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What Are the Basic Notes in Music?

There are 9 basic notes in music that are fairly simple to remember and learn because of the manner in which they're organized. The tone quality varies by instrument, but the musical staff placement is the same for every instrument. There are also devices to learn the order and placement of the note scales, which make for easy studying.
  1. Low and High E

    • In this group of notes the fourth note from the left is a low E.

      Each staff is made up of five lines with four spaces in between on which each note is placed. The low E is found on the lowest line of the staff and can be flat or sharp. The high E is found on the fourth space and can also be flat or sharp. To say a note is flat means that it is played a half step down. To say a note is sharp means it's played up a half step. Steps are the lines or spaces upon which the music notes are played.

    Low G

    • The first four notes on the top group of music notes are G.

      The low G is found on the second line of the music staff and can be flat or sharp.

    B

    • The second note on this staff is B.

      The note B is found on the third or middle line on the music staff, can be flat or sharp.

    High D

    • The first single note is a plain high D.

      The high D is found on the fourth line on the music staff and can be flat or sharp.

    Low or High F

    • The fourth and seventh notes are low F.

      Low F can be flat or sharp and is found on the first space of the music staff. High F is found of the fifth line and can also be flat or sharp.

    A

    • The first and fifth notes on this music staff are A.

      A can be flat or sharp and is found on the second space of the music staff.

    C

    • The first and third notes are C.

      C is found on the third space, and can be flat or sharp.

    Tips for Remembering Notes and Placement

    • There are many common mnemonic devices to help remember basic music notes and their placement on the staff. A favorite among elementary students for notes placed on the line is: "Ernie, Gave, Bert, Dead, Frogs." E goes on the first line, G goes on the second line, B goes on the third line, D goes on the fourth line and F goes on the fifth line. To remember the space notes it's simply, "FACE." F goes on the first space, A goes on the second space, C goes on the third space and E goes on the fourth space.

Music Basics

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