Dotted notes in music.

Some things in music that should be easy just aren’t. If you’re having trouble wrapping your brain about some of the concepts that you think should be easy, don’t beat yourself up. Learning to read music isn’t any different than learning a new language. The world accepts the fact that learning Spanish, French, or Latin are difficult tasks but sometimes music doesn’t get the same credit. You’ve come this far and while there may be a little bit of distance yet to travel, be patient.

Today we’re going to help you with one of those concepts that many people have a tough time understanding: The dot! That little dot can cause so much trouble but once we’re done with it, you’re going to have very little trouble reading right through it.

The textbook definition of the dot is that when a dot is added to a note, it adds half of the notes value. We know…that really doesn’t help! To help us, we have to do a little math.

Remember that in meters like 4/4, A whole note gets 4 beats, a half note gets 2 beats, a quarter note gets 1 beat, and an eighth note gets ½ of a beat.

Now, let’s say that you are looking at a dotted half note. Let’s figure out how many total beats this note has. Without the dot, we know that the half note has 2 beats by itself. Remember that the dot adds half the value of the original note. Our half note has two beats so the dot will add half of that which is one beat. When we add the 2 beats of the original note with the 1 beat that the dot added, we have 3 total beats.

Clear as mud? Let’s look at a few:

How many beats are there in a dotted whole note? The whole note is 4 beats, the dot adds half of the 4 which is 2. 4+2=6 beats
How about a dotted quarter note? A quarter note has one beat, the dot adds half of the one beat which is ½ so a dotted quarter note has 1 ½ beats. Make sense?

Who came up with this confusing dot thing, anyway? The truth is that once you get the hang of the dot, it’s a lot easier to read than the alternatives that music publishers would have to use. When we write music we try our best to use the least amount of symbols as possible. If we can write something with a note and dot, that’s easier to read than writing multiple notes tied together.

If that doesn’t make you feel better about these dots, then just trust us. Once you get the hang of these dots, you’ll see how easy to read they are. Spend some time figuring out how to count dotted rhythms. You’ll be a pro in no time!

Here’s a quick quiz: how many lines does a staff have on it? Did you say five lines? If you did, you’re right but can you imagine if a staff had more lines? What if it had 10 lines or even 7 or 8 lines? Would it be easier or harder?

The truth is that music has evolved for hundreds of years. In fact, in the early days when the art of music notation was far from an art, different instruments had differing numbers of lines on their staves. Can you imagine how confusing it must have been to try to read music on a staff that looked different for various instruments?

It would be confusing but music can be read with an infinite number of lines in a staff but early musicians figured out two things: It’s terribly hard to look at a lot of lines and read notes with any accuracy. They also figured out that more lines on a staff meant that it took more paper to write out the music and before the days of printing presses, scribes were none too happy about drawing all of these lines, some of which weren’t even used in a piece.

By the 17th century, the five line staff had been adopted and it remains with us today. Nearly all instruments fit comfortably on to the five line staff but what happens when a note or series of notes finds its way above the staff?

In the world of music notation, the ledger line system was developed to solve this problem. It works like this: rather than printing an entire extra line, when a note goes above or below the staff, just a small piece of the line is printed. In fact, just enough so the note can sit on or above it. Once the notes find their way back in to the staff, the ledger line goes away.
This presents a clean look to the music while also making it easy for the player to read the music. How do you read music that sits on a ledger line? The same way you read music on the staff.

Think of the top line of a treble clef, for example. We know that the top line is F so right above that is G. When we go up to an A, a ledger line appears and the A is printed on it. After that, the B sits on top of the ledger line.

What if we want a C? A second ledger line will appear above the first ledger line where the C will sit. So if you know your musical alphabet, you can figure out ledger lines with ease. By the way, it works exactly the same way for notes that appear below the staff.

For some instruments, ledger lines rarely appear while others, like the flute and tuba, virtually every piece uses them. Once you gain some experience with ledger lines, it will be as easy as reading the notes on the staff.

Have fun!

Reading music from the printed sheet music involves several inter-related areas including melody, harmony, and rhythm. Within those areas are key signatures, leger lines, time values, time signatures, note values, chord structures and progressions, rhythm patterns and several other related things such as dynamics, touch, sight-reading and so on. Watch this very short video to get a feel of the overall process of reading music:

For a course on music reading for beginners, please go to How To Read Music Fast!

Learning to read music is a process which involves learning to read the melody of a song as well as all the harmonic support (chords and intervals) and the rhythmic elements such as note values, time signatures, rest values, rhythm patterns and so on.
If you want a downloadable course on How To Read Music, please click on http://www.readmusicfast.com/

 Music is written in notation that includes a staff  (five horizontal lines), ledger lines, time and key signatures, and other symbols that tell what notes are to be played and how long they are to be played. In addition to notes, rests of varying lengths are used. They are represented by certain symbols, and appear in measures when needed. It’s very common to have both notes and rests in a single measure. Measures and bar lines (the vertical lines separating and defining a measure) give written music its structure.
Placement of notes occur on the staff of five lines and the four spaces between them. Notes that occur above or below the staff are marked with ledger lines. It’s this placement that determines the note’s name (pitch). For example, the note on the top line of the staff (treble clef) is the note F. The note in the second space of the staff is the note A. Notes of three or more played together are called chords and they appear as notes “stacked” on top of each other.
The notes used in modern notation are either “natural,” “sharp,” and “flat.” These words refer to the pitch of a note. For example, the notes Db (flat), D, and D # (sharp) are different notes (tones) from each other.  On piano, for example, the three notes are played in adjacent keys, left to right.
A musician must not only know how to play the notes displayed (such as the pressing the corresponding keys on a piano, or pressing the proper valves on a trumpet), but how long (duration) the note is to be played. Notes are measured in note values (length of time) using a system of ovals, dots, stems, and flags.
The time signature of a piece of music appears at the beginning of each line. Common time signatures include 4/4, 3/4, 2/4, and 6/8. The first, or top number, represents beats per measure. The second, or  bottom number, tells the musician what kind of note gets one beat. In other words, 3/4 time means there are three beats to a measure and a quarter note receives one beat. 6/8 time means there are six beats per measure and an eighth note receives one beat.
A number of different clefs are used to indicate how the music should be read. These include the G or treble clef, the C or alto clef, and the F or bass clef. These clefs tell the musician on which lines, spaces, or ledger lines the notes will appear. For example, in the treble clef, the first line of the staff is the note C. In the bass clef, the note on the first line is G. Most piano music is written for both clefs with the left hand playing (in general) the notes of the bass clef and the right hand playing the notes of the treble clef.
Music’s rhythm and tempo are determined by beats per minute (bpm) and the use of various words and phrases that define the style of the music. Other terms such as pianissimo and forte tell the musician how loudly or softly to play a note or passage. Also, there are markings that direct the musician to repeat a section, go back to the beginning of the piece, or to jump ahead to a certain point in the composition.

New pianists learn notes first. An understanding of musical notes and their values is the foundation for learning any instrument. That includes the piano. The values of the notes are easy to remember because their names denote their values.

* Whole note: A whole note looks a bit like an egg on its side. It is round or oval-shaped and not shaded/solid. A whole note is held for four beats in 4/4 time.

* Half note: A half note is so called because it is held for half as long as a whole note. In other words, it is held for two beats. It resembles a smaller version of whole note, but with a line attached to its side.

* Quarter note: A quarter note is held for a quarter of the time a whole note is held: one beat. A quarter note looks like a half note, with one minor difference. While the half note is not shaded, the quarter note is.

* Eighth note: The eighth note is, of course, an eighth of the value of a whole note. In other words, it is held for half a beat. It looks like a quarter note with a curly “tail” at the end of its line. Eighth notes can also be joined together in groups of two, three, or four. If they are joined, they are connected by a bar across the top, rather than having a “tail.”

* Sixteenth note: The sixteenth note is one-sixteenth the length of a whole note when held. It is held for a mere quarter of a beat. A sixteenth note looks similar to an eighth note, but has a double “tail.” When two, three or four are joined, they are connected by a double bar.

There are seven different names for the keys on a piano. If you look at the keyboard on a piano, you’ll see that the keys repeat their order every eighth white key. The names of the keys are denoted by letters of the alphabet. The middle white key on the piano is called “middle C.” Going up the scale from C, the rest are D, E, F, G, A, B, and they start again with C. The notes from any C on the keyboard to the next C make up an “octave.” It is so called because it contains eight keys, or eight notes.

The notes in a song or scale are written on a “staff.” These are the series of lines and spaces that you’ve probably seen on a piece of music. The staff consists of a treble clef and a bass clef. Each line and each space on the clef denote a particular key/note. The notes on the treble clef begin on the bottom line of the staff with E above middle C. The notes on the bass clef begin on the bottom line of the staff with the G below middle C.

Which type of note appears on which line or space on the clef determines which key is played and for how long that key is held. In other words, if a whole note appears written on the bottom line of the treble clef, then the instrumentalist would play an E above middle C. It would be held for four beats. Once the note types and names are learned, the beginner is ready to start playing!

Sight reading is the act of reading and playing a piece of music before having ever seen it: on sight. This technique is an important one for musicians to learn. Being skilled in sight reading makes reading a piece of music easier; the musician doesn’t have to labor over every note and re-teach themselves the common patterns. Sight reading, after a decent amount of practice, becomes like second nature.

A solid knowledge of music theory is absolutely crucial to a musician who wants to become proficient in sight reading. Besides acting as the basis for understanding the notes, a music theory education provides the ability to see patterns within the piece of music, a large part of the sight reading puzzle. Sight reading, after all, doesn’t require the musician to read every single note. Most musicians rarely see the entire piece of music, but rather the patterns that emerge from it. They understand notes and how they function in relation to each other and are therefore able to deduce most of the chords and changes — all from just glancing at the basic structure of the piece.

For example, musicians who know music theory will first determine the key of the song from the key signature, which in turn gives them strong hints about which chords will probably be used most in the song. This knowledge alone enables the sight reader to be mentally prepared when those chords occur, and to be alert for chords which are unexpected.

They will also be aware of intervals such as 3rd and 6ths and 7ths, and they will look for the form of the song - ABA, AABA, ABACA, or whatever. They will be aware of the probably rhythm patterns based on the time signture, and they will quickly scan the score for repeats, tempo signs, volume changes, and so on.

In fact, most sight reading mistakes typically happen when a piece of music takes an unexpected turn, deviates from the common pattern. These mistakes, however, are few and far between with those proficient in sight reading. An experienced sight reader will have learned to not only see patterns but also to read ahead in a piece of music while they are playing it. Looking several bars ahead to catch anything tricky or unexpected is often done while holding a sustain or resting.

Sight reading plays a large role in music education, and students are frequently tested on their ability to do it well. Some sight reading exams will allow the student a few minutes to look over the piece and prepare; he or she will be able to make notes, mark up tricky time signatures or changes. Tempo is rarely a consideration in these sight reading exams as playing the piece well is far more important than playing the piece up to speed.

Advanced sight reading exams, however, aren’t quite as forgiving. These exams give the student minimal, if any, time to prepare, and tempo is absolutely considered into the final grade. Advanced sight reading exams prepare a student for work as a studio musician, a career where near-perfect sight reading is a must. The majority of studio musicians record a piece of music after only seeing it once — sometimes not at all. A flawed skill in sight reading will only prove to be a hindrance to the working musician; it is for that reason considered one of the most important parts of a music theory education.

This does not mean, of course, that musicians can’t reach the top rungs without good sight-reading skills. After all, many top jazz pianists don’t read music at all, but are gifted with incredible ears and improvisational skills. But for most of us “normal” musicians (like me) it is a helpful skill to develop to the best of our ability. Even if we never get great at it, we can always get better!

How to Read Music - Easier Than You Ever Thought!

One of the simple joys in life is the ability to read music. Learning this skill will enable you to express yourself creatively at the piano, playing your favorite songs.

It’s not difficult to learn to read music if you understand its components.

Written music has an architecture all its own. Musical notes sit on a staff. This staff consists of five lines and four spaces. Piano music utilizes two staves: the Treble

Clef and the Bass Clef. The Treble Clef consists of notes in the upper part of the piano keyboard, and the Bass Clef consists of notes in the lower part of the piano

keyboard. Music for instruments such as the trumpet uses only the Treble Clef, with additional notes written just above or just below the staff. There are also Tenor and

Alto Clefs, which accommodate written notes for a host of other instruments.

There are only seven notes in all of music. Of course, myriad combinations of these notes give us the vast array of music we have available to us today. These combinations

of notes will continue to provide us with new music in the future as well. These notes are seven letters from the alphabet: A, B, C, D, E, F and G; what musicians and

composers do with seven notes is what makes music so beautiful.
On a sheet of music, the Treble Clef has a figure at the beginning of the staff. This figure indicates where line “G” is, on the second line from the bottom of the staff.

Once you know where line “G” is, you can figure out the names of the other spaces and lines. The Bass Clef has a figure at the beginning of its staff. This figure indicates

where line “F” is, on the second line from the top of this staff. Again, you can figure out the other notes, where they sit on the Bass Clef, because you have a starting

point with line “F”.

You can play musical notes individually as single successive notes, or you can play them in unison as a chord. Notes do not all look alike on a musical staff. Some have

stems attached to them. Some have what look like little flags on them. Some notes are solid black, while others are clear ovals. These different characteristic of a musical

note represent its value. The value helps a music reader determine the duration of a note, how much time it should take up in a piece of music.

Written music also includes the use of “rests.” These rests are of a different shape than music notes, and they indicate intervals of silence in music. A musician needs to

know where pauses in their playing need to occur and for how long these pauses must be.

These are the fundamentals to know when you want to begin a study of music reading. From there you will come to understand time signatures, rhythm, tempo, and phrasing and

articulation markings. However, learning those seven notes and the music staff is the first step. After that, it’s full speed ahead to greater musical enjoyment.
http://www.readmusicfast.com/

When it comes to reading piano sheet music, the first place to start is with the individual elements of the composition itself. Before you can tackle an entire piece, you must be familiar with that particular composition’s language.

The following are steps to consider in reading piano sheet music. These will help you grasp the intent and nuances of the piece quickly.

* Look over the entire composition to get a feel for its length and structure. This first run through is just to have a quick overview of the composer’s work.

* Go through the piece a second time. This second run through is more deliberate. You want to locate any unfamiliar things: notes, chords, articulations and tempo indications. Highlight any of these that you know will require research. Use a music dictionary or other resource to understand these elements.

* Next, consider the time signature of the piece. Are you familiar with it? If not, read up on the specific time signature, as it is a primary characteristic of the song.

* Consider the key signature of the composition. Are you familiar with this key or is it new? If it’s new to you, learn the key’s scale with its attendant sharps or flats to better understand the piece.

* Look for key changes within the song. Does the song remain in the same key throughout? If not, how many times does the key change and what are those new keys? Knowing the changes ahead of time makes playing the piece easier.

* Look for tempo changes in the song and highlight them. Again, familiarizing yourself with tempo changes ahead of time allows you to glide from one section to the next easier.

* Look for common passages. Does a phrase or motif repeat itself further along in the piece? Is there a variation of a basic motif somewhere else in the composition? When you familiarize yourself with the basic one, the variations will be that much easier to understand.

* Next, break the composition up into sections. Highlight difficult passages that will require more practice time.

* Write your own notes at specific places on the sheet music. Write these notes using your own unique markings. The only rule to abide by is – “whatever makes the piece easier for you to read.”

* Play through the piece once, as best you can, without stopping. Even if you have trouble at a certain point, finish the piece. This once over will give you a visual and aural snapshot of the composition.

* Play through the piece again. Stop as needed to make any additional markings in difficult areas.

* Concentrate on just the difficult passages. Look them over again a few times so their structure remains in your mind. Do this before playing them again. This sets the structure in your mind so you can concentrate on the eye-hand coordination. With your eyes familiar with the section, you can now work on your hand movements.

Playing a complete composition with piano sheet music need not be an arduous task. When you tackle its component parts one at a time, the process is much easier. When you learn the individual components and then put them all together, the result is a satisfying musical experience.