Hello all I'm writing a choir arrangement for a song. The first two verses are rhytmically identical. But the third verse has two notes in addition because of some more lyrics which have to fit in. Well, I finally encounter a problem which I somehow was able to avoid spectacularly for many years by just not writing the verses at all or adding or leaving some words. but now I'd like really to know how one is supposed to deal with this situation. I wrote the first verse in a text file and imported it by pressing Alt C, X, Y and F. I think I did it right, it's really simple stuff. My problem for the first and 2nd verse is that there are now actually two notes which don't have any lyrics and shouldn't be sung either. I tried to let sibelius move the text cursor by adding three spaces where no lyrics should be. But wheter I try it with 3 or 4 spaces sibelius always tells me that my lyrics seem to be shorter than the music. I hope you get what my problem is about. By the way I really want to thank you Dale Lieser again for your great tutorial about inputting lyrics. This tutorial did speed up my workflow extremely. And overall I rarely need sighted assistance in dealing with layout problems anymore. for anyone who missed this tutorial I'll copy it below. Thanks all for your help and kind regards Ben Tutorial INPUTTING LYRICS FROM TEXT FILE Sibelius provides the means for efficient entry of lyrics via the "From text file" option. Once a text file of lyrics has been carefully created, this feature gets the lyrics from that file and aligns them properly with the notes of the selected passage. The sequence of keystrokes for the "From Text File" feature is: alt+c, x, y, f. Preparing the Text File Proper hyphenation and spacing are the two most important considerations when writing your text file. Hyphenation should follow the normal practice of dividing words and nothing more. Spacing, however, demands much detail. Remember that both the hyphen (-)and space (blank space entered via the <spacebar>) advance the Sibelius cursor to the next note. In multi-syllabic words in which each component applies to only one note, no extra spacing is required. But when one syllable spans more than a single note, additional spaces cause Sibelius to execute the appropriate visual indications while also working proper alignment with the notes. Let's use the line from the carol Joy to the World, "Let every heart prepare Him room, And", as our example. With a 2/4 meter, our example will be approximately 4 measures long. Carefully examine the following line with regard to hyphenation and spacing, and then we'll discuss it. Let eve- ry heart pre-pare Him room, And First, note that the hyphenation offers no surprises, the words being divided in standard places. Now the examination of spacing. Remember that a single space advances to the next note. The "extra" spaces provide the necessary advancing to other notes to which a given syllable applies. In the first syllable of "every", the hyphen serves to advance the cursor to the next note. Then, even though one would not normally have a space in the middle of a word, just such a thing is required here, in order to not get to the second syllable too soon. The second syllable of "every" is followed by two, yes, 2 spaces. Since no hyphen is involved because the word "every" has ended, the extra space is what tells Sibelius that the word "heart" does not come just yet. In other words, each syllable of "every" is sung on two notes, so the first syllable of the word is followed immediately by a hyphen and a space; and the second syllable is followed by two spaces, rather than a hyphen and a space. Since the word "heart" is only one syllable, but spans three notes in our example, the setting of this lyric to its notes calls for three spaces. For the sake of our example, let's call hyphens and spaces "advancers", because of the forward movement they exert on the cursor. Here is the rule for entering lyrics for proper spacing: Beginning of Rule The number of advancers must be equal to the number of notes for a given syllable. End of Rule So then, you can use a hyphen, a space, or a combination of a hyphen and one or more spaces to get the job done. Note that you will not use two consecutive hyphens. However, consecutive spaces are not uncommon. The only place for a hyphen in a set of advancers is the beginning of the string. Do not use a hyphen between or after spaces. Other Considerations Although Sibelius offers the option of hyphenating lyrics automatically, do not use that choice, since reviewing the result, and editing if necessary, are more cumbersome than worthwhile. Also, editing the lyrics usually destroys the alignment Sibelius has so nicely provided when flowing from a text file. Punctuation should be placed just as it would be in literary writing. Do not let a hyphen or space separate punctuation from the syllable to which it belongs. Sibelius requires that the appropriate slurs and ties be in place in your score before flowing in the lyrics. While gaining familiarity with the "From Text File" feature, you might consider dividing a score's lyrics into smaller segments, perhaps designating one file for each verse, another for the chorus, etc. Then flow the lyrics into the score one section at a time. Remember, you'll need to select a passage in the score so Sibelius knows the boundaries of the coming lyrics. The advantage of working in smaller units is that, if Sibelius recognizes an error, such as too few or too many lyrics for the selected passage, it becomes easier to hone in on the problem. Be careful to not use a <return> or any blank lines in your text file. The temptation might be to do so for basic formatting. Override that desire. 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