The <clef> element
Parent element: <attributes>
Clefs are represented by a combination of <sign>, <line>, and <clef-octave-change> elements.
Clefs appear at the start of each system unless the print-object attribute has been set to "no" or the additional attribute has been set to "yes".
Content
In this order
- <sign> (Required)
- <line> (Optional)
- <clef-octave-change> (Optional)
Attributes
| Name | Type | Required? | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| additional | yes-no | No | Sometimes clefs are added to the staff in non-standard line positions, either to indicate cue passages, or when there are multiple clefs present simultaneously on one staff. In this situation, the additional attribute is set to "yes" and the line value is ignored. |
| after-barline | yes-no | No | Sometimes clefs at the start of a measure need to appear after the barline rather than before, as for cues or for use after a repeated section. The after-barline attribute is set to "yes" in this situation. This attribute is ignored for mid-measure clefs. |
| color | color | No | Indicates the color of an element. |
| default-x | tenths | No | Changes the computation of the default horizontal position. The origin is changed relative to the left-hand side of the note or the musical position within the bar. Positive x is right and negative x is left. This attribute provides higher-resolution positioning data than the <offset> element. Applications reading a MusicXML file that can understand both features should generally rely on this attribute for its greater accuracy. |
| default-y | tenths | No | Changes the computation of the default vertical position. The origin is changed relative to the top line of the staff. Positive y is up and negative y is down. This attribute provides higher-resolution positioning data than the placement attribute. Applications reading a MusicXML file that can understand both attributes should generally rely on this attribute for its greater accuracy. |
| font-family | font-family | No | A comma-separated list of font names. |
| font-size | font-size | No | One of the CSS sizes or a numeric point size. |
| font-style | font-style | No | Normal or italic style. |
| font-weight | font-weight | No | Normal or bold weight. |
| id | ID | No | Specifies an ID that is unique to the entire document. |
| number | staff-number | No | Specifies the staff number from top to bottom within the part. The value is 1 if not present. |
| print-object | yes-no | No | Specifies whether or not to print an object. It is yes if not specified. |
| relative-x | tenths | No | Changes the horizontal position relative to the default position, either as computed by the individual program, or as overridden by the default-x attribute. Positive x is right and negative x is left. It should be interpreted in the context of the <offset> element or directive attribute if those are present. |
| relative-y | tenths | No | Changes the vertical position relative to the default position, either as computed by the individual program, or as overridden by the default-y attribute. Positive y is up and negative y is down. It should be interpreted in the context of the placement attribute if that is present. |
| size | symbol-size | No | The size attribute is used for clefs where the additional attribute is "yes". It is typically used to indicate cue clefs. |
Examples
This element is used in the following examples: