How to Read Music Notes Below the Line
Music is a language all its own. The modern system for musical notation known today was developed around the 16th century by classical musicians. The system features a musical staff, musical note symbols and a variety of other symbols designed to tell us what to play and how to play it. The placement of the musical note symbols on this musical staff dictates what notes to play and what pitch to play them. Many people have read notes on the staff but often have trouble understanding how to read notes above or below. Learn how you can read and understand music notes written below the line on the musical staff.
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Instructions
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Understand the basic music staff, also called a music stave. This staff is made up of five lines and four spaces. Music has a total of 12 notes that repeat in octaves. Each of those notes has a spot on the musical staff.
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Remember the notes on the four spaces of the musical staff by associating the note names on these spaces--F, A, C, E--with the word "FACE." By thinking of the four notes as a whole word, you'll be able to quickly know the notes you're looking at.
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Associate the lines on the staff--E, G, B, D, F--with the phrase "Every Good Boy Does Fine." This phrase makes it easy to name the notes of the five lines on the music staff right away.
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Become familiar with the direction notes go from the basic music staff. Notes written above the music staff go forward, and notes written below the music staff go backward. Starting at the highest note on the music staff and saying the letters forward will give you the note names as you go above the music staff. Saying the notes names backward from the lowest line on the music staff will tell you the note names below the music staff.
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Anchor yourself visually. Become familiar with landmark notes below the staff. The first line below the staff is a C note. Remember that going up means reading note names forward, and going down means reading notes names backward. This means the note above the C not below the staff is a D note. The note below that C note is a B. Two lines below the staff is another landmark note, an A note. The third landmark note below the staff is the E note, which is the space just before the third line below the staff. Once you become familiar with these landmark notes, reading below the line on a musical staff will soon become second nature.
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