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1.2.3.2 Upbeats

Partial or pickup measures, such as an anacrusis or upbeat, are entered using the \partial command, with the syntax

\partial duration

where duration is the rhythmic length to be added before the next measure:

     
     \partial 16*5 c16 cis d dis e | a2. c,4 | b2

[image of music]

Internally, this is translated into

\set Timing.measurePosition = -length of duration

The property measurePosition contains a rational number indicating how much of the measure has passed at this point. Note that this is a negative number; \partial 4 is internally translated to mean “there is a quarter note left in the bar.”

Known issues and warnings

This command does not take into account grace notes at the start of the music. When a piece starts with grace notes in the pickup, then the \partial should follow the grace notes:

     
     \grace f16
     \partial 4
     g4
     a2 g2

[image of music]

\partial is only intended to be used at the beginning of a piece. If you use it after the beginning, some odd warnings may occur.

See also

Snippets: Rhythms


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