Flowing lyrics

I tried to flow lyrics in Logic X. I could not find the help specific for this, so I must be going about it all wrong. I dragged the lyric icon and dragged and lined it up with the first note, but when I pasted you can see how it didn't have the desired effect in the attachments. Once it put it before the note and the other it limited it to one bar.

Did you follow the proper method (using the tab key) described in the documentation?

I saw the tab key in reference to entering lyrics. I already have the entire lyric and want to flow that. Do you mean I have to tab every single measure?

I saw the tab key in reference to entering lyrics. I already have the entire lyric and want to flow that. Do you mean I have to tab every single measure?

Logic cannot guess how the lyrics should be sung.

If you check in the List/Event editor, you will notice that a lyric is a Meta event #61.

Each lined up syllable is a distinct Meta event with a corresponding time position.

Which means that you have to re-enter each syllable of the lyric to line up with the proper note.

The tab key conveniently allows you to position the successive lyrics (Meta event #61) syllables, alining them up with the successive notes (events) in your staff...

Edited December 9, 2014 by Atlas007

you might try making the melody a 'groove track' and then sinking the lyric track to that groove.. Don't know if it will work..

Yes, entering lyrics into Logic's score is painstaking; and you have to keep checking that you're on target.. But as you get the hang of it, it will become easier to do.

 

Every syllable HAS TO HAVE a corresponding note for this to work..

"Do you mean I have to tab every single measure?"

 

As mentioned already, you actually have to TAB every single note. The problem is, eventually you might hold "go ---" over two or more notes, and then anything automatic that a music program attempts might assign it to one note only, and all subsequent lyric placement would be wrong.

 

What you're looking for -- cutting and pasting a group of words with automatic entry -- does not exist in Logic. I kind of doubt that it exists in any higher-end music program.

 

But you can become quite adept at lyric entry in Logic with a little practice. The biggest "do'h!" is hitting the space bar instead of the TAB from word to word.

"Do you mean I have to tab every single measure?"

What you're looking for -- cutting and pasting a group of words with automatic entry -- does not exist in Logic. I kind of doubt that it exists in any higher-end music program.

 

I thought this was pretty common. I only have two other programs that would be in the category high end and possibly doing this, but they both do it. Harmony Assistant and Digital Performer. As long as you have words separated by spaces, syllables with hyphens between them, and underscores for melisma notes, the lyric flows for the whole piece.

 

I guess there isn't much call for lyric/notation amongst Logic X users.

 

Thanks, I'll stop beating my head against the door.

Sorry. I didn't know about the dashes and underscore. Yeah, I can see how a program could do that if you embedded that information into a word processor text. Your lyrics were already typed out, hence the disappointment. But come your next song, you will probably enter all your lyrics in the time it took you to write your initial post. All's well that ends well.

 

"I guess there isn't much call for lyric/notation amongst Logic X users."

 

It's irksome when a favorite working method is not found in a program, but I hope you don't leave Logic for this reason. Logic's singer / songwriter user base is large and recognizable.

Do you mean I have to tab every single measure?

 

It can never make sense to cut and paste whole paragraphs or sentences of lyrics below melodies .. because as another respondent says: how would the programme know how to apply the breaks in the words to the phrases and notes of music? Only the musician writing them can do this, knowing how you want the syllables to sound against the rhythm and pitch of the notes.

 

Tabbing each measure is actually a blessing (not a hassle) - it means that your lyrics are forever tied ( by meta-position) to the actual note they apply to. ( Just activate Guides on Selected Objects and you can see which note a syllable is tied to).

 

If you look at the example below I wanted to split the word lyrics over two notes. All you do is type the first syllable with a dash lyr- and then TAB to the next note.

 

Logic automatically spaces out the notes so that the lyrics aren't all crammed below.

 

Also use the key commands for >Alight Objects Horizontally and/or >Align Objects Vertically and it will put all the syllables in a neat straight row.

 

I have done dozens of vocal parts and lead sheets over the years. I don't see how you could improve on Logic's system for this ( though of course I am curious about other programmes). You will get very fast at it with a bit of practise.

 

 

http://i364.photobucket.com/albums/oo82/dogliege/ScreenShot2014-12-11at234023_zps0c9b9fc7.png

As mentioned, you must tab every syllable.. If a word has multiple notes you must tab a figure for each note " O - O - ea - yeah"

If you have long spaces between words - Hit return to finish what you did.. Drag text cursor to new space and start again..

 

It is certainly not the easiest way to enter lyrics.. but it works..

 

You can cheat and put the proper space in one phrase so that the words match the notes... If you change text size, or move notes, the alignment will stop working. Once you get used to the tabbing, is is not as bad or overwhelming as your first attempt.

Thank you all for your feedback. It is good to know what the limitations of any program are so one doesn't waste energy trying to do something impossible. I suppose I should find out where to make suggestions to Apple (futile?) about flowing pre-typed text.

 

I don't know well, but I assume other programs do assign the syllable to a particular note once it is imported. The automatic spacing in your example above is a real nice thing. It can be a pain in other programs.

 

I have to mention that it has always surprised me at just how difficult notation programs are compared to sequencers. Most sequencers seem to work fairly well and it is not to difficult to learn the basics, but notation programs drive me up a wall. They all use a different approach. Finale? Just shoot me. Mosaic was pretty good, but it was allowed to die long ago. I heard Sibelius was good, but I have never used it. I use Harmony Assistant when I need to because it is cheap and the company is good, the actual programmers will write you and explain things. There is a nice online community of users too. Kind of like this one. Still, like any big program, if you don't use it all the time, it is like starting over after leaving it for any length of time, in my humble experience.

...

I have to mention that it has always surprised me at just how difficult notation programs are compared to sequencers. Most sequencers seem to work fairly well and it is not to difficult to learn the basics, but notation programs drive me up a wall. They all use a different approach. ...

That was the original concept behind Logic (who was originally named Notator): starting with a recorded (MIDI then, and now also audio indirectly) performance and translate it (automatically) into a notation score.