Music Theory – Part 1

Pitch

The Naturals (natural notes)

In the western world, a tone system consisting of twelve different tones is used. The tone system is based on seven of the twelve different tones. These seven notes are called the naturals, and they are represented by the white keys of the keyboard. The remaining five notes are called sharps and flats, and they are represented by the black keys of the keyboard.

1. The names of the naturals

The naturals are named after the letters of the alphabet. The names of the notes are: a, b, c, d, e, f and g. The note names are always written with lowercase letters.

Below is a section of the keyboard, where the names of the naturals are written on their respective keys. In real life, the starting point is often a note series starting from c, thus also here:

Notice that the note c is always placed just to the left of the group of two black keys. Also notice that each natural is found in several different places on the piano; the further to the right a note is located on the piano, the brighter it is, and the further to the left a note is located, the deeper it is.

2. Middle c

The middle c on the piano is called middle-c (or keyhole-c, single-dash-c or c1). On pianos with a keyhole under the keyboard, middle C is the c closest to the keyhole. On a standard 88-key piano, middle C is the fourth C from the left side of the piano. In connection with reading and writing notes, middle C is an important orientation point.

3. Octaves

On a regular piano, there are between seven and eight different versions of each tone. The distance from a note to the nearest deeper or brighter version of the same note is called an octave:

 

4. Semitones and whole tones

The distance between each of the twelve different tones of the tonal system is called a semitone or a semitone step. This means that the distance from any (white or black) key on the piano and the key immediately above (to the right of) or immediately below (to the left of) is a semitone. A distance of two semitones is called a whole tone or a whole tone step.

The tones e and f and the tones b and c are located immediately next to each other, and the distance between them is therefore a semitone (½). The distance between all the other white-key-tones is a whole tone (1):

The staff (The Staff System)

When writing notes, you use a system called a staff or a stave.

1. Structure

The staff or stave system consists of five horizontal notation lines:

Notes can be written on the lines – or in the spaces between the lines:

Each note in the staff system represents one of the naturals. The higher a note is in the stave, the brighter the note (and the further to the right it is located on the keyboard). And the lower a note is in the stave, the deeper the note (and the further to the left it is located on the keyboard).

Notes are always read from left to right. The Notes to the left are thus executed before those to the right. Notes notated above or below each other are performed simultaneously.

2. Ledger Lines

Notes can be notated outside the five lines of the staff using ledger lines. Notes notated just above or below the stave do not require a leger line:

There are no restrictions on how many ledger lines you can use.

3. Lines and spaces

Lines and spaces are always counted from bottom to top:

Musical Keys

Each note in the staff represents one of the notes without accidentals. To determine the pitch, ie. the tone the individual notes correspond to, you use a clef. In principle, you can be content with just using one key, but since it is difficult to read notes with many ledger lines, you basically use two different keys, each with its own tone as a starting point, so that the use of ledger lines is minimized. Clefs are always notated at the beginning of the stave.

1. The G clef – treble clef

The G clef (also called the treble clef) determines that the note g (above middle-c) is placed on the 2nd line of the stave. The G clef winds around the note line where g is located:

The G clef is a good choice when writing notes that lie above middle C. The clef is used, among other things, in songbooks and for the notation of bright-sounding musical instruments.

Below are the notes in the G-clef system compared to the notes on the piano. Notice the placement of the middle c:

2. – The F clef – the bass clef

The F clef (also called the bass clef) determines that the note f (below middle-c) is placed on the 4th line of the stave. The two dots of the F clef encircle the note line where f is located:

The F clef is a good choice when notating notes that lie below middle C. The clef is used, among other things, for the notation of deep-sounding musical instruments.

Below are the notes in the f-clef system compared to the notes on the piano. Notice the placement of the middle c:

3. The Grand Staff

The G-clef and F-clef are often combined into a so-called Grand Staff. The Grand Staff consists of two connected staffs with the g clef in the upper stave and the f clef in the lower stave. It corresponds to a staff of eleven lines, but with the middle line omitted:

Notice the symmetrical placement of the C’s (shown on the right), and note that the middle C is located midway between the two note systems.

Below are the notes in the piano system compared to the notes on the piano.

The Grand Staff is very spacious in terms of deep and bright tones, and it is therefore used in many kinds of contexts, including for notation of piano, choir, harp and organ.

4. Octaves

By placing a number 8 below or above the keys, you can specify that all notes in the notation system must be played an octave below or above the notation, respectively. Thus, all of the following six notations represent middle-c:

A number of 15 below or above the clef indicates that all notes in the stave must be performed two octaves below or above the notation, respectively

If the octave is only to apply to individual notes, the following symbols are used instead:

Ottava alta

Indicates that the notes below or above the dotted line should be played an octave above the notation. The symbol is usually notated above the staff.

Quindicesima alta

Indicates that the notes below or above the dotted line should be played two octaves above the notation. The symbol is usually notated above the staff.

Ottava bassa

Indicates that the notes above or below the dotted line are to be played an octave below the note. The symbol is usually notated below the staff.

Quindicesima bassa

Indicates that the notes above or below the dotted line should be played two octaves below the notation. The symbol is usually notated below the staff.

5. Clef change

Normally, you use the same clef throughout an entire piece of music. In some cases, however, it can be practical to make a clef change, for example if the melody becomes very deep, and you want to avoid the use of too many ledger lines:

When changing clef, the new clef is noted at the place in the bar where the clef change occurs. If the clef changes at the beginning of a new stave (a new line), the new clef must be noted both at the end of the previous stave and at the beginning of the new stave.

6. Accidentals

Accidentals are graphic signs used to raise or lower a note. By setting an accidental for a tone, you get a new tone – a derivative of the original natural tone – which is either brighter or deeper than the original tone. There is also an accidental which cancels previously introduced accidentals.

Accidentals can appear either inside the staff before a single note – or can be placed at the beginning of a staff. In the last case the accidentals are actually called key signatures – and is valid throughout the entire staff and piece of music.

1. Types of accidentals

There are the following five different accidentals:

A sharp raises a note by a semitone. You must therefore play the note that is a semitone above the original note (to the right on the keyboard).

 

A flat lowers a note by a semitone. You must therefore play the note that is a semitone below the original note (to the left on the keyboard).

 

A double sharp raises a note by a whole tone. You must therefore play the note that is two semitones (two keys) above the original note (to the right on the keyboard).

 

A double flat lowers a note by a whole tone. You must therefore play the note that is two semitones (two keys) below the original note (to the left on the keyboard).

 

A natural cancels the effect of one of the other signs.

 

 

2. The names of the notes with accidentals

A note with a sharp in front will have the suffix ‘sharp’ added to the note name.

A note with a flat in front will have the suffix ‘flat’ added to the note name.

Notice that each tone can have several different names. For example, the tone (the black key) between c and d can be called both c sharp and d flat, and the tone between f and g can be called both f sharp and g flat. However, it does not matter what you call the tone – it all depends on the context.

Two notes that have different names and notation, but are played on the same key on the piano, are called enharmonic. c sharp is thus enharmonic with d flat, and f sharp is enharmonic with g flat.

The tones without accidentals can also have several different names. For example, the note e is enharmonic with f flat, and f is enharmonic with e sharp.

More on accidentals

Accidentals that are placed in front of the individual notes are called accidentals.

Accidentals apply:

– for the note preceded by the sign

– for subsequent notes on the same note line or in the same space

– only in the measure and only in the system of notes, the sign is set.

The effect of an accidental can be canceled by:

– another accidental (regardless of type)

– a bar line.

If an accidental is set for a note for which another accidental was previously set, only the new accidental is valid. The new accidental only applies to the measure in which it is set, and only to subsequent notes on the same stave or in the same interval:

Beamed notes and clef change

The effect of an accidental can be extended beyond one measure if a note is connected to a note in another measure (beamed). The accidental is canceled the moment the beamed note ends:

When changing clefs within the same bar, all accidentals are cancelled:

Key Signatures

If there is a note that must always have a specific accidental throughout the staff (piece of music), you can set the accidental as a key signature. Key signatures are notated at the beginning of each stave, immediately after the clef:

Key Signatures apply:

– for notes in all bars

– for notes in all octaves

– also when changing clefs

– only in the staff the key signature is set.

The effect of a key signature can be canceled by:

– an accidental (temporary suspension)

– another key signature (permanent cancellation).

– If an accidental is placed in front of a note for which a key signature is set, only the accidental is valid. The accidental applies only in the measure it is set to, and only for subsequent notes on the same stave or in the same interval. The key signature therefore still works for any notes in other octaves:

If one or more new key signatures are notated, the effect of all previous key signatures is cancelled. Regardless of which new key signatures are noted. In the example below on the left, the key signature with three sharps are canceled by three naturals. In the example on the right, the key signature with three sharps are replaced by a new key signature with two flats (thereby canceling the effect of the three previous sharps):

Courtesy accidentals, cautionary accidentals, reminder accidentals

Courtesy accidentals (also called cautionary accidentals, reminder accidentals) are accidentals that do not necessarily have to be notated, but are there to clarify the notation in cases where doubts may arise about the pitch of a note. Courtesy accidentals are notated as ordinary accidentals – possibly surrounded by parentheses.

Courtesy accidentals are primarily used in two situations:

1) When the first note in a measure appears after a measure in which an accidental for the same note has been used:

2) When a beam extends the effect of an accidental over a bar line into a measure in which the same note appears again: