Plus a free resource!
Hello! I know it has been a little while since my last blog, I’ve been teaching final summer lessons for some students (so they have to be extra special!) , planning summer lessons for students still taking lessons, rehearsing for performances and working in my allotment. Along with many other things. Today I writing a blog on something lots of students struggle with, but is truly fundamental when it comes to learning piano (particularly if you want to be independent and free to play whatever you want at some point!) That is reading music. A good way to begin to read piano music is with mnemonics. With a little Mnemonic Magic, you will be well on your way to reading piano notes!
Mnemonics are memory aids that help you remember information—in this case, the names of the notes on the lines and spaces of the musical stave (staff) for piano.
Firstly, lets get to grip with a piano staff:
🎼 Understanding the Staff:
- The staff consists of five lines and four spaces.
- Piano music uses two staves:
- The treble clef (usually middle C and above, and for beginners, usually for the right hand)
- The bass clef (usually middle C and below, and for beginners, usually for the left hand)
- The treble clef (usually middle C and above, and for beginners, usually for the right hand)
Tip: You can access blank sheet music at https://pianocoda.com/blank-sheet-music/
🎹 Treble Clef Mnemonics
Lines (from bottom to top):
E – G – B – D – F
💡 Mnemonic Magic: Every Green Bus Drives Fast
(this works well in my town as the busses are green!)
Spaces (from bottom to top):
F – A – C – E
💡 Mnemonic Magic: Just remember: it spells “FACE”!
🎹 Bass Clef Mnemonics (Left Hand)
Lines (from bottom to top):
G – B – D – F – A
💡 Mnemonic Magic: Good Burgers Deserve Fries Always
Spaces (from bottom to top):
A – C – E – G
💡 Mnemonic Magic: All Cows Eat Grass
This is available to download as a free pdf on my resources page.
How to use the mnemonic magic:
When reading sheet music:
- You identify whether a note is on a line or space.
- You determine which clef is used.
- You then apply the mnemonic to quickly figure out the note name.
- This will become more automatic with practice and eventually gets replaced by immediate recognition.
What about B, middle C and D?
Middle C is below the lines in treble clef and above the lines in bass clef. Think of music like a diagonal line going up, not just two straight lines. You can also use the resource I’ve provided to actually picture middle C on the page.
💡Mnemonic Magic Tip:
Always try to recognise where middle C is on the music. Try to note where maybe D below middle C is (3rd line up in bass clef) and an octave higher than middle C (3rd space up in treble clef). These are good ANCHOR points. As time progresses start to remember more anchor points, and use the same idea for notes above and below the main stave (but those notes are for another blog!)
Thanks for reading 🙂
