Drum rolls as a note with 3 slashes or as tr. trill line?
I have an original symphonic score that I am translating from MIDI in my DAW to Musescore. I am not a reader. Most of the pitched instruments are translating without much manual input on my behalf, but percussion—the snare, the cymbal and the Timpani—are really challenging me.
At the moment I am trying to choose between the two main ways of writing drum rolls: as a note with 3 slashes through the stem, or as a note with ”tr.” followed by the squiggly trill line above the stave. I tried both ways in Musescore for a Timpani roll and they both worked when I played them back. My online searches for information as to which is the standard method for orchestral percussion have yielded virtually no results, except one drummer saying that the 3 slashes symbol is used in the U.S. and the tr. squiggly line symbol is used in Europe.
Can anyone shed some light on this subject?
Comments
Welcome to the world of notation. This is just my opinion, but if you have a target audience, you should mark it for them. Otherwise, pick one and be consistent with your use of it. (cough)3 slashes(cough)
In reply to Welcome to the world of… by bobjp
Thank you for chiming in, Bobjp.
With yours being the only response so far, I am now biased toward your opinion. I have little else to go on!
Hope your cough gets better.
It is more correct to use Roll (tremolo) for the timpani instrument. Because "Trill" is performed between two different notes. And also: You can adjust the tremolo speed (8th, 16th, 32nd, 64th) according to the number of slashes you put on it.
But there are also partitions written with the trill sign. These are supposed to mean Roll.
Some places where Trill is used in the notation of the Timpani instrument: It can be used as a shortcut (on tied notes) if a tremolo note exceeds the barline or lasts for several measures.
In reply to It is more correct to use… by Ziya Mete Demircan
Thanks Ziya for your explanation. You have been most helpful.