Rule

A slur must span at least two distinct notes

Breaks the readingCheckable from the score aloneMechanically fixable

Gradus GE-373 · cite this code — it is permanent. Rule id slur-minimum-span-two-distinct-notes

The convention

A slur is inherently a connective mark between two or more notes; a 'slur' with identical start and end index, or a reversed pair, is not a slur.

Authority

Gould implicitly (a slur is defined as connecting 'a group of notes').

How it is checked

This rule can be decided from pitches, durations and voices — no layout required. A validator can check it before anything is drawn.

Cite this rule

Gradus GE-373 — A slur must span at least two distinct notes. Gradus Engraving Rulebook v1.0. https://gradusmusic.com/engraving/rule/slur-minimum-span-two-distinct-notes

Rulebook v1.0 · text licensed CC-BY-4.0 · machine-readable at /api/v1/engraving/rules/slur-minimum-span-two-distinct-notes

Related rules

Tie and slur are structurally distinct fields, never inferred from each other
A tie's next note must be the identical single pitch
Chord ties must compare pitch SETS, not authored array order
A tie's two notes must match in accidental, not just diatonic step
MusicXML tie pairing must check every chord tone, not just the root pitch
A rest may never carry `tie: true` / `tiedToNext: true`

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