.28. In multi-language songs, operas, oratorios or other musical scores, each language should be treated independently and written as follows:

22.29. The tenor part usually appears in the print with the treble clef, printed an octave higher than its actual sound, but in braille it is the actual sound that is always given.

22.30. The words are given above the highest part in the vocal parallel, and the music lines are indented two spaces.

22.31. When all the parts have the same words, even if they do not happen to sing them at the same moment, only one line of words is given. This line may be extended by a run-over line, however, as explained in Par. 22.6.1.

22.32. If there is a variation in the words of more than one part, each part should have its own line of words. Just as it is unnecessary to initial the second and succeeding parallels in the music (Par. 22.26.1), the initialing of word lines is only necessary in the first parallel of the page, unless there is a change in the number of word lines. In any case, if each voice part requires a separate line of words, it is not advisable to use run-over lines. Thus, the second parallel of Example 22.34.1-1 needs no initialing.

22.33. Runovers should not be encouraged in the music lines of ensemble music, unless the number of lines is temporarily reduced to one, thus:

22.34. In "Bar over Bar" (Par. 28.9), it is stated that a parallel must be completed on the page on which it begins. In choral and other ensemble vocal music, where a parallel may have from five to ten or more lines, it is often impossible to keep this rule, and in such cases the vertical alignment on the first page should be disregarded and, where necessary, replaced by a fresh vertical alignment on the second page.

(Note in the following example the spacing after the initials in the word text to secure a vertical alignment of the first letter in each line.)

22.35. Where a part is temporarily divided, the sign / must be placed before the first measure in which the division occurs as a warning to the reader, and the following note must have a special octave mark. Division of the parts is indicated by the presence of intervals or in-accords in that part. These are always read downward in the soprano and alto and upward in the tenor and bass parts.

22.36. The numbers indicating pages and staves in the print score, and all letters or numbers printed as starting directions for the benefit of conductors and choirmasters, should be placed above (or as near as possible to) the first note of the measure to which they apply, and should be written above the highest part in the parallel.

22.37. In transcribing single voice parts the rules given under "Solo Music" should be followed, with the exception that, since all nuances are printed in every part in the print, they must be included in the braille transcription. (See also Par. 18.10 and Examples 18.10-1 and 18.10-2.)

22.38. Opera format is a synthesis of solo and choral styles, but with some important additional features. Two languages are usually given in the text and character names are indicated by an initial. The combination of characters changes frequently in ensembles. A list of characters, with identifying initials, should be given at the beginning of any ensemble transcriptions.

(In note section)