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<u>'''Measures</u> ''' indicate organization, often numbered to quickly refer to a section or place in the piece. Each measure is bound on the left and right by a pair of vertical lines from the top to bottom of the lines of the staff. Consecutive measures are divided by a single bar between them.
<u>'''Sight Reading</u> ''' is the ability to play a piece from the notation without any additional information or practice. It is literally someone handing you a piece of music and expecting you to play it as anyone else would. It requires a great deal of functional knowledge about your instrument (keys, range, ability to play certain markings).
<u>'''Sight Singing</u> ''' is sight reading music by singing it. This can be even more difficult than playing on an instrument, as you must hear the correct pitches in your head rather than simply locating the note on the instrument. Also, whereas with an instrument you may be intimately familiar with scale patterns and fingerings so that playing in a certain key comes naturally (such as simply by shifting positions on guitar), sight singing requires a strong understanding of possibly any key and hitting the correct note rather than being a half-step sharp/flat. This is assisted by singing the notes [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solf%C3%A8ge Solfège], which forces you to not only sing the correct pitch of the note but the correct scale degree.
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== Staff ==
The <u>'''Staff</u> ''' is a set of 5 parallel, horizontal lines that form the majority of "ink on the page". These correspond to pitch, with lower pitches towards the lowest line and higher pitches towards the highest. Notes are marked on top of a line, or between a pair of them (called spaces).
=== Ledger Lines ===
Sometimes notes have pitch lower or higher than the lowest or highest line of the staff. To accommodate this, the notation uses <u>'''Ledger Lines</u>''', additional lines drawn above or below the staff. Unlike the staff, however, ledger lines are short line fragments that are only as long as necessary for one or several consecutive notes that do not fit on the staff. The number of lines drawn is however many are necessary to get from the lowest note on the staff to the note desired - in some cases it can be a lot.
=== Key and Accidentals ===
The <u>'''Key</u> ''' is implied by a series of sharp or flat symbols on the staff lines/spaces after the clef (or their absence in the keys of C Major or A Minor). They indicate to play the sharped/flatted note for any note appearing on that line or space throughout the entire piece, until another key marking is indicated.
The key indicated can be overridden in any individual measure by using sharp, flat, or natural symbols to the left of the note. Once a single such marking appears, ''that variant'' of ''that note'' will persist for the duration of the measure without additional markings; however, it can still be overridden within the measure.
== Clef ==
The <u>'''Clef</u> ''' is typically the first marking one notices on the staff. It is one of many large, peculiar looking symbols, whose purpose is to indicate which notes align with the lines of the staff. The most common clefs are the G, C, and F Clefs (commonly known as the Treble, Soprano/Alto/Tenor, and Bass Clefs). The G Clef is used most often, aligning with the range of most classical instruments. Piano commonly uses both a G and an F Clef on two bracketed staffs, with each roughly corresponding to the left and right hands.
Each clef can be positioned higher or lower on the staff - there is a particular aspect of each clef that is designed to align to a certain note.
== Time Signature ==
The <u>'''Time Signature</u> ''' appears like a fraction, with one number over another, separated by a slanted line. The top number indicates the number of beats per measure, and the bottom number indicates the type of note that equals a single beat. The most common time signature is 4/4, indicating 4 beats per measure, with a quarter (1/4) note equaling one beat.
The time signature not only determines the speed of the piece, by aligning the note markings to each beat of the tempo, but implies the rhythm or meter of the piece. The measures should roughly align to discrete musical ideas (melodies, harmonic progressions, etc.). By determining the number of beats per measure, the time signature creates a visual organization to the piece.
== Measures ==
== Repeats and Codas ==
== Sight Reading ==
The first thing you must do is identify the key and time signature. Then scan the notation to identify the highest and lowest notes, as well as marked techniques that you have to be ready for. This may help determine a suitable position, as well as identify which scale patterns you will use. Many instruments (such as guitar) can interpret legato numerous ways. Some instruments are incapable of sounding certain markings (portamento on piano), but can instead use a similar technique (playing the chromatic scale). You must also take note of the major repetition markings, keying in on the location of Segno's and Coda's.
=== Sight Singing ===
[[Category:Skills]]
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[[Category:Notation]]