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By Root 887 0

and bass clef together cover many of the notes that are in the range of human voices and of most instruments. Voices and instruments with higher ranges usually learn to read treble clef, while voices and instruments with lower ranges usually learn to read bass clef. Instruments with ranges that do not fall comfortably into either bass or treble clef may use a C clef or may be transposing instruments.

Figure 1.11.

Middle C is above the bass clef and below the treble clef; so together these two clefs cover much of the range of most voices and instruments.

Exercise 1.2.1. (Go to Solution)

Write the name of each note below the note on each staff in Figure 1.12.

Figure 1.12.

Exercise 1.2.2. (Go to Solution)

Choose a clef in which you need to practice recognizing notes above and below the staff in Figure 1.13. Write the clef sign at the beginning of the staff, and then write the correct note names below each note.

Figure 1.13.

Exercise 1.2.3. (Go to Solution)

Figure 1.14 gives more exercises to help you memorize whichever clef you are learning. You may print these exercises as a PDF worksheet if you like.

Figure 1.14.

Solutions to Exercises

Solution to Exercise 1.2.1. (Return to Exercise)

Figure 1.15.

Solution to Exercise 1.2.2. (Return to Exercise)

Figure 1.16 shows the answers for treble and bass clef. If you have done another clef, have your teacher check your answers.

Figure 1.16.

Solution to Exercise 1.2.3. (Return to Exercise)

Figure 1.17 shows the answers for treble clef, and Figure 1.18 the answers for bass clef. If you are working in a more unusual clef, have your teacher check your answers.

Figure 1.17.

Figure 1.18.

Pitch: Sharp, Flat, and Natural Notes*

The pitch of a note is how high or low it sounds. Pitch depends on the frequency of the fundamental sound wave of the note. The higher the frequency of a sound wave, and the shorter its wavelength, the higher its pitch sounds. But musicians usually don't want to talk about wavelengths and frequencies. Instead, they just give the different pitches different letter names: A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. These seven letters name all the natural notes (on a keyboard, that's all the white keys) within one octave. (When you get to the eighth natural note, you start the next octave on another A.)

Figure 1.19.

The natural notes name the white keys on a keyboard.

But in Western music there are twelve notes in each octave that are in common use. How do you name the other five notes (on a keyboard, the black keys)?

Figure 1.20.

Sharp, flat, and natural signs can appear either in the key signature, or right in front of the note that they change.

A sharp sign means "the note that is one half step higher than the natural note". A flat sign means "the note that is one half step lower than the natural note". Some of the natural notes are only one half step apart, but most of them are a whole step apart. When they are a whole step apart, the note in between them can only be named using a flat or a sharp.

Figure 1.21.

Notice that, using flats and sharps, any pitch can be given more than one note name. For example, the G sharp and the A flat are played on the same key on the keyboard; they sound the same. You can also name and write the F natural as "E sharp"; F natural is the note that is a half step higher than E natural, which is the definition of E sharp. Notes that have different names but sound the same are called enharmonic notes.

Figure 1.22.

G sharp and A flat sound the same. E sharp and F natural sound the same.

Sharp and flat signs can be used in two ways: they can be part of a key signature, or they can mark accidentals. For example, if most of the C's in a piece of music are going to be sharp, then a sharp sign is put in the "C" space at the beginning of the staff, in the key signature. If only a few of the C's are going to be sharp, then those C's are marked individually with a sharp sign right in front of them. Pitches that are not in the key signature are called