GNU LilyPond

-- --

New features in 1.7 since 1.6

* INPUT

** Completely rewritten support for chord entry. Cleaner and more flexible.

** Text entry is now done in a separate mode, and is more ergonomic
than the previous Scheme texts.

** Deeper integration of the input language and Scheme. You can now use
LilyPond identifiers in Scheme, and use Scheme expressions instead of
LilyPond identifiers.

** Music types cleaned up and Schemified.  

** New syntax for chords:

	<< PITCHES >>

This is in addition to the < MUSICS > syntax for simultaneous
music. Combined with this: uniform postfix syntax for articulations:

	c8-[-( d8-]-) 

for a beamed slurred pair of eighth notes.

*NOTE* In version 2.0, this syntax will be changed to

    < PITCHES >  for chords

and

   \simultaneous { .. } for simultaneous music.

** User code evaluation during interpreting. Syntax

	\applycontext #SCHEME-FUNCTION

** XML music output.

** Friendly  chord-name exception entry.

* OUTPUT

** Preliminary Sodipodi/SVG output



* NOTATION

** Ancient notation ... ?? ...  (Jurgen?)

** Completely rewritten text formatting support. It is implemented in a
completely modular way.

** Chord name formatting completely rewritten.

** Texts on multimeasure rests can be set by the user.

** Zigzagged glissandi

** Cluster support. Syntax:

	NOTE-\startCluster

	..
	NOTE-\stopCluster

** Beat grouping indications. Syntax:

	#(set-time-signature 7 8 '(3 2 2))

** Nested horizontal brackets for music analysis.

	NOTE-\groupOpen
		..
	NOTE-\groupClose

** Gregorian ligatures.

** Texts on multi-measure rests.



New features in 1.6 since 1.4

* Support for figured bass and tablature.

* Completely rewritten beam formatting: provides much better output
now.

* Completely revised and improved music font.

* Completely rewritten MIDI import support.

* Completely rewritten grace note support. Practically speaking this
means that grace notes can be slurred to normal normal notes.

* Improved accidental handling and formatting: styles for producing
cautionaries may vary, and complex collisions between accidentals of a
chord are handled much better.

* Better spacing: both globally and locally. This includes subtle
details like optical stem spacing.

* More support for ancient notation: mensural ligatures, ambitus
(pitch range) of voices, more shapes, etc.

* More support for piano notation: bracket pedals, directed arpeggios,
arpeggio brackets.

* Easier music polyphonic music entry.

* More extensibility, many speedups and bugfixes

* The manual has been thoroughly revised.

* Development is now hosted at http://savannah.gnu.org, and sources
can be downloaded through anonymous CVS.

* Support for windows: LilyPond is part of the cygwin distribution,
which comes with a user-friendly installer.

Please send GNU LilyPond questions and comments to lilypond-user@gnu.org.

Please send comments on these web pages to (address unknown)

Copyright (c) 1997--2002 Han-Wen Nienhuys and Jan Nieuwenhuizen.

Verbatim copying and distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium, provided this notice is preserved.