Questions tagged [notation]
For questions about visual representation of music and its uses. If the question is about a specific type of notation like tablature, that should also be tagged. Questions about how to input specific notation are best served with the engraving tag.
2,317
questions
1
vote
1
answer
37
views
What does this bowing marking signify? [duplicate]
In Maurice Ravel's String Quartet in F Major, just before the up-bow marking, the engraver has written what looks like an upside-down down-bow marking.
I have not come across this before …. What does ...
- 329
10
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What is this quadruple-dotted X above the staff?
At the end of Shiro Sagisu's Robe Des Champs (KK_A09_miyagi), there is a dotted X with brackets covering two bars.
- 203
1
vote
1
answer
96
views
Question Regarding the Meaning of Certain Symbols
On piano sheet music, I occasionally see the following notations:
In the bass clef, the letter "m", "M" or the number "7" is above a note.
What do they mean?
- 11
6
votes
0
answers
112
views
Long horizontal line between notes
In my piece of music for cello, there is a straight line above two notes. It is dead straight and over two E's (and then again over two A's), the first note in each pair is a dotted crochet and the ...
-2
votes
1
answer
89
views
Paganini's Cantabile for violin and guitar in D - clarification on the notation [duplicate]
This is from Niccolò Paganini's Cantabile for violin and guitar in D:
How do I play the red-boxed notes properly?
What does the hat-dot signs mean? What are they called?
- 901
0
votes
1
answer
163
views
What is this notation that looks like a hat above the stave? [duplicate]
I'm having trouble finding what this notation means:
3
votes
1
answer
49
views
How to make actually minimal page breaking in LilyPond
Consider the example below. It has 6 systems, and if I force LilyPond to put all 6 onto one page with min-systems-per-page = #6, it does, and it works well. The issue is that in real life, not every ...
- 2,357
0
votes
0
answers
44
views
How do I play this rhythm? [duplicate]
I am trying to play the Largo from Vivaldi's Concerto for Flautino in C Major (RV 443), but I am not sure how to time this passage in measure 4:
This piece is in 12/8 time, but the notes in this ...
- 101
8
votes
1
answer
996
views
What does this flat symbol over a turn mean?
I think it means for the starting note to be lowered one semitone, but I'm not sure.
- 451
11
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Why do conductors use transposed scores vs. concert scores?
Why do conductors use transposed scores vs. concert scores? It adds a lot more mental cost with no return on investment.
- 511
2
votes
1
answer
66
views
questions about some direction markings in Chopin's op 28 no 6, prelude in B minor
in bar 1, there is 'sotto voce' written between the right and left hand. what does it mean in this context? does it simply means to play softly or is it asking to play the right hand softly?(since ...
- 111
2
votes
0
answers
56
views
Why aren't clefs aligned with octaves? [duplicate]
It looks like my questions is largely answered by Why not use only octave clefs?. I'm going to leave this here anyways in case it's useful for others.
Hello!
I've got a genuine question, although I'm ...
- 121
9
votes
4
answers
531
views
Strange cymbals notation in The Free Lance March
I'm currently playing cymbals for the arrangement of The Free Lance March by William D. Revelli with my high school band. However, I'm having trouble interpreting some of the notations in the music. ...
- 325
4
votes
1
answer
219
views
Why is my bass clef inverted? [closed]
I have downloaded an early printed Beethoven sonata where the bass clef is upside down and looks more like a C? Why? What am I missing?
- 41
0
votes
3
answers
116
views
Can (Dal) Segno and (Dal) Segno Segno appear on the same bar?
This is a follow-up question to my previous question.
I have made a transcription using Guitar Pro 8 of a song with the following structure:
Intro, A, B, A, B, A, Coda
Guitar Pro 8 outputs and plays ...
- 114
0
votes
3
answers
153
views
How to notate two nested repeat loops (||: and :||) that finish on the same repeat finish sign :||?
I have made a transcription of a song with the following structure:
Intro, A, B, A, B, A, Coda
The score that I created is the following (the content of the bars was replaced by whole notes for ...
- 114
3
votes
2
answers
308
views
Staff text positioning
I have fermatas on the final notes on both staffs at the end of a piano piece. I only want the fermatas held on the final refrain. Do I need to include staff text to that effect above both staffs, ...
- 31
4
votes
1
answer
76
views
Standard notation for left hand bars/barres on guitar when playing natural harmonics in a single fret and using a single left hand finger
I'm a self taught guitarrist and hobby musician who composes original music and who creates transcriptions/arrangements of music from other artists for classical guitar.
I've recently learned about ...
- 114
14
votes
1
answer
888
views
Triangular notehead at the end of a glissando/portamento
I was studying a score that had this strange symbol in the violin part. It's a triangular notehead at the end of a glissando/portamento. The note seems to be suspended, not connect to the staff with ...
2
votes
0
answers
30
views
How to write a right-hand bracket in Lilypond? [duplicate]
Somebody else already asked this for Musescore; but how can I produce a half-bracked as pictured in Lilypond?
- 21
7
votes
2
answers
106
views
New to reading kit music - questions about technique
I’m a self taught drum kit player and this is my first time reading drum sheet music. I’ve made drum sheets before with MuseScore, so I can read most things fine, but there’s one section where it asks ...
- 81
8
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Tenuto, legato and staccato on the same note
In the first bars of the Barcarola et Scherzo by Alfredo Casella the piano part has chords with legato, tenuto and staccato signs all together:
What is the correct way to play these notes? What could ...
- 222
2
votes
0
answers
31
views
How to notate altered diatonic scales (in this case Mixolydian ♭6)? [duplicate]
If I am notating a piece that's in [mostly] a C Mixolydian ♭6 scale (B♭ and A♭), what approach to notation would be most easily read?
Notate everything in a non-standard key signature, B♭, E♮, and A♭...
- 2,716
0
votes
0
answers
66
views
Is there any official standard document that says middle C is C4? [duplicate]
You can find people on the Internet talking about "Scientific pitch notation (SPN), also known as American standard pitch notation (ASPN) and international pitch notation (IPN)", like on ...
- 252
2
votes
1
answer
164
views
How to notate orchestral toms?
I want to ask how are orchestral toms notated.
I Know how toms in a drumset are placed in the staff and there are only few of them but what if I want to use more toms with different pitches?
How to ...
- 372
4
votes
6
answers
1k
views
What do the notes represent if their relationships are different in different tuning systems?
The relationship between an A and a B is different in say, just intonation and equal temprement. I understand that the absolute frequencies aren't important but instead the relative difference between ...
- 43
4
votes
3
answers
215
views
Distance of the stave lines?
I have not found definite answers for these two doubts, can anyone help me?
At what distance should the stave lines be?
What distance should be between staves?
- 41
2
votes
1
answer
73
views
Notation for cymbal choke and cymbal stop?
First, what's the difference between a cymbal choke and a cymbal stop? Is it that a choke is immediate (as soon as possible) and a stop is after the predetermined length of the note (i.e., eighth note,...
1
vote
3
answers
105
views
Does "poco a poco accel. fino al misura 25" sound like proper Italian tempo mark?
Is ""poco a poco accel. fino al misura 25" correct tempo mark in Italian for "step by step accelerate until measure 25"?
- 219
5
votes
3
answers
606
views
Both instruments in unison or only the first-voice one?
Here are a few first measures of "Pomp and Circumstance, March 1"'s score:
What puzzles me is that in both the oboe and clarinet staves, we can clearly see two instruments indicated, yet ...
- 937
2
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Am I Doing It Wrong? Why Can't I Use Multiple 5-Line Staves to Represent Guitar's Open Strings?
As a rock songwriter with interest in theory, I sometimes score my music to engage with it differently. I’d open MuseScore, create 3 treble clef staves—one for the voice and two for the guitars—and a ...
- 1,244
6
votes
2
answers
1k
views
What does "S.D." mean, and why does it have only one staff line?
As you can see in the picture, the fourth line is marked S.D. with a few notes.
What is the meaning of S.D.? And what are these notes (Do, Re, Mi…?) and how are they to be played?
I know it is for ...
- 61
4
votes
1
answer
108
views
Mozart Notated Staccatos - Continuing After Notation Ends?
In Mozart's "Don Giovanni" there are many phrases notated as staccato which, after 2-3 measures, no longer have the staccato notation to the end of the phrase. (Ex. Dover full score p.393 ...
3
votes
4
answers
155
views
Why do clef octave changes use '8' and '15'? [duplicate]
I found this list of octave clefs on Wikipedia. Here, there's a series of octave clefs listed as using 8 and 15 to alter the clef by one or two octaves respectively.
My understanding of music theory ...
- 133
3
votes
1
answer
117
views
What does a diamond note head mean in a bass part when it’s the only note on the staff?
My amateur orchestra is playing Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite. The bass part has a number of notes with diamond heads. I’m not sure how to interpret them (and neither is our conductor who plays viola). ...
- 185
19
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What does this sharp sign with an arrow mean?
I've seen this symbol (that looks like a sharp sign with an arrow sticking out of it) in some meme videos, but I don't know what it means:
- 451
4
votes
1
answer
531
views
Should I provide fingering for a piano music sheet?
I am typesetting a piano piece and am wondering if I should provide fingering instructions. First I thought that it could be helpful, but I'm not sure if this is considered normal by professional ...
- 219
3
votes
3
answers
212
views
What is “Lacrimosa” in music?
What is the mood / emotion most closely associated with the Italian term “Lacrimosa” used in music notation?
- 31
0
votes
0
answers
62
views
(24-EDO) Microtonal chord symbols for these chords
I came across some interesting chords recently in a series talking about 19-EDO but I found that a lot of them work quite well in 24-EDO as well, and they are shown below. I can get behind everything ...
- 375
2
votes
4
answers
113
views
Garbled Lilypond Output
I divided the notes of my score into 6 variables respectively called: \partOne, \partTwo, \partThree, \partFour, \partFive and \partSix. Each variable contains 20 measures of music. Then I call the ...
- 21
2
votes
2
answers
308
views
How to notate parallel tuplets
Suppose I have a 4/4 bar for piano, and in the right hand I want to play a quintuplet over 1, 2 and 3, and I want to play a quadruplet over 2, 3 and 4.
What is the proper way to notate this?
The ...
2
votes
1
answer
149
views
How to write cross staff beams in Noteflight?
In the middle section of Symphony No 5 by Beethoven, I see some cross staff beams (marked in red):
Can you please tell me how to write them in Noteflight? I have no idea as a Noteflight user. Thank ...
- 185
2
votes
0
answers
36
views
What does this notation mean above the staff? [duplicate]
I'm learning piano and music theory. Today I came across this notation - a bracket line spanning across the width of the staff, and a number on the left. Could someone please tell me what it means? ...
- 121
5
votes
1
answer
302
views
What does this T-with-a-bar-in-the-middle accidental mean?
I've never seen it before, and I found it on this video. I know it's an accidental, though.
- 451
0
votes
1
answer
86
views
How many symphonic instruments in the same group to specify
In a symphonic orchestra, or any other, how many of the same instruments do I specify in the score, if they play the same score?
For example, for violins, there is just one line. What about the ...
6
votes
1
answer
111
views
Contemporary Music note group Notation
I am writing an article about Stockhausen's Plus-Minus and I wanted to take this chance to write some snippets in LilyPond. Is there anyone willing to help me to transcribe this image?
This is what I ...
- 71
6
votes
2
answers
234
views
Repeat sign without a match
In Fernando Sor's Op 44 No 7, what is the purpose of the repeat sign indicated by the arrow?
There isn't a matching sign before the end of the piece, so how am I supposed to interpret it? (The picture ...
- 163
4
votes
1
answer
62
views
Interpreting the repeat signs in Handel's passacaglia (HWV 432)
In the urtext edition (page 84 of the pdf) that I found on IMSLP it looks as if the first period is repeated and then... the rest of the piece, without that first period, is played twice? That doesn't ...
- 611
2
votes
3
answers
140
views
How to identify voice of whole note
I've got a chord of whole notes and have no idea which voice they're in.
There are other chords in the sheet music that I looked at to try to figure out the voice, but this hasn't been conclusive. At ...
- 43
1
vote
2
answers
155
views
What does this chord symbol mean?
I came across this while studying harmony and couldn't figure out what its trying to say. It comes from Bach's Partita in A Minor for Flute, BWV 1013, measure 2.
- 79