Clef Signs Create Landmark Notes
Clef Signs Create Landmark Notes on the Staff and make Note Reading Easier!
Clef Signs are signs (musical symbols) that assign specific pitches to the notes. Clef Signs create Landmark Notes when written properly. A Landmark is a “clue”, a tool to help you find specific notes on the Staff.
It is so very (VERY) important to learn how to draw these Clef Signs correctly and to teach this to our students. Even young students can easily learn how to draw Clef Signs correctly.
For tips on how to draw Treble Clef Signs and Bass Clef Signs correctly, check out the following Blogs:
In this Blog, I want to explore WHY we should draw a Treble Clef (or G Clef) and a Bass Clef (or F Clef) properly!
Clef Signs Create Landmark Notes: 3 Landmark Notes Created by the Treble Clef Sign
In the Prep 1 Rudiments Workbook, students learn mnemonics (reminders) for remembering the names of the Line Notes (Page 16) and the Space Notes (Page 18) for the Treble Staff. To provide students with yet another tool for remembering note names in the Treble Clef, let’s look at how drawing Treble Clef Signs properly will create 3 Landmark G Notes!
Landmark G #1: On the piano, "G3" is the 3rd G going up from the bottom of the piano. The bottom "scoop" of the Treble Clef Sign should line up at the top of this "G3 Space".
Landmark G #2: "G4", the 4th G going up from the bottom of the piano, is the G in the middle of the "circle" around the "G4 Line" (Line #2 of the Treble Staff).
Landmark G #3: "G5", the 5th G going up the piano, is the G space circled by the top of the Treble Staff
One problem with the “fad” of Online Theory Courses is that students do not learn how to put pencil to paper and actually write their music notation! (Can you imagine if schooling was all done on a computer and your child never learned how to write or even how to sign their name?)
It is important to explain to students that they do not have to recreate the Treble Clef Sign “font” that they see in their music. It is super easy to draw a Treble Clef Sign in 4 Steps, which will then create the 3 Landmark G Notes.
Notice that there is no “font shading” when writing (or drawing) the Treble G Clef Sign – just simple lines. Students should also be taught that whole notes are just ovals, again with no special outline.
Use your Whiteboard to practice Drawing the Treble Clef Sign in 4 Steps (to create 3 Landmark Notes!).
Understanding the location (pitch) of these 3 Treble Clef Landmark G Notes makes it easy to find the names of the other notes on the staff (just by stepping or skipping up and down).
If you do not write the Treble Clef Sign properly, then you do not create the Landmark G Notes. Doesn’t it now make sense why the Treble Clef Sign is also called the G Clef?!
Clef Signs Create Landmark Notes - 5 Landmark Notes Created by the Bass Clef Sign
In the Prep 1 Rudiments Workbook, students learn mnemonics (reminders) for remembering the names of the Line Notes (Page 22) and the Space Notes (Page 24) for the Bass Staff. Let's look at how drawing Bass Clef Signs properly will create 5 Landmark Bass Notes!
Landmark #1: This F is called "F3", the 3rd F up from the bottom of the keyboard. The Dot at the beginning of the Bass Clef Sign grabs on to this line!
Landmark #2: The A on line #5 of the Bass Staff is called "A3". (The A at the very bottom of the keyboard is "A0".)
Landmark #3: The A on space #1 of the Bass Staff is called "A2".
Landmarks #4 and #5: "G3" is the G in Space #4 of the Bass Staff. "E3" is the E in Space #3 of the Bass Staff.
Remember to fill in the dots on the F line and in the G and E spaces. A “circle” is not acceptable. It is also important that the Bass Clef “half heart” does not go below Line #1!
The “F” in “F Clef” is obvious when the Bass (F) Clef is drawn properly. The Landmark F line is grabbed on to by the dot on Line #4 (the dot at the beginning of the Bass Clef Sign), and is “surrounded” by the 2 dots at the end of the Bass Clef Sign (the dot in Space 3 and the dot in Space 4).
Students can easily identify notes on the Bass Staff by remembering that Line #4 is the F line. If you do not write the Bass Clef Sign properly, then you do not create the Landmark F Note (or any of the other 4 Bass Clef Landmark notes).
As students finish the writing work on each page of Lesson #2 in the UMT Prep 1 Rudiments Workbook, it is important to take the Workbook to the Piano (or whatever instrument the student is learning) and to play every note at the correct pitch.
To help support the development of Tracking Skills (as discussed in my blog "Learning Styles #6 - Tracking Skills"), encourage the student to point to the notes on the music with one hand while playing them on their instrument with their other hand.
Use the Whiteboard to Create Landmark Notes
Your Ultimate Music Theory Whiteboard is an amazing teaching tool. Students can practice step by step how to write proper Clef Signs creating Landmark Notes that make reading music so much easier.
The UMT Whiteboard is perfect for teaching concepts at the lesson. It is light weight (even I can lift it using only 3 fingers!) and slips into a special stand. The Small Student Whiteboard is also a "must" for students.
And Remember... Have Fun! Make a game of pitching the notes on each Staff to their correct location on your instrument!
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Shelagh McKibbon-U'Ren
