Where the notes fall on staves

Where the Notes Fall on Staves

Each clef has a stave. Staves are made up of five lines and four spaces. Each line and space represents where a particular note will fall.

The treble stave. Beginning from bottom to top, the lines on the treble stave read: E, G, B, D, F (one note for each line). A good way of remembering this is to say "Every Good Boy Does Fine" or "Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge," depending on if you're into chocolate or not. The spaces in between the lines line up in the very same grouping, and the notes are F, A, C, E, respectively.

Note how the treble clef, also named a G clef, encircles the G line. This is a satisfactory way to recall where notes fall, too.

The bass stave. Beginning from bottom to top, the bass stave is: A, C, E, G (one note for each space instead of each line). A favorite way to remember this is to say "All Cars Eat Gas" or "All Cows Eat Grass." The corresponding lines from bottom to top are G, B, D, F, A, each to each.

Note that the bass clef, also named the F clef, has dots neighbouring the F line.

In almost all written music, the treble and bass staves emerge concurrently on the sheet, with the treble stave on top of the bass stave, kept apart by an open space (like the example in Notes and Clefs).

This is because the treble and bass lines are played simultaneously but written independently. On a keyboard, for instance, the bass line is played with the left hand and the treble is played with the right.

Short lines that appear with notes written above or below a stave are called ledger lines. For example, middle C (the key that falls close to in the middle of a piano) appears on the first ledger line below a treble stave, or the first ledger line above a bass stave (see the two diagrams above). Ledger lines conform with the main stave lines. The higher a note falls on a stave (or above), the higher its pitch will be.

When two or more notes are written and played as a single unit, they're called chords.

More Great Music Reading Tutorials and Tips

Learning Music Symbols - Now that you have learned a little about musical notes here are some additional music symbols you should memorize.

Musical Note Lengths - Learn about musical note length in this helpful tutorial about reading music.

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