Staff
The five horizontal lines and four spaces on which music is written. Pitch is shown by vertical position; ledger lines extend the staff above or below.
Pitch & NotationClef
A symbol at the start of a staff that fixes the pitch names of the lines and spaces. The main clefs are treble (G), bass (F), and the movable C clefs (alto, tenor).
Pitch & NotationTreble (G) clef
Its curl circles the second line, marking it G4. Used for higher-pitched instruments and the right hand of the piano.
Pitch & NotationBass (F) clef
Its two dots surround the fourth line, marking it F3. Used for lower-pitched instruments and the left hand of the piano.
Pitch & NotationAlto & tenor (C) clefs
Movable C clefs whose center marks middle C (C4). The alto clef centers on the middle line (viola); the tenor clef on the fourth line (some cello, bassoon, trombone parts).
Pitch & NotationMiddle C
C4 — the C nearest the middle of the piano keyboard. It sits on a ledger line between the treble and bass staves of the grand staff.
Pitch & NotationAccidental
A sharp (♯), flat (♭), or natural (♮) that raises or lowers a pitch by a half step. Applies for the rest of the measure unless cancelled.
Pitch & NotationHalf step
The smallest interval in Western tonal music — the distance from one pitch to the very next. B–C and E–F are natural half steps.
Scales & KeysWhole step
An interval equal to two half steps.
Scales & KeysEnharmonic equivalent
Two different note names for the same sounding pitch, such as C♯ and D♭.
Scales & KeysMajor scale
A seven-note scale built on the pattern Whole–Whole–Half–Whole–Whole–Whole–Half from the tonic to its octave.
Scales & KeysScale degree
The numbered/named position of a note within a scale: 1 tonic, 2 supertonic, 3 mediant, 4 subdominant, 5 dominant, 6 submediant, 7 leading tone.
Scales & KeysTonic
The first scale degree and the tonal center — the pitch a key feels "at home" on.
Scales & KeysKey signature
The set of sharps or flats placed after the clef that applies throughout a piece, defining its key.
Scales & KeysCircle of fifths
A diagram of the 12 keys arranged by ascending perfect fifths. Clockwise adds sharps; counterclockwise adds flats.
Scales & KeysOrder of sharps / flats
Sharps appear in the order F–C–G–D–A–E–B; flats appear in the reverse order B–E–A–D–G–C–F.
Scales & KeysRhythmic value
The duration of a note or rest: whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, and so on, each half the length of the previous.
Rhythm & MeterAugmentation dot
A dot after a note that adds half of that note's value (a dotted half note lasts three beats in simple meter).
Rhythm & MeterTie
A curved line joining two notes of the same pitch so they sound as one note whose duration is their combined value.
Rhythm & MeterBeat & beat division
The steady pulse of music. In simple meter each beat divides into two; in compound meter each beat divides into three.
Rhythm & MeterMeter
The grouping of beats into regular patterns — duple (2), triple (3), or quadruple (4) — combined with simple or compound division.
Rhythm & MeterTime signature
Two stacked numbers at the start of a piece. In simple meter the top gives beats per measure and the bottom the beat value; in compound meter the beat is a dotted note.
Rhythm & MeterAnacrusis (pickup)
One or more notes that begin a phrase before the first full measure; the missing beats are usually completed in the final measure.
Rhythm & MeterTempo
The speed of the beat, shown by Italian terms (Largo, Adagio, Andante, Moderato, Allegro, Vivace, Presto) or a metronome marking such as = 120.
ExpressionDynamics
Markings for loudness: pp, p, mp, mf, f, ff, plus gradual changes — crescendo (louder) and decrescendo/diminuendo (softer).
ExpressionArticulation
How a note is attacked and released: staccato (short/detached), legato (smooth/connected), and accent (>) for emphasis.
Expression