LilyPond Notation Reference: 2.1.4 Songs

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2.1.4 Songs

[ << Specialist notation ]	[Top][Contents][Index]	[ General input and output >> ]
[ < Songs ]	[ Up : Songs ]	[ Lead sheets > ]

References for songs

Songs are usually written on three staves with the melody for the singer on the top staff and two staves of piano accompaniment at the bottom. The lyrics of the first stanza are printed immediately underneath the top staff. If there are just a small number of further stanzas these can be printed immediately under the first one, but if there are more stanzas than can be easily accommodated there the second and subsequent stanzas are printed after the music as stand-alone text.

All the notational elements needed to write songs are fully described elsewhere:

For constructing the staff layout, see Displaying staves.
For writing piano music, see Keyboard and other multi-staff instruments.
For writing the lyrics to a melody line, see Common notation for vocal music.
For placing the lyrics, see Placing lyrics vertically.
For entering stanzas, see Stanzas.
Songs are frequently printed with the chording indicated by chord names above the staves. This is described in Displaying chords.
To print fret diagrams of the chords for guitar accompaniment or accompaniment by other fretted instruments, see “Fret diagram markups” in Common notation for fretted strings.

Lead sheets

Lead sheets may be printed by combining vocal parts and ‘chord mode’; this syntax is explained in Chord notation.

Selected Snippets

Simple lead sheet

When put together, chord names, a melody, and lyrics form a lead sheet:

<<
  \chords { c2 g:sus4 f e }
  \new Staff \relative c'' {
    a4 e c8 e r4
    b2 c4( d)
  }
  \addlyrics { One day this shall be free __ }
>>