[mb-style] MultipleTitleStyle with similar classical pieces

[Leiv Hellebø]

Andrew Conkling wrote:
> There are often classical releases that have multiple symphonies,
> concertos, etc. with additional pieces sometimes added as filler. An
> example: 
> http://musicbrainz.org/album/2ccbcab4-47e9-4ec9-bc54-4db5c0163e8d.html.
> 
> In this, according to CSG/MultipleTitleStyle, the title would be
> "Symphonies No. 4 / No. 7 / 'King Stephen' Overture". However, this
> gets a bit unclear because only the first two items are symphonies.
> Some alternatives:
> 
> 1) "Symphony No. 4 / Symphony No. 7 / 'King Stephen' Overture"
> 2) "Symphonies No. 4, No. 7 / 'King Stephen' Overture"
> 3) "Symphonies No. 4 & No. 7 / 'King Stephen' Overture"
> 4) (Others?)
> 
> I was wondering if we could get some consensus on an exception of
> sorts for classical albums so things could be made more clear.
> 

Rereading the CSG (again! it is too difficult!) I am not sure if an 
exception is needed:

CSG notes an example where "The titles of many classical releases are 
really just a list of works on the CD." The advice is to "Separate with 
slashes according to MultipleTitleStyle".

(This is not very helpful, as the MultipleTitleStyle is a "Style for 
Multiple Releases on One Disc", not a "Style for Multiple Works". Except 
for the "use space, slash, space", it is irrelevant for ordinary 
classical releases.)

Instead, the CSG could benefit with an appropriate version of the following:

"If you think the release title [here: 'Symphonies Nos. 4 & 7 King 
Stephen Overture'] looks weird, use slash where appropriate. Remember, 
slashes are ugly, so use them sparingly"


As to your and Aaron's alternatives, I don't think the CSG should 
enforce strict rules on how to list symphony numbers. The more the 
release title looks like the original release title, the better.



Leiv Hellebø