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<p>
<a name="Tuplets"></a>
Next: <a rel="next" accesskey="n" href="Scaling-durations.html#Scaling-durations">Scaling durations</a>,
Previous: <a rel="previous" accesskey="p" href="Durations.html#Durations">Durations</a>,
Up: <a rel="up" accesskey="u" href="Writing-rhythms.html#Writing-rhythms">Writing rhythms</a>
<hr>
</div>
<h5 class="subsubsection">1.2.1.2 Tuplets</h5>
<p><a name="index-tuplets-406"></a><a name="index-triplets-407"></a><a name="index-g_t_005ctimes-408"></a><a name="index-g_t_005ctimes-409"></a>
<p>Tuplets are made from a music expression by multiplying all the
durations with a fraction:
<pre class="example">\times <var>fraction</var> { <var>music</var> }
</pre>
<p class="noindent">The duration of <var>music</var> will be multiplied by the
fraction. The fraction's denominator will be printed over or
under the notes, optionally with a bracket. The most common
tuplet is the triplet in which 3 notes have the duration of 2, so
the notes are 2/3 of their written length.
<blockquote>
<pre class="verbatim">
a2 \times 2/3 { b4 b b }
c4 c \times 2/3 { b4 a g }
</pre>
<p>
<a href="../aa/lily-038a072d.ly">
<img align="middle"
border="0" src="../aa/lily-038a072d.png" alt="[image of music]">
</a>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p><a name="index-g_t_005ctupletUp-410"></a><a name="index-g_t_005ctupletUp-411"></a>
<a name="index-g_t_005ctupletDown-412"></a><a name="index-g_t_005ctupletDown-413"></a>
<a name="index-g_t_005ctupletNeutral-414"></a><a name="index-g_t_005ctupletNeutral-415"></a>
<p>The automatic placement of the tuplet bracket above or below the
notes may be overridden manually with predefined commands, for
details see <a href="Direction-and-placement.html#Direction-and-placement">Direction and placement</a>.
<p>Tuplets may be nested:
<blockquote>
<pre class="verbatim">
\autoBeamOff
c4 \times 4/5 { f8 e f \times 2/3 { e[ f g] } } f4 |
</pre>
<p>
<a href="../8d/lily-fb1ae0ea.ly">
<img align="middle"
border="0" src="../8d/lily-fb1ae0ea.png" alt="[image of music]">
</a>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Modifying nested tuplets which begin at the same musical moment
must be done with <code>\tweak</code>.
<p>To modify the duration of notes without printing a tuplet bracket,
see <a href="Scaling-durations.html#Scaling-durations">Scaling durations</a>.
<p class="noindent">
<h5 class="subsubheading">Predefined commands</h5>
<p><code>\tupletUp</code>,
<code>\tupletDown</code>,
<code>\tupletNeutral</code>.
<p class="noindent">
<h5 class="subsubheading">Selected Snippets</h5>
<p><a name="index-tuplet-formatting-416"></a><a name="index-triplet-formatting-417"></a>
<a name="index-tupletNumberFormatFunction-418"></a><a name="index-tupletNumberFormatFunction-419"></a>
<a name="index-tupletSpannerDuration-420"></a><a name="index-tupletSpannerDuration-421"></a>
<p><em>Entering several tuplets using only one \times command</em>
<p>The property <code>tupletSpannerDuration</code> sets how long each of the
tuplets contained within the brackets after <code>\times</code> should last.
Many consecutive tuplets can then be placed within a single
<code>\times</code> expression, thus saving typing.
<p>In the example, two triplets are shown, while <code>\times</code> was
entered only once.
<p>For more information about <code>make-moment</code>, see "Time
administration".
<blockquote>
<pre class="verbatim">
\relative c' {
\time 2/4
\set tupletSpannerDuration = #(ly:make-moment 1 4)
\times 2/3 { c8 c c c c c }
}
</pre>
<p>
<a href="../63/lily-335895ba.ly">
<img align="middle"
border="0" src="../63/lily-335895ba.png" alt="[image of music]">
</a>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p><a name="index-TupletNumber-422"></a><a name="index-TupletNumber-423"></a>
<p><em>Changing the tuplet number</em>
<p>By default, only the numerator of the tuplet number is printed over the
tuplet bracket, i.e., the denominator of the argument to the
<code>\times</code> command. Alternatively, num:den of the tuplet number may
be printed, or the tuplet number may be suppressed altogether.
<blockquote>
<pre class="verbatim">
\relative c'' {
\times 2/3 { c8 c c } \times 2/3 { c8 c c }
\override TupletNumber #'text = #tuplet-number::calc-fraction-text
\times 2/3 { c8 c c }
\override TupletNumber #'stencil = ##f
\times 2/3 { c8 c c }
}
</pre>
<p>
<a href="../43/lily-e1a58a85.ly">
<img align="middle"
border="0" src="../43/lily-e1a58a85.png" alt="[image of music]">
</a>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p><em>Permitting line breaks within beamed tuplets</em>
<p>This artificial example shows how both manual and automatic line breaks
may be permitted to within a beamed tuplet. Note that such off-beat
tuplets have to be beamed manually.
<blockquote>
<pre class="verbatim">
\layout {
\context {
\Voice
% Permit line breaks within tuplets
\remove "Forbid_line_break_engraver"
% Allow beams to be broken at line breaks
\override Beam #'breakable = ##t
}
}
\relative c'' {
a8
\repeat unfold 8 { \times 2/3 { c[ b a] } }
% Insert a manual line break within a tuplet
\times 2/3 { c[ b \bar "" \break a] }
\repeat unfold 2 { \times 2/3 { c[ b a] } }
c8
}
</pre>
<p>
<a href="../45/lily-836ff666.ly">
<img align="middle"
border="0" src="../45/lily-836ff666.png" alt="[image of music]">
</a>
</p>
</blockquote>
<p class="noindent">
<h5 class="subsubheading">See also</h5>
<p class="indent">
<p>Music Glossary:
<a name="index-triplet-424"></a><a href="../music-glossary/triplet.html#triplet">triplet</a>,
<a name="index-tuplet-425"></a><a href="../music-glossary/tuplet.html#tuplet">tuplet</a>,
<a name="index-polymetric-426"></a><a href="../music-glossary/polymetric.html#polymetric">polymetric</a>.
<p>Learning Manual: <a name="index-Tweaking-methods-427"></a><a href="../lilypond-learning/Tweaking-methods.html#Tweaking-methods">Tweaking methods</a>.
<p>Notation Reference:
<a href="Time-administration.html#Time-administration">Time administration</a>,
<a href="Scaling-durations.html#Scaling-durations">Scaling durations</a>,
<a href="The-tweak-command.html#The-tweak-command">The tweak command</a>,
<a href="Polymetric-notation.html#Polymetric-notation">Polymetric notation</a>.
<p>Snippets:
<a href="../../../input/lsr/lilypond-snippets/Rhythms.html#Rhythms">Rhythms</a>.
<p>Internals Reference:
<a name="index-TupletBracket-428"></a><a href="../lilypond-internals/TupletBracket.html#TupletBracket">TupletBracket</a>,
<a name="index-TupletNumber-429"></a><a href="../lilypond-internals/TupletNumber.html#TupletNumber">TupletNumber</a>,
<a name="index-TimeScaledMusic-430"></a><a href="../lilypond-internals/TimeScaledMusic.html#TimeScaledMusic">TimeScaledMusic</a>.
<p class="noindent">
<h5 class="subsubheading">Known issues and warnings</h5>
<p><a name="index-grace-notes-within-tuplet-brackets-431"></a>When the first note on a staff is a grace note followed by a
tuplet the grace note must be placed before the <code>\times</code>
command to avoid errors. Anywhere else, grace notes may be
placed within tuplet brackets.
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<p>
Next: <a rel="next" accesskey="n" href="Scaling-durations.html#Scaling-durations">Scaling durations</a>,
Previous: <a rel="previous" accesskey="p" href="Durations.html#Durations">Durations</a>,
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