Music Notation

Maxima

Known as a Maxima or an Octuple Whole Note, its value is the length of eight whole notes. It is very rare to see this notation used, but it is included to be complete. Most often in modern music, note of great length are tied rather than using what has become obscure notation.

Dotted Maxima

A dotted Maxima's value is the length of twelve whole notes.

Longa

Known as a Longa, Long, Quadruple, or a Quadruple Whole Note, its value is the length of four whole notes. This is also very rare to see notated.

Dotted Longa

A Dotted Longa's value is the length of six whole notes.

Breve

Known as a Breve or a Double Whole Note, its value is the length of two whole notes. More common than Maxima or Longa, but still a bit obscure and rarely notated.

Dotted Breve

A dotted Breve is the length of three whole notes.

Whole Note

Known as a Whole Note or a Semibreve, its value is the length of one whole notes.

Dotted Whole Note

A dotted whole note is the length of three half notes.

Half Note

Known as a Half Note or a Minim Note, its value is the length of one half a whole notes.

Dotted Half Note

A dotted Half Note is the length of three quarter notes.

Quarter Note

Known as a Quarter Note or a Crochet Note, its value is the length of one quarter of a whole note.

Dotted Quarter Note

A dotted Quarter Note is the length of three eighth notes.

Eighth Note

Known as a Eighth Note or a Quaver Note, its value is the length of one eighth of a whole note.

Dotted Eighth Note

A dotted Eighth Note is the length of three sixteenth notes.

Sixteenth Note

Known as a Sixteen Note or a Semiquaver Note, its value is the length of one sixteenth of a whole note.

Dotted Sixteenth Note

A dotted Sixteenth Note is the length of three thirty-second notes.

Thirty-Second Note

Known as a Thirty-Second Note or a Demisemiquaver Note, its value is the length of one thirty-second of a whole note.

Dotted Thirty-Second Note

A dotted Thirty-Second Note is the length of three sixty-fourth notes.

Staccatissimo or Spiccato

Indicates a longer silence after the note (as described above), making the note very short. Usually applied to quarter notes or shorter. In the past, this marking's meaning was more ambiguous: it sometimes was used interchangeably with staccato, and sometimes indicated an accent and not staccato. These usages are now almost defunct, but still appear in some scores. In string instruments this indicates a bowing technique in which the bow bounces lightly upon the string.

Staccato

This indicates the musician should play the note shorter than notated, usually half the value; the rest of the metric value is then silent. Staccato marks may appear on notes of any value, shortening their performed duration without speeding the music itself.

Tenuto

This symbol indicates play the note at its full value, or slightly longer. It can also indicate a degree of emphasis, especially when combined with dynamic markings to indicate a change in loudness, or combined with a staccato dot to indicate a slight detachment (portato or mezzo staccato).

Fermata (Pause)

A note, chord, or rest sustained longer than its customary value. Usually appears over all parts at the same metrical location in a piece, to show a halt in tempo. It can be placed above or below the note. The fermata is held for as long as the performer or conductor desires, but is often set as twice the original value of the designated notes.

Accent

Play the note louder, or with a harder attack than surrounding unaccented notes. May appear on notes of any duration.

Marcato

Play the note somewhat louder or more forcefully than a note with a regular accent mark (open horizontal wedge). In organ notation, this means play a pedal note with the toe. Above the note, use the right foot; below the note, use the left foot.

Trill

A rapid alternation between the specified note and the next higher note (according to key signature) within its duration, also called a "shake". When followed by a wavy horizontal line, this symbol indicates an extended, or running, trill. In modern music the trill begins on the main note and ends with the lower auxiliary note then the main note, which requires a triplet immediately before the turn. In music up to the time of Haydn or Mozart the trill begins on the upper auxiliary note and there is no triplet. In percussion notation, a trill is sometimes used to indicate a tremolo. In French baroque notation, the trill, or tremblement, was notated as a small cross above or beside the note.

Upper Mordent

Rapidly play the principal note, the next higher note (according to key signature) then return to the principal note for the remaining duration. In most music, the mordent begins on the auxiliary note, and the alternation between the two notes may be extended. In handbells, this symbol is a "shake" and indicates the rapid shaking of the bells for the duration of the note.

Lower mordent (inverted)

Rapidly play the principal note, the note below it, then return to the principal note for the remaining duration. In much music, the mordent begins on the auxiliary note, and the alternation between the two notes may be extended.

Appoggiatura

The first half of the principal note's duration has the pitch of the grace note (the first two-thirds if the principal note is a dotted note).

Acciaccatura

The acciaccatura is of very brief duration, as though brushed on the way to the principal note, which receives virtually all of its notated duration. In percussion notation, the acciaccatura symbol denotes the flam rudiment, the miniature note still positioned behind the main note but on the same line or space of the staff. The flam note is usually played just before the natural durational subdivision the main note is played on, with the timing and duration of the main note remaining unchanged. Also known by the English translation of the Italian term, crushed note, and in German as Zusammenschlag (simultaneous stroke).

Glissando or Portamento

A continuous, unbroken glide from one note to the next that includes the pitches between. Some instruments, such as the trombone, timpani, non-fretted string instruments, electronic instruments, and the human voice can make this glide continuously (portamento), while other instruments such as the piano or mallet instruments blur the discrete pitches between the start and end notes to mimic a continuous slide (glissando).

Tremolo

A rapidly repeated note. If the tremolo is between two notes, then they are played in rapid alternation. The number of slashes through the stem (or number of diagonal bars between two notes) indicates the frequency to repeat (or alternate) the note. As shown here, the note is to be repeated at a demisemiquaver (thirty-second note) rate, but it is a common convention for three slashes to be interpreted as "as fast as possible", or at any rate at a speed to be left to the player's judgment.

Ottava

8va (pronounced ottava alta) is placed above the staff (as shown) to tell the musician to play the passage one octave higher. When this sign (or in recent notation practice, an 8vb – both signs reading ottava bassa) is placed below the staff, it indicates to play the passage one octave lower.

Quindicesima

The 15ma sign is placed above the staff (as shown) to mean play the passage two octaves higher. A 15ma sign below the staff indicates play the passage two octaves lower. 8va and 15ma are sometimes abbreviated further to 8 and 15. When they appear below the staff, the word bassa is sometimes added.

Beamed Notes

Beams connect eighth notes (quavers) and notes of shorter value and are equivalent in value to flags. In metered music, beams reflect the rhythmic grouping of notes. They may also group short phrases of notes of the same value, regardless of the meter; this is more common in ametrical passages. In older printings of vocal music, beams are often only used when several notes are to be sung on one syllable of the text - melismatic singing; modern notation encourages the use of beaming in a consistent manner with instrumental engraving, and the presence of beams or flags no longer informs the singer about the lyrics. Today, due to the body of music in which traditional metric states are not always assumed, beaming is at the discretion of composers and arrangers, who often use irregular beams to emphasize a particular rhythmic pattern.

Dotted Note

Placing a dot to the right of a note head lengthens the note's duration by one-half. Additional dots lengthen the previous dot instead of the original note, thus a note with one dot is one and one half its original value, a note with two dots is one and three quarters, a note with three dots is one and seven eighths, and so on. Rests can be dotted in the same manner as notes. In other words, n dots lengthen the note's or rest's original duration d to d x (2 - 2-n).

Multi-Measure Rest

Indicates the number of measures in a resting part without a change in meter to conserve space and to simplify notation. Also called gathered rest or multi-bar rest.

Tie

Indicates that the two (or more) notes joined together are to be played as one note with the time values added together. To be a tie, the notes must be identical – that is, they must be on the same line or the same space. Otherwise, it is a slur (see below).

Slur / Legato

Indicates to play two or more notes in one physical stroke, one uninterrupted breath, or (on instruments with neither breath nor bow) connected into a phrase as if played in a single breath. In certain contexts, a slur may only indicate to play the notes legato. In this case, rearticulation is permitted.

Slurs and ties are similar in appearance. A tie is distinguishable because it always joins two immediately adjacent notes of the same pitch, whereas a slur may join any number of notes of varying pitches. In vocal music a slur normally indicates that notes grouped together by the slur should be sung to a single syllable. A phrase mark (or less commonly, ligature) is a mark that is visually identical to a slur, but connects a passage of music over several measures. A phrase mark indicates a musical phrase and may not necessarily require that the music be slurred.

Tuplet

A number of notes of irregular duration are performed within the duration of a given number of notes of regular time value; e.g., five notes played in the normal duration of four notes; seven notes played in the normal duration of two; three notes played in the normal duration of four. Tuplets are named according to the number of irregular notes; e.g., duplets, triplets, quadruplets, etc.

Arpeggiated Chord

A chord with notes played in rapid succession, usually ascending, each note being sustained as the others are played. It is also called a "broken chord" or "rolled chord".