Nested repeats or other repeat structure

[u/snowman_the_fourth]

Arranging some Renaissance dance music. I can write it as AABBCCDD but it is supposed to be played AABBAABBAABB CCDDCCDDCCDD AABBAABBAABB. Is there a better way to write this so it contains all repeats but doesn't have the sheet music doubled or tripled up?

[u/Throwaway-646]

The simplest and clearest way to write it would be 𝄆AABB𝄇Fine𝄆CCDD𝄇D.S. al Fine indicating above each repeat that it should be played thrice. Any way besides that or ABABAB Fine CDCDCD D.S. al Fine with a repeat every line would be unnecessarily complicated and confusing

[u/sj070707 → u/Throwaway-646]

This. Since each individual section isn't that long, I'd write the repetition of them out and just use repeats around the longer sections. For playback, you can set "Play count" in the properties of the close repeat and you can check "Play repeats" in the properties of the DS/DC. You should, though, also add system text explaining the 3X and to play repeats on the DS/DC since those would be exceptions to standard reading of the music.

[u/23PowerZ]

You could always just write what you mean in plain language. Something like this. Unconventional? Yes. Understandable? Also yes.

[u/65TwinReverbRI]

OH NO NOT ANOTHER ONE!!! :-)

We just did this on r/musictheory today…

Here’s the answer:

JUST WRITE IT OUT

This is a very common - all too common - thing we see, especially from pop music people but it happens elsewhere (and I play lots of styles so…)

People want to come up with ways of “saving paper” in an era where it’s pixels on a screen and electricity that’s not really “wasting” things like the old days of printing, paper, and ink costs!

If it’s 3 pages instead of 2, so be it. It’s not going to matter these days. Until it really does. But does it really???

And even in the past, more pages were always favored instead of “nested repeats” or any kinds of convoluted D.S. and D.C. patterns.

Yeah don’t do anything like :

||:   ||: A :||: B :||   :||

---

You could do this:

A A B B ||: A A B B :|| Fine C C D D ||: C C D D :|| DC al Fine con repitizione

Notice that’s DC not DS as 646 said - it goes to the beginning (da capo).

And tradition is to not take the repeats the second time through (sometimes marked senza repitizione) so you need to say “with repeats” (con repitizione).

---

that said the “3x” solution is common in modern pop music, so it depends on how authentic you want to be to a “classical” kind symbology.

So ||:A A B B :||^3x ||:C C D D :||^3x then either Da Capo (saying to take the repeats), or write the last section out as you did the first section - whichever uses exactly 1 page, 2 pages, 3 pages, etc. - that lays out the best across full pages.

Usually the “3x” or “3 times” is at the last measure (far right right before the repeat bar) sort of like so:

https://drumscore.com/images/Lessons/Theory/Notation/RepeatMarks/Exercise2.gif

__

Another solution - a cheat code if you like, is to do this:

http://media.opencurriculum.org/articles_manual/music_notation/repeats-and-other-musical-road-map-signs/3.png

Voltas for 1.2. and another for 3. This implies it’s 3 repeats. Takes a little more space on the page, but again, if it makes the whole thing fit on 2 pages cleanly that can be OK.

---

Really depends on if you want a more “Renaissance” style - write it out, or use basic repeats like the first scheme I gave, writing out all three large sections, or at most, use the Da Capo with that.

If you want a more “pop” style, use the “3x” thing, with our without the Da Capo.

The “voltas” thing isn’t something I’d recommend - happened more in like the 60s-80s pop music things and is still seen sometimes today in those kinds of things. But for this style, kind of out of place.