6.4.4 Partial measures

Partial measures, such as an anacrusis or upbeat, are entered using the

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

The syntax for this command is

\partial duration

where duration is the rhythmic length to be added before the next bar.

This is internally 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”.

Bugs

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

     
     \grace f16
     \partial 4
     g4
     a2 g2

\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.

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