Reading a melody

Read it like a player

The music in context section shows a short melody and asks about it. Before reading the questions, look at the music the way a player would:

1. The clef and the key signature. Which notes are sharp or flat?
2. The time signature. How many beats in a bar?
3. The words and signs. How fast, how loud, and in what style?

Worked example: questions on that melody

• The key: one sharp, F sharp, and the melody ends on G: G major.
• The time: 3/4, three crotchet beats in every bar.
• The speed: allegretto, fairly quick. The dynamic: mf, moderately loud.
• The staccato notes: all in bar 3.
• The highest note: the E in bar 3. The lowest note: the F sharp in bar 5.
• An interval: from the first G (end of bar 1) up to the D at the end of bar 2 is a 5th.
• A degree: the F sharp is the 7th degree of G major.

Tip: if a question names a bar, count the bars from the start of the melody, and remember the key signature for every note.

Questions that come up

• the highest or lowest note, or which bar it is in;
• the number of an interval between two marked notes;
• the degree of a marked note in the key;
• the time signature (if it is missing) or the beats in a bar;
• what a word, dynamic or sign on the music means.