Reading Music Using Solfge
Solfège is the method of reading music that uses do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do.
Im not very familiar with this method. I know what it is, but I’ve never learned to use it in my piano playing or teaching.
I always thought it was just for singers. But as an adult, I learned that some piano teachers use solfège to teach their students to read music for piano.
One of the benefits of learning solfège is that it helps improve your ability to sight-sing.
Sight-singing means being able to hear the music in your head when you look at the sheet music.
If you can sight-sing when reading music, your ear will be able to help you know which notes to play, and know when youve played a wrong note.
Solfège will be especially useful to you if you want to compose or arrange your own music, because it can help you become very good at identifying the intervals between notes you hear. This can take a lot of the guesswork out of figuring out exactly what pitch you’re hearing.
Middle C And Ledger Lines
Middle C live in the white space between the treble and bass staves on the grand staff. When I was a young piano learner, my teacher called this white space middle C’s playground.
To recognize middle C, you need to understand ledger lines.
Ledger lines are short horizontal lines that are used to extend the grand staff.
The grand staff only covers a portion of the notes available on the piano keyboard. But if we made the grand staff big enough to include all the notes on the piano, it would be incredibly difficult to decipher notes among all the lines and spaces.
So the grand staff focuses only on the range of notes that are most commonly played, and ledger lines are used as needed to extend the staff when we want to include other notes.
You’ll see ledger lines used above and below the grand staff, and also in the white space between the treble and bass staves.
Middle C is most common ledger line that you’ll encounter as a beginner.
Middle C is the middle note of the grand staff. It can be written one ledger line below the treble staff or one ledger line above the bass staff.
How Do I Figure Out The Key Of A Song
Heres a list of questions that will help you decide.
Although putting this in a checklist makes it seem really formal, this is something that will eventually happen automatically, in a matter of seconds.
I trained my brain to do this, and you can too.
With a little practice youll be able to take a snap reading of a song .
Im going to explain each of these in order, but I want to begin by saying that you should be going through this checklist in this order when trying to determine a songs key.
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Every Kid & Every Situation Is Unique
Every kid, every situation is unique… some kids will happily play week after week from their piano method books, enjoying each turn of the page with its new challenge, while others find the books boring and dig in their heels as you attempt to drag them through their lesson book.
Some beginners move along quickly, while others need months and months to digest the small handful of notes around Middle C.
Some kids have heard classical piano music from the time they were born with others, all they know is video game music.
Music Rests For Beginners
There are 5 basic rests you should start with as a beginner:
- sixteenth rests
A whole rest lasts for an entire measure, regardless of how many beats are in the measure.
To help students remember the difference between a whole rest and a half rest, I tell them a whole rest looks like a hole in the ground
A half rest equals 2 beats in 4/4 time.
To help students remember the difference between a whole rest and a half rest, I tell them a half rest looks like a top hat.
A quarter rest equals 1 beat in 4/4 time.
An eighth rest equals half a beat in 4/4 time. So 2 eighth rests equal 1 beat.
A sixteenth rest equals one-quarter of a beat in 4/4 time. So 4 sixteenth rests equal 1 beat.
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Learning Key Names On Sheet Music
Now we begin sheet music!
If you’re just starting out, sheet music can look pretty scary and complex at first glance, but it is by far the easiest way we know of to record music in a written way. Sheet Music is a system for writing and reading music. The reason we write music down is the same reason we write down a story in a book: so it can be read over and over without changing over time. Being able to play music, but not knowing how to read sheet music can be a huge disadvantage it’s similar to when someone can speak a language but not read or write. Imagine where you would be today in life if you had not learned how to read? Do you regret learning how to read? That’s how you’ll feel when you learn to read sheet music. It might take a some time to start reading, but it is definitely worth the effort in the long run! Once you spend a little time, you’ll see most sheet music is simple to read and can be understood by almost anyone with a little training. You can do this! Let’s start! Please watch the videos below.
Next Steps In Learning Piano Keys
Now that youve read the piano-key theory, the next thing to do is start putting it into practice. Get to a real piano keyboard and start familiarising yourself with keys, scales and intervals. If you need some advice on how to approach your piano practice, then have a read of this article dedicated to sheet music practice.
That article discusses notation in some detail, which is something that we havent really covered here. If you want to know more about piano notes, transferring the skills youve acquired here to reading sheet music, then have a read of piano notes for beginners.
Beyond that, if you want to take your understanding of sheet music to the next level, then you should find how to read piano sheet music useful. That article will also be of interest to readers keen on learning more about the theory. If thats you, dont forget to check out the music theory cheat sheet too.
And once you think youre ready to take on some fully fledged piano sheet music, remember that theres a world of it waiting to be discovered on the nkoda app.
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Main Figure Attempting To Help Illustrate What I’m Saying
A ROYGBIV-Coded Map of the 88 Keys of the Modern Piano, Notated in 11 Equal Measures
Here is a link to MuseScore where you can see/hear the above figure I made “played” aloud*, if curious:
*Little Tangent Commentary on LH/RH Piano Notations
It’s not a horrible exercise to practice either, in itself .
scores as “m.g.” or“m.s.” ]
Tip for remembering this confusing situation:
So, remember that “m.d.” always means right hand and then the others you’ll ever encounter will be “m.g.” or “m.s.”
I think “ok not ‘m.d.’ so must be LH, and I also remember that sinistra means sinister and, fun fact, for centuries if not millennia, at least in Western cultures, everything “left” was considered evil for some bizarre reason undoubtedly very fascinatingly related directly to us having cleanly separated left and right brain hemispheres but, alas, such full elucidation of those brain details will continue to elude our understanding probably for quite some time.
Put Theory Into Practice
Translating the inky blots on the page through your fingertips into actual music is where the rubber meets the road when it comes to reading piano sheet music. Now that youve spent some time writing things out on the page, its time to start putting that into practice on your actual instrument.
Start with each clef independently, just like you did when you were first memorizing the piano notes. Stick to your regular practice routine, as well. Remember, practice doesnt only make perfect, it also makes things permanent.
Youll want to practice with a metronome if you arent already. You need to be as comfortable with rhythm and harmony as you are with melody. You should also stay in the habit of focusing on musicality, even when youre practicing.
After seeing all the symbols and placement of notes. It is time to identify which note corresponds to the key on the piano. The white keys on the piano would correspond to the keys in the C Scale. Starting from C, followed by the keys D, E, F, G, A, B and ending again at a higher C. You would find them in the white keys on the piano.
The black keys are the ones between some of these white keys. Like the Eb being between D and E. Each of these keys has a place on the staff.
When practicing these sequences of notes, start slow until you feel the pace. From that point, that is when you start learning the song in its actual pace and tempo.
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How Do You Memorize The Piano Staff
There are several different strategies that can help you memorize the notes of the music staff so you can read music more quickly and efficiently.
The trick is not to rely on just one of the strategies.
A good musician is familiar with all the strategies, and mixes and matches them while playing music, depending on which particular strategy gets their fingers to the next note fastest.
Examples Of Piano Keys
Weve already looked at the keys and scales of C major, A minor and D major, but below you can see a few more outlined on the keyboard. Committing them to memory and being able to play them on demand will be great for your piano-playing. Theyll boost your theoretical understanding as well as your playing technique.
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About This Music Sheet
Happy Birthday To You is a song by Various.Use your computer keyboard to play Happy Birthday To You music sheet on Virtual Piano.This is a Super Easy song which you can also load and play on your mobile or tablet.The recommended time to play this music sheet is 00:20, as verified by Virtual Piano legend,.The song Happy Birthday To You is classified in the genre ofKidson Virtual Piano.You can also find other similar songs usingOccasion,Celebrations.
A Different Way To Learn How To Read Sheet Music: The Mental Flip Strategy
One of the most difficult things about learning how to read sheet music for the piano, as opposed to most other instruments, is that there is not just a single melody to be played. Piano music notes require you to play more than one part at a time reading two music staves at once. Usually these parts are interconnected they are part of a chord that you need to be able to accurately read.
Although the concept of reading multiple lines of music may seem overwhelming at first, in time, youll find that this is what makes the piano such a powerful instrument. A pianist can carry the bassline, chords, and melody all at once, eliminating the need for accompaniment and providing orchestra-like backing for solo instruments. Many beginners prefer to use a technique called the mental flip strategy to get more comfortable with reading and memorizing the notes. Before we dive into how to use that strategy, lets take a step back and see why sheet music is written the way it is.
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The Purpose Of The Initial Rolled Chord
I love to start Happy Birthday with a rolled chord as shown above , because it primes everyone to know just when to jump into the song!
The left hand split chords of this arrangement are just the I, IV, and V7 chords. Very basic, and all piano players need to have an understanding of the relationship of these three chords. Here, because we are in the key of C, those chords end up being C, F, and G7.
Why Learn How To Read Music
Reading music means you can see and understand the structure of the piece and how its put together, allowing you to develop a greater understanding of the whole composition. The symbols of sheet music, like most spoken languages, have been around for centuries. Each symbol represents a different pitch, rhythm, and tempo of a specific song. The symbols also represent the techniques used by whoever is playing that musical piece.
Some musicians will tell you that reading piano sheet music isnt necessary to be a competent player, but you only limit yourself by going that route. Many pianists will attest that learning and studying sheet music early and often is the right choice.
Learning this essential skill:
- Unlocks a world of expression and freedom on the piano
- Means youll be able to play in a band or other ensemble
- Helps you sight read on other instruments including strings, brass, or woodwinds
- Allows you to communicate about music with other musicians
Even if your main instrument is not the piano, learning the basics of how to read music note names can be easier when you know your way around a keyboard.
Studying the piano and learning how to read sheet music go hand-in-hand. To develop your skills in the most efficient way possible, you must start learning how to read sheet music right off the bat.
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Can I Play All Songs On A 61 Key Keyboard
A tiny keyboard with 61 keys will be plenty for a novice to begin learning to play a variety of musical instruments. You may play modern styles such as pop and rock, but you can even go into some jazz if you like. The most essential thing is that you can still listen to classical music. The majority of Baroque and early Classical compositions may be performed on a keyboard with 61 keys.
Why Do We Need Bass Clef
Bass clef is a useful tool for a few reasons.
- If we only used treble clef, we would have a more limited range of notes to read on one, five line staff. We would need to use an excessive amount of ledger lines and octave higher or lower markings.
- We can easily read pitches below middle C.
- You can learn to read piano sheet music faster.
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Piano Tutorials And Sheet Music
Alicia Augello Cook, known by the pseudonym Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. An accomplished pianist, Keys incorporates piano into a majority of her songs and often writes about love, heartbreak and female empowerment. Keys has a three octave contralto vocal range. Her explanation on why she chose her stage name: “It’s like the piano keys. And it can open so many doors.” Keys’ father is African American and her mother is of half-Italian and half-British and Irish descent. Keys has expressed that she was comfortable with her biracial heritage because she felt she was able to “relate to different cultures”.
Song
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Alicia Augello Cook, known by the pseudonym Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. An accomplished pianist, Keys incorporates piano into a majority of her songs and often writes about love, heartbreak and female empowerment. Keys has a three octave contralto vocal range. Her explanation on why she chose her stage name: “It’s like the piano keys. And it can open so many doors.” Keys’ father is African American and her mother is of half-Italian and half-British and Irish descent. Keys has expressed that she was comfortable with her biracial heritage because she felt she was able to “relate to different cultures”.
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Did Piano Keys Used To Be Smaller
Historically, keyboards were available in a variety of sizes, but they were eventually standardised around 1880. For many years, the size of the keyboard remained unchanged, with the exception of a smaller keyboard built by Steinway Sons in the early twentieth century, which was intended for Josef Hofmann, the famed pianist.
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Learning To Read Sheet Music With An Instructor
The best way to learn how to read music notes is by taking piano lessons. A professional piano teacher can walk you through these steps and ensure that youre building your skills on a solid foundation of music theory. With each lesson, your knowledge of the piano will grow and your music reading skills will develop. Lesson plans that are catered to your learning style and current skill level will help you stay motivated for the long term. You can always look up piano sheet music for beginners and practice your music reading skills. Once you have a handle on understanding piano with notes and reading music, the playing possibilities are endless!
With enough time, patience, and practice, you can develop into a well-skilled piano player. Obtaining a stable foundation in musical note reading will make your journey toward becoming a fine pianist an exciting and fun adventure.
Do you have a favorite technique for learning how to read sheet music? Let us know in the comments below!
Post Author: Liz T. teaches online singing, acting, and music lessons. She is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music with a B.M in Vocal performance and currently performs/teaches all styles of music including Musical Theater, Classical, Jazz, Rock, Pop, R& B, and Country.
Photo by Basheer Tome
