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Why do we write down music?

The sounds we make in music can be written down in different ways.

Musicians write their music down so they can remember it.

Once it's written down, they can share it with other people, so they can play the music too.

Where do we start?

Words are sounds too.

You will be learning to read words and make the right phonic sounds for each word.

Learning to read music is a bit like learning to read the words in a book.

It takes time, but we can have fun doing it.

What is stick notation?

Notation means to write down.

A good way to start writing sounds is to use stick notation.

Let's take a simple phrase:

My name is

There's three sounds, so we draw three sticks.

When using stick notation think about the gap between the sounds.

Sounds that are close together are put in a group. Sounds further apart have their own individual sticks.

If you want to notate the words I like fish and chips you can write it like this.

Stick notation is just one useful way you can write music down.

What are graphic scores?

Graphic scores use pictures or 'graphics' to show sounds.

How do you think you might play this pattern on a drum?

There are four sounds.

So you might play loud, then quiet, loud and then quiet again.

Why don't you try writing your own pattern and asking a friend or family member to play it?

Do they play it in the way you imagine it?

How do we show pitch?

As well as the pattern or rhythm of sounds, we can also show the pitch of the sounds using graphics.

The pitch of a note means whether it's a high sound or a low sound.

If you were playing a keyboard and you saw the following pattern written down, what would you play?

This can be read as:

• The first circle is a high pitched sound.
• The second circle is a medium pitched sound.
• The third circle is a low pitched sound.

This notation doesn't say which notes to play. You can try playing different notes until you find a pattern you like, with high, medium and low pitched sounds in the right order.

Glossary

Stick notation - A way of writing down music using sticks to represent sounds.
Graphic score - Writing down music using pictures or graphics to represent sound.
Rhythm - A pattern of sounds of different lengths.
Pitch - How high or low a sound is.

Activity - Reading music challenge

Here are some patterns that use stick notation and graphic scores.

Have a go at playing them on any musical instrument and see if you can work out what they sound like.

If you don't have an instrument, try using your body or voice to make the sounds instead.

Have a go at inventing your own patterns and writing them down using stick or graphic notation.

See if a friend or family member can read them and play it on an instrument, or sing it too!