RNIB modified Braille music paper March 2012



RNIB Music Advisory Service

Modified Braille Music

Concept and guidelines for production

Contents

Music Advisory Service 1

Modified Braille Music 1

Concept and guidelines for production 1

Concept 1

The need to modify 2

Materials for Beginners 3

Layout and text 3

RNIB suggestions for layout and text 4

Repeat conventions 5

RNIB suggestions for repeat conventions 5

Performance Directions 5

RNIB suggestions for performance directions 5

Editorial Markings 6

RNIB suggestions for editorial markings 6

Explanatory notes 6

RNIB suggestions for explanitory notes 6

Commentary 6

RNIB suggestions for what to include in the commentary 6

Braille scores used with sighted musicians 7

RNIB suggestions 7

Layout 7

Repeat conventions 7

Commentary 7

Exam Questions 7

RNIB suggestions for Layout 8

Marking the score 8

RNIB suggestions for marking the score 8

Electronic files 9

RNIB suggestions for hard copy versus electronic formats 9

Final thoughts 9

Concept

"Modified" is a term used in educational fields in the UK for alterations made to inaccessible things to make them accessible to a particular client group. Modified Braille music is not a new concept. Within the confines of the Braille music code, as set out in the 1997 New International Manual (NIM) edited by Bettye Krollick, transcription agencies have scope for considerable variation, for example, in layout and conventions for showing repeated bars or sections, or for the rendering of non-standard stave notation. Given that a considerable proportion of Braille music is produced by individual blind musicians for their own use, it may be assumed that an even greater variety of modified Braille music is in unofficial use.

As well as some variations based on national or individual preferences, there have been widely available examples of modification based on user need. For example, RNIB used to produce the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) piano grades 1-3 in simplified form to assist students in the early stages of learning Braille music. The basic pitch and rhythm notation was augmented only by other essential signs to enable an accurate performance of an outline of the piece, whilst stylistically incomplete.

It is in the context of modification for educational and particular uses that these guidelines have been produced.

The need to modify

Throughout the 20th century, the principal focus of organisations around the world was on producing Braille music transcriptions faithful to the print original, aimed at professional blind performers and teachers. This approach assumed a competent level of Braille music literacy among the intended readership who were, in large part, concentrating their efforts towards a few limited and specialist fields such as performance of solo piano and organ repertoire. Braille music was typically taught in special schools for the blind, often by first medium Braille music readers, as part of a music curriculum which demanded musical literacy.

With changes over the past twenty years in the way that blind young people are being educated in mainstream schools, often as the only braillist, the ways of acquiring Braille music literacy are now more varied and more haphazard. Routes to learning may be with an instrumental teacher willing to learn the code, with self-study or with a teaching assistant or volunteer in school. Learning with the instrumental teacher brings the acquisition of musical literacy amongst blind pupils closer to that of sighted pupils. However, fluency in literary Braille is normally, though not universally, considered a pre-requisite to learning Braille music, and this may mean learning Braille music starts at a later age than learning stave notation. These changes in education have coincided with a widening of opportunities for making music and employment for blind people in the music business which are now more likely to include working alongside sighted musicians using stave notation.

The growing number of Braille music tutorial books in recent years (L. Wesseling, M. Smith, R. Taesch) as well as online information and resources, whilst welcome, does not address the issue that the scores held in many of the libraries around the world are aimed at blind musicians at the end of their Braille music learning journey rather than those part way along it. Scores aimed at intermediate musical levels can make significant demands on Braille music literacy which render them unsuitable. Even a grade 1 ABRSM piano or guitar piece may require an understanding of interval signs and whole and part-bar in-acord conventions, all of which are peculiar to Braille music and which detract from the musical line.

While sighted musicians learn print notation relevant to their instrument, for example a recorder student may learn the notes B A G first, while a piano student may learn C D E F G, Braille music is more often introduced with reference to the structure of the code. The three Braille music tutor books referenced above all start by showing a scale of C. There is a case for a series of Braille music tutor books for specific instruments such as recorder, violin, guitar and trumpet.

The teacher (and sometimes the pupil) have to choose whether to learn from a graduated Braille music literacy text or from a mainstream instrumental tutor book. Older books presenting practice examples were written for pianists, with some more modern books aimed at more general musicianship lacking the rigour needed to learn the notation comprehensively.

Reading, learning, memorising or sight-reading from Braille music all require the acquisition and practice of skills for blind musicians not needed by sighted learners of stave notation. Appreciating these challenges and how blind musicians develop these skills, along with contexts in which they use scores, is the basis for this paper.

Materials for Beginners

Layout and text

Within the NIM, matters of layout are given less attention than symbols (see chapters XIV-XX). Examples of good practice are illustrated but there is scope for national variation.

RNIB suggestions for layout and text

• The title, composer, arranger, and any other text heading the transcription be shown in uncontracted braille. (The implications of the recent adoption of UEB on literary text in Braille music scores in the UK have yet to be fully explored.)

• Print system numbers not be given.

• Bar numbers be given at helpful landmarks throughout the piece, for example the beginning of new sections, at changes in key or time signature, at changes of mood or style, or in the case of ensemble pieces, at the entry of the part being transcribed after a rest.

(In print, bar numbers often appear at the beginning of systems.

There are a range of opinions on how best to show bar numbers, including:

- Showing new print systems with a new line in Braille together with the corresponding bar number;

- Showing the bar number above or at the beginning of each new Braille line;

- Marking every 5 or 10 bars in the Braille with bar numbers above the Braille.

All of these have merits and limitations. Ultimately, it is up to the transcriber and the user.)

• Rehearsal letters or numbers be given in literary brackets and be placed on a blank line above the bar to which they refer, followed by the bar number if given in the print.

• Landmarks such as the beginning of new sections, entries after rests, return of main subjects, sequences or phrases start on a new line to aid navigation and memorisation.

• Cues after long rests be given only where they are helpful. Care should be taken to ensure that the cue is not confused with the actual score which might helpfully be placed on a new line.

• The primary focus throughout should be on musical sense rather than saving space. Examples of good practice include starting a new line early to show a sequence on one line rather than split over two lines, and avoiding widows and orphans by starting a new section after a rest on a new page.

• Pagination is a matter of taste. Where a score can be spiral bound, double-sided Braille may be preferred, however single-sided Braille is easier to use from a music stand or on the lap, and also to find sheets in a loose leaf folder. Use of A4 portrait format may also be helpful particularly for short pieces.

Repeat conventions

Braille music includes several ways of showing repeated beats, bars, groups of bars or sections which are not used in stave notation. These serve to save space, and, in complicated passages, to identify exact repeats which can aid the memorisation process.

RNIB suggestions for repeat conventions

• the convention of going back x bars and repeating x bars be used only where this will not compromise the reader in being able to sight-read or follow the score.

• the convention for repeating specific numbered bars be avoided given that this will inevitably hinder fluency.

Performance Directions

This section is taken to include dynamic markings (letters such as F or P and hairpins), nuances such as staccato dots and accents and performance directions such as verbal instructions.

Dynamic markings are placed above or below the stave in print notation whereas in Braille, they must be incorporated into the musical line. This makes their exact positionning important to prevent the music being interrupted unnecessarily. The placing of dynamic markings is often less specific in print than in Braille. Thus, in a faithful transcription, they may be shown in the Braille in what can seem illogical points, for example after the first note of a phrase or splitting a grouping of semiquavers. This can lead to a cluttered appearance in the Braille which can hinder the flow of sight-reading, following a score and memorisation.

RNIB suggestions for performance directions

• Some editorial licence be taken regarding the placing of these signs to suit the musical phrasing.

If the pattern of nuances is regular throughout the piece, or for a motif which is repeated, this might usefully be explained with bar references in a note to the Braille reader, and the nuances included only the first time. This corresponds to the use of "simile" in print though may be used in different contexts, as for example in the doubling conventions in Braille music.

In some cases, the following two approaches may be helpful:

either

• a. an edited version of the score be produced with a note explaining which signs have been omitted, or

• b. the student be encouraged to produce their own edited version.

Editorial Markings

Many tutor books and teaching editions include editorial markings aimed at guiding the player towards a musical performance. In print, these are often placed within different kinds of brackets, above or below the stave, in bold or thin type.

RNIB suggestions for editorial markings

• A simplified score is made without these editorial markings, and,

• A full version of the score is prepared, without brackets, but with a written note about what are editorial markings.

Explanatory notes

The NIM sets out in chapter XIV what the explanatory notes should include. Musically this is only those signs which do not appear in the NIM.

RNIB suggestions for explanitory notes

• Modified Braille scores also include descriptions of any signs which are not likely to be recognised. Examples for beginners may include:

• Glissandos, portamenti, jazz lines;

• Appogiaturas, acciaccaturas and other less common ornaments;

• Explanation of breath marks, commas and caesuras;

• Groupings of quintuplets etc;

• Conventions for repeats where these have been used (that is "Braillisms", features not used in the stave notation)

Commentary

It can be helpful to include a verbal commentary of the piece. This can be helpful where:

• The geography of the piece is complicated by repeats, segnos, first and second time bars, introductions and codas, as used in band parts and songs from the shows.

• The score is for an ensemble piece and includes melody, accompaniment and extended periods of rests.

RNIB suggestions for what to include in the commentary

• An overview of the structure of the piece with reference to bar numbers or rehearsal letters, for example "Introduction bars 1-4; main theme bars 5-20; play to end of section (bar 48) and repeat minus introduction; play until end of section in bar 66 and return to letter B, and play to Coda".

• Comparison of material found at different bar numbers or rehearsal letters, for example, "L is a transposition of G" or "F is similar to C, but with a different pattern of accents and staccatos".

• Reference to particularly noteworthy sections, such as extended technically demanding passages, or signposts such as sequences, doubling with other instruments, changes of styles or moods, changes of key, tempo or time.

Braille scores used with sighted musicians

Where the Braille music score is intended for use alongside sighted musicians using stave notation, some of the above guidelines may not be appropriate whilst other considerations may be helpful. As a general rule, as the Braille music reader becomes more fluent and competent, the Braille music score will need less modification and resemble more closely standard music Braille.

RNIB suggestions

Layout

• Print system numbers and page numbers be given as they appear in the print.

Repeat conventions

• The convention of going back x bars and repeating x bars be avoided to aid the process of following the score.

Commentary

• For complex ensemble pieces, a suggested plan for learning and memorising the score may be included, along with an overview of the geography and layout.

Exam Questions

Examinations require a range of skills other than reading, learning and memorising, including:

• Following a score whilst listening to a recording;

• Answering questions pertaining to specific locations in the score;

• Comparing what is heard with what is presented in a skeleton score;

For Braille music readers, these pose particular challenges, including:

• Reading the score fast enough to keep up with the recording (coping with multi-stave scores, page breaks and lyrics.)

• Gaining a sufficient overview of the score in limited time. (finding section repeats, changes of tempo, time or key.)

• Making notes in the score on the fly or remembering answers;

• Remembering the questions whilst using both hands to follow the music.

RNIB suggestions for Layout

• questions, music and the explanatory notes be printed single-sided and on different sheets;

• page breaks BE given in convenient places, such as during rests, at the end of musical sections;

• bar numbers be given on a blank line above the music for single-line scores;

• bar numbers be placed between lyrics and the vocal line for vocal music;

• bar numbers be given at the beginning of each line for keyboard music written bar-over-bar.

• only beat, part-bar and bar repeat signs be used to aid the task of following the score.

• Where lyrics are given but are not relevant to the questions, they may be written below the music or separately after the music.

Marking the score

In exam scores, it is necessary to mark the score at locations referring to specific questions. Currently, for GCSE and A level examinations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, these are shown by braces around the note(s) or bar(s) in question, preceded by an abbreviation to serve as a reminder of the question, for example (CH) for chord. Whilst logical and usually clear, this method has two disadvantages:

• The braces and abreviations take up considerable space, meaning that fewer bars can be placed on one line and thus interrupt the flow of following the score.

• Where two questions refer to the same note(s) or bar(s), the system of braces and abreviations can be difficult to show accurately.

RNIB suggestions for marking the score

• As a general rule, it is suggested that the score be kept as simple as possible whilst retaining a score which is both equivalent and fair.

• As this is the current method for transcribing examination materials, it is suggested that teachers with candidates sitting these examinations obtain copies of past papers so that candidates can familiarise themselves with the conventions.

Electronic files

So far we have considered only hard copy Braille where the user has no ability to alter the score. Presenting music scores in electronic formats to be read on a Braille notetaker or via a Braille display allows the blind reader to edit and manipulate the score. Specifications for the electronic Braille music file, such as exact file format, pagination and translation tables, are beyond the scope of this paper. However, the following are some factors to consider when deciding whether to use hard copy or electronic formats.

RNIB suggestions for hard copy versus electronic formats

• How easy is it to navigate the electronic document (finding particular bars, rehearsal letters etc)?

• How easy is it to scroll across the full line if the Braille displays fewer than 40 cells at a time?

• How portable and easy to carry is the Braille device?

• Will the different kynaesthetic experience of reading from a Braille display as opposed to a physical book have implications for the memorisation process?

Final thoughts

The RNIB Music Advisory Service wishes to thank all those who have read, commented on and made suggestions for these guidelines. Above all, we are grateful to the young Braille music readers who have provided the inspiration for us to work on this area of Braille music. At the heart of our efforts is the simple wish to encourage the music-making of young people with sight difficulties and in doing so, produce materials in a format which will encourage future generations to discover the joy of having independent access to music notation.

RNIB Music Advisory Service

November 2011

Revised March 2012

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