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.
1,589
questions
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1answer
53 views
What do these arrows mean?
I've noticed on Edson Lopes pieces he highlights (I think) certain phrases. Not sure what he is trying to tell us when he puts a section between these arrows. Notice arrow pointing left and down, then ...
4
votes
3answers
139 views
Ritenuto / Fermata / Tempo change
I've written a piece of music, for string quartet plus triangle. But I'm having trouble expressing the last bar in the right way.
In the second half of the bar:
The top three strings are to play a ...
2
votes
3answers
52 views
How to notate alternate/secondary melody in ABC
I'm not able to find any indication that you can do this in ABC, and I was able to use a couple of Ideographic Space characters in the lyrics to make it kinda work and get the lyrics to align, but ...
0
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0answers
57 views
Note Timings with numbers above notes [duplicate]
I am learning the piece clair de lune on the piano, and I noticed in some measures there are numbers above the notes. I researched about it and I only saw that numbers above notes are fingerings. They ...
1
vote
1answer
56 views
How do you notate a tremolo of indeterminate length?
I've got this lengthy solo passage in my piano piece (a transcription of a symphony, where this is the solo). The right hand plays the solo, and the left hand provides the quietest possible background ...
1
vote
3answers
52 views
Notation question natural followed by sharp Chopin Waltz in C sharp minor
In Chopin's Waltz in C sharp minor, I'm a bit confused by the following notation:
The F has a natural, cancelling out the sharp in the key signature. But then it instantly becomes an F-sharp again. ...
9
votes
5answers
1k views
Is cross-staff beaming helpful or confusing?
I'm writing a fairly simple piano piece which has a repeated pattern which crosses staves/hands. I think it looks clearer musically to write it with cross-staff beaming as in the first bar below, but ...
1
vote
1answer
31 views
LilyPond: Figured bass help - Vertical figure order with bass figure extenders on
I'm having a bit of trouble obtaining the desired result in the following example:
\version "2.18.2"
<<
\relative c' {
e2 e,
}
\figuremode {
\bassFigureExtendersOn
...
-1
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2answers
76 views
Sheet Music query, a note printed in a bar as half note and quarter note on the same beat [duplicate]
I have searched the internet extensively to find an answer to no avail. These notes cannot possibly be played at the same time so my theory would be the note can be played as a quarter beat or a half ...
8
votes
2answers
513 views
Which octave does Cb4 belong to?
How do you distinguish:
C tone in 4th octave - flat
Cb in 4th octave
?
Or said other way around. Is the order of operations: (C4)b or (Cb)${calculate octave}?
2
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0answers
45 views
How are editorial additions/changes to a score indicated?
How do music editors indicate changes they've made to a score?
Sometimes an editor will make musically meaningful changes to a score, such as
Adding markings the editor believes were omitted by the ...
2
votes
1answer
104 views
Arpeggiated Chords with Partial Wavy Vertical Lines
Does anyone know how to play an arpeggiated chord when the wavy vertical line beside the chord is not all the way alongside the chord?
Any fingering suggestions for playing the first chord?
Thank you :...
4
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2answers
87 views
How to write a slur to nothing in LilyPond?
Just like this:
This is a Piano Staff, the example was created on MuseScore.
The \laissezVibrer slur only creates a small slur.
I don't mind whether the slur crosses the measure or not, I just don't ...
5
votes
2answers
292 views
How to play a diamond note on guitar? [duplicate]
Source
Here it is written in diamond notes in the first measure. How should one play them on guitar and also what do they indicate?
7
votes
4answers
785 views
What does it mean when notes are beamed across both piano staves?
I have only six months in playing piano. I want to learn a new sheet, but I don”t understand this notation that merges the two staffs. Can you explain to me please?
6
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2answers
474 views
What does the chord notation X/Y (“slash notation”) mean?
Questions about slash notation are frequent enough that this question was created to answer the general concerns as well as link to related or more specific questions on the topic.
Chords notated ...
3
votes
1answer
201 views
Chopin notation question / what notes do I play?
I am trying to learn Chopin's Op10 no5 ("black keys") [I know it is too advanced for me, but I just enjoy the piece].
The 8--- notation in the first measure of the attached, I believe means ...
6
votes
3answers
721 views
Dotted notes crossing barlines?
The piece is Alkan's Quasi Faust (from the Grande Sonate 'Les Quatre Âges'). There are a few idiosyncrasies in the score, but the most remarkable one I found is this example of dotted notes crossing ...
11
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3answers
531 views
Notation for a unison double stop
What's the standard notation for the occurrence of the same pitch played on two different strings of the same instrument simultaneously, to be used within the same staff?
The typical context would be ...
4
votes
3answers
199 views
Rhythmic/Metric Stress Patterns
The attached images are a page from Jack Perricone's Melody in Songwriting. I am familiar with the concept of stress patterns in music, but, honestly, have no idea what the hell he's on about here.
...
5
votes
3answers
285 views
What is the name of this notation in this example by Couperin?
Consider following excerpt from the beginning of the 2nd leçon of Couperin's Leçon des ténèbres pour le mercredi saint:
As you see, it uses a rather strange notation where, for instance, a bar of 3/2 ...
0
votes
2answers
108 views
Why are baritone vocals written one octave higher in the treble clef?
I have a lot of sheetmusic where the singer is a baritone and sings a lot in the C3 - C4 region. This would normally be written in the bass clef but in my sheet music, the notes are written in the ...
0
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0answers
44 views
Why are accidentals sometimes provided when not necessary? [duplicate]
Here’s an example from Bach’s Fugue in Ab major from WTC book 1:
In the last bar of this image you can see they put an Ab in the left hand and a G natural in both the left and right hands. Since ...
13
votes
4answers
8k views
In a piano score, what is the meaning of a V with a dot in it
In a beginners piano scorebook, under the last cord there is a V with a dot in it. I searched but can't find what it could mean. In case that matters, it's a French book.
There is no other place in ...
4
votes
3answers
78 views
How to write inverted 7th chords
I am trying to write the inverted G7 chord on the treble clef and in the attached images there are two bars. I believe the first bar in this score is correct. I am guessing so because this is what my ...
6
votes
3answers
1k views
What clef is this? (Baroque, Vivaldi)
What is this clef in Vivaldi RV281? This is the only source of the concerto is available ( at least without buying it, which is the manuscript). The piece did have a few weird clefs like an octave ...
11
votes
2answers
589 views
In Ravel's Introduction et allegro pour harpe, flûte, clarinette et quatuor à cordes - what are the flute and clarinet doing here?
In Ravel's Introduction et allegro pour harpe, flûte, clarinette et quatuor à cordes, the flute and clarinet seem to start doing some very fluttery tremolo arpeggiations in the first theme - I THINK ...
9
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3answers
2k views
What does it mean when a dotted half note has two dots instead of one?
I know one dot on the dotted half note means to play the note for 3 beats, but what do two dots mean:
12
votes
1answer
664 views
What does the L-shaped symbol attached to C5 and G4 on the top staff mean?
I am trying to learn Kiss The Rain by Yiruma, and I am learning from a score published on musescore. Source: https://musescore.com/user/27057308/scores/4838600
I was confused by the L-shaped line ...
7
votes
2answers
112 views
Accidental in parenthesis (not courtesy)
This is the 24th measure of Bach's Minuet in G major BWV Anh 116. What does the parenthesis mean? In the previous measure the D has a #, but it shouldn't carry over. Re this piece, I have seen 3 ...
12
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5answers
2k views
Understanding guitar music sheet
I am a beginner and I have some really basic questions regarding the notations of this guitar sheet music and how to read them.
First, what is the purpose of the chord's names above the staff ? Also ...
7
votes
1answer
399 views
Why aren't there barlines in the piano solo parts in Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5?
In the beginning of this piece you'll notice that the piano solo part has no barlines. Why? And why does he use 16th notes? How can a "16th" note have any meaning without barlines (not to ...
10
votes
5answers
838 views
Are notes played on the beat [always] played louder?
I know that the 4/4 time signature is played as [ONE-two-Three-four]. But in the third beat of the first measure there are two 8th notes; the first one coinciding with the beat. So would they be ...
7
votes
4answers
1k views
Note in parenthesis: optional or ghost note?
According to this answer, the following parenthesis designate an optional note:
The answer currently has 20 upvotes, while another answer claiming it is a ghost note has -1. Seems pretty definitive, ...
3
votes
1answer
418 views
Difference between time signatures [duplicate]
What is the difference between 4/4 and 8/8 time? 4/4 means 4 crotchets in a bar and 8/8 means 8 quavers in a bar, but 4 crotchets mean 8 quavers.
Is it just a question of notation? If so, why isn't ...
6
votes
3answers
822 views
What does syntaxes like T1, D2, and p3 mean in music notation?
I was reviewing tonal harmony basic guidelines when I came across the article Keyboard-style voice-leading schemata and it had notation like this:
I haven't seen syntax like this before, what's it ...
4
votes
1answer
589 views
24 16th notes in a 4/4 measure; Tuplets?
They're not labeled tuplets, but they probably are since there cannot be 24 16th notes in a 4/4 measure. They don't appear to be a standard triplet though since it still doesn't fit (with each triplet ...
4
votes
6answers
152 views
Issue with notes going over the time signature
I'm transferring this score to Finale, am almost at the end of it, and I'm really confused as to how this works. There are 16th notes between the 8th notes, probably done with another layer, but then ...
2
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2answers
104 views
14
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2answers
1k views
Mystery bowing notation
A cellist friend asked if I had come across this coloured in cross marking (hourglass?) in bar 35 and it has me stumped. (Beethoven Sonatina, so you can discount any crazy new music articulation.)
...
0
votes
1answer
56 views
Tie instead of a Rest in Keyboard Staff notation
Hello, I am learning Keyboard notation. Want to know why a tie is used across bar lines . Why can't they use a rest in bar 2?
7
votes
3answers
143 views
Note with two stems in snare drum part [Ravel's Miroir]: What is the result?
This is part of the snare drum part from Ravel's Miroirs No. 4: Alborado del Gracioso (The jester's aubade).
What is the effect of both sticks playing the same note? If the sticks coincide precisely ...
0
votes
3answers
127 views
What symbols on piano sheet music shows what hand should play what?
I learned to read music to a certain level as a child and since retiring have started learning piano again, but no matter how many books I read, I can't figure out when reading sheet music when you ...
12
votes
3answers
1k views
What does this notation mean?
What does the prime symbol above the note mean? I have not seen it before.
This is from Haydn's Variations in F minor
2
votes
3answers
74 views
Scope of natural accidental inside a bar
I have a question about natural accidental and its scope inside a bar. As far as I know, all accitentals should last until end of the bar and they affect all following notes on the same line in this ...
2
votes
1answer
93 views
What is the biggest chord ever written for orchestra?
Firstly I must define what I mean by "biggest". I mean the chord that has the most differently named notes in it not counting duplicates.
Initially I was assuming equal temperament but if ...
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vote
2answers
53 views
How to notate a 16:15 frequency in just intonation?
I've often came across tables just chromatic scales like so:
C: 1:1
C#: 16:15
D: 9:8
And so forth. I know that at least in Ben Johnston notation, the sharp sign implies that a note's frequency is ...
7
votes
2answers
1k views
Two angled lines in a study score
I’m studying Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 and have come across two lines which look like they are intended to save paper in just showing the musical lines that are playing?
They are everywhere, the ...
5
votes
1answer
133 views
What are these arrows?
I have played the guitar for 6 years now and have never seen this notation. What do these arrows mean?
EDIT: Bach Chaconne, arrangement by Edson Lopes, classical guitar (for electric guitar players: ...
2
votes
2answers
89 views
Mixed 3:5 rhythm with ordinary notes
I've got this rhythm which has a 3:5 bit (the three notes in the top go against the first five in the bottom - the final rest in each bar is in-line to make up the bar of 6/8) and I've sketched out ...
