Musical Notation Reading
📋 What it is
Reading music: notes higher on the staff are higher pitches; note shapes show how long they last.
🗣️ Coach says
Reading music comes down to two questions per note: HOW HIGH (its position on the five-line staff = its pitch) and HOW LONG (its shape — filled or open, stem or flag = its duration). Master those two clues and the dots on the page turn into sound.
🧠 Memory hook
Read a note: position on the staff = pitch (high/low); note shape = duration (how long).
😂 Giggle
Why was the rhythm so popular?
It always knew how to beat the crowd!
😲 Whoa!
A skilled sight-reader can play a piece of music they've never seen before, in real time — decoding pitch and rhythm on the fly.
✅ Quick check: What two things does written notation tell you about each note?
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
Its pitch (from its height on the staff) and its duration (from its shape).
Notation encodes pitch by vertical position and duration by note shape.
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Draw a staff and place one high note and one long note — you've encoded pitch and time.