Custom layout for headers and footers

\markup commands in the \header block are useful for simple text formatting, but they do not allow precise control over the placement of headers and footers. To customize the placement of the text fields, use one or more of the following \paper variables.

• oddHeaderMarkup
• evenHeaderMarkup
• oddFooterMarkup
• evenFooterMarkup

The \markup command \if can be used to add markup conditionally to header and footer text defined within the \paper block, using the following syntax within \markup:

\if condition argument

The condition is tested each time the markup is interpreted. The resulting markup is argument if the condition is true, but empty if false. Typical conditions include tests for page numbers (first page, last page, specific page, …). To test for the condition being false, replace \if with \unless.

The following example centers page numbers at the bottom of every page. First, the default settings for oddHeaderMarkup and evenHeaderMarkup are removed by assigning #f. Then, oddFooterMarkup is redefined with the page number centered. Finally, evenFooterMarkup is given the same layout by defining it as \oddFooterMarkup:

\book {
  \paper {
    print-page-number = ##t
    print-first-page-number = ##t
    oddHeaderMarkup = ##f
    evenHeaderMarkup = ##f
    oddFooterMarkup = \markup {
      \fill-line {
        \if \should-print-page-number
          \fromproperty #'page:page-number-string
      }
    }
    evenFooterMarkup = \oddFooterMarkup
  }
  \score {
    \new Staff { s1 \break s1 \break s1 }
  }
}

Here is a list of all predefined procedures available for use with \if and \unless.

Syntax	Condition tested
\on-first-page	First page in the book?
\on-last-page	Last page in the book?
\on-first-page-of-part	First page in the book part?
\on-last-page-of-part	Last page in the book part?
\on-page n	On page number n?
\single-page	Does the book fit on just one page?
\should-print-page-numbers-global	Print page numbers in the book? 6
\should-print-page-number	Print the number of the current page?
\should-print-all-headers	Is print-all-headers true?

See also

Notation Reference: Titles explained, Default layout of bookpart and score titles, Conditional markup.

Installed Files: ../ly/titling-init.ly.

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LilyPond Notation Reference v2.25.15 (development-branch).