Musical notation

As notation is referred to in the music, the graphical detention of musical parameters such as pitch, duration and volume in a notation developed for this purpose. It is used on the one hand, already well-known pieces of music to be documented in writing, and replaced as part of the tradition by audition or audition. As documentation of a melody and the pin rollers and discs can view in barrel organ and music box, but apart from that notation until the invention of the phonograph, the only way was music differently than adherence by memory. The second major benefit of notation is to express new melodies and other musical ideas in writing only. Only the so- reaching way to convey an idea without having to run itself, it is that individuals create very large and very complex works possible.

• 2.1 Ancient and non-European musical notation
• 2.2 neumes
• 2.3 Guido of Arezzo
• 2.4 Modalnotation
• 2.5 mensural
• 2.6 The modern time signature

• 3.1 copyists
• 3.2 Pressure
• 3.3 music engraving
• 3.4 lithography
• 3.5 custody rubbing method
• 3.6 Notenschreibpapiere apparatus
• 3.7 computer typesetting

• 4.1 tablature
• 4.2 note names
• 4.3 digit notation
• 4.4 Shape Notes
• 4.5 Notation codes
• 4.6 shorthands for chords
• 4.7 Braille music notation
• 4.8 Graphical Notation
• 4.9 color notation
• 4:10 6 -plus -6- notation
• 4:11 rhythm notation
• 4:12 piano roll notation

The modern Western musical notation

Elements of the notation

The graphic elements of modern musical notation are first of all the staff of five lines on the next information about tempo, time signature, dynamics and instrumentation to playing notes are displayed in the form of notes, which are read from left to right. The different durations are here represented by different note shapes ( note values ​​), the pitch defined by the vertical position. Two note lines represent the distance of a third; the distance a lies between the lines touch to a person lying on one of the neighboring lines is one second. The clef at the beginning of each line specifies a reference tone for a particular note line fixed, can be derived from the other pitches: on the picture of the tone g ' on the second line from the bottom. In the picture so you can see not only the relative note spacing ( third and second), but also from the treble clef conclude that the tones are a'- c'' and a' -h ' meant. For sounds that are too high or low, to find space on the lines, auxiliary lines are used.

In polyphonic music pieces, it is common to each other and have several staves, each containing a voice, so that the simultaneous musical events are arranged one above the other. This is called a score. Besides getting line systems for deeper tones usually a bass clef, which marks the little f in contrast to the treble clef as a reference tone on the two toberen line.

A practical example

( Listen to excerpt? / I ) The following example illustrates a simplified representation of the beginning of Johann Strauss ' classic " On the Beautiful Blue Danube ", the foundations of modern musical notation are well explained.

History

Antique and Non-European musical notation

There are strong indications that in ancient Egypt since the 3rd millennium BC, there was a kind of musical notation and other nations tried to arrest music writing.

The first fully developed and now completely deciphered notation is the Greek, whose first appearance is to different sources, to be dated as early as the 7th century BC, or until about 250 BC. This notation used letters - possibly named after the strings of the lyre - for pitch and marked with a symbol written above the note duration. It is narrated on many fragments, but there is only a single composition that is completely preserved in this way by an inscription that Seikilos epitaph, which was carved in the 2nd century BC in a grave stone near Ephesus.

In Europe, the Greek notation was lost with the fall of the Roman empire, their subsequent decipherment was only possible with the help of Roman music theoretical writings from the first centuries AD. How quickly this tradition was but forgot shows the following quote by the church father and bishop Isidore of Seville from his Etymologiae (of 625 ) in which he claimed that it was impossible to record music:

" Nisi enim from homine memoria teneantur, soni pereunt, quia non scribi possunt "

"If they are in fact not retained by the people in mind, pass the tones because they do not have to write down. "

Outside of Europe, developed mainly in China, Japan and India notation systems, which are often the melody in smaller characters listed beside or above the sung text, rhythmically but left many freedoms. Apart from this, but also tablature fonts for instrumental compositions were used. The Arabic notation, which was in use from the 13th century, rooted mainly in there yet traditional Greek tradition, but continued to develop hardly because the improvisational nature of the music prevailed.

In general it can be said that apart from the Greeks among most peoples musical notation was used more as a memory jogger for the most part improvised music and less to preserve tunes for posterity. The more accurate grading system developed in Europe also because the freer, improvised music came in favor of the Church's tradition of composed and repeatable ritual psalmodies and chorales in the background.

Neumes

In the middle of the 9th century, a new type of musical notation for Gregorian chant, the neumes used as symbols, which you listed on the text developed in European monasteries. They made ( neuma Greek νεύμα, Wink ') is the depiction of Winkbewegungen the choirmaster or the singer dar. So there was a single Neume for a particular melodic phrase. In various countries and monasteries, however, different graphical symbols have been used. The oldest source of this notation can be found in the Musica disciplina of Aurelian of Réôme to 850 Sooner datable fragments visigotischer neumes of the Iberian Peninsula could not be deciphered. From the end of the 12th century comes the shown on the left Lambacher Missal, the original of which is in the Melk Abbey.

Guido of Arezzo

The lineless adiastmatischen neume notation was gradually added lines, first two-tone staves for the tones f and c to highlight the ef semitones and hc. In order to capture the tone steps between the lines exactly, Guido of Arezzo added at the beginning of the 11th century between the f- and c- line, a third line a. The Terzliniensystem, which can accurately identify each diatonic step was invented. Guido also recommended - depending on use - to put above or below the three lines a fourth line.

Instead of the colors used now Guido letter ( c or f ) to highlight one of the Halbtonpositionen at the beginning of a system. So Guido had also invented the clef. He used especially a small C, with the c ' is set. The f was less common, but has survived as F or bass clef times.

Guido realized in practical lessons that these now diastematic notation still contains a didactic weakness. Although the modal proportions of the tone steps remain relatively the same, they are named differently depending on the pitch. Therefore, in addition Guido invented the relative solmisation in both the half-step e-f and the half-step h -c (later also a-b) is sung with the same old onomatopoeia "mi - fa".

Guido's services are therefore didactically motivated. With the Terzliniensystem he visualized for the first time tone steps exactly; with the relative solmization he calls the functional half-steps so that students articulate and singing always the same; with the Guidonian hand finally relates a Guido the " comprehending " Hand in the learning process. This bundling of different stimuli is so effective that music educators Guidos method unchanged to this day - at least in didactic terms - apply.

Sense of solmization it is not to replace the absolute notation, but merely the relative relationships of the tones impress the memory, like Arabic numerals are used to melodies (1 = always root), or Roman numerals to denote harmonies (I = tonic). Meaning and necessity of diastematic notation is provided by these educational measures not in question.

Currently Guidos and long after they came especially for the vocals usually with four lines. This was not merely the low range of the chorals, but also to the flexible keys. They made it possible to fit the range of a voice or melody line in the system. The vierlinige Neumensystem with C- key is in conjunction with the neumes of the square notation in church music still in use today. Were of especially high or low notes and guides are just as in modern notation used. This type of notation with four continuous score lines can be found even today in choral books.

Soon systems have been used with more or less lines for other purposes, and different instruments. The modern system with five lines originated in France in the 16th century, but they were to the 17th century, still other spellings usual. The Guido preferred C key has been replaced in many areas by the F and G keys that practically found only in the shape of a treble and bass clef use.

Modalnotation

In order to be able to specifically capture the rhythm in the notation, the Modalnotation developed in Western Europe during the so-called Notre -Dame- era in the 12th century to the beginning of the 13th century. This is based, in contrast to the notation used today not on individual beats to the rhythm structure, but on six elementary rhythms (modes ), which are based on Greek poetic meters. Each mode is described by a ligature (group of 2-4 grades) in square notation.

Mensural

Since the Modalnotation allowed only a fixed number of different rhythms, revealed soon, especially for the writing of purely instrumental music, the need for reform. With the introduction of the (black ) measured notation in the 13th century ( Ars Nova ) was established by using different note values ​​and rhythm notierbar. The former note values ​​were called Maxima, Longa, Brevis, semibreve, minima and Semiminima, their exact metric ratio was hanging scale used by the and the value of neighboring note (s ) from.

In the 15th century, filling in the note heads was due to the increase of the manuscripts too expensive, it was used too much precious ink, also the paper used was thin and could easily break if it was too wet there arose the so-called white mensural notation. The darkness was only to identify particularly smaller note values ​​(see the adjacent facsimile probably a 1472 motet composed of Loyset Compère ).

The modern time signature

In the 15th century it also began staves with the help of vertical lines, so-called Mensurenstriche to share in sections. These parts were no clocks in the modern sense, since even the music of that time held very irregular pattern, but were used to help to display in scores, had the points at which the different voices to play or sing at the same time.

Towards the end of the 17th century, the modern rhythmic system was introduced with time signatures and bar lines, which took as a note mark the smaller values ​​of the white mensural notation.

From the history of modern notation can be seen that their development mainly arose from the requirements for sung music, and indeed one often hears that it would be inappropriate for the minutes of instrumental music. The many attempts in the past two centuries, to reform the system of musical notation, but all failed, either due to the conservative attitude of the musicians or because the newly designed systems but were less suitable than the old one. For certain special fields, there are also alternative notations that are partly based on ancient traditions.

The typesetting of the manuscript for computer printing

Copyists

The development of the note rate was similar to the history of the written word. After chiseled in stone or carved into clay musical notations developed soon ink and paper is the ideal medium.

The more or less legible manuscripts of various composers can say a lot about her personality, one need only compare Johann Sebastian Bach's uniform and controlled handwriting op 109 Until today (pictured at the top) with the adjacent neck of Ludwig van Beethoven's E major Sonata, the deciphering the autographs a difficult experts work when it is important to distinguish whether a staccato mark or just a spot of ink is present, or if - as is common in Franz Schubert the case - the graphical intermediate stages of accent wedge to diminuendo fork in the printing adequately to be reproduced.

If the composer had written the score of a new orchestral work, it was the duty of copyists, the voices of individual instruments written down from what was a time- consuming job. Was the song finished composing at the last moment, it had to be quick, and testimonies from many time we know depictions of " still-wet sheet music ", from which the musicians played a world premiere.

Typography

After the introduction of the printing press also began the note writer to experiment with this technique, and printed by engraved or cut templates from wood and metal. Later, the principle of movable type was transferred to the note printing, as can be seen in the above figure of Palestrina's fair. 1498 invented the Venetian Ottaviano Petrucci music printing with movable type, his invention made ​​Venice the next few decades the European center of music printing. For the music notation with movable, freely combinable types was the publication work of Pierre Attaingnant of particular importance. For the first time musical works are published in large editions and made ​​available to the general public. By far the greater part of the music was, however, continued to play from handwritten material.

Music engraving

In the 18th century music engraving with copper plates in France was becoming more common, and by its superior quality, he sat down in the major music publishing houses in Europe soon through. The delicate task of the engraver is on the leaf to arrange the division of systems and cycles, with all its additional labels and symbols so that an organic -to-read whole results with suitable points for turning on the player, and this layout on the music engraving plate ( lead-tin -antimony alloy ) is inverted sketch. The actual piercing procedure is then followed with a Rastral, with the five parallel score lines are drawn at once, various steel temples and other Ritz and piercing tools. On the bottom surface, a used stone lithography. Here, key, sign, marks, small bows, clips and the full document is wrapped with steel dies. Stems, bar, small bar lines and larger arcs (corresponding to those from the copper engraving ) engraved with Stahlsticheln. Crescendos and long clock lines through multiple systems are made with the so-called pull- hook. Before the final printing a so-called green tax ( high-pressure process ) is made the correction. In correcting the incorrect place is marked on the back of the note needle plate with a curved forceps. Thereafter, the lead of the defect is driven by means of a nail point upwards. According to various smoothing and deburring the correction can be carried out, so the corresponding character to be moved to the right place now. The production of a music engraving depending on the contents page takes 8-12 hours.

Lithography

Between 1796 and 1798 Senefelder developed on the basis of a Solnhofen lithographic printing process that was suitable for the rapid and inexpensive duplication of sheet music. The method was later known as lithography or stone pressure and taken up by many artists.

Detention rubbing method

A special form of the production of notes was that the engraver marked the corresponding lines and to text in a box. This template was then placed on a slide in light kit method (photo set). Then keys, notes, etc. necks were wiped out analogously to the known adhesion grater letters to this film. Qualitatively, this method was inferior to the conventional music engraving. The time required for the production of a note page was approximately the sting of a note page, but here was the lead exposure of the engraver away. In the GDR, this method has been used since about 1978.

Notenschreibpapiere apparatus

In 1900 the Vienna Laurenz Kromar developed the so-called Kromarographen, an automatic Notenschreibpapiere apparatus for recording improvisations on the piano. This development was preceded by similar experiments since the 18th century, but which had not led as opposed to Kromars development to satisfactory results. " The Kromarograph fulfilled not only for rapid, faithful recording of improvisations or compositions its purpose, but the used electric current brings an accurate picture of the game, draws the same accuracy as any under existing fault detectable and relentlessly on. "

Computer typesetting

The first experiments using computers for music printing, have already taken place in the 1960s, serious results there since the 1990s. In addition to closed-source music notation programs such as Finale, PriMus, score, Sibelius or Capella, the hand- engraved notes even at prestigious music publishers are increasingly replacing, you can also find open source solutions such as LilyPond, MuseScore, MusiXTeX or ABC and ABC Plus.

In the field of popular music today programs like Logic or Cubase be used. These are complex sequencer programs, which also note printing functions have been integrated, but unlikely to ever meet professional standards and make aesthetically convincing editions of popular music for rarity. However, this sequencer programs can help reduce the effort that is required for some high-quality typesetting with above set of programs: It is possible to export MIDI files rehearsed pieces which can be imported into set programs; the notation must therefore only or adjusted are not created from scratch.

It is perceived as pleasant as a rule, to play from notes that are written or set by a trained music typesetter by hand. As a particularly negative trend is felt that publishers reasons of cost increasingly also issue notes, which have been set not by professional translators note, but by lay people and therefore do not always meet high standards. This is common in popular or educational music of the case, for example, if the author of a school completely set his work, and submits with finished layout for printing.

Alternative notation systems

Tablature

Tablatures were developed earlier than the modern notation and were used for plucked, stringed and keyboard instruments, rarely also for wood wind instruments. Guitar tablatures are in use to this day.

Law is the beginning of the song " All birds are already there " mapped. Rhythm characters in tablature for lute instruments (see Historical lute tablature ) not designated individual note values, but the time until the sounding of the next tone. In modern guitar tablature however, the values ​​of the individual notes can be referred to (see modern guitar tablature ).

A special kind of tablature is the Klavarskribo, a notation for keyboard instruments, developed by the Dutchman Cornelis Pot.

Note names

In texts about music, or in the absence of note paper the tones of a melody are often described by their note names. Through case- sensitive and stroke reduction or indexing is a tone can be assigned a unique octaves,. For the Danube waltz in the example above might look like this: "3/ 4: d ¹ | d ¹ fis ¹ a ¹ | a ¹ " etc. Instead of fis and f ♯ can be written as a ♭ instead AS. to note here but also in other languages ​​Note labels, ignorance of it can cause misunderstandings.

Especially in digital text formats also an alternative shorthand notation has developed, starting from the 88-key standard keyboard, by one octave from top to bottom, starting each at C. The low C ( C ) is the first C on the keyboard, it says C1 why. The five painted c ( c '''' ' ), the highest key, is the eighth C on the keyboard and therefore is called C8. The halftones are shown regardless of their harmony connected with ♯ as increases (see enharmonic ), sat '' would be written for example as F ♯ 5.

This notation is used for example in the tracker music programs. Here, the time axis runs vertically from top to bottom. The selection of the time step size is only a matter of interpretation. Often, each row is a 16th note, with tempo changes, however, a complex entity such as a 30% swing to be achieved. The pitch is entered in the notation described. The compactness of this quasi -dimensional musical notation enables a clear notation of other musical parameters, such as length or volume, but also specific electronic processing options that affect the tone.

Other ways to identify tones, are the relative and absolute solmization which return their note names on Guido of Arezzo, and the Tonwort method of Carl Eltz.

Numeric notation

In many cultures, the score is represented mainly about numbers, letters or native characters representing the sequence of notes. This is for example the case in the Chinese music ( Jianpu or gongche ) in Indian music ( Sargam ) and in Indonesia ( kepatihan ). These other types of systems are collectively referred to as numeric notation.

As an example of this notation, the number should be mentioned, as is used in Jianpu use. The numbers 1 to 7, for example, associated with the scale degrees of the major scale. In a piece in C major are:

Rating: C D E F G H A Solfege: do re mi fa sol la si Notation: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Origin of this notation is the numeric notation by Emile Chevé.

Shape Notes

Shape notes are a music notation system, which was developed at the beginning of the 19th century in the United States in order to facilitate musical laymen singing from sheet music. Shape -note songs using the standard notation, but the note heads have additional characteristic shapes that are associated with the degrees of the scale and are named with solfeggio and differ depending.

The first shape note hymnal 1801 edited by William Smith and William Little: The Easy Instructor. The Singing - School Movement gained shape -note hymnals a high popularity in the U.S..

Two systems of shape -note notation have gained acceptance and are in use today: the four -shape system with the solfeggio and differ depending Fa So La Mi, which is used in the hymnal The Sacred Harp, and the 7 -shape system with the solfeggio and differ depending Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti / Si, which is used for example in the song book, The Christian Harmony.

Notation codes

To be able to musical parameters electronically " note " and save different notation codes were developed. A distinction must be code for playback of music such as MIDI, codes for entering or storing music for electronic music notation (which in principle all file formats of music notation programs are to be expected ) and those for the musicological analysis of music as the Humdrum code. MusicXML is designed as an exchange format and combines elements of Humdrum, Muse Data and MIDI.

Shorthands for chords

In the tradition of the figured bass, a bass voice is provided with digits that make up the above the bass note to be played chord can be derived. Many composers used the numbering but also to quickly sketch the harmonic progression of a work can. So Süssmayr could rely in making its completion of Mozart's Requiem on some figured bass that Mozart had listed himself. The figure at right shows a simple basso continuo, in the upper system a possible embodiment of the numbering is advertised.

Another direction follow the usual today, especially in jazz and popular music chord symbols, which, in addition to the note name of the chord root a code of letters and digits, with the kind of harmony is described. This system, which works without staff lines, is used in conjunction with a melody -note system, but there are also collections in which only lyrics and chord symbols of a song were printed, because the melody is supposed to be known.

Braille music notation

Graphical notation

In the 20th century many composers wanted to solve the classical notation, which appeared to them to be unsuitable and too concrete for their music. So they started to experiment with graphic notation to give the inspiration and creativity of the performing musician more space. Important proponents are Karlheinz Stockhausen, John Cage, Morton Feldman, Roman hood -Ramati or Iannis Xenakis. This is particularly known to the piano cycle " macrocosm " by George Crumb.

Color notation

Even Guido of Arezzo colors used to illustrate the notation, these disappeared with the advent of music printing. A new attempt was made by Arno Peters. The Peters notation allows a spatial representation of pitch and tone duration. He ordered each of the seven notes to a color. He noted a similar frequency in the assignment relation within the light spectrum.

6 -plus -6- notation

Developed by Johannes Beyreuther notation reflects the arrangement of the two rows of 6 -plus -6- instruments resist. It consists of black and white notes. Suited notes are arranged in Ganztonabstand. Thus, the tones 1-3 of the diatonic musical scale having the same color tones 4 to 7, the corresponding different color. A color change means a change in the game to be set. A big advantage is the transpose. Can be written a melody in C major play on two-row 6 -plus -6- instruments by shifting the origin Stones in five different keys, on three-row instruments even in all twelve keys. Even with instruments with a suspended 6 -plus -6- arrangement as the Hayden Duet Concertina the color of the notes indicates the row in which there are buttons.

A bass clef does not exist, so the bass notes are read just like the melody notes.

Since there is no sign, there can be no confusion of notes. Thus, the 6 -plus -6- notation is not only suitable for 6- plus -6- instruments, but also for recreational musicians with other instruments.

The 6 -plus -6- notation is part of the Beyreuther music principle.

Rhythm notation

The rhythm notation are only from information on how to enter what time relative to the meter sound events. It can be used for example in accompanying books for guitar beat, the rhythm notation the instrumentalists dictates the beat pattern, but not how he has to play what accompaniment chords (since there are several possibilities for example, A - ​​flat major ). It can - as in the picture - but be that the rhythm notation (English rhythm slashes because of the sloping shape of the note heads ) are not added chord names or even lexicon illustrations about her, but this is not self-evident.

Piano roll notation

In sequencer programs for editing music using a computer a very simplified notation is mostly used. For example, if pieces of music recorded on a MIDI keyboard, the computer receives only the information about which key was pressed at what time how long, similar to the recording on a piano roll. Key, key, time signature, sign and the exact note values ​​are not the computer, however, available. A representation of the data recorded in the classical notation is therefore possible only with very complex algorithms and manual adjustments. Sequencer programs work for this reason often with a piano roll notation ( piano roll notation ), which is similar to the print on a roll of music and its presentation is very easy to program. The piano roll notation also allows for easy entry or editing of music on the screen ( some programs use the piano roll editor called ). Also for intuitive learning of piano pieces, the piano roll notation can be used without reading classic touches must be mastered. Piano roll notation exist in many variants, some of them using color. In some countries like the U.S. music notations can be patented. Among the patents, there are some examples of piano roll notation, for example, U.S. Patent 6987220 ( 2006 ) of a piano roll - like notation with colors.

Sight

The term sight reading refers to the conversion of the listed composition on the particular instrument directly on the first reading of the notes without hassles or practice. The Italian title is a prima vista, at first sight '. The musician needs for the marks will quickly read to play the composition in the intended pace immediately. The same applies to singing and is referred to as sight-singing.