How to read music clefs

Reading music is essential for any musician. The musical alphebet consists of the letters A, B, C, D, E, F and G. When Going above G you are to start off on A again. When any note is flattened the note is automattically a half step lower than the original note. On the other side, any note that has a sharp is going to be moved up half a step. Sometimes there are double sharps or double flats. Any double flat is moved a full step down and any double sharp is moved a full step up.

On any clef there are five lines. Any lines extending from the clef are called ledger lines. Ledger lines help when you have really low notes or really high notes. When to many ledger lines are being used the composer may write the part in a different clef. There are four main clefs in which I am going to teach you how to read.

First I'm going to start off with the bass clef (also called the f clef). The bass clef is used by the trombone, baritone, bassoon, tuba, bass and many other instruments. The bottom line of the bass clef is an E. The top line of the bass clef is an A.

Next is the treble clef (also called the g clef). This is the most popular of all of the clefs. Oboe, flute, sax, clarinet, guitar, violin and many, many others use this clef. The bottom line of this clef is an E and the top line is an F.

The third most common clef is the tenor clef (also one of the clefs called the c clef). This clef is used by trombone, bassoon, cello, french horn and a few other select instruments. The bottom line is a D and the top line is a E.

The next clef is the alto clef (also called the c clef). It was created for the viola to eliminate the many ledger lines constantly used. It's used by the viola the alto trombone and is sometimes used by other instruments. The bottom line is an F and the top line is an G.