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Anintroductiontomusictheory:Viewassinglepage
Anintroductiontomusictheory
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Introduction
Thisunitintroducesyoutothebasicconceptsofwesternmusicnotationandmusictheorythatyouneed
toknowbeforeyouembarkontheOpenUniversitycourseInsidemusic(A224).Itcoversgroundsimilarto
thatfoundinthesyllabusoftheAssociatedBoardTheoryGrades13(ABRSM,2011).
Commoncompatibility/technicalissueswhichstudentshaveencounteredwhenusingAn
IntroductiontoMusicTheory
AllofthemusicnotationexamplesincludedwithinAnIntroductiontoMusicTheoryareprovidedwithin
SibeliussScorchPlayer.Thisallowsyoutolistentotheexampleswhilstfollowingthenotation.
IfyoudonotalreadyhavetheScorchplugininstalledonyourcomputer,youwillbepromptedtodownload
itatthefirstexampleyouuse.YouwillneedtohavetheScorchplugininstalledtoplaythemusicnotation
examples.ScorchisnotcurrentlycompatiblewithGoogleChromeorFirefox4.
Somestudentshavereportedexperiencingcompatibilityandtechnicaldifficultieswhentryingtoviewand
usepartsofAnIntroductiontoMusicTheorywithInternetExplorer9orGoogleChrome.Thematerial
worksbestwhenviewedwithInternetExplorer8orFirefox3.6.
TheOpenUniversityisconductingasurveyinvestigatinghowpeopleusethefreeeducationalcontent
onourOpenLearnwebsite.Theaimistoprovideabetterfreelearningexperienceforeveryone.Soif
yourearegularuserofOpenLearnandhave10minutestospare,wedbedelightedifyoucouldtake
partandtelluswhatyouthink.PleasenotethiswilltakeyououtofOpenLearn,wesuggestyouopen
thisinanewtabbyrightclickingonthelinkandchoosingopeninanewtab.
Learningoutcomes
Afterstudyingthisunityoushouldhave:
asatisfactoryunderstandingofthebasicbuildingblocksofmusicaltheoryandnotation
anunderstandingofmusictheorycomparabletothatdemandedbyGrade3oftheAssociatedBoardof
theRoyalsSchoolsofMusictheorysyllabus
anunderstandingofmusictheorythatenablesyoutomoveontoOpenUniversityLevel2andLevel3
Musiccourses,e.g.A224InsideMusic.
1Thecontent
Theunitbeginswithabriefintroductiontothefundamentalelementsofwesternmusicnotationthestaff,
clefsandnotenames.Itthenmovesontoconsiderthenotationofrhythmandofpitch.Inaddition,the
basicformofthechord(thetriad)isincluded,togetherwithalistofthemostfrequentlyusedperformance
directionsthatyouwillfindonnotatedmusic(scores).Eachsectionendswithinteractiveactivitiesthatwill
helpyouassesshowfaryouunderstandindividualtopicsorconcepts.
Evenifyoufeelthatyouarealreadyfamiliarwiththeseconceptsitisworthwhilereadingthroughthe
sectionsofthisunitsystematicallytofindoutwhetherthereissomethingthatyouhadntcomeacross
beforeorthatyouhadforgotten.
http://www.open.edu/openlearn/ocw/mod/oucontent/view.php?printable=1&id=1791
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1.1Workingthroughtheunit
Ifyouarestartingthisunitcompletelyfromscratchwithnoknowledgeofmusictheory,tackleeachsection
onebyone,andspendaslongasyouneedworkingoneach.Bepreparedtoundertakealittlestudy
eachdayoralternatedayalittleoftenisagoodguideline.Thiswillprovemuchmorebeneficialthan
studyinglargechunksatatime.
Inaddition,makesurethatyouunderstandeachofthetopicsyouhavestudiedbeforeyouattemptthe
followingone.Learningaboutstaffnotationandotherfacetsofmusictheoryisacumulativeprocess.
Spendareasonableamountoftimeoneachtopicsothatyoucanmasteritbeforegoingontothenext.
Althoughthisunitcontainsinteractiveactivitiesthattestyourknowledge,itissuggestedthatyoureinforce
yourknowledgewiththeuseofeartrainingactivities(oftencalledtrainers),wheremusicalsoundsare
linkedtovisualsymbols.Onceyoufeelyouhaveunderstoodatopic,youcouldtryusingatrainerto
reinforceyourknowledgethroughpractice.Theirusewillcreateoasesinthelearningprocesswhere
doingwillhelpfacilitateunderstanding,andwillalsoprovidefeedbackastohowyouaregettingon.
Thereareseveralsitesontheinternetthatprovidetrainers.Theseincludeactivitiessuchasinteractive
drillsthatfocusonspecificareasofstaffnotationrangingfromastraightforwardnamingofnotesto
recognisingcomplexrhythmsandchords.AlistofeartrainersisprovidedattheendofthisunitinSection
10.
HowtouseSibeliussScorchPlayer
AllofthemusicnotationexamplesforthisunitareprovidedwithinSibeliussScorchPlayer,allowing
youtolistentothemwhilefollowingalong.YouwillbepromptedtodownloadtheScorchpluginatthe
firstexampleifyoudonothaveitinstalledalready.Usetheplay,stopandpausebuttonsonthetop
bartolistentoeachexample.Youwillnotberequiredtouseanyoftheotherbuttons.
2Thebasics
2.1Thestaff
Theideaofplacingnotesonasetofhorizontallinesthestafftoshowtherelationshipofvarious
pitcheswitheachotherstaffnotationemergedinwesternmusictowardstheendoftheninthcentury.
Originally,eachpitchwasallocateditsownline,buttheItalianmusictheorist,GuidoofArezzo,wholived
duringtheearlyeleventhcentury,suggestedthatlinesshouldbedrawnforeveryotherpitch,sothat
alternatepitchessatonthelinesandtheremainingpitcheswereplacedintheinterveningspaces
betweenthelines.
Thisprinciplewassoonadoptedandhasremainedinforceintraditionalwesternmusicnotationtothe
presentday.Thenumberoflinesincludedinthestaffhasvarieddependingontherangeofthemusic
beingnotated.However,thenormhasevolvedasthefivelinestaff,showninExample1.
Example1
AsshowninExample2,ifweplacepitchesintheformofnoteheadsonthestaff,informationaboutthe
relationshipofthepitcheswitheachotherisproduced.
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Example2
2.2Clefs
Asitstands,thefirstnoteinExample2couldbeanypitchwecaretochoose.
Example2(repeated)
Soifwewishtospecifyaparticularpitchorseriesofpitchesweneedsomesortofguideasignthatwill
enableustoindicatethespecificpitch.Thatsignissuppliedbyaclef(fromtheLatin,clavis,meaning
key).Fromtheeleventhcenturyonwards,severalRomanletters,includingcandf,wereused
systematicallyforclefs,withgsubsequentlybecomingincreasinglycommon.Inastylisedform,g,with
flamboyantcurlsandflourishes,isstillusedasthetrebleorGclef,andsignifiesthatanoteplacedon
thesecondlinefromthebottomisG(seeExample3).
Example3
YouwillneedtodownloadScorchtoseeandheartheseexamples.
Interactivecontentappearshere.Pleasevisitthewebsitetouseit.
AndthisisnotanyG,butspecificallytheoneabovemiddleC.(WellcometoanexplanationofmiddleC
inamoment.)
AsExample4shows,theothernotesarenamedwithlettersfromthealphabet,AG,withAreturningafter
Ghasbeenreached.
Example4
Noticethatasthenotesareplacedhigherandhigherupthestaff,thepitchbecomeshigherandhigheras
well.Noticetoothatwereadmusicfromlefttoright,andwithawholepageofmusic,fromtoptobottom.
Thisreflectsthewaywereadwordsinwesternculture.
Theletter,f,inastylisedformandinamirrorimage,isnowusedasthebassorFclef.Itsignifiesthata
noteplacedonthesecondlinefromthetopisF,andspecificallytheFbelowmiddleC(seeExample5).
Example5
2.3Thegreatstaff
Wecancallastaffwithatrebleclefatreblestaffforshort,andastaffwithabassclefabassstaff.And
ifweplacetheformerabovethelatterandinsertanadditionallineinbetween,wecreatewhatiscalledthe
great(orgrand)staffasshowninExample6.
Example6
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Therearetwopointsaboutthegreatstaff.Firstly,itdemonstratestherelationshipbetweenthebassand
treblestaves.Secondly,theadditionallineatthemidwaypointisthelineformiddleC.Thecentral
importanceinthegreatstaffofthemiddleClineisonereasonformiddleCsname,anditsposition
roughlyhalfwayalongthekeyboardisanother.
2.4MiddleCandledgerlines
Sometimeskeyboardmusichasbeennotatedusingverylargestaves.However,ifyouhavetoomany
lines,thestaffisnoteasytoread.Therefore,withkeyboardmusic,thetrebleandbassstavesare
conventionallyseparatedoutthereisasubstantialgapbetweenthebottomlineofthetreblestaffand
thetoplineofthebassstaffandthereisnomiddleCline.Instead,middleCisnotatedusingaledger
line.MiddleChasitsownlittlesectionofstaff,longenoughtomakethepositionofthenoteclear,and
thishastobewritteninforeachofitsappearances.
Whilethisseparationoftheupperandlowerstavesisagoodideabecauseithelpsvisualorientation,it
hasadrawback.AndthatisthatmiddleCcanbenotatedonbothstaves,indifferentpositionsoneach
staff.Example7showsthat(i)thedifferentvisualpositionsofmiddleConeachstaffrepresentoneand
thesamesoundand(ii)thegradualinclineofthepatternofthenotesasthepitchrisesisfractured
temporarily.
Example7
OthernotesclosetomiddleCcanalsobenotatedoneitherstaffbyusingmoreandmoreledgerlines
(Example8).
Example8
Choosingwhichstafftousedependsonthecontext.Forinstance,ifyouwerenotatingaviolinpart,you
wouldneedthetreblestaff.Soifyouwantedtowritethelowestnoteontheviolin,thelowerGonthetop
staffinExample8,youwouldneedtheGthatsitsbelowtheupperstaffandhastwoledgerlines.
Theconceptofledgerlinescanalsobeappliedatthetopofthetreblestaffandatthebottomofthebass
staff(Example9).
Example9
However,themoreledgerlinesyouuse,themoredifficultitistoreadthenotesataglance,andyouhave
tocountuptheledgerlinestogetherwiththespacesbetweenthemtoworkoutwhatthenoteis,and
thiscanbealaboriousprocess.
Example10showsallthenotenamesmentionedabove.
Example10
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2.5Writingnotes
AlthoughmuchofthenotewritinginInsidemusicinvolvesusingthesoftwarepackage,SibeliusStudent,it
isworthwhileconsideringbrieflytheconventionsusedwhenwritingstaffnotationbyhandonmanuscript
paper(thenameforpageswithstavesprintedonthem).Fundamentally,whenwritingmusic,youare
tryingtocommunicatewithareaderandlegibilityisthereforeimportant.
Youshouldbearinmindthefollowingguidelineswhenwritingnotesonpaper.
Noteheadsareovalinshape(someopen,somefilledinwellseethereasonforthislater)and
shouldsitcentrallyonalineorinaspacesothatnoconfusioncanariseastothepitchnotated.
Mostnotesalsoneedstems,andtheseshouldbeverticalandshouldberoughlythesameheight
astheheightofthestaff.
Inaddition,notestemsshouldgodownonthelefthandsidefornoteheadsonthetoptwolinesof
thestaffandinthetoptwospaces,andupontherighthandsidefornoteheadsonthebottomtwo
linesandinthebottomtwospaces.Stemsfornoteheadsonthemiddlelinecangoupordown.
Ledgerlinesshouldrunparalleltothelinesofthestaff.
Example11providesexamplesofthesepoints.
Example11
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2.6Readingnotes
Howdoyoubecomeproficientatreadingnotes?Thistakestimeandpractice.Youreallyneedtopractise
forafewminuteseachday,identifyingnotesonboththetrebleandbassstaves,includingnotesthatare
writtenbothaboveandbelowthesestaveswithuptothreeledgerlines.
However,thereisatraditionwithstaffnotationofusingmnemonicstorememberthenamesofthenotes
onthestaves.Twooftheseareimpossibletobeat:FACEforthespacesonthetreblestafffrombottomto
top,andAllCowsEatGrassforthespacesonthebassstafffrombottomtotop(Example12).
Example12
Forthelinesonthestaves,frombottomtotop,perhapsyoucouldcreateyourownmnemonicbasedon
thelettersEGBDFforthetreblestaffandGBDFAforthebass.
Mnemonicsareusefulandhelpacceleratethelearningprocess.
2.7Review1
Onceyoufeelyouarefamiliarwiththepositionofthenotesonthetrebleandbassstaves,trythe
followingactivities.
Ifyoufindtheseactivitiesdifficult,donotbedisheartened.Rememberthatinordertobeabletoreadthe
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namesofnotesataglancerequirespracticeoveraperiodoftime.Somepeoplefindreadingsymbolic
languageseasierthanothers,buteveryonehastospendsometimeinordertobecomefamiliarwithnote
names.Ofcourse,ifyouplayaninstrumentandreadnotationonadailybasis,thenthatisagreathelp
whenlearningnotenames.However,dontforgettheusefulnessofmnemonicsandtrainers(Section10).
Inaddition,regularapplication,alittleatatime,isthebestapproach.
Group1testsyourknowledgeofwritingnotes,Groups24testyourreadingofnotenamesonthetreble
andbassstavesandGroups5and6testyourreadingofnoteswithuptothreeledgerlines.
Group1:writingnotes
Activity
Whichofthefollowingstatementsiscorrect?(Thereareseveralcorrectanswers.)
Group2:identifyingnotenamesonthetreblestaff
Activity1
WhichnoteisC?
Activity2
WhichnoteisD?
Activity3
WhichnoteisG?
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Activity4
WhichnoteisF?
Group3:identifyingnotenamesonthebassstaff
Activity1
WhichnoteisE?
Activity2
WhichnoteisA?
Activity3
WhichnoteisD?
Activity4
WhichnoteisA?
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Group4:identifyingclefsfornotesonboththetrebleandbassstaves
Activity1
MatchTrebleclefandBasscleftothenotestomakethemAandD.
Activity2
MatchTrebleclefandBasscleftothenotestomakethemCandF.
Activity3
MatchTrebleclefandBasscleftothenotestomakethemEandA.
Activity4
MatchTrebleclefandBasscleftothenotestomakethemGandF.
Group5:identifyingnotenamesofnoteswithledgerlines
Activity1
WhichnoteisA?
Activity2
WhichnoteisE?
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Activity3
WhichnoteisD?
Group6:identifyingmorenotenamesofnoteswithledgerlines
Activity1
Arethetwonotesbelowatthesamesoundingpitch?
Activity2
Arethetwonotesbelowatthesamesoundingpitch?
3Rhythmandmetre
3.1Timevalues
Aswellasapitchname,eachnotehasarhythmicvalue,calledatimevalue,notevalueorduration.
ThosemostcommonlyfoundinpresentdayusageareshowninExample13.
Example13
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Noticethatinordertodifferentiatethesesymbolsfortimevalues:
allhavestemsapartfromthesemibreve
thenoteheadsofthesemibreveandminimareopen,whereasthosefortheshortervaluesare
filledin
thequaverhasaflag(ortail),alwaysdrawnontherighthandsideofthestem,thesemiquaverhas
twoflagsandthedemisemiquaver,three.
Youwillprobablyhavenoticedtoothatthedurationofeachtimevalueishalfthatoftheoneabove.
Thereforetwominimslastthesamedurationasasemibrevetwocrotchetslastthesamedurationasa
minimandsoon.Thisalsomeansthatfourcrotchetslastthesamedurationasasemibreve,asdoeight
quaversorsixteensemiquavers.Example14mapsouttheserelationships:
Example14
3.2Triplets
InSection3.1,Example14,yousawthatasyoumovedownthelistoftimevaluesfromsemibreveto
semiquaver,eachsuccessivetimevalueishalfthelengthoftheoneabove(forexample,yousawthata
quaverishalfthelengthofacrotchet).However,youcandivideatimevaluenotonlybytwobutbyany
numberyouwant.Themostfrequentdivisionyouwillcomeacross,thenextinfrequencytothedefault
divisionoftwo,iswhereatimevalueisdividedintothreeequalcomponentssayacrotchetdividedinto
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threequaversoraminimdividedintothreecrotchets.Thisiscalledatriplet.Asyoucanseeandhearin
Example15,thecrotchetisdividedintothreetripletquavers,theminimintothreetripletcrotchets.
Example15
Atthisstage,youneedntworryaboutthisinanydetail.However,noticeinExample15howtripletsare
notatedwithafigurethreeoverorundertherelevantnotes,thefigureoftenbeingcombinedwitheithera
curvedlineorsquarebracket.
3.3Timesignatures
Therhythmofapieceofwesternmusicwhetheritissimpleorcomplexisunderpinnedbyasteady
pulseorbeat,andthesebeatsaregroupedtogethertogivethemusicsmetre.Themostcommon
groupingsareintwos,threesandfoursandthesegroupingsarecreatedbyapatternofstrongerand
weakerstresses.Thus,athreebeatpatternwouldconsistofstrongweakweakbeats.Innotatedmusic,
eachgroupismarkedoutbyabarlinesofromnowonwewilltalkabouthowmanybeatstherearein
eachbar.
Timesignatures,whichconsistoftwonumbersalignedvertically,areplacedattheopeningofapieceof
musictosignifywhichmetreisbeingused.(Thetimesignatureisthenomittedfortherestofthepiece,
unlessitischangedtoanother.)Inthetimesignaturesdiscussedinthissection,thelowerfigurecanbe
understoodasthevalueofeachbeatexpressedinrelationtoasemibreve(wholenote).Thenumber2
representsaminim(halfnote),4representsacrotchet(quarternote),8representsaquaver(eighth
note),andsoon.Theupperfiguretellsyouthenumberofbeatsinthebar.
In2/4therearetwocrotchetsperbar.Thelowernumber,4,representsacrotchetbecause
thereare4crotchets(quarternotes)inasemibreve(wholenote),andtheuppernumbertellsyou
thatthereare2beats,i.e.twocrotchets,inabar.
In3/2therearethreeminimsperbar.Thelowernumber,2,representsaminimbecausethere
are2minims(halfnotes)inasemibreve,andtheuppernumbertellsyouthatthereare3beats,i.e
minims,inabar.
In3/8therearethreequaversperbar.Thelowernumber,8,representsaquaverbecause
thereare8quavers(eighthnotes)inasemibreve,andtheuppernumbertellsyouthatthereare3
beats,i.e.quavers,inabar.
Example16summarisesthemeaningofthesethreetimesignatures.
Example16
Example17showsvariousstraightforwardrhythmsindifferenttimesignatures.
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Example17
NoticeinExample17that4/4canalsobewrittenasC(Commontime),and2/2asaCwithavertical
strokethroughit(allabreve).Noticetoothateachbarincludesthecorrectnumberoftimevaluesto
makeuptherequirednumberofbeatsshownbytheuppernumberofthetimesignature,andthateach
barsgroupofbeatsismarkedoffwithabarlineforeaseofreading.Finally,theconcludingbarlineis
writtenasadoublebar.
ConsiderExample17carefully,spendingasmuchtimeasyouneedinordertobecomeproficientat
addingtogetherthenumberofbeatsineachbar,assignifiedbythetopnumberofthetimesignature.
(Payparticularattentionwhenthereareshortervaluespresentsuchasquaversandsemiquavers.)
Additionally,makesurethatyouhaveidentifiedthebeatcorrectlyasshownbythebottomnumberinthe
timesignatureisitaminim(2),acrotchet(4)oraquaver(8)?
3.4Review2
ThefollowingactivitiesbeginwithGroup1aseriesofactivitiesthatasksyoutoidentifynotevalues.In
Group2,oneormoretimevaluesfromabarhasbeenomitted,andyouwillthereforehavetoworkout
whattheyare.Youneedtobeabsolutelysureastothelengthofeachtimevalueandhoweachfits
togetherwiththeothertimevaluesineachbar.
Group1:timevalues
Activity1
Whichofthefollowingstatementsiscorrect?
Group2:identifyingomittedtimevalue(s)
Activity1
Whichsingletimevalueisrequiredattheplacemarkedwiththeasterisk?
Activity2
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Activity3
Activity4
Whichsingletimevalueisrequiredateachoftheplacesmarkedwithasterisks?
Activity5
Activity6
Activity7
Whichsingletimevalueisrequiredattheplacemarkedwithanasterisk?
Activity8
Whichsingletimevalueisrequiredattheplacemarkedwithanasterisk?
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3.5Dotsandties
InSection3.1,Example14weoutlinedthetimevaluesofeachtypeofnote.Hereisareminderofthose
notevalues:
Example14(repeated)
However,atimevalueofeachtypeofnotecanbelengthened(andthereforechanged)throughtheuse
of:
adotor
atie.
Adotafteranyvalueextendsthatvaluebyhalfasmuchagain.Thereforeadottedcrotchetlastsfora
crotchetplusahalfacrotchet(i.e.aquaver).Inotherwords,asshowninExample18,itlastsforthe
durationofthreequaversintotal.
Example18
Thedotisplacedtotherightofthenotehead,inthesamespaceifthenoteheadisinaspace,orabove
thelineifanoteheadisonaline.Example19summarisestheseprinciples.
Example19
AsyoulearnedinSection3.3,barlinesmarkoffgroupsofbeatsaccordingtothetimesignature.In4/4
time,therefore,therecannotbeanymorethanfourbeatsperbar.Ifwewanttoextendatimevaluewhere
thelengthenedvaluecrossesabarline,atiecanbeused,asshowninExample20.Inthisparticular
example,theeffectofthetieisthesameasifwehadusedadot:thevalueoftheminimisincreasedbya
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half(becauseitisjoinedtoacrotchetwhichishalfthevalueofaminim).
Example20
However,asshowninExample21,atiecanalsobeusedtoincreaseavaluebyadifferentfraction.Soas
Example21(a)shows,aminimcanbetiedtoaquaver,thequaverbeingaquarteroftheminimsvalue
andasshowninExample21(b),acrotchetcanbetiedtoasemiquaver,thesemiquaverbeingaquarter
ofthecrotchetsvalue.Eithercantakeplacewithinabaroracrossabarline.
Example21
Youcantieanynumberofadjacentnotestogetherinthiswaybutthetiednotesmustalwayshavethe
samepitch.ThetiesmustalsobeplacedontheoutsideofthenoteheadsasyoucanseeinExample21.
3.6Groupingandbeamingnotes
Sofar,whenwritingnoteswithflagssuchasquaversandsemiquavers,eachonehasbeenwritten
separately.However,foreaseofreading,groupsofquaversandsemiquaversarejoinedorbeamed
together.Thus,thepreviousexampleshouldmoreproperlybewrittenasshowninExample22.InExample
22(a)thetwoquaversarebeamedtogetherwithasinglebeam,andinExample22(b)thefour
semiquaversarebeamedtogetherwithadoublebeam.(Demisemiquaverswouldneedatriplebeam.)
Example22
InExample22(a)and(b)thebeamingjoinstogethernotesthatbelongtoasinglebeat,andthisis
ausefulruleofthumbtofollowwhenbeamingnotestogether,especiallywithmorecomplexexamples,as
demonstratedinExample23,whichshowsonelineofmusictwiceonceunbeamed(Example23[a])and
oncebeamed(Example23[b]).
Example23
However,thefollowinggroupingsshowninExample24arealsoused.Althoughthesegroupingsbreakthe
showeachbeatrule,theyaretreatedasconventions.
Conventionsthatbreaktheshoweachbeatrule
Example24(a)Wherethereisacompletesetofquaversinabarof2/4,thesecanbebeamed
togetherwithonebeamratherthanwithtwobeamsastwosetsoftwoquavers.Asimilar
conventionisallowedforacompletesetofquaversinabarof3/4onlyonebeamisneeded.
Example24(b)In3/4,wherefourquaversreplaceaminim,onlyonebeamisneededinstead
oftwo.
Example24(c)Similarly,in4/4,wherefourquaversreplaceaminim,onlyonebeamis
neededinsteadoftwo.However,in4/4,thebeamjoiningthefourquaverscannotextendacross
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themiddleofthebar.
Example24(d)In3/8,allquaversandsemiquaversinabarcanbebeamedtogether.
Example24
Thereareseveralexceptionstotheshoweachbeatrulehereanditwilltakeyoutimetoabsorbthem.
PerhapsthebestwaytotacklethisistopauseforamomentortwoandexamineExamples23and24
carefullyoncemoresothatyoubecomefamiliarwithhowthebeaminglooksvisually.Sometimesvisual
informationcanbeeasiertoaccessthanverbalinformation,particularlyifthelatterisextensiveand
detailed.Sopauseforalittlenow,andmakeanefforttofamiliariseyourselfvisuallywiththebeaming
patterns.
3.7Review3
NowtrytheactivitiesinGroup1ontimesignaturesandbeamingcoveredsofarinthissection.Whatisthe
timesignatureforeachofthefivebars?Firstofall,identifythebeatisitaminim,crotchetorquaver?
Thencounthowmanybeatsthereareinthebar.Whererelevant,thinkingaboutthebeamingmighthelp
you.
Group1:identifyingtimesignatures
Activity
Matchthetimesignatures,3/2,2/4,3/4,4/4and3/8tobarnumbers15.
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3.8Moretimesignatures:compoundtime
Thetimesignaturesconsidereduptonow2/4,3/4,4/4,2/2,3/2and3/8areallexamplesofsimple
time.Insimpletime,eachbeatcanalwaysbedividedintotwos,ormultiplesoftwo.Andsimpletime
signaturesaredescribedfullyaccordingtohowmanybeatsinabarthereareasfollows:
2/4and2/2arecalledsimpledupletimesincetherearetwobeatstoeachbar
3/8,3/4and3/2arecalledsimpletripletimesincetherearethreebeatstoeachbar,and
4/4iscalledsimplequadrupletimesincetherearefourbeatstoeachbar.
Example25ashowsabarof3/4time,wheretherearethreebeatstothebar,andeachbeatisdivided
intotwo.
Example25(a)
Whenthebeatisdividedintothrees,thetermcompoundtimeisused.
Forexample:
in6/8,thereare6quaversperbar,butthese6quaversaregroupedintwogroupsofthreesoit
iscalledcompounddupletime.6/4isalsocalledcompounddupletime,thereare6crotchetsper
barandthese6crotchetsaregroupedintwosetsofthree.
In9/8thereare9quaversperbar,groupedinthreegroupsofthreesoitiscalledcompound
tripletime.
In12/8timethereare12quaversperbar,groupedinfourgroupsofthreesoitiscalled
compoundquadrupletime.
Example25(b)showsabarof6/8time.Therearetwobeatstothebar,andeachbeatisdividedinto
three.
Example25(b)
Butwhatisthereasonforthisdifferentwayofgroupingthenotesineachbeatincompoundtime?Thisis
becauseincompoundtimesignatures,thebeatisadottednotesuchasadottedminim(insay,6/4)ora
dottedcrotchet(in,say,6/8)ratherthanaminimoracrotchetinsimpletimesignaturessuchas3/2or3/4.
Wecanseehowthisaffectsthebeatdivisionifweconsiderthebarsof3/4timeand6/8timetogether.
Examples25(a)and(b)
Ifwecountthenumberofquaversinabarof3/4andinabarof6/8,theansweristhesame,six.However,
in3/4therearethreecrotchetbeatsperbar,eachbeatdividedintotwoquavers.In6/8therearetwo
dottedcrotchetbeatsperbar,eachbeatdividedintothreequavers.So3/4issimpletripletimeand6/8
iscompounddupletime.Inbothartandpopularmusic,composershaveexploredthevariablebeat
producedbymovingbetweenthesetwotimesignatures.
3.9Groupingandbeamingnotesincompoundtime
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Aswithgroupingnoteswithinasinglebeatinsimpletime,beamingtogetherquaversandsemiquavers
thatbelongtoasinglebeatisausefulguidelinetofollowwhengroupingnotestogetherincompoundtime.
Asyoulearnedintheprevioussection,thebeatinsuchcompoundtimesignaturesas6/8or9/8isthe
dottedcrotchet(equivalenttothreequavers),sowiththesetimesignaturesallquaversandsemiquavers
withinabeatmustbebeamedingroupsofthreequavers.Example26showshowseveralnotesthat
compriseasinglebeatarebeamedtogetherin6/8time.
Example26
AsyoucanseefromExample26,theextentofthebeatisalwaysshowninthebeamingeachgroupof
beamednotesaddsuptothreequavers(adottedcrotchet).Beamingtogetherquaversingroupswhich
donotadduptothreequaverswouldsuggestadifferenttimesignaturewheretheextentofthebeatisa
differenttimevalue.Thustherhythmin6/8inExample27(a)cannotbewrittenasinExample27(b),
becauseExample27(b)suggests3/4time.InExample27(b)thequaversarebeamedtogetherintwos
ratherthanthrees,andthissignifiesacrotchetbeatandhence3/4.
Example27
Whenweconsidertimevaluesthatlastfortwobeatsratherthanasingleoneincompoundtime,theshow
thedottedbeatrulenolongerapplies.Forinstance,timevaluesthatlastfortwobeatsin6/8,9/8and
12/8arewrittenasExample28(a)ratherthanExample28(b).
Example28
Hence,anotelastingafullbarin6/8iswrittenasshowninExample29.
Example29
Finally,noticethatanotelastingafullbarin9/8timeiswrittenasshowninExample30,andin12/8time
asinExample31.
Example30
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Example31
Aswithbeaminginsimpletime,youcanseethatthereisasetofconventionstofollowwhenbeamingin
compoundtime.So,onceagain,takeafewmomentstostudycarefullythevisualpatternsinvolvedin
Examples26and27.
3.10Review4
Thefollowingthreegroupsofactivitiesfocusonidentifyingsimpleandcompoundtimesignatures,and
timevaluesincompoundtime.
Group1:identifyingcompoundtimesignatures
Activity1
Matchthetimesignatures,6/8,9/8and12/8tobarnumbers13.
Whenidentifyingcompoundtimesignatures,counthowmanydottedcrotchetbeatsthereareinabar.
Dontforgetthatadottedcrotchetisequivalenttothreequaversandthatthinkingaboutthebeaming
mighthelpyou.
Group2:identifyingsimpleandcompoundtimesignatures
Activity1
Whenidentifyingsimpleandcompoundtimesignatures,identifythebeatfirstisit,forexample,a
minim?Thencounthowmanybeatsthereareinthebar.Remember,too,toconsiderthebeaming.
Matchthetimesignatures,3/2,2/4,3/4,4/4,6/8,9/8tobarnumbers16.
Group3:identifyingomittedtimevaluesincompoundtime
Activity1
Activity2
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Activity3
4Rests
4.1Valuesanddots
Justassoundisimportantinmusic,soissilence,andthereforeeverytimevaluehasanequivalentsymbol
forsilencearest.HeretheyareinExample32:
Example32
Noticethatthenumberofflagsonthequaver,semiquaveranddemisemiquaverrestsisthesameasthe
numberofflagsfortheirrespectivetimevalues.Inaddition,thecrotchet,quaver,semiquaverand
demisemiquaverrestssitinthemiddleofthestaff.
Thesameprincipleregardingdotsappliestorestsaswellastotimevaluesthedotmakestheresthalf
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aslongagain.Andthedotisplacedaftertherestinthethirdspacefromthebottom.Example33shows
theseprinciplesinaction.
Example33
4.2Groupingrests
Whengroupingnotes,wesawthatthemainaimwastoachieveeaseofreading.Thesameapplieswhen
groupingrests,althoughtherearesomeexceptionstothisrule,whichareexplainedbelow.Generally,
however,theruleofshowingeachbeatstillapplies.Thus,inabarof3/4,acrotchetisnotfollowedbya
minimrest,butbytwocrotchetrests,asshowninExample34(a).Andacrotchetandquaverarefollowed,
notbyadottedcrotchetrest,butbyaquaverandacrotchetrest,asshowninExample34(b).Eachbeat
isshownclearly.
Example34
Groupingrests:theexceptionstotheshoweachbeatrule
Inabarof4/4,iftwocrotchetsareeitherprecededorfollowedbytwocrotchetsworthof
rests,thenaminimrestcanbeusedasExample35(a)shows.Thisrulereflectstherulefor
beamingfourquaversin4/4,since,aswenotedinSection3.6,youcanbeamtogetheraminimsworth
ofquavers.
In4/4,youalsocannotgrouprestsacrossthemiddleofabar.Crotchetsateachendofa4/4
barareseparatedbytwocrotchetrestsandnotaminimrest,asshowninExample35(b).Thisisa
similarconcepttotherulesforbeamingquaversin4/4youcannotbeamacrossthemiddleofabar.
Example35
Whererestsareincludedthattotallessthanabeat,youneedtogroupinhalfbeats.Therefore,
twosemiquaversateachendofacrotchetbeatshouldbeseparatedbytwosemiquaverrests,nota
quaverrest,asshowninExample36(a).Andasingleopeningsemiquavershouldbefollowedbya
semiquaverrestandthenaquaverrest,asshowninExample36(b).
Example36
Again,aswiththepreviousdiscussionsofgroupingnotevalues,thisgroupingofrestsmightseem
unnecessarilycomplicated.Buttheoverallaimwithgroupingbothnotevaluesandrestsistotrytoensure
thatthegraphiclayoutonthepageisaseasilyreadableaspossible(once,thatis,youhavelearnedthe
rulesandtheexceptionstotherules!).Therefore,thedesignofstaffnotationhasevolvedsothatthe
readercanrecognisenotonlyeachindividualnote,butblocksofinformation,suchasthatcontainedin
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eachbeat,orevenineachbar.Thishelpstofacilitatethereadingprocess,whichisparticularlyimportant
infasttempos.
4.3Groupingrestsincompoundtime
Incompoundtime,youshouldfollowtheshoweachbeatprincipleasinsimpletime.Asyoulearnedin
Section3.8,whendealingwithsuchcompoundtimesignaturesas6/8,9/8and12/8,thebeatisadotted
crotchet,soeachbeatsrestcanbewritteneitherasadottedcrotchetrestorasacrotchetrestfollowed
byaquaverrest,asinExample37.
Example37
However,in12/8,whichhasfourbeatsperbarlike4/4,twodottedcrotchetbeatrestsateitherthe
beginningortheendofthebarcanbewrittenasdottedminimrests,asinExample38.
Example38
Youcanseetheparallelwith4/4Example39showsthe4/4example(Example35)comparedwiththe
12/8example.
Example39
4.4Moreongroupingrests
Ingeneralitisbettertowriteasfewrestsaspossiblebearinginmindtheshoweachbeatrule
(andwithsuchsmalltimevaluesassemiquaverrests,theshoweachhalfbeatruleshowninSection4.2in
Example36).Whenyouhavetoreadmorethanthreeorfourquaverorsemiquaverrestsinarow,or
indeedamixtureofthese,itisdifficulttoassessquicklyjusthowlongthecumulativelengthoftheserests
shouldbe.Therefore,providingyoufollowtherulesforgroupingandtheexceptionstothese,useasfew
restsaspossible.
Occasionally,andratherintriguingly,youcanhavearestwithinabeatthatisbeamed,asshownin
Example40.Thismakesthebeateasiertoread.
Example40
Finally,theonlysavinggraceaboutgroupingrests,is:
Foreverytimesignaturewevediscussed,arestforawholebarisasemibreverest,evenfor
compoundtimesignatures.
Withthegroupingofrestsittakestimetobecomeadeptatorganisingeachbeatcorrectly.Aswith
beaming,youwillbecomefamiliarwithhowrestsaregroupedthroughlookingatmusiconaregularbasis.
Youwillfindthatyougraduallyabsorbthevisualpatternscreatedbythegroupingofreststothepoint
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whereyoucanspotimmediatelyarestthathasbeenusedincorrectly.Butthistakestime,ofcourse.Even
so,trythefollowingthreegroupsofactivitiesinwhichyouareaskedtoidentifymissingrests.These
exerciseswillhelpyoutocometogripswithatleastsomeoftheconventionsinvolved.
4.5Review5
Group1:identifyingasingleomittedrestinsimpletime
Activity1
Whichsinglerestisrequiredattheplacemarkedwiththeasterisk?
Activity2
Activity3
Group2:identifyingtwosingleomittedrestsineithercompoundorsimpletime
Activity1
Whichsinglerestisrequiredateachoftheplacesmarkedwithasterisks?
Activity2
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Group3:identifyingthreesingleomittedrestsineithersimpleorcompoundtime
Activity1
Activity2
Activity3
5Pitch
5.1Notesofthebassandtreblestaves:areminder
Havingconsideredrhythm,metreandrestsinSections3and4,wecannowreturntothediscussionof
pitch,beguninSection2,andexaminehowscalesandkeysignaturesareformed.
InSection2youllrememberthatwelookedatthetrebleandbassstavesandtheroleofclefs.Wealso
identifiednotenamesfromthebottomofthebassstafftothetopofthetreblestaff.Finallywelookedat
theuseofledgerlinesuptoamaximumofthree,bothaboveandbelowthetrebleandbassstaves.Here,
asareminder,isthecompleterangeofnotesthatweidentified.
Example10(repeated)
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5.2Semitonesandtones,andthescaleofCmajor
Ifwetakeasectionofthecompleterangeofnoteswenamed,startingatmiddleCandproceedingupto
oneoftheotherCs,wehavetheascendingscaleofCmajor(Example41).
Example41
Visually,thesteadyprogressionofthenoteheadsclimbingupthestaffsuggeststhatthenoteheadsand
thesoundsthattheysignifyareequidistantfromeachother.Thisideaseemsreinforcedifyouplaythe
scaleonakeyboardyousimplyplayupthewhitenotesfrommiddleCuptothenextC.
However,youwillspotimmediatelyfromExample42thatthereareblacknotesonthekeyboardaswellas
thewhiteones.Youwillalsonoticethatalthoughthesearesetbackfromthewhiteones,theyalternate
withthewhiteones,oratleastdosoformuchofthetime.
Example42
Forinstance,youcanseefromExample42thatthereisablacknotebetweentheCandtheD,andthen
anotheronebetweentheDandtheE.ButthereisntonebetweentheEandtheF.Asweshallseeina
moment,thisiscrucial.
Thedistancebetweentwonotesiscalledaninterval,andtheintervalbetweentheCandtheblacknote
setslightlybackandtoitsrightisasemitone.TheintervalbetweenthisblacknoteandtheDisalsoa
semitone.Twosemitonesadduptoalargerinterval,calledatone,andso,becausewehavegoneuptwo
semitonesintotal,theintervalbetweenCandDisatone.TheintervalbetweenDandEisalsoatone
weveseenthatthereisalsoablacknotesetbetweenthesetwonotes.However,betweenEandFthere
isnoblacknote,andsotheintervalhereisonlyasemitone.
IfwenowcontinueupthescaletothenextC,wecanidentifytheintervalsbetweeneachpairofnotes:
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NotesoftheCmajorscale
CD
Tone
DE
Tone
EF
Semitone
FG
Tone
GA
Tone
AB
Tone
BC
Semitone
noblacknoteinbetween
noblacknoteinbetween
ThispatternoftonesandsemitoneswecanrepresentitsymbolicallyasTTSTTTSprovidesthe
structureoftheCmajorscale,andallmajorscales.Itisthereforeagoodideatomemorisethisstructure
(whichiscalledtheintervallicstructureofthemajorscale).
5.3Semitonesandtones,andthescaleofGmajor
WesawintheprevioussectionthatifwestartatmiddleCandfollowtheTTSTTTSpatternwe
generatethescaleofCmajor.MiddleC(andanyotherC)intheCmajorscaleiscalledthetonicorkey
noteittellsyouthekey.Whatifwestartonadifferentnote,adifferenttonic?IfwebeginonGinstead
andfollowthesameintervallicstructure,wegeneratethefollowingnotes:
NotesoftheGmajorscale
GA
Tone
AB
Tone
BC
Semitone
CD
Tone
DE
Tone
EF
Tone
F G
Semitone
ThenotesgeneratedarethesameasforCmajor,exceptforone.ThereisanF insteadofanF.
(Example43).
Example43
Thequalifyinglabel,sharp,indicatesthatthenotehasbeenraisedasemitone,andthisisrepresented
bythesymbol,#,placedbeforethenoteandonthesamelineorinthesamespaceasthenotehead.We
neededtoraisetheFasemitonetoF becausetheintervalrequiredatthispointinthepatternisatone.
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EF,asweknowfromourexaminationofthescaleofCmajor,isonlyasemitonewethereforeneedan
additionalsemitonetomakeupthetonerequiredbythepattern,TTSTTTS.AndatoneaboveEisnot
F,butF .
Summary:tones,semitonesandscales
i. TheintervallicstructureforallmajorscalesisTTSTTTS.
ii. Wecanthereforeusethispatterntogenerateamajorscalestartingonanynoteafterour
examinationofCmajor,wetriedaG.
iii. Themajorscalesgenerated,apartfromCmajor,willuseamixtureofwhiteandblacknotesona
keyboard.
5.4Majorscaleshavingkeysignatureswithsharps
Example44showsthemajorscalesstartingonC,G,D,AandE.
Example44
Notice,firstly,that:
Ifwecomparetwoscalesthatlienexttoeachotherinthelist,forinstance,CmajorandGmajor,the
onlydifferentnoteinthelowerscaleistheseventhnote.
BothscalescontainCs,Ds,Esandsoon,butinGmajor,wehaveF (andnotFasinCmajor)andthisF
istheseventhnoteuptheGmajorscale.Similarly,thenoteinDmajorthatisdifferentfromthoseinG
majorisC ,alsotheseventhnote,andsoon.
Secondly,noticethat:
Ineachscale,thenumberofnotesprefacedbysharpsincreasesbyoneeachtime.Cmajor
hasnone,Gmajorhasonenoteprefacedbyasharp,Dmajortwo,AmajorthreeandEmajorfour.
InordertoavoidwritingasharpbeforeeveryFin,say,apieceinGmajor(thatis,apiecebasedonthe
scaleofGmajor),akeysignature,asshowninExample45,issuppliedatthebeginningofeachstaff.At
theopeningofapiece,thekeysignaturecomesaftertheclefbutbeforethetimesignature.The
patterningofthesharpsinthekeysignaturesislogical,atleastasfarasfoursharps.However,onlytheF
onthetoplineofthetreblestaffisshown,nottheF inthebottomspace,and,similarly,onlytheC in
thethirdspacefromthebottomiswrittenin,nottheC onthefirstledgerlinebelowthestaff.Althoughthis
isfarfromlogical,itatleastsimplifiesthevisualinformationbeingpresented.
Example45
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Beforeleavingthissection,haveanotherlookatExample44,andconfirmhoweachscaleisgeneratedby
theTTSTTTSpattern.Also,identifywhichnotesneedsharpsinthedifferentscales.Thenconsider
thekeysignaturesinExample45andhowtheserelatetothescalesinExample44.
5.5SemitonesandtonesandthescaleofFmajor
Sofar,thescaleswehavediscussedhave,apartfromCmajor,includednotesprefacedbysharps.
However,ifwestartascaleonnotesdifferentfromthosewevealreadytried,thegeneratingpatternTTS
TTTScaninvolvetheuseofflatsinsteadofsharps.Youllrememberthatasharpraisesanotebya
semitoneconversely,aflat,shownbythesymbol, ,lowersanotebyasemitone.Aswiththesharpsign,
#,theflatsign, ,iswrittenbeforethenotetowhichitapplies,andisplacedonthesamelineorinthesame
spaceasthenotehead.Bothsharpsandflatsarecalledaccidentalsandwillbecoveredinmoredetailin
Section6.
HereistheseriesofnotesgeneratedifwestartonF:
NotesoftheFmajorscale
FG
Tone
GA
Tone
AB
Semitone
B C
Tone
CD
Tone
DE
Tone
EF
Semitone
Here,theonlynotethatisdifferentfromthoseinCmajoristheB .(CmajorhasB.)ButB wasnecessary

herebecausethethirdintervalintheTTSTTTSpatternisasemitone,notatone,andthereforethe
noteasemitonebelowBisrequired,i.e.B ,notB.Onakeyboard,asyoucanseefromExample46,thisis
theblacknotesetbackbetweenAandB.
Example46
Youmayhavewonderedwhyoneblacknoteisasharp(aswesawwithF )andanotherisaflat,theB .
Theansweristhatnotesonakeyboardcanbecalleddifferentthingsdependingontheircontext.Major
(and,asweshallsee,minor)scalesaresevennote(heptatonic)scales,andeachnotehasadifferent
lettername.Thus,thesevenletternamesinFmajorareFGAB( )CDE.TheyarenotcalledFGAA( )
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CDE,becausethiswouldmeanAcomestwiceandthereisnoB.Onthekeyboard,then,B andA are

thesamenote,butwhenwritingthescaleofFmajor,B isused,notA .
5.6Majorscaleshavingkeysignatureswithflats
Example47showsthemajorscalesstartingonC,F,B ,E andA .
Example47
Again,aswiththegroupofmajorscaleswithsharpsinExample44,therearetwopointsworthnoting.
Firstly:
Ifwecomparetwoscalesthatlienexttoeachotherinthelist,forinstance,CmajorandFmajor,the
onlydifferentnoteinthelowerscaleisthefourthnote.
BothscalescontainCs,Ds,Esandsoon,butinFmajor,wehaveB (andnotBasinCmajor),andthisB
isthefourthnoteuptheFmajorscale.Similarly,thenoteinBflatmajorthatisdifferentfromthoseinF
majorisE ,alsothefourthnote,andsoon.
Secondly:
Ineachscale,thenumberofdifferentnotesprefacedbyflatsincreasesbyoneeachtime.C
majorhasnone,Fmajorhasonenoteprefacedbyaflat,Bflatmajortwo,EflatmajorthreeandAflat
majorfour.
Example48showsthekeysignaturesforthesekeys.
Example48
Nowthatwehavediscussedthemajorscaleswithuptofoursharpandfourflatkeysignatures,havea
lookatthesummarychartofthesescalesandtheirkeysignaturesinExample49.Workthroughthischart
atapacethatallowsyoutopassquicklyoverthosescalesthatyoufeelyouknow,butspendmoretime
overthoseyouarelesssureof.AlwaysbearinmindtheoverridingprincipleTTSTTTS.
Example49
Nowtrythefollowingtwoactivitiesthatassessyourknowledgeofkeysignaturesofuptofourflatsorfour
sharps,andofthemajorscalesthathavethesekeysignatures.
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5.7Review6
Group1:identifyingkeysignaturesofuptofoursharpsorfourflats
Activity1
MatchthekeysofCmajor,Gmajor,Dmajor,Amajor,Fmajor,Aflatmajortothekeysignatures
below.
Group2:identifyingmajorscaleswithkeysignaturesofuptofoursharpsandfourflats
Activity1
Matchthekeysignaturesofonesharp,twosharps,oneflat,twoflatstothemajorscalesbelow.With
eachactivity,dontforgettocheckwhichclefisbeingused.Eachscalestartsonitstonicorkeynote.
5.8Minorscales:thenaturalform
Themajorscaleisonlyoneofthegroupofscalesusedinbothwesternartandwesternpopularmusicas
thebasisofcomposition.Anotheristheminorscale.Asweveseen,themajorscalehasonlyoneform
generatedbytheintervallicpattern,TTSTTTS.Bycontrast,theminorscalehasthreeforms,whichall
usethesamekeysignature:
1. natural
2. melodic
3. harmonic.
WeknowthatthekeysignatureforCmajorhasnosharpsorflats.FortheAminorscale,thisisthesame.
Hereisthenaturalformofthescale:
Example50
Youllnoticethatitissimilartothemajorscaleinthatitcanbeplayedonakeyboardusingonlythewhite
notes.TheonlydifferenceisthatitbeginsnotonC,butonA.However,thisalterstheintervallicstructure.
InsteadofTTSTTTS,weget:
TheintervallicstructureofthenaturalformoftheAminorscale
AB
Tone
BC
Semitone
CD
Tone
DE
Tone
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EF
Semitone
FG
Tone
GA
Tone
WecanrepresentthissymbolicallyasTSTTSTT.
5.9Minorscales:themelodicandharmonicforms
ThesecondformoftheAminorscale,themelodicform,hastwotypesofintervallicstructurethe
ascendingstructureisdifferentfromthedescendingstructure.Thedescendingpatternisthesameasthe
naturalformcoveredintheprevioussection.Theascendingpatternisasshownbelow:
TheintervallicstructureofthemelodicformoftheAminorscale
(ascending).Thedescendingstructureisthesameasforthenaturalform
oftheminorscale
AB
Tone
BC
Semitone
CD
Tone
DE
Tone
EF
Tone
F G
Tone
G A
Semitone
Symbolically,thisascendingstructurecanberepresentedasTSTTTTS.
Example51showstheAminormelodicscale,bothascendinganddescending.
Example51
Intheascendingversion,noticethattheneedtoraiseboththeFandtheGtoF andG respectively
doesnotaffectthekeysignaturethesesharpenednotesaresimplyignored.Instead,whenF sorG s
arerequiredinthemusic,thesharpshavetobewritteninforeachnote,oratleastasoftenasis
necessary.WellconsidertheguidelinesforhowtodealwiththisinSection6onaccidentalsandwellalso
discusstheroleofanotheraccidental,thenatural,shownbythesymbol .InExample51,thebracketed
naturalsremindusthat,whereasintheascendingscaletheFandGbecomeF andG respectively,in
thedescendingformtheGandFremainasGandF.
ThethirdandfinalformoftheAminorscaleistheharmonicminor(whichhasthesameintervallic
structurebothascendinganddescending).Itcontainselementsfromboththeascendingformofthe
melodicminor(theG )andthedescendingform(theF).Theconsequenceofthisisthattheinterval
betweenFandG isatoneplusasemitone,anintervalthatwehaventmetinascalebefore:
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TheintervallicstructureoftheharmonicformoftheAminorscale.The
structureisthesamebothascendinganddescending
AB
Tone
BC
Semitone
CD
Tone
DE
Tone
EF
Semitone
FG
Tone+semitone
G A
Semitone
Symbolically,thisascendingstructurecanberepresentedasTSTTST+SS.
TheAminorharmonicscaleisshowninExample52.Again,theneedtoraisetheGtoG doesnotaffect
thekeysignature,which,asyouknow,hasnosharpsorflats.
Example52
Itistruethatminorscalesaremorecomplicatedthanmajorones.However,thedifferencesbetweenthe
threeformsarelesscomplexthanaquickglancemightsuggest.IfwecomparethethreeformsoftheA
minorscale(seeExample53),youcanseethatthesedifferencesrelatetoonlytwoquestions:(i)whether
thesixthnoteand/orseventhnoteupthescaleissharpened,and(ii)whethertheascendingand
descendingformsofthescalearethesame.Sothedifferencesarenotasgreatasitmightfirstappear.
Thefirstfivenotesofeachofthethreeforms(whenascending,andthelastfivenoteswhendescending)
areexactlythesame,and,asnotedearlier,thedescendingformofthemelodicminorhasthesame
intervallicstructureasthenaturalminor.
Example53
5.10Relativeminorandrelativemajor
BecausethescalesofCmajorandAminorhavethesamekeysignature,theyareclearlyrelated.Indeed,
thekeyofAminoriscalledtherelativeminorofCmajor.Conversely,Cmajoriscalledtherelative
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majorofAminor.IfwelookattherelationshipbetweenCandAonakeyboardinExample54,wecan
countthenumberofsemitonesbetweenthem(itsquickertodothiscountingfromCdowntoAratherthan
CuptothehigherA).TheresultisthreeCB,BB ,B A.Sotherelativeminorofamajorkey,andthe
minorkeythathasthesamekeysignature,isthreesemitoneslowerthanitsmajorcounterpart.
Byfollowingthisprinciple,wecanworkouttherelativeminorkeyofGmajor,thesecondmajorkeywe
examinedinSection5.3.LookatExample54again.ThreesemitonesdownfromG,namely:GF ,F F
andFEisE.EminoristhustherelativeminorofGmajorandhasthesamekeysignature,onesharp.
Example54
Ifwenowfollowtheintervallicpatternswediscoveredinthevariousformsoftheminorscalethepattern
ofthenaturalformwasTSTTSTT,forinstancewecangeneratethethreeformsoftheEminorscale
showninExample55.Fundamentally,wehaveonlyonedifferentnotefromthosewehadinthescaleofA
minor,theF .However,withthethreedifferentforms(natural,harmonicandmelodic)thesamequestion
ariseswithregardstothesixthandseventhnotesupthescaleshouldoneorbothbesharpenedornot?
Example55
Youcanfindasummarychartoftheminorscaleswithuptofoursharpandfourflatkeysignaturesin
Example56.Studythiscarefullyminorscales,especiallythosewiththreeorfourflatsorsharps,are
moredifficulttograspthantheirrelativemajorcounterparts.Sotaketimeoverthis.
Example56
Thefollowingtwoactivitiesassessyourknowledgeofminorkeysignaturesofuptofourflatsandfour
sharps,andoftheminorscalesthathavethesekeysignatures.Trythemnow.
5.11Review7
Group1:identifyingminorkeysignaturesofuptofoursharpsorfourflats
Activity1
MatchthekeysofCminor,Gminor,Dminor,Eminor,Bminor,Fminortothekeysignatures.
Group2:identifyingminorscaleswithkeysignaturesofuptofoursharpsandfourflats
Activity1
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Matchthekeysignaturesofonesharp,twosharps,oneflat,threeflatstothescalesbelow.
Witheachactivity,dontforgettocheckwhichclefisbeingused.Eachscalestartsonthetonicorkey
note.
6Accidentals,degreesofthescaleandintervals
Duringthediscussionofscales,severaltopicsweretoucheduponthatnowneedalittlefurther
explanation:
1. accidentals
2. degreesofthescale
3. intervals.
Wellbeginthissectionwithaccidentals.
6.1Accidentals
WhileexaminingthestructuresoftheGmajorandFmajorscales,wenotedthatthesymbolforthesharp
isa#,andthatfortheflat,a .Thesesymbolsarecalledaccidentals.Withthediscussionofminor
scales,youdiscoveredthethirdaccidentalyouneedtoknow,thenatural, .Youwillhavenoticeditin
someofthemusicexamplesandinthechartofminorscalesintheprevioussection(Example56).
Whiletheroleofthesharpistoraiseanoteasemitone,andtheflatistoloweranoteasemitone,the
naturalcancelsaprevioussharporflat.Itlowersasharpenednotebyasemitone,orraisesaflattened
notebyasemitone.Naturalscanthereforebeusedinaparticularbartocancelsharpsorflatsthathave
appearedearlierinthebar.Naturalscanalsobeusedtocancelsharpsorflatsthatappearinthekey
signature.Asyouknow,sharpsorflatsinakeysignaturedictatewhichnotesaresharpenedorflattened
throughoutapiece(unlessthekeysignatureischangedatsomepoint),butyoucanusenaturalsto
cancelthesharpsorflatsofnotesasyouproceed.
6.2Accidentalsinpractice
Letslookatsomeexamplestoseehowaccidentalsworkinpractice.InExample57(a),thekeysignature
isforCmajor(nosharpsorflats),butwewanttohaveE s.WethereforeaddaflatbeforethefirstEto
loweritasemitonetoE .Accidentals,unlesscancelled,lastthroughoutabar,andsothesecondEwill
alsobeanE .
IfwewanttowriteanE ratherthananE laterduringthebarasinExample57(b),wehavetocancelthe
earlierflatbywritinganaturalbeforethesecondE.
Example57
Example57(c)willproduceexactlythesamemelodyasExample57(b),butusestheCminorkey
signature.ThefirstEwillbeE becauseoftheE inthekeysignature(anddoesnotthereforeneedaflat),
butthesecondEwillneedanaturaltoraiseitasemitonefromE toE .
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Finally,inExample57(d),thefirstFneedsanaturaltocanceltheeffectoftheF inthekeysignature,but
thesecondFthenneedsasharptocanceltheeffectofthenaturalbeforethefirstF.
Threefinalpoints(whichmostlyreinforcewhatyouvelearnedalready):
Accidentalsinpractice:summary
Noticethatweusesharpentomeanraisebyasemitone.So,wecansay:Weneedto
sharpenA tobecomeA .Butwecanalsosay:WeneedtosharpenA tobecomeA .(Wesaw
thisprincipleinoperationinthepreviousactivity,intheDminoranswerforGroup1Activity1in
thepreviousreview.)Conversely,weuseflattentomeanlowerbyasemitone.
Whenidentifyingnoteswithoutaccidentals,itistemptingtosaysimply,ThisisC.However,
alwaysrememberthatthisisashorthandforsaying,ThisisC .
Keysignaturesconsistofgroupsofaccidentalsthatareeithersharpsorflats.Thereisnevera
mixture.
6.3Identifyingthedegreesofthescale
DuringthediscussionofscalesIneededtotalkaboutnotonlyaccidentalsbutalsodegreesofthescale.I
neededtobeabletoidentifycertaindegreesofthescale,andthereforeusedaphrasesuchassixthor
seventhnoteupthescale.However,thereareseveralwaysofreferringtothedegreesofthescale:
theordinalnumbersalreadynoted
cardinalnumberswithcaretsaboveand
namesthatreflecttheimportanceofaparticularnotewithinascale.
Herearethedifferentsystemsdisplayedsidebyside,assumingthatthescaleisascending:
Relationshipsofthenamesforthedegreesofthescale
Ordinals
Cardinals,withcaretsabove
Names
Firstdegree
Tonic,orkeynote
Second
Supertonic
Third
Mediant
Fourth
Subdominant
Fifth
Dominant
Sixth
Submediant
Seventh
Leadingnote
Thenamesofthenotesinthescaleneedexplanation.Intonalmusicthemostimportantnoteinthescale
isthetonicorkeynote.InthescaleofCmajor,forinstance,thetonic,asyouknow,isC:thetonic
signifiesthekeyofthescale.Thesecondmostimportantnoteisthedominant,thefifthdegreeofthe
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scale(seeExample58).NotethatinthisexampletheCmajorscaleisnotatedfromF,viaCuptoGso
thattherelationshipsbetweenthenamesforthedegreesofthescalearemoreclearlyexpressed.
Example58
Nextcomesthesubdominant,whichhasamirrorpositiontothatofthedominant.Thedominantisfive
notesabovethetonicthesubdominantisfivenotesbelow(sub,Latinforunder).Themediantsits
betweenthetonicandthedominant(medius,Latinformiddle),andthesubmediantbetweenthetonic
andthe(lower)subdominant.Thesupertonicliesimmediatelyabovethetonic(super,Latinforabove,
over),and,finally,theleadingnoterisesuptothetonic(seeExample59).
Example59Namesforthedegreesofthescaleinascendingorder
6.4Intervals
Thefinaltopicthataroseduringthediscussionofscaleswasintervals.Wenotedhowmajorscalesare
constructedfromtwointervals,thesemitoneandthetone,andhowtheharmonicformoftheminorscale
includesanotherinterval,thetoneplussemitone,i.e.threesemitones.Thereisnoreasonwhyyou
couldnt,intheory,countuplargerandlargerintervalsinsemitones.However,asthesizeofintervals
increases,identifyingthembycountingsemitonesbecomesimpractical.
Tomakethingseasier,intervalsareidentifiedbylabelsthatconsistoftwodeterminants,qualityand
number.Youcancalculatethenumberofanintervalbyregardingthelowernoteasthetonicandthen
countingupthedegreesofthescale.Thus,asshowninExample60,theintervalCEwouldbeathird,C
GafifthandCBaseventh.CtothesameCisaunisonCtotheCeightnoteshigher,anoctave.Note
thatthetwonotesintheintervalcanbesoundedtogetherasaharmonicinterval,orinsuccessionasa
melodicinterval.
Example60
Thequalityofanintervalcanbeperfect,major,minor,augmentedordiminished.
So,forinstance,youcanhaveaperfectfourth,amajorthird,anaugmentedsixth.
However,forourpurposes,hereIcommentonlyontheperfectfifth,whichconsistsofsevensemitones,
e.g.CGintheCmajorscale,andtheminorthird,whichconsistsofthreesemitones,e.g.ACintheA
minorscale(seeExample61).
Example61Theperfectfifthandtheminorthirdintervals
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6.5Theperfectfifth,theminorthirdandthecircleoffifths
Theperfectfifth
Whilediscussingscales,youmighthavewonderedwhyIdescribedthemintheorderIchose.Froma
startingpointofCmajor,thepatternformajorscaleswithsharpkeysignatureswasG,D,AandE,with
thekeysignatureforeachscaleaddinganadditionalsharptothepreviousone.Thepatternformajor
scaleswithflatkeysignatureswasF,B ,E andA ,withthekeysignatureforeachscaleaddingan
additionalflattothepreviousone.Youmighthaveguessedthatthisgradualincreaseinthesizeofthe
keysignaturesgovernedmychoice.Andyouwouldhavebeenright.
Butmychoicewasalsogovernedbytherelatedfactthateachsuccessivemajorscalewithasharpkey
signaturestartsonthenoteaperfectfifthabovethepreviousone,andeachsuccessivescalewithaflat
keysignaturestartsonthenoteaperfectfifthbelowthepreviousone.SoGmajor,withonesharpinits
keysignature,beginsonthenoteaperfectfifthaboveC,whichhasnosharpsorflatsinitskeysignature.
AndDmajor,withtwosharpsinitskeysignature,beginsonthenoteaperfectfifthaboveG.Andsoon.
Conversely,Fmajor,withoneflatinitskeysignature,beginsonthenoteaperfectfifthbelowC,andB
major,withtwoflatsinitskeysignature,beginsonthenoteaperfectfifthbelowF.Andsoon.
Thissequenceofkeys,extendedtocoverawholeseries,isbetterunderstoodasadiagram,thecircleof
fifths,showninFigure1.
Themajorkeyssitoutsidethecircleandtheircorrespondingrelativeminors(whichhavethesamekey
signature)insidethecircle.Youshouldtakealittletimetoexplorethisdiagram(althoughbearinmindthat
youneedaworkingknowledgeofmajorandminorkeysofonlyuptofoursharpsandfourflatsbeforeyou
startInsidemusic).
Figure1Thecircleoffifths
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Theminorthird
Asyoumayremember,andasshowninthediagramofthecircleoffifthsabove,thetonicofarelative
minorscalecanbefoundbycountingdownthreesemitonesfromthetonicofitsmajorequivalent,for
instance,thetonicofCmajordowntothetonicofAminor.Thisinterval,AC,consistingofthree
semitones,wecannownameasaminorthird.
7Harmony:thetriad
Ourdiscussionofintervals,notablyharmonicintervals,isthefirsttimeinthisunitthatwehavemovedfrom
discussionofonesoundatatimetotwosoundingtogether.Buttheexplorationofthecombinationof
soundstoformharmonyisoneofwesternmusicsmajorcontributionstomusicworldwide,andwe
thereforeneedtoconsiderabasicfeatureofharmony,thetriad.
Atriadis,asitsnameimplies,acollectionofthreenotessoundingtogether.Triadsareconstructedfrom
twothirdsplacedoneontopoftheother.StartingfromC,forinstance,andinCmajor,atriadwouldalso
includethenotesEandGstartingfromG,thenotesBandD.Triadscan,infact,beconstructedonany
noteofthescale,asshowninExample63.Inordertoidentifythesetriads,youcansimplyusethenames
ofthedegreesofthescaleonwhichtheyareconstructed.ThereforeCEGinCmajoristhetonictriad
sinceitisbuiltonthetonic,CDFAinCmajoristhesupertonictriadsinceitisbuiltonthesupertonic,
D.Andsoon.
Example63
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Thethreenotesinthetriad,fromthebottomup,arecalledtheroot(sincethisisthebasisofthetriad),
thethirdandthefifth.Thefifthis(exceptinonecase,inthetriadontheleadingnote)aperfectfifth.
NoticeinExample63thattheintervalsofathirdthatareusedtoconstructtriadsaresometimesmajor(i.e.
consistingoffoursemitones)orminor(i.e.consistingofthreesemitones).Thuswiththetonictriad,CE
G,thelowerinterval,CE,isamajorthirdbuttheupperinterval,EG,isaminorthird.However,withthe
supertonictriad,DFA,thelowerinterval,DF,isaminorthirdbuttheupperinterval,FA,isamajor
third.Triadsarelabelledasmajororminordependingonthisarrangement.
Wherethemajorthirdisthelowerinterval,asinthetonic,subdominantanddominanttriads,the
triadisamajortriad.
Wheretheminorthirdisthelowerintervalasinthesupertonic,mediantandsubmedianttriads,the
triadisaminortriad.
ThetriadsinaminorkeyfollowadifferentpatternofmajorandminorthesewillbeexplainedinInside
music,aswillthetriadontheleadingnote,whichinbothmajorandminorkeysisadiminishedtriad.
AgooddealofthematerialinInsidemusicdealswithharmony.Sospendsometimefamiliarisingyourself
withtriads,theirnames,andhowtheyareconstructedfrommajorandminorthirdsitwillbetimewell
spent.
8Scores:performancedirections
Sofar,wehaveconsideredsuchelementsofnotationaspitchandrhythm,butthereareotherinstructions
onscores(notatedmusic)relatingtoperformancethatyouneedtobeabletounderstand.Thesecanbe
dividedintofivemaincategories:
1. dynamics
2. tempo
3. articulation
4. expression
5. specialsigns.
Thefirstthingtonoteaboutperformancedirectionsisthatalmostallofthemarerelativeratherthan
absolute.Thismeansthatwhilebearingtheirmeaninginmind,performersinterpretthemwithinlimits.The
secondthingtonoteisthatthemeaningofsomeperformancedirectionshaschangedovertime.Indeed,
someperformancedirectionshaveevenhadmorethanonemeaningduringaparticularperiod.For
instance,fromtheseventeenthcenturytothemiddleoftheeighteenthcentury,prestocouldmeaneither
fast,orfasterthanallegro.And,finally,althoughtheperformancedirectionslistedhereareselectedfrom
thetraditionalItalianones,acomprehensivecollectionwouldhavetoincludeperformancedirectionsin
otherlanguagestoo.
8.1Aselectedlistofperformancedirections
Dynamics
Direction
Interpretation
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fff
louderthanff
ff(fortissimo)
veryloud
f(forte)
loud
mf(mezzoforte)
(literally)halfloud
mp(mezzopiano)
(literally)halfsoft
p(piano)
soft
pp(pianissimo)
verysoft
ppp
softerthanpp
crescendo(cresc.)
graduallybecominglouder
decrescendo(decresc.)
graduallybecomingsofter
diminuendo(dim.)
graduallybecomingsofter
sf/sfz(sforzando)
(literally)forced:suddenloudnessaccentuatinganote
Tempo
Direction
Translation
Interpretation
largo
large,broad
veryslowly
larghetto
diminutiveoflargo
slow,butnotasslowaslargo
grave
heavy,serious
veryslow,solemn
adagio
atease,leisurely
slowly,orveryslowly
lento
slow
slowly
andante
atawalkingpace
atamediumwalkingpace
andantino
diminutiveofandante
slightlyfasterthanandante,althoughsometimesslightlyslower
moderato
moderate,restrained
moderately
allegretto
diminutiveofallegro
fairlyquick,butnotasquickasallegro
vivace
flourishing,fulloflife
lively
allegro
merry,cheerful
fast
presto
ready,prompt
veryfast(althoughoriginallyonlyfast)
Direction
Interpretation
accelerando(accel.)
graduallybecomingquicker
atempo
intime
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manontroppo
butnottoomuch
rallentando(rall.)
graduallybecomingslower
ritardando(rit.orritard.)
graduallybecomingslower
ritenuto(rit.orriten.)
(literally)heldback:amorelocalisedslowingdown
Articulation
Direction
Interpretation
legato
smoothly
semistaccato
alittledetached,lesssothanstaccato
staccato(stacc.)
detached
tenuto
held
Expression
Direction
Interpretation
agitato
agitated
cantabile
inasingingstyle
dolce
sweet
espressivo(espress.orespr.)
expressive
grazioso
graceful
leggiero
light
molto
very,much
poco
alittle
semplice
simple
senza
without
sostenuto
sustained
subito
sudden
Specialsigns
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8.2Followingpianoscores
Themusicexamplesyouhavestudiedsofarhavebeenwrittenononlyonestaff,andyouhavebeenable
tohearthecorrespondingsoundsformanyoftheexamples.However,asyoubecomeproficientat
readingmusic,youmaywanttotacklescoressuchaspianoscores,whereyouneedtobeawareoftwo
stavesbeingusedsimultaneously.Furthermore,youmaywanttofollowpianoscoreswhilelisteningtothe
music.
Whatdoesfollowmeaninthiscontext?Well,itcertainlydoesntmeanthatyouhavetoregister
consciouslyeverynotateddetailofthepassageinthescoreasyoulisten.Rather,itmeansthatyouneed
tobeabletosynchroniseinageneralwaywhatyoureyeisseeingonthescoreandwhatyourearis
hearinginthemusic.Atfirst,eventhatmightnotbepossible.Therelentlessprogressofthemusicmight
betoomuchforyoutocopewith.Thisistobeexpected.Evenatabasiclevel,followingascoreneeds
practice.Youneedtobecomefamiliarwiththeideaofscanningthenotationasyouhearthemusic,of
focusingonthemelodywhilebeingawareoftheaccompaniment,ofidentifyingonthescorepointsat
which,forwhateverreason,themusicdoessomethingsubstantiallydifferentfromwhatithadbeendoing
previously.
Inordertoprepareyourselfforfollowingascore,thinkaboutthefollowing:
Whatistheextentofthepassageyouwishtofollow?Glancethroughthepassagequicklynoting
theopeningandclosingbars.
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Whatisthespeedofthemusic?seethetempomarkingandhowmanybeatsarethereina
bar?seethetimesignature.
Arethereanyrepeatedpassages?Thesewillbemarkedintwoways,either(a)withrepeatmarks
(iftheplayerhastorepeatapassagefromthebeginning,theopeningrepeatmarksareomitted)
or(b)firstandsecondtimebars(Example64).
Doyouneedtoturnapage?Ifso,trytoimaginewhatishappeninginthemusicforafewbarsafter
thepageturnsothat,whenyouturn,youarenotcaughtout.
Example64
8.3Followingpianoscoresinpractice
Asyoufollowthetwostavesofapianoscore,theupperstaffwilluse,forthemostpart,thetrebleclef
(andbeplayedbythepianistsrighthand),andthelowerstaff,thebassclef(andbeplayedbythe
pianistslefthand).Basically,youneedtofollowtheupperstaff,becausethisisusuallywherethemelody
is.Concentrateonthewaytheriseandfallofthemelodyisreflectedinthehigherorlowerpositionofthe
noteheadsonthestaff.Theupsanddownsofthemelodyshouldcorrespondtotheundulationsofthe
notatedmelodyline.Asyoubecomefamiliarwithboththesoundandsightofapassage,youwillbeable
tokeepaneyeonboththemelodyandtheaccompanimentasthemusicprogresses.Youwillalsobeable
tospotifthemelodymovesdowntothelowerstaff,whichhappensfromtimetotime.
Inaddition,keepalookoutonthescoreforthechangesindynamicsthatyouhear,orforplaceswhere
therearerestsinbothstaves.Suddenchangesofloudnessinthemusicormomentsofsilence,might
helpyoutokeepabreastofwhereyoushouldbeonthescore,orhelpyoufindyourselfifyouarelost.Be
prepared,too,forapossiblechangeofclef,particularlywiththelowerstaff.Ifthemajorityofnotesthat
appearonthelowerstaveareabovemiddleC,thenacomposerwillmorethanlikelychangethecleffrom
thebasstothetreble.
Dontbedisheartenedifyoucantfollowascoreatyourfirstattempt.Youwillneedseveralattempts(for
eachscore)simplytobecomefamiliarwithboththemusicandthescore,andthisneedsalittletime.But
asyoupractisefollowingscores,youwillgraduallybecomemoreproficient,andyouwillbeableto
understandmoreandmoreofthenotationyouarereadingandhowthisrelatestothesoundsyouare
hearing.
9Review8
Asafinalreview,thefollowingfourgroupsofactivitiescontainquestionsthatrelatetoaselectionofthe
differentfeaturesofstaffnotation.
Group1:identifyingvariousdifferentelements
Mozart,PianoConcertoinCminor,K491
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Activity1
WhatisthemeaningofthetempoindicationLarghetto?
Activity2
Whatkeyisthemelodyin?
AllthenotesinthemelodyarecontainedwithinthescaleofEflatmajor,andBnaturalsareabsent,
suggestingthatCminor,theminorkeywiththesamekeysignatureasEflatmajor,isunlikely.Aflat
majorisincorrectsinceithasakeysignatureoffourflats,notthree.
Activity3
Whichmelodicinterval(numberonly)occursbetweenthelastnoteinbar2andthefirstnoteinbar3?
ThelastnoteinthesecondbarisaB andthefirstinbar3,aG.Ifwecountupthescalestartingfrom
theBflat(B CDE FG)wefindthattheintervalisasixth.
Activity4
Whatisthenotenameofthefourthnoteinbar3?
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OnthetreblestaffthenotesittingonthefirstledgerlineabovethestaffisaB.However,thekey
signatureofthreeflatssignifiesthatallBsinthisextract(unlessmodifiedbyaccidentals)areB s.
Activity5
WhichdegreeofthescaleistheDinthefourthbar?
SincethemelodyisinEflatmajorwithE asthetonic,DistheseventhnoteupfromE (E FGA B

CD).Itisthereforetheleadingnote.
Gershwin,Igotrhythm
Activity1
Whatkeyisthemelodyin?(Theasterisksignifiesamissingrest,whichyoullbeaskedtoidentifyin
Activity5.)
ThetwoflatkeysignaturesuggestseitherBflatmajororitsrelativeminor,Gminor.ThereisnoF ,the
leadingnoteinGminor,andthereforeBflatmajorseemsmorelikely.Fmajorisincorrectsinceithas
akeysignatureofonlyoneflat.
Activity2
WhatdoesthetimesignatureofCwithaverticalstrokethroughitmean?
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Activity3
WhichdegreeofthescaleistheFinthefirstbar?
SincethemelodyisinBflatmajorwithB asthetonic,theFisthefifthnoteupfromB (B CDE F).

Itisthereforethedominant.
Activity4
WhatisthecurvedlineabovethetwoCsinthesecondbar?
Atiejoinsconsecutivenotesthatarethesame,andisarhythmicdevice.Itsuseheremeansthatthe
firstC,aquaver,istiedtothenextCgivinganoveralltimevalueofquaverplusminim.
Activity5
Whichrestisrequiredattheplacemarkedwithanasterisk?
Beethoven,SymphonyNo.6inFmajor,Op.68(Pastoral)
Activity1
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WhatisthemeaningofthetempoindicationAllegromanontroppo?
Activity2
WhichdegreeofthescaleistheDinthefirstbar?(Identifythekeyofthemelodyfirst.)
Correct.SincethemelodyisinFmajorwithFasthetonic,theDisthesixthnoteupfromF(FGAB
CD).Itisthereforethesubmediant.
Activity3
WhatdoesthedotunderthemiddleCinthesecondbarsignify?
Thepositionofthedotiscrucial.Beloworabovethenoteheadsignifiesthatthisdotisasignfor
staccato.Adotafterthenoteheadmeansthatitisassociatedwithrhythmthenotesrhythmicvalue
wouldthenbelengthenedbyahalf.Atenutomarkisashortline,notadot,eitheraboveorbelowthe
notehead.
Activity4
Whichmelodicinterval(numberonly)iscreatedbythemiddleCandthefollowingnote?
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Thesecondnote,itsnoteheadplacedinthelowestspaceofthetreblestave,isanF.Thereforeifwe
countupthescalefromthemiddleCtotheF(middleCDEF)wefindthattheintervalisafourth.
Activity5
WhatdoesthesignabovetheGinthefinalbarindicate?
Group4:identifyingtriadsinmajorkeys
Notethatyouwillneedtoworkoutwhichmajorkeyisbeingusedfirst.
Activity1
MatchTonictriadinEflatmajor,SubdominanttriadinAmajor,TonictriadinDmajortothetriads
below.
10Trainersforeyeandear
Ifyousearchformusictheorysitesontheinternet,youllfindseveralthatprovideinteractivedrills,often
calledtrainers.Theseaimtohelpyouimproveparticularskillsthatareinvolvedwhenusingstaffnotation.
Theyareusefulforcoordinatingyoureyeandyourear,thatis,coordinatinglookingatnotationwhile
listeningtosounds.Admittedlyyouneedregularpracticetomakeheadwaywiththedrills.However,with
steadyapplication(andadegreeofpatience)youwillfindthat,throughusingthesedrills,youreyeand
earwillbecomemuchmoreproficientatidentifyingdifferentaspectsofthemusicyouarelookingatand
listeningto.
Indeed,manyaspectsofstaffnotationlendthemselvestodrills.Itisarelativelystraightforwardprocessto
createdrillsfornotenaming,identifyingrhythms,scales,keysignatures,intervals,chordsandsoon.In
addition,drillsforimprovingaparticularskillcanvaryinscope.Withnotenaming,forinstance,adrill
mightaskyoutoidentifynotesonthetreblestaff,oronthebassstaff,orbothitmightalsoincludenotes
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withledgerlines.Adrillforaparticularskillcanalsohavedifferentlevelsofdifficultyfromwhichyoucan
choose.
10.1Howtousetrainers
Beforeyoustarttopractiseadrillyouneedtobecomefamiliarwiththevariouspossibilitiesavailable.Ona
websitethesearesometimesdefinedinaseparatewindow/webpagecalledSettings(orsimilar).Once
youvelocatedthispage,andyouaresurethatthechoicesyouhavemadewillproducethedrillthatyou
require,youwillhavetomakearealisticassessmentofthelevelofdifficultythatyoucancopewith.Dont
beoverambitious!Itisbettertounderestimateyourproficiencytostartwith,otherwiseyoumaywellfind
thedrillstoodifficultandyouwillsoonloseheart.
Evenwheneverythingissetup,itmighttakealittletimetobecomefamiliarwiththewayadrillworksand
howyoushouldrespond.Somedrillswhereyouarerequiredtoenternoteswithpitchandrhythmicvalues
onastaveneedalittleprepractice.Sobepreparedtohaveoneortwotrialrunsjusttobecomeathome
withthedrill,beforeyoustartinearnest.
NotethattheprogramsthatmakedrillspossibleonwebsitesareassociatedwithFlashorJava.Soyouwill
needAdobeFlashPlayerand/ortheJavaRuntimeEnvironmentinstalledonyourcomputer.
10.2Wheretofindtrainersandrecommendedreading
Websitescurrentlyavailable(2011)thatcontaindrillsforeyeandeartraininginclude:
i. RicciAdams'Musictheory.net.http://www.musictheory.netwhichrequiresFlash
ii. teora:MusicTheoryWebhttp://www.teoria.comwhichalsorequiresFlashand
iii. eMusicTheory.comhttp://emusictheory.comwhichrequiresJava.
Notethatthesesitesandothersalsoprovidetutorialsonmanyaspectsofstaffnotation,whichyoucould
usetosupplementyourknowledge,orreinforcewhatyouhavelearnedalready.However,aswithall
websites,itisprudenttocomparetheinformationonafewdifferentsitesinordertoassesstheaccuracy
andreliabilityoftheinformationfoundonthem.
Recommendedreading
Ratherthantheinternet,youmightliketoconsultreferencematerialinhardcopy.Inwhichcaseyoucould
try:
Taylor,E.(1989)TheABGuidetoMusicTheory,PartI,London,AssociatedBoardoftheRoyalSchools
ofMusic.
TheAssociatedBoardalsopublishesgradedworkbooksandbookletswithmodelanswers.Theworkbooks
forGrades13wouldberelevantforthisunit.Youcanfindalistoftheseworkbookshere:
http://www.abrsm.org/publishing/instrument/46
11Whatnext?
Theaimofthisunithasbeentoprovideyouwithabasicunderstandingofstaffnotation.Thematerialis
notmeanttobecomprehensive,andevenwithinthenarrowconfinesofthetopicsdiscussed,manydetails
havebeenomitted.Nonetheless,abroadrangeoftopicshasbeenexamined,asyouwillappreciatefrom
thefollowingchecklist.Asyoureadthelist,pauseateachtopicandconsiderhowwellyoucancopewith
it:
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notenamesonthetrebleandbassstaves
thenamesofnoteswithuptothreeledgerlinesbothaboveandbeloweachstaff
writingnotesdown
timevaluesfromthesemibrevetothedemisemiquaver
timesignaturesbothsimpleandcompound
theuseofdotsandties
groupingandbeamingnoteswithflags
rests,semibrevetodemisemiquaver,andhowthesearegrouped
majorandminorscalesofuptofoursharpsandflatsandhowtheseareconstructed
theroleofaccidentals
degreesofthescale
intervals
thetriad
performancedirectionsonscores
guidelinesforfollowingpianoscores.
Ifyoufeelthatyouneedpracticewithsomeofthetopicsinthelistthenthereisnoharmintacklingthem
againsothatyoucansharpenyourskillsandimproveyourproficiency.Ontheotherhand,ifyoufeelyou
haveareasonablegraspofthetopicsabove,thendonthesitatetoconsiderenrollingforInsidemusic
(A224)
TheOpenUniversityisconductingasurveyinvestigatinghowpeopleusethefreeeducationalcontent
onourOpenLearnwebsite.Theaimistoprovideabetterfreelearningexperienceforeveryone.Soif
yourearegularuserofOpenLearnandhave10minutestospare,wedbedelightedifyoucouldtake
partandtelluswhatyouthink.PleasenotethiswilltakeyououtofOpenLearn,wesuggestyouopen
thisinanewtabbyrightclickingonthelinkandchoosingopeninanewtab.
References
AssociatedBoardoftheRoyalSchoolsofMusic(ABRSM)(2011)ABRSMexammusicfinder[online],
London,ABRSM,www.abrsm.org/publishing/instrument/46(Accessed10January2011).
Taylor,E.(1989)TheABGuidetoMusicTheory,PartI,London,AssociatedBoardoftheRoyalSchools
ofMusic.
Acknowledgements
Don'tmissout:
1.Joinover200,000students,currentlystudyingwithTheOpenUniversityhttp://www.open.ac.uk/
choose/ou/opencontent
2.Enjoyedthis?FindoutmoreaboutthistopicorbrowseallourfreecoursematerialsonOpenLearn
http://www.open.edu/openlearn/
3.OutsidetheUK?Wehavestudentsinoverahundredcountriesstudyingonlinequalifications
http://www.openuniversity.edu/includinganMBAatourtripleaccreditedBusinessSchool.
ThisunitwaswrittenbyTrevorBray.
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Here,theonlynotethatisdifferentfromthoseinCmajoristheB .(CmajorhasB.)ButB wasnecessary

CDE,becausethiswouldmeanAcomestwiceandthereisnoB.Onthekeyboard,then,B andA are

SincethemelodyisinEflatmajorwithE asthetonic,DistheseventhnoteupfromE (E FGA B

SincethemelodyisinBflatmajorwithB asthetonic,theFisthefifthnoteupfromB (B CDE F).

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