Before you begin how to read music, you need to get yourself educated on certain important terms related to music and music reading sheet. Sheet music contains several lines with some musical symbols on it. It is a code language of music, which you need to decipher with diligence. Deciphering this code language of sheet music will enable you to read the music and produce beautiful musical notes on your musical instrument.
Sheet music has a particular structure that contains all the secrets of the beautiful music that you hear.
In order to learn how to read music you need to learn the music notation first. Music notation comprises of this encoded music language on the sheet music. Let's begin with decoding them one by one.
The set of five lines and four spaces on the sheet music are called ‘staff'. A staff consists of music notes, key signature, time signature, clef, markings and signs that affect the tempo, pitch and the rhythm of the music produced. All these components collectively create the melodious music.
‘Clef' is the musical sign or symbol that defines the pitch and note of the music produced by any kind of musical instrument. ‘Pitch' is the frequency of the music sound and ‘note' often represents the time duration between pitch and the sound of music. A ‘note' sometimes denotes the music pitch too.
Depending on the kind of musical instrument, clef can be of two types ‘G' clef and ‘F' clef. These clefs define the type of octave used in any music produced. ‘G' clef, when placed on the second line on the staff is called ‘treble clef'. This clef was formerly known as “violin clef.” ‘F' clef when placed on the fourth line, is called ‘bass clef.'
Treble clef is used for alto, clarinets, flutes, guitar, harpsichord, horn, mezzo-soprano, oboe, organ, saxophones, soprano, tenor, trumpet, vibraphone, viola, violins, and xylophone. It can be remembered by an acronym Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge (or Does Fine) and the spaces in the lines denote F A C E.
Bass clef is used for baritone, baritone saxophone, bass guitar, bass, bassoon, cello, contrabassoon, double bass, harpsichord, horn, keyboard instruments, organ, trombone and tuba. It can be remembered as All Cars Eat Gas/ All Cows Eat Grass, and the letters in lines are G B D F A.
Key signature is a sequence of sharp or flat symbols notified on the staff. These symbols allocate the musical notes that are to be strung on the instrument. These are exactly at the right of the clef. The time signature is a musical notation that notifies how many beats are to be played per measure and what would be the note value of one beat. Staff is divided into measures by a vertical line.' Beat' is a pulse of music. Time signature is placed after the key signature and before the notes. Musical notes are the key components of sheet music. Notes are from A to G. Once notes reach up to G, they start all over again from G to A. Notes can be sharp, flat and natural. Musical notes from A-A, B-B, and so on up to G-G makes a whole ‘Octave.' Octaves moves up and down varying according to the music played. You must be careful about how long a note should be held, lest you end up creating cacophony.
Reading music is not as difficult as it may seem to you on beholding a music sheet for the first time. Just a few simple things to remember and there you go with your music reading. Music is the art of producing melodious sounds that are pleasing and soothing to your senses. Music intensity depends on the pitch and beats of the music produced. Pitch is the frequency of the music notes. Music is an art that produces intense emotional responses in the listener's.