Understanding Musical Notes and

their Notation
Reading music is really all about memorization. Your painfully learn how to
look at a printed note (on paper) and immediately finger the instrument in the
correct way. On a piano, each note lands on exactly one of the 88 keys, and this
is fantastic. On a guitar, a given note could land on up to five separate strings,
and you can always finger a lower fret and bend said strings, and so forth. So, it
might not be unfair to say that you could find given note in perhaps fifteen
distinct locations on a guitar neck---perhaps more! So, learning to navigate the
guitar neck can be a real problem, and it is very important to keep the note
names clear as one learns this complex layout.

The painful process of associating a symbol (graphical representation of a note)

with a note (a tangible fret that you finger) is made much easier if you have a
unique name to use to help you reason about note placement and memorization.
This article describes the naming of notes, and how to keep track of them.

Some of my friends who are real musicians have complained about the way
that I have burned away so much theory and tradition to get such a minimalist
view of notes. Their complaints invariably revolve around, "you've removed a
perspective that I use to compose." They start to get upset at the point where
one goes to a chromatic (semitone number) representation of all notes, and I'm
sure that they're right. That said, one can think in any style that they want
depending on their circumstance, and thinking about semitone number 5 (me) is
not incompatible with "the second note in the Phrygian mode" (them). Really,
you can see it both ways at the same time. Also, I see little point in worrying
about issues like "modes" until one is a great "typist" of existing musical
manuscripts---most compositional perspectives will do nothing for you in this
important regard. Therefore, without further ado or apology, let's look into
naming musical notes.

Frequencies
Pretend that you had a piston, and it is open to the air. Now, let's say that you
start it moving back-and-forth, with a smooth sinusoidal motion, at a given
frequency, f, i.e., a particular number of cycles per second. If f=440Hz, i.e., 440
times per second, you'll hear "concert A" (also known as A4), coming out of
your loudspeaker!
If you experimented with the knob for f, you'd discover that you'd only be able
to hear sound between about f=20Hz and f=20kHz (20 thousand Hz). Your dog
will be able to hear well above you, and your pet bat even further.

Octaves, and the Notes within

The range of hearing is divided up into octaves. According to convention, each
octave holds exactly twelve notes, and there are about eleven octaves.

Counting the Octaves

An octave is a defined as the interval between a frequency f, and twice f. The

0th octave is taken to start at a note called C0, where f(C0) = 16.3516Hz. C0 is
the lowest note discernible to the trained ear. According to the numbering by
The Acoustical Society of America,

Starts ends just

Octave at Comment
with before
pipe organs and electronic
0 C0 16.3516Hz C1
instruments only!
1 C1 32.7032Hz C2  
2 C2 65.4064Hz C3 C2 is "low C"
3 C3 130.8128Hz C4  
4 C4 261.6256Hz C5 C4 is "middle C"
5 C5 523.2512Hz C6  
6 C6 1,046.5024Hz C7 C6 is "high C"
7 C7 2,093.0048Hz C8  
C8 is the last note on a piano or
8 C8 4,186.0096Hz C9
piccolo
9 C9 8,372.0192Hz C10 Never used (as fundamental).
10 C10 16,744.0384Hz C11 Never used (as fundamental).
So, we have learned that when somebody speaks of "C", we should shout,
"which one?!" (Unless what they're saying holds for every C, and if that's the
case, they should make it clear.)

What are the notes in a given octave?

Now that we have learned that there are actually eleven C's, let's pick one
specific octave and stay within it. How many notes are in this octave? It turns
out that each octave has exactly twelve notes. We can number the notes by
means of their value as semitones, where the notes go up in frequency as we
go:

Semitone Name
0 C or B#
1 C# or Db
2 D
3 D# or Eb
4 E
5 F
6 F# or Gb
7 G
8 G# or Ab
9 A
10 A# or Bb
11 B or Cb
Look at the uniformity of the numbers on the left, and the crazy sharps (#) and
flats (b) on the right! What is going on here? Well, in the early days of Western
music, there were only seven distinct notes: C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. (Each
exists in each octave, of course.) Over time, it was realized that five more notes
should be added, eventually enabling the transposition of music (i.e., raising or
lowering the pitch of an entire piece to meet the limited abilities of particular
singers, etc.). The new notes fit between C/D, D/E, F/G, G/A, A/B. So, the
problem became, "how does one notate the new note between C and D, for
example," but in such a way as not to destroy existing sheet music? (Yes, the
legacy problem rears its head....) One notation option is C# ("C sharp, the new
note above C), and another is Db ("D flat, the new note below D"). (Sadly, I
don't have the proper character to make a flat, so I need to use the letter "b".)
Adding further obscurity to this notation, while there is no new note between
E/F, E# is taken to be F, for example. There are canonical naming conventions
that dictate if you should view a note as (say) A# or Bb in a given key, and you
can learn all about them in music theory books---if you care, that is!

Putting it all together

Reading left-to-right, top-to-bottom, we have enumerated every single possible

note that you can hear (with human ears) in Western music (sorted by
increasing frequency):
C0 C0# D0 D0# E0 F0 F0# G0 G0# A0 A0# B0
C1 C1# D1 D1# E1 F1 F1# G1 G1# A1 A1# B1
C2 C2# D2 D2# E2 F2 F2# G2 G2# A2 A2# B2
C3 C3# D3 D3# E3 F3 F3# G3 G3# A3 A3# B3
C4 C4# D4 D4# E4 F4 F4# G4 G4# A4 A4# B4
C5 C5# D5 D5# E5 F5 F5# G5 G5# A5 A5# B5
C6 C6# D6 D6# E6 F6 F6# G6 G6# A6 A6# B6
C7 C7# D7 D7# E7 F7 F7# G7 G7# A7 A7# B7
C8 C8# D8 D8# E8 F8 F8# G8 G8# A8 A8# B8
C9 C9# D9 D9# E9 F9 F9# G9 G9# A9 A9# B9
C10 C10# D10                  
(where E#=F, Fb=E, D#=Eb, and so forth).

Why is there no F10, for example? Notes above D10 can only be heard by your
pets! And even notes above C8 don't sound very good---that's the highest key
on a piano or piccolo! So, we probably should ignore the bottom three rows of
the above table, and perhaps even most of the first row! In other words, the 8th,
9th, and 10th octaves are probably worthless (except as harmonics of lower
frequencies, of course).

What are the ranges of some instruments?

Here are the ranges of some popular instruments

Instrument Starts Stops

guitar E2 E6
seven string guitar B1 E6
cello C2 A6
bass guitar B0? D4?
piano A0 C8
piccolo C5 C8
violin G3 E7
And here is the bass (lower) and trebble (upper) staff, which can be thought of
as one giant staff eleven-line staff, except C4 is not shown:

So, when you talk to somebody who calls his guitar's E2 string "low E," just
slap him, and shout, "E2, buddy!" Most musicians, because of the intense
demands of their partying lifestyle, have little time to study their octaves and
learn that every E has a unique name. But one warning: Guitar music is notated
one octave up, i.e., when you're supposed to play C4, it is traditional to write
C5.

The people who become conductors and writers know perfectly well that each
note has a unique name, but they use some crazy notation systems. For
example, C6 can be notated as c''' (Helmholtz), C64 (piano key number), C^3
(organ notation).

Why does C4 on a piano sound different than C4 on a guitar?

A particular note is defined by its fundamental frequency; for example, E2 is

82.4096Hz. But when you pluck the E2 string on a guitar, you get a lot more
notes back, in addition to E2. You'll get the E2 plus some number of semitones
relative to the note that you plucked:

Additional relative semitones N

+0 (fundamental) 1 (fundamental)
+12 (one octave above fundamental) 2
+19 3
+24 (two octaves above fundamental) 4
+27.86 5
+31 6
+33.69 7
+36 (three octaves above fundamental) 8
So, you'll get E2, E2 plus 12 semitones (E3), E2 plus 19 semitones (B3), E2
plus 24 semitones (E4), E2 plus 27.86 semitones (something between G4 and
G4#), E2 plus 31 semitones (B4), E2 plus 36 semitones (E5), and so forth.
(And this holds for any note you pluck, not just E2.) The additional
contributions (harmonics) are weaker than the fundamental, but their presence
can be heard; so, when you pluck a string, it is really a chord, i.e., multiple
notes come out. The strength of the harmonics is dictated by how/where you
pluck it, and this is what makes a piano sound different than a guitar---it's just
that they'll have different amounts of each harmonic.

Note that the harmonics start an octave above the fundamental that you
pluck---a harmonic can never be lower than the fundamental, or even in
the same octave.

So, turning back to C9, you might hear it as an octave if you plucked C5,
perhaps faintly, but nobody would ever try to make a C9 string and pluck that.

For those interested in "why," f(n + m)/f(n) = exp((m/12) ln(2)). If you divide
the length L of the string by N, where N is an integer, N = exp((m/12) ln(2)), or
m = (12/ln(2)) ln(N). So, if you have a harmonic that cuts the string into N
parts, it is m semitones above the fundamental.

Using Semitones
My personal, totally non-standard notation is the best, in my opinion. If I want
to talk about a note, like E, I'll just say 4, since it is the 4th semitone in any
octave. If I mean to talk about E2, I'll say 2_4 (actually, just 24 in base 12).
And if I'm doing computations (as you'll see later), I view 2_4 as its absolute
semitone number, 2*12 + 4 = 28. (Note that o_s = 12o + s, o_(12 + s) =
(o+1)_s, and so forth.) For those of you who remember base twelve arithmetic
from elementary school (it was probably taught around the time of "clock
arithmetic"), yes, you're right, the ultimate thing is to just remember the
numbers in base twelve, and this is actually what I do. (If you don't know what
the prior statement means, ignore it for now.)

I tune my guitar uniformly in fourths, so the notes on it are (low to high) E2,
A2, D3, G3, C4, F4. But this isn't the way that I think about it; to me, they're
2_4, 2_9, 3_2, 3_7, 4_0, 4_5. Your guitar is probably tuned E2, A2, D3, G3,
B3, E4, or 2_4, 2_9, 3_2, 3_7, 3_11, 4_4.
If I'm thinking of an F3, I might be lazy and only say 5, but I should never lose
track that it's 3_5 I'm talking about. Some people might think this is overly
complicated, but I find it easier to think of 6 than F# or Gb. In other words,
there is now only one name for a particular note. And it is easy for me to
answer questions like, "what is a perfect fourth above C?" It's F! I know
because a "perfect fourth" means five semitones (more on this later), and 0 (=
C) + 5 (= perfect fourth) = 5 (= F). The following sections on intervals make
this kind of work easy.

A critical factor in reading sheet music is to memorize of the exact note. Don't
just think "C" when you look at the staff---if you're looking at middle C, think
"C4," "4_0," or at the very least "middle C," but not just "C." The same should
go when you look at a "C" on your guitar neck---you should know the octave,
both on the written sheet music and the instrument neck.

Making sense of common scales

Name 0? 1? 2? 3? 4? 5? 6? 7? 8? 9? 10? 11?

C major 0   2   4 5   7   9   11
C minor 0   2 3   5   7 8   10  
C anhemitonic pentatonic 0   2     5   7   9    
C anhemitonic pentatonic (variant) 0   2   4     7   9    
C hemitonic pentatonic (rare) 0       4 5   7       11
For example, do you remember, "a major scale has intervals WWHWWWH?"
W means +2 semitones, H means +1 semitones, so the notes in E major would
be 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 13 (= 1), 3.

You can also note that the pentatonic scales are just a subset of the major
scale---just view them as a major scale without the 11, and a 4 or 5.

Figuring out key signatures

As a quick reason to use semitones, "what key has N flats?" The answer is, key
= 5 * N mod 12. So, for example, if N=3 (three flats), the key is 5*3 mod 12 =
15 mod 12 = 3 = Eb. Cool, huh?

"What key has N sharps?" The answer is, key = -5 * N mod 12. So, for
example, if N=2 (two sharps), key = -5*2 mod 12 = -10 mod 12 = 2 = D.

"What is D# minor as a major key?" Well, minor = major + 9 (mod 12). If

minor = 3, major = 6. (Note 6 + 9 = 15, 15 mod 12 = 3.)
And, if you tune your guitar in 4ths, there is a very easy way to move your
finger to do this computation (more in the section on tuning in 4ths).

(For those of you who do not remember what "mod" means, "a mod b" means
that you can add/subtract b's from a until you get the smallest positive number
possible. So, for example, 24 mod 12 = 0, 30 mod 12 = 6, etc.)

What are common intervals?

Sadly, the names of musical intervals are full of rich historical legacy.
Basically, if you view two notes as an absolute semitone, and subtract them,
this difference is the interval.

Semitones difference Traditional Name

+0 unison
+1 flat second, minor second, diminished second
+2 (major) second
+3 minor third
+4 (major) third
+5 (perfect) fourth
+6 augmented fourth, diminished fifth, tritone, flat fifth
+7 (perfect) fifth
+8 flat sixth, minor sixth, augmented fifth
+9 (major) sixth
+10 flat seventh, dominant seventh, augmented sixth
+11 (major) seventh
+12 octave

How can I compose chords?

(This is coming shortly.)

What is the frequency of a given note?

Let f(n) be the frequency of a given semitone (numbered as above). A given

note will vibrate at a given number of cycles per second, a Hertz (Hz). The
standard is A4 = 4_9 = 440Hz, or f(9+4*12) = f(57) = 440Hz.
There is only one other rule, an octave is twice the frequency, i.e., f(n+12) =
2f(n).

Most of you will try to guess a solution of the form f(n)=a exp(b n), and with
the back of an envelope you will be able to determine that f(n) = C0 *
exp((n/12)*ln(2)), and C0 = 440Hz/exp(57/12 ln(2)) = 16.3516Hz.

So, for a practical example, given that a phone passes frequencies below about
3kHz, the highest semitone it can hear is around 90, or F7#.

Where do you put the frets on a guitar neck?

If you have a string of length L, put the first fret at (94.38%)L, and the next fret
at (94.38%)^2L, and so forth, until you get close enough to the bridge to stop.

Why? The frequency of a string goes as the reciprocal of its length. So, pretend
that length L gets frequency f(n). You want a shorter length, k * L (where k <
1), to get frequency f(n+1). Therefore, you can say, where m is some (arbitrary)
constant, f(n) = m/L. f(n+1) = m/(k L). Therefore, k f(n) = f(n+1). You can
easily solve for k = exp(-(ln(2))/12) = 0.9438743 = 94.39%.

Every note....

Semitone My Notation Conventional Notation Frequency (Hz)

0 0_0 C0 16.3516
1 0_1 C#0 17.3239
2 0_2 D0 18.3541
3 0_3 D#0 19.4454
4 0_4 E0 20.6017
5 0_5 F0 21.8268
6 0_6 F#0 23.1247
7 0_7 G0 24.4997
8 0_8 G#0 25.9565
9 0_9 A0 27.5000
10 0_10 A#0 29.1352
11 0_11 B0 30.8677
12 1_0 C1 32.7032
13 1_1 C#1 34.6478
14 1_2 D1 36.7081
15 1_3 D#1 38.8909
16 1_4 E1 41.2035
17 1_5 F1 43.6535
18 1_6 F#1 46.2493
19 1_7 G1 48.9994
20 1_8 G#1 51.9131
21 1_9 A1 55.0000
22 1_10 A#1 58.2705
23 1_11 B1 61.7354
24 2_0 C2 65.4064
25 2_1 C#2 69.2957
26 2_2 D2 73.4162
27 2_3 D#2 77.7818
28 2_4 E2 82.4069
29 2_5 F2 87.3071
30 2_6 F#2 92.4986
31 2_7 G2 97.9989
32 2_8 G#2 103.8262
33 2_9 A2 110.0000
34 2_10 A#2 116.5410
35 2_11 B2 123.4709
36 3_0 C3 130.8128
37 3_1 C#3 138.5914
38 3_2 D3 146.8324
39 3_3 D#3 155.5635
40 3_4 E3 164.8138
41 3_5 F3 174.6142
42 3_6 F#3 184.9973
43 3_7 G3 195.9978
44 3_8 G#3 207.6524
45 3_9 A3 220.0001
46 3_10 A#3 233.0819
47 3_11 B3 246.9417
48 4_0 C4 261.6256
49 4_1 C#4 277.1826
50 4_2 D4 293.6649
51 4_3 D#4 311.1271
52 4_4 E4 329.6277
53 4_5 F4 349.2283
54 4_6 F#4 369.9945
55 4_7 G4 391.9955
56 4_8 G#4 415.3048
57 4_9 A4 440.0000
58 4_10 A#4 466.1640
59 4_11 B4 493.8835
60 5_0 C5 523.2512
61 5_1 C#5 554.3654
62 5_2 D5 587.3297
63 5_3 D#5 622.2542
64 5_4 E5 659.2552
65 5_5 F5 698.4565
66 5_6 F#5 739.9891
67 5_7 G5 783.9911
68 5_8 G#5 830.6097
69 5_9 A5 880.0003
70 5_10 A#5 932.3280
71 5_11 B5 987.7669
72 6_0 C6 1046.5024
73 6_1 C#6 1108.7306
74 6_2 D6 1174.6595
75 6_3 D#6 1244.5083
76 6_4 E6 1318.5105
77 6_5 F6 1396.9136
78 6_6 F#6 1479.9783
79 6_7 G6 1567.9822
80 6_8 G#6 1661.2191
81 6_9 A6 1760.0001
82 6_10 A#6 1864.6559
83 6_11 B6 1975.5338
84 7_0 C7 2093.0059
85 7_1 C#7 2217.4624
86 7_2 D7 2349.3190
87 7_3 D#7 2489.0166
88 7_4 E7 2637.0210
89 7_5 F7 2793.8260
90 7_6 F#7 2959.9565
91 7_7 G7 3135.9644
92 7_8 G#7 3322.4382
93 7_9 A7 3520.0002
94 7_10 A#7 3729.3118
95 7_11 B7 3951.0676
96 8_0 C8 4186.0100
97 8_1 C#8 4434.9224
98 8_2 D8 4698.6360
99 8_3 D#8 4978.0356
100 8_4 E8 5274.0444
101 8_5 F8 5587.6543
102 8_6 F#8 5919.9130
103 8_7 G8 6271.9287
104 8_8 G#8 6644.8800
105 8_9 A8 7040.0040
106 8_10 A#8 7458.6235
107 8_11 B8 7902.1353
108 9_0 C9 8372.0200
109 9_1 C#9 8869.8450
110 9_2 D9 9397.2770
111 9_3 D#9 9956.0660
112 9_4 E9 10548.0840
113 9_5 F9 11175.3040
114 9_6 F#9 11839.8210
115 9_7 G9 12543.8630
116 9_8 G#9 13289.7600
117 9_9 A9 14080.0080
118 9_10 A#9 14917.2470
119 9_11 B9 15804.2705
120 10_0 C10 16744.0400
121 10_1 C#10 17739.7000
122 10_2 D10 18794.5550
123 10_3 D#10 19912.1330
124 10_4 E10 21096.1680
125 10_5 F10 22350.6070
126 10_6 F#10 23679.6520
127 10_7 G10 25087.7150
128 10_8 G#10 26579.5060
129 10_9 A10 28160.0020
130 10_10 A#10 29834.4790
131 10_11 B10 31608.5570
The above table has lots of worthless notes; you'd never consider anything
above C8 in practice unless you were writing, "The Canine Symphony." The
notes are just here for completeness.