Music Notation 1

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION HIGH SCHOOL
MUSIC THEORY – 7th Grade {Ms.Bryan}
Hey class! You wanna hear a joke about corona? Well guess what? Not all of
us will get it. Lol!
Okay, so let’s do a recap on what we covered before the quarantine.
MUSICAL NOTATION
We started to look on musical notation and learnt that ‘notation’ means the manner in
which sounds are written. In the days before audio recording and playback, music
was often written out as a means of preserving and communicating it. To do this, a
system of notation was developed that gives musicians the information they need to
play music as the composer intended it.
In Europe the monks of medieval times, Middle Ages, were the first to write sounds,
and to indicate their pitch by using horizontal lines. Today’s system of notating music
on a staff traces back to Guido d’Arezzo, an Italian Benedictine monk who lived from
approximately 991 to 1035 A.D. He is credited to creating the four line staff. On this
staff diamond-shaped notes, and other symbols indicating groups of sounds called
‘neumes’. See Ex.1 below.
Ex.1
Before the staff was introduced, this was what music looked like.
Pretty confusing huh? Well, these squiggles (above the words) are also called
neumes, designed to jock the monks memory on what to sing while they performed.
This was really hard, as it wasn’t that accurate and you would need to have an aural
understanding of what it sounds like BEFORE performing. So let’s appreciate Guido
for his invention. His system helped with the pitches but needed improvement on the
rhythm. In music, rhythm is just as important and the pitch.
After a while, the use of the staff or ‘stave’ (same thing) constantly changed, using as
many as 8 lines to indicate the pitch of sounds. The five line staff was found to be the
easiest to read and it is what we still use today!
Before we dive into reading music we have to understand the
importance of a few elements, seen as the roadmap/framework
of understanding how to read music.
The Staff/stave
A staff is a set of five lines and four spaces on which notes are written to indicate
their pitch.
NOTE: the lines and spaces are numbered from the bottom.
Clefs
The work ‘clef ’ is a French word meaning ‘key’. The clef fixes the pitch of one of the
lines of the staff, and so gives the ‘key’ or clue to the pitch names of the other lines
and spaces.
The two widely used clefs are the TREBLE AND BASS CLEFS.
Other clefs you might come across are known as the Alto clef and the Tenor clef
known as the C CLEFS.
The Treble Clef or (G- Clef)

The treble clef sign evolved from the gothic letter G and used to show the pitch of
notes representing medium to high sounds, usually ranging from the note called
middle C and up to the higher notes.
This clef identifies the second line of the staff as G. This staff is mostly used by
instruments with high pitches.
Mnemonic to remember the treble clef
Lines: E G B D F
Every Good Boy Does Fine
Spaces: F A C E
It spells face! lol
The Bass Clef or (F – Clef)

The bass clef sign evolved from the gothic letter F. It is used to show the pitch of
notes representing medium to low sounds, usually ranging from the note called
middle C and down to the lower notes.
This clef identifies the fourth line of the staff as F. This staff is mostly used by
instruments with low pitches.
Mnemonic to remember the Bass clef
Lines: G B D F A
Great Big Dogs From Africa
Spaces: A C E G
All Cows Eat Grass
The C clefs
The C Clef is a movable clef. The C Clef establish specific pitches for Middle C. The
simplest reason to use it is to avoid needing to use ledger lines (ledger lines are
small lines placed above or below the staff as an extension of that staff). See Ex. 2
pg 7.
Two common C clefs are the ALTO and TENOR clefs.
The alto clef places middle C the 3rd line and the tenor clef places middle C on the 4th
line.
Ex.2
The Grand Staff
The grand staff consists of the notes on the Treble and Bass Staves. These two
staves are joined together by a brace or bracket at the beginning.
This staff is used for instruments that can play low to high sounds, for example, the
piano, the harp and the organ.
The grand staff was developed from the ancient eleven line staff. The middle line
was used for the note called middle C.

Music Notation 1

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IMMACULATE CONCEPTION HIGH SCHOOL

MUSIC THEORY – 7th Grade {Ms.Bryan}

The Treble Clef or (G- Clef)

The Bass Clef or (F – Clef)

Two common C clefs are the ALTO and TENOR clefs.

The Grand Staff

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