Explore the fundamentals of musical notation. The notes in the viola clef progress sequentially up or down. Violas have four strings, each one five notes higher than the bottom string, which is a C string. The next string is a G, followed by D and A, the highest string on the instrument. The bottom C string is an octave below the middle C. The note for the C string lies two notes below the bottom staff line and has a short line running above the note.
Learn what the key signatures mean in the viola clef. Sheet music that does not have any markings behind the symbol for the clef is in the key of C, which means that all the notes are played as naturals. Music that has sharps or flats to the right of the symbol for the C clef indicates the sharps or flats in the piece. A sharp on the middle C line indicates that the C is played as a C sharp. A sharp resembles a hash tag, while a flat placed on a line indicates that the note that falls on that line is played as a flat. The flat symbol uses a short vertical line with a small oval attached on its lower right side. In the viola clef, the flat symbol lies on the spaces between the horizontal lines of the musical staff.
Understand the rhythm markings on the sheet music. The first measure of sheet music contains the time signature. A C indicates that the rhythm of the piece is in 4/4, which means that each measure has four beats and each quarter note receives a beat. A 3/4 time signature means that each measure has three beats and each quarter note receives one beat.