This function takes as its name the AMPLE computer music composition language developed by Chris Jordan in the early 1980s for the BBC computer. The basic language protocol for AMPLE provided an efficient representation of pitch, note-length and duration within a single stream of code. Thus it comes close to representating traditional stave notation.
The SCOM function ample provides a close equivalent of this representation which may provide a valuable scoring tool in certain situations, most particularly when working in chromatic tonalities where the pitch range within a part is extensive.
The function makes use of the following parameters:
note paramete: symbol (a b c d ..) or pitch (c4 c#4 d4 ...)
rest parameter: =
length parameter: ratio (1/8) ; only positive ratios
length expand : /
chords : symbols abc, pitches c4_c#4_d4
repeat: [ ]
In the example below using symbols notice that one first creates a list containing the note-length instruction prefacing a sequence of symbols. This means all the symbols following the note-length element will be played in that note-length. In addition to symbols and rest-symbols there is a 'new' SCOM symbol meaning a length expansion, thus: (1/8 a / / b) will mean a sounding for 3/8 followed by b sounding for an 1/8. The composer then extracts lengths from symbols via the ample function, usually in the def-symbol / def-length section of the score-file.
(setq pat1
'(1/8 a / / b c d / = 1/12 a -b c d / = 1/4 g / h / b m))
In this further example notice how note-lists (with a corresponding tonality (chromatic c 5) may be used in place of symbols. The first list of shown below incorporates another symbol new to SCOM, the repeat sign [ . .].
