The treble clef in its familiar form appeared in the sixteenth century, when instrumental music. But its prehistory began at the turn of the first and second millennium AD. Then the Benedictine monk Guido from the city of Arezzo in the Italian province of Tuscany figured out how to record music using notes. To indicate sound, it was necessary to invent some kind of symbol.
The notes in their current style are the sole merit of Guido d'Arezzo. After him, the system of recording music was improved, but it was this monk who laid the foundations. At the beginning of the line, he wrote down the note from which the melody began. The letter G, denoting the note “salt”, served as a prototype treble clef.
What is its function? Five rulers can accommodate eleven. The treble clef indicates on which ruler (second from bottom) the “sol” of the first octave is located. The range of notes located on these five lines when notated using a treble clef is quite sufficient for most musical instruments. However, this is not suitable for everyone. There are very low-sounding instruments and, on the contrary, very high-sounding instruments. If you record a melody for them, you will have to apply additional rulers. They can be from below or from above. This is very inconvenient when reading a melody from a sheet. In order to record music for different instruments, the treble clef turned out to be poorly suited. Therefore, several more signs of this kind were invented. These are bass, alto, tenor and some other keys.
What is the difference between them? indicates where the F note of the minor (next down from the first) octave is located. It is located on the second ruler from the top. The baritone is slightly higher than the bass, so the baritone clef places the same note on the middle ruler. The alto symbol places the C note of the first octave on the same line. Why is this happening? The fact is that the alto is higher than the baritone or tenor.
A total of eleven keys are currently used in practice. In the past there were much more of them, but in the process of development, most of them were no longer needed. To record the highest (in musically) sound, a soprano or treble key is used. He places the C note of the first octave on the first line from the bottom.
The treble clef is also not suitable for recording parts. For this, a special “neutral” symbol is used. After all, the concept of pitch means nothing. The main thing here is rhythm and volume. It is written in two versions.
In the first case, these are two thick parallel vertical lines, their ends resting on the second and fourth lines of the staff, and in the second, they are an elongated rectangle, slightly not reaching the outer lines.
The popularity of the treble clef as a musical symbol has even sparked a fashion for tattooing. Among musicians, it is considered the personification of creativity and indicates the owner’s affiliation fashionable tattoo to people of art. But in the “zone” the “treble clef” tattoo can have a completely different meaning. It will cause a lot of trouble to a person who carelessly gets a tattoo of this musical symbol. As a rule, it is injected into homosexuals.
However, the opinion of the criminal community regarding this tattoo has not been completely settled. Therefore, depending on the place of application and graphic nuances, a treble clef may also mean that its owner was leading a cheerful, wild life. However, the cost of a mistake in this case is too high, so more and more inmates of prisons prefer not to get involved with a dubious tattoo.
When teachers are in music schools When telling young children what a treble clef is, they often say something very beautiful and motivating. For example: “This is a treble clef! It opens a line of notes and will open the door to the vast world of music for you!” Sounds poetic. But it's not entirely clear. Why is it still a “key”? And why exactly “violin”? After all, not only violinists have notes with this sign. Strange?
The word “key” is indeed no coincidence; this sign really is a key. But not from the door, but rather to the code. This cipher is a recording of notes, because they can be written in different ways.
What are notes? Notes are graphic symbols for sounds of a certain pitch, which are grouped and written in a special octave system. The fact is that musical sounds, the frequency (yes, it is measured in Hertz) of which differs by exactly 2 times, sound very similar to our ears. Like repeating the same thing - only at different heights. The distance (interval) between them is called an octave. Therefore the entire range musical sounds divided into sections, which are also called octaves. Similar sounds in each section - notes - have the same names: Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Si. And the next note after B is C, only an octave higher. And so on.
The staff is the same 5 lines on which and between which notes are written sequentially. Thus, a maximum of 11 notes can be recorded. But notes, unlike rulers, do not end. And even adding a couple or three additional mini-rulers for individual notes, we will not cover ALL possible notes of all octaves. And most importantly - on different instruments You can only play notes in certain octaves, neither higher nor lower. It's the same with the human voice. This means that we need to determine exactly what range we need and write in it - after all, the lines of the staff themselves do not mean anything until we set the starting point. It is necessary to specify the KEY note from which all others will be measured.
That's what the key is for. It is he who determines the “coding” - which line the “main” note corresponds to, and therefore how the others are located relative to it. And there can be many options - just like musical keys. Their symbols seem intricate, but they have meaning: the central element of each key points to this very “starting” note.
The treble clef, beloved by everyone (and us), is the “G” clef: its curl goes around the second line of the staff, on which the G of the first octave is located in the treble clef. This means that under this second line there will be F, and above it - A. It is convenient to write notes for the violin in the treble clef, female vocals, winds, some drums and right hand piano (but not always). Just because it's enough high sounds and the treble clef fits: it covers the First and Second octaves. This is the range of the average human voice (and violin). Traditionally, the tenor parts (male high voice) and the guitars are also recorded in treble clef, only performed an octave lower.
There are also keys “F” - bass, for example. It contains parts of the second hand for piano, cello and bassoon - parts in the Large and Small octave, that is, low sounds. Its "curl" and two dots place the note F of the minor octave on the fourth line of the staff. If you move it down one ruler, you get a baritone clef: in it, F, accordingly, is located on the third ruler.
There are also keys “C”: alto, tenor, soprano. And we are silent about completely special keys for drums, which may not say anything at all about the pitch of the sound! Indeed, there are a great many ways to encrypt music - but it’s quite possible to figure them out. If only you know how to choose the right key.
Hello, dear friends. We have not yet talked about the types of musical keys, and in this article we will correct this.
Today we only know how to write notes in the treble clef. By the way, the treble clef is also called the G clef.
In it, the notes, as we know, are written as follows:
rice. 1
In Figure 1, we started moving up from the note to the first octave.
We also encountered the bass clef, for example, when we analyzed Bach’s Minuet:
rice. 2
The bass clef is also called the F clef. The point is that its middle (between two points) “points” to the note F.
If you record the scale from Figure 1 in a bass clef, it will look like this:
rice. 3
That is, A in the bass clef is C in the treble clef, B in the bass clef is D in the treble clef, and so on.
There are also system keys up to.
And if we have often encountered treble and bass clefs, then this key will perhaps be something new for us.
The keys of this system move up and down. The point of these movements is to indicate where the note will be located up to the first octave.
For example, if the third line from the top intersects the center of the key, then at the level of this line we will have a C sound (this will be called Alto clef).
For example, we can write down the same scale as shown in Figure 1 like this:
rice. 4
In the keys of the C system, instruments such as viola are written (Figure 4 shows notes just for this instrument), trombone, and cello.
Note written on blank stave in any place is not able to accurately indicate the pitch of a sound, much less its name. In order for a particular note indicated on the staff to show its absolute pitch, it is necessary to use special character, which is called the musical key. It must be indicated at the beginning of any staff, since literally all notes are for classical guitar must be in treble clef. Its other name is also often found - salt key.
In the center, the treble clef is like a circle that encloses a specific line on the staff. Thus, it shows on which line in the staff the note “sol” of the first octave is located. As a rule, the center of the clef always covers the second line, thereby indicating that the G note is on it.
Just below in the picture you can see the range of all possible sounds that can be produced on a guitar, located in the treble clef.
And of course, in order to learn how to play pieces of any complexity on the guitar, this arrangement of notes will need to be memorized. The easiest way to do this is to start memorizing the location and name of the notes only on the five main and three lower additional lines (while remembering the octaves in which they are located).
With this step, it will be much easier for you to later identify the notes that are between the lines. This is done thanks to a regular account. For example, if you know that on the second main line there is a G note of the first octave, and on the next line there is a B note, then it is not difficult to guess that between them there will be an A note of the same octave, since the order of the scale is always constant. The designations of the notes that are written above the fifth main line are best remembered on practical exercises, as compositions appear that will include such high-pitched sounds.
Bass clef
In addition to the treble clef, musical notation also uses the bass clef, or, as it is also called, the F clef. Ideally, of course, it would be nice to learn the location of the notes on the staff not only in the treble clef, but also in the bass clef, or, at worst, remember the location of at least one note in it in order to determine the position of other notes using counting. Usually, for convenience, this note is used with the note “C” of the first octave.
What is this bass key for? The answer is simple - for piano. The thing is that notes for piano and grand piano are written on two entire staves, located and running parallel to each other. The upper staff indicates notes in the treble clef, and the lower staff indicates the notes in the bass clef. This is because the piano can physically produce many more sounds at the same time than the guitar, and therefore, to avoid confusion, the bass notes and melody notes were divided into two staves.
All this is good, you say, but why do we, guitarists, know all this? In principle, for those who learn to play just for fun or to simply show off their skills in front of friends and acquaintances, there is no need to know the location of the notes in the bass clef. But for those who want to constantly develop in musical direction and make the guitar an indispensable part of your life, such knowledge will undoubtedly come in handy.
Thanks to the ability to read notes written for the piano, you can always transpose them and convert them into notes suitable for playing the guitar. For guitarists who are planning to play music groups or orchestras, such knowledge is simply priceless, because the same bass clef is used in the musical notation of many other instruments. On the staff it is written on the fourth main line.
Many parents practice developmental education in raising their children at home. music lessons. Children learn music in different ways: they listen to it, they perform it - play or sing, and finally, they try to learn how to record music. And, of course, when starting to teach a child the basics musical notation the matter cannot be completed without studying the treble clef.
Today we will talk about how to draw a treble clef. It would seem that this is such a trifle, and why is it necessary to devote a separate article to this issue? Many adults can write such a sign without difficulty, but some of them are completely unable to explain how they do it. And children need just such explanations. And therefore, we will now talk in detail about how you still need to write a treble clef, and you, dear parents of future geniuses, will then be able to convey these explanations to your child in an accessible form.
The Secret of the Treble Clef
This is amazing, but very few people know about it. It is believed that the treble clef is a purely musical sign, but in fact the treble clef in its original historical form is a letter. Yes, this is the letter G of the Latin alphabet, which over many centuries has been transformed beyond recognition. However, an observant person with the naked eye may well detect the outlines of this letter in this musical-graphic symbol.
What does the letter G have to do with it? - you say. The fact is that there is a system in music. So, according to this system, the letter G of the Latin alphabet corresponds to the sound SALT! And the second name for the treble clef is the SALT CLEF. So it is called because the treble clef indicates the position of the sol note of the first octave on the staff (looking ahead, let's say that this is the second line).
How to draw a treble clef?
The treble clef is located on a special line of notes - the staff. The staff of music consists of five horizontal lines, which are recalculated from bottom to top, like the floors of any building. The treble clef is tied to the second ruler, on which, as already mentioned, the note SA should be placed. You must either start drawing the treble clef from a point on the second ruler, or, conversely, finish writing it on this ruler. Thus, there are two different ways to depict a treble clef on paper. Any of them can be used. Let's take a closer look.
Method 1 – step by step
- In the first method, we start drawing the treble clef from the second ruler - we put a dot on it or lightly cross it out with a stroke directed upwards.
- From the first point, draw a circle between the third and first lines. It is important that your lines do not go beyond the boundaries of the indicated rulers, otherwise the treble clef will turn out ugly. You should also avoid the other extreme of drawing the circle too small.
- We do not close the drawn circle, but continue further like a spiral, but on the second turn we draw the line up and slightly to the left. In this way you need to rise a little higher than the fifth line.
- Above the fifth line, a turn is made to the right. When driving in reverse side, that is, down, when the lines intersect, you should get a loop. Such loops in writing often occur, for example, when we write the lowercase letter B in a notebook.
- Next, we go down in a straight or inclined line, as if piercing our treble clef in the middle. When we have already “pierced” the finished key and the line has gone down just below the first ruler, then we can wrap it - we get a hook. There is no need to wrap it tightly - one bend in the shape of a small semicircle is enough (as when writing capital letters F, A, etc.).
IMPORTANT! You need to show the child several times, and each time the detail of the explanation should decrease. First, everything is told, then only the key points are noted (CIRCLE, LOOP, HOOK). The last few runs should be smooth, that is, all the individual elements should be connected into a solid line, the pencil should glide across the paper without leaving it and without stopping.
MOMENT 1. If it is difficult for a child to repeat a graphic combination immediately on paper, then you can work with him in the following ways. First, you can draw giant treble clefs in the air. The child can repeat the movements that adults show him. At first, you can even take his hand and smoothly perform the entire combination several times, when the baby remembers the movement, let him work on his own.
MOMENT 2. Secondly, you can use another good method - drawing large treble clefs with chalk on a blackboard. An adult can write a treble clef and ask the child to trace the outline of the sign several times, perhaps with multi-colored crayons. The thickened treble clef can then be erased from the board, and the child can be given the task of drawing everything himself.
Method 2 - everything is the other way around
The second method of drawing is simpler than the first, but the first is considered traditional, and this one is considered exotic. But usually, when drawing from a hook, the treble clef turns out to be more rounded and beautiful.
- We start drawing the treble clef from the bottom, from the hook. We rise in a straight or slightly inclined line upward, above the fifth ruler.
- Above the fifth line we begin to draw an ordinary figure eight (the number eight), but we do not complete this work.
- Our figure eight does not close, does not return to the original point, but in the right place simply turns in a circle to the second line. Remember, yes, that circle between the first and third line?
Thus, now we complete the image of the treble clef on the second line. Let us once again emphasize the exceptional importance of linking the key to the second line. At this place on the staff the note SA is written, which is a kind of starting point for all the others.
Drawing treble clefs is usually very exciting for children. For greater strength and for best quality You can practice writing this musical sign several times - on the board, in an album, in a music notebook, as well as in musical copybooks.
For home practice, we offer you pages of G. Kalinina’s musical recipes, which are specifically dedicated to the treble and bass clefs. Having worked through this material, the student, as a rule, never again experiences any difficulties when he needs to place the key at the beginning of the staff.
Download a selection of tasks –
Of course, in music, in addition to the treble clef, others are used - bass, . But they are introduced into practice a little later, so there are no problems with their writing.
Dear friends, if you still have questions that you have been looking for answers to for a long time, ask them in the comments to this material. We will also be happy to hear your suggestions on the topics of our future releases.
And now, we offer tired adults and energetic children to do in life musical break. Today we have musical humor. Listen to A. Barto’s poem “Chatterbox,” familiar from childhood, with music by composer S. Prokofiev. We hope that you will get a lot of positive emotions from viewing this issue.
