Reading Music · Chapter 1 of 12

The Staff: Lines and Spaces

Music is written on five lines called a staff. Where a note sits on those lines tells you which key to play.

A staff is a set of five lines with four spaces between them. (Some books call it a stave.) Notes are drawn on the lines or in the spaces, and that position tells you which note to play.

Lines

We count the lines from the bottom up: the bottom line is line 1, the top line is line 5. A note “on a line” has the line running right through its middle.

One note on each line, from line 1 at the bottom to line 5 at the top. The curly sign at the start is a clef; the next chapter explains it.

Spaces

The four spaces between the lines are counted from the bottom up too: space 1 is between lines 1 and 2. A note “in a space” fills the gap and touches the lines above and below it.

One note in each space, from space 1 to space 4.

Higher on the page, higher in sound

The higher a note sits on the staff, the higher it sounds, and the further to the right its key is on the piano. Each move from a line to the very next space (or a space to the next line) is one step: one white key. Listen to these notes climb the staff, one step at a time.

Line, space, line, space… each note one step higher than the one before. Tap any note to hear it alone.

Music is read from left to right, like words. The notes on the left are played first. Here is the start of Mary Had a Little Lamb: you can see the tune step down, step back up, and repeat, before you play a note.

Down, down, up, up, then three of the same. The short line through the lowest note is a ledger line; you’ll meet it in chapter 4.

Remember

  • A staff has five lines and four spaces, counted from the bottom.
  • A note sits on a line (line through the middle) or in a space.
  • Higher on the staff means a higher sound. Line to next space is one step.
  • Read from left to right.

Songs that use this

@teddyrookbook GitHub