Jake Jackson

This is a FLAME TREE digital book

Based on the original publication of the complete book
Contents
The Beginner’s Guide to Reading Music, 2011 (print edition)

Publisher and Creative Director: Nick Wells This digital extract provides you with the first two steps
Senior Editor: Catherine Taylor
Layout Design & Notation: Jake Jackson
of a 12 step process. These introductory sections will give
you good understanding of the basic concepts needed to
Special thanks to Alan Brown for the scales notation read music.
and Alex Davidson

This edition first published 2013 by

FLAME TREE PUBLISHING
Crabtree Hall, Crabtree Lane
Step 1: The Basics ......................................6
Fulham, London SW6 6TY
United Kingdom Stave or Staff ....................................................................8
[Link]
Lines ................................................................................10
Spaces ..............................................................................14
Ledger Lines....................................................................16
Introducing the Treble Clef............................................18
Introducing the Bass Clef ..............................................20
The C Clef ......................................................................22
Music website: [Link] Middle C ..........................................................................24
© 2013 Flame Tree Publishing Ltd

The Beginners Guide to Reading Music ISBN: 978-1-84786-950-0

This extract ISBN: 978-1-78136-170-2
Step 2: The Treble Clef ..........................26

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, Treble Clef Line Notes....................................................28
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, Treble Clef Line Notes on Keyboard. ............................30
without the prior permission in writing of the publisher. Treble Clef Line Notes on Guitar ..................................32
Acknowledgements
Treble Clef Space Notes..................................................34
Treble Clef Space Notes on Keyboard...........................36
All images and notation courtesy of Flame Tree Publishing/Jake Jackson.
Jake Jackson is a musician and writer of practical music books.
Treble Clef Space Notes on Guitar.................................38
His publications include Advanced Guitar Chords; Chords for Kids; Octaves ............................................................................40
Classic Riffs; Guitar Chords; How to Play Electric Guitar; Piano
and Keyboard Chords; Scales and Modes and The Songwriter’s
Notes Below the Treble Clef Stave ................................42
Rhyming Dictionary. Notes Above the Treble Clef Stave ................................44

3
 The Beginner’s Guide to Reading Music The Beginner’s Guide to Reading Music

Introducing Step 1: The Basics ......................................8

the 12 steps Step 2: The Treble Clef ..........................28

Step 3: The Bass Clef ..............................48

Organized into12 easy steps, this complete Step 4: The Notes ......................................66
book begins with the basic concepts and
Step 5: The Rests ......................................88
finishes with a compendium of symbols.

Step 6: Time Signatures ........................100

The first section introduces you the stave,
notes and rests before moving on to key Step 7: Accidentals ..................................118
signatures and time signatures. The large
sections on scales and chords will expand your Step 8: Key Signatures ..........................140
knowledge and help you to explore further.
Step 9: Scales ............................................172

This beginner’s guide can also be used as a Step 10: Chords from Scales ..................250
reminder of basic musical terms.
Step 11: Chord Sampler ......................280

Step 12: Symbols & Marks ..................378

4 5
1
2
1 1
2
3
The Basics 3
Step One
4 4
5 Music is created by people singing and playing a
wide variety of instruments. Writing down and
5
6 reading the music is an important part of 6
music-making.
7 7
The following pages will introduce you to the very
8 basic concepts: what is a stave? what are lines 8
and spaces? what are ledger lines and clefs?
9 9
This section closes with the note called middle C,
10 the understanding of which will give you a solid
10
11 foundation for the rest of the book.
11
12 12
6 7
1 1
2 Stave or 2
3
Staff 3
4 These five lines make up the stave (sometimes
The highest sounds 4
called staff). appear at the top of

5 a stave.
5
The stave is the backbone to the body of the
6 music, it holds the notes and the rests and the 6
various symbols that tell you how to play
7 loudly or softly, when to repeat and when to stop.
7
8 The stave allows us to indicate pitch, whether a
8
9 sound is high or low.
9
10 The lowest sounds
appear at the bottom
10
of a stave.
11 11
12 12
8 9
1 1
2 Lines 2
3 The stave is always made up of five lines. Notes
3
4 can be written on the lines or the spaces.
4
5 Each line on a stave represents a particular Top line. 5
musical note, although which note depends on Fourth line.
6 which clef is shown at the beginning of the 6
music (clefs are covered on pages 20-25).
7 7
8 It is worth noting that the lines also show the
music moving in time from start to finish,
8
Third line.
9 and should always be read from left to right.
Second line.
9
10 Bottom line.
10
11 11
12 12
10 11
1 1
2 Spaces 2
3 Between the five lines there are four spaces.
3
4 Notes can be placed in these spaces. The higher
4
the space in the stave, the higher the note.

5 Top space. 5
Notes can be placed on both the lines and Third space.
6 the spaces. 6
7 There are spaces above and below the stave. 7
8 These can also hold notes.
8
Second space.
9 Bottom space.
9
10 10
11 11
12 12
12 13
1 1
2 Ledger Lines 2
3 Often you will see music with small lines written Notes higher than the
3
stave can appear here.
4 above or below the main part of the stave. These
4
are called ledger lines.

5 5
Ledger lines are only used when a note is written
6 in a space or on a line where the note is higher 6
or lower than those on the main part of the stave.
7 7
8 Ledger lines are written at equal distances from
the main lines.
8
9 9
10 Notes lower than the
10
11 stave can appear here.
11
12 12
14 15
1 1
2 The Bars 2
3 When you look at music you will normally see a These are bars.
3
4 series of vertical lines placed at intervals 4
along the stave. These are called bar lines.

5 5
The area between each barline is called a bar.
6 Sometimes these are called measures. These are bar lines.
6
7 Written music, called notation, is grouped 7
8 into bars to provide structure to the notes, to
make it easier to follow, and to show the beat
8
9 of the music.
This is a treble clef.
9
10 The first bar on each stave on a page of music 10
always carries a clef symbol in place of the
11 first bar line. 11
12 12
16 17
1 1
2 Introducing 2
the Treble Clef
3 3
4 A clef symbol is written at the beginning of a The curl of the treble clef wraps
around the second line up from 4
piece of music, and at the beginning, on the left the bottom line.
5 side, of every stave. 5
6 The treble clef is used for instruments that 5 6
sound higher, usually above middle C.
7 4
7
3
The treble clef always curls around the second
8 line from the bottom of the stave. 2 8
9 Instruments that commonly use the treble clef
1 9
10 are the violin, guitar, treble recorder, saxophone, 10
trumpet and the right hand on a piano.

11 Numbered from the

bottom line upwards.
11
Children s and female voices use the treble clef.
12 12
18 19
1 1
2 Introducing 2
the Bass Clef
3 3
4 The bass clef is used for instruments and voices The two dots of the bass clef sit
either side of fourth line up 4
which sound lower, especially those that from the bottom line.
5 provide the bass sounds in a piece of music. 5
6 The bass clef is always written so that the two 5 6
dots sit either side of the fourth line up from the
7 bottom of the stave.
4
7
3
8 Instruments that commonly use the bass clef 2 8
9 are the cello, bassoon, tuba, bass guitar and the
left hand on a piano or any other keyboard
1 9
10 instrument, such as an organ. 10
11 Male baritone, tenor and bass voices use the Numbered from the
bottom line upwards.
11
bass clef.
12 12
20 21
1 1
2 The C Clef 2
3 Other clefs are occasionally used for different
3
4 instruments to make the reading of them easier. The middle of the alto clef
sits on the line that normally
4
These include the alto clef and the tenor clef shows middle C.
5 (also called C clefs). 5
6 The alto clef can be used by the viola. The 5 6
middle of this clef sits on the line that normally
7 holds the middle C.
4
7
3
8 The tenor clef can used by the cello, bassoon 2 8
9 and trombone. It also sits on the lie of the middle 1 9
C but the five bar lines shift down to provide a

10 space and line below the botom edge of the clef. 10

11 Numbered from the
bottom line upwards.
11
12 12
22 23
1 1
2 Middle C 2
3 The note called middle C appears in the middle
3
4 of the piano. It is usually the lowest note that
4
an instrument using a treble clef can play. Middle C on
5 the piano.
5
Middle C appears on the first ledger line below
6 the treble clef and the first ledger line above 6
the bass clef. Middle C sits exactly between the
7 treble and bass clef staves.
7
8 To make the reading and writing of notation Middle C on
8
treble clef.
9 easier, the gap between the staves of the treble
Middle C on
bass clef.
9
and bass clef is usually stretched out to allow a

10 middle C on both staves. 10

11 11
12 12
24 25
1
2
2 1
2
3
Treble Clef 3
Step Two
4 4
5 The treble clef is used for notes above middle C.
On the piano this applies generally to the music
5
6 played with the right hand. 6
7 Instruments such as the trumpet, violin and the 7
clarinet also use the treble clef, along with higher
8 voices such as the soprano (or treble) sounds of 8
children and female singers.
9 9
10 This chapter offers more detailed information on
the treble clef and provides ways to remember the
10
11 notes of the lines and spaces.
11
12 12
26 27
1 1
2 Treble Clef 2
3
Line Notes 3
4 A good way to remember the names for those
4
notes that appear on the lines of the treble clef

5 is to use a mnemonic to remind you: 5

6 6
Food
7 7
8 Deserves 8
9 Boy 9
10 Good 10
11 Every Read from the
bottom up.
Every Good Boy Deserves Food
11
12 12
28 29
1 1
2 Treble Clef Line 2
3
Notes on Keyboard 3
4 Middle
4
C E G B D F
5 5
6 6
7 7
8 8
9 9
10 10
11 Every Good Boy Deserves Food
Middle 11
C Every Good Boy Deserves Food
12 12
30 31
1 1
2 Treble Clef Line 2
3
Notes on Guitar 3
4 Middle
4
C E G B D F
5 5
6 F 6
B D
7 G
7
8 E 8
C
9 9
10 Nut Middle 10
C
11 Every Good Boy Deserves Food
The diagram here is from the player’s view. Treble clef
11
line notes on a guitar are spread across the strings.
12 The notes G and B are shown here on the open strings. 12
32 33
1 1
2 Treble Clef 2
3
Space Notes 3
4 You can use a similar method to remember those
4
notes that appear in the spaces of the treble
5 clef. They spell out a simple word: 5
6 6
7 E 7
8 C 8
9
A 9
10
11
F Read from the
bottom up.
F A C E
10
11
12 12
34 35
1 1
2 Treble Clef Space 2
3
Notes on Keyboard 3
4 Middle
4
C F A C E
5 5
6 6
7 7
8 8
9 9
10 10
11 F A C E
Middle 11
C F A C E
12 12
36 37
1 1
2 Treble Clef Space 2
3
Notes on Guitar 3
4 Middle
4
C F A C E
5 5
6 E 6
C
7 A
7
8 F 8
C
9 9
10 Nut Middle 10
C
11 F A C E
Again, the diagram here is from the player’s view with
11
the treble clef open notes played across the strings.
12 The top note E is shown here on the open string. 12
38 39
 The interval between the two C notes is an octave.
1 1
2 Octaves 2
3 From the previous pages you might have noticed
3
4 that the note names appear more than once on a
Middle
4
stave. For instance, in the treble clef, in the
C D E F G A B C
5 spaces between the lines, the C of F A C E is 5
above middle C, which sits below the stave.
6 6
This occurs because, in standard western music,
7 there are 7 whole note names, from A to G, 7
8 which are then repeated.
E E F F
8
9 If you listen to the sound of middle C and the Examples of other octaves. 9
sound of the C above, you will hear that they

10 have the same quality. The interval between 10

notes of the same name is called an octave.
11 When notes of the same name are played 11
together they create a rich, enhanced sound.
12 G G A A 12
40 41
1 1
2 Notes Below the 2
3
Treble Clef Stave 3
4 It is very useful to know how to work out the
4
names of the notes below middle C.
Middle
5 C B A G F E 5
Remember that the notes start at the bottom, so
6 the higher the position of the note on the 6
stave, the higher the note.
7 7
only
8 Remember also that these notes usually
appear on the ledger lines if there is no bass clef.
8
9 9
However, in piano music, ledger lines are
10 sometimes used to signify that the notes should 10
be played by the right hand, with the bass
11 clef being reserved for the left hand.
Middle 11
E F G A B C
12 12
42 43
1 1
2 Notes Above the 2
3
Treble Clef Stave 3
4 It is also useful to know how to work out the
Middle
4
names of the notes above the stave.
C A B C D E
5 5
Remember that the notes start at the bottom, so
6 the higher the position of the note on the 6
stave, the higher the note.
7 7
The notes above the stave can be worked out in
8 relation to middle C. For instance the A above
8
9 the stave can be called the second A above
9
middle C.

10 10
11 C above 11
Middle C A B C D E
12 12
44 45
 Further Reading and other useful internet resources for this book
are available on [Link]

The Beginner’s Guide to Reading Music is another in our

best-selling series of easy-to-use music books designed for
players of all abilities and ages. Created for musicians by
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