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Lesson 4: Ledger Lines
By Debbie Ridpath Ohi - 06/04/2007 - 10:53 AM EDT
So
I imagine your treble clef cards are all dog-eared with diligent
practice by now, and you can all easily recognize notes on any line
or space in the treble clef.
If
you're still having trouble memorizing the lines, several creative
readers have sent in their own suggestions to use instead of "Every
Good Boy Deserves Fudge". Jeanette Woodley suggests "Every
Good Band Deserves Fans", a sentiment with which I'm sure we all
wholeheartedly agree. I like that much better than the fudge saying.
Jeffrey
Freedman sent in the gastonomically adventurous "Eat Good Bring
Dog Food". While the culinary value of this suggestion is questionable,
it's definitely memorable. Thanks to both Jeanette and Jeffrey for
their ideas!
To
review, we've now learned how to name all the notes from the E on
the lowest line in the treble clef to the F on the top line of the
treble clef:
Every
note on a line or space in the treble clef, by the way, represents
a white key on the piano keyboard:
No
need to memorize this (save that for when you take keyboard lessons);
I just thought you'd be interested.
As
you practiced your treble clef cards, the more astute of you may
have been wondering:
What
about notes above or below the treble clef?
A
good question. Take a look at the note F on the top line of the
treble clef, for example:
One
note higher than F, of course, is G:
The
top G isn't a part of the "Every Good Band Deserves Fans" saying,
which only refers to the names of the lines in the treble clef,
and the "Good" refers to the second line G. You'll just have to
learn to quickly recognize the fact that the note just above the
top F line is G. I've provided these new notes on some more flashcards
to help you with the learning process.
Similarly,
the note just below the bottom E line is D:
But
what about notes that go even higher or lower? How are they annotated?
The magic answer lies in using:
Ledger
Lines
A ledger
line is a small line like this:
A note
on the first ledger line above the treble clef is an A:
A note
on the first ledger line below the treble clef is a C:
I'm
sure you're all eager to start learning these new notes, so here
are some more flashcards for you:
Next
time, we take a look at the BASS CLEF.
Book
Review: You've Got Rhythm
 You've
Got Rhythm:
Read Music Better By Feeling The Beat
By Anna Dembska and Joan Harkness
Flying Leap Music, 2002
This
book is a fun adult introduction to meter, metric accents, and other
rhythm concepts through clapping exercises. The concepts are explained
in ordinary English and with enthusiasm; no dry technical talk here.
The book covers everything from a basic explanation of what meter
and simple rhythm symbols to covering more advanced topics like
shifting meter and duples in compound meter. A handy glossary is
provided at the back.
You can order this book through Amazon.
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