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Types of music notes: A beginner’s guide to musical notation

Yousician team 7 min read

Music notes are the building blocks of sound in the world of music. Each note is a guide that helps musicians play melodies with precision and emotion. Whether on a sheet of paper or a digital screen, these symbols are crucial for anyone looking to master an instrument or excel in singing. Read more to learn about different types and features of musical notes, and what they mean.

What is a musical note?

Musical notes are the core elements of chords, melodies, and songs. Each note shows how high or low the sound is (its pitch) and how long it should be played (its duration). The pitch of a note is shown by its placement on the staff, and its duration is determined by the note type. By combining notes in various ways, musicians can create rhythms and melodies that become unique pieces of music. Let’s dig deeper into how to read music notes.

Features of musical notes

When reading sheet music, understanding the features of each musical note and their meaning is crucial. By familiarizing yourself with noteheads, stems, beams, dots, and flags, you’ll be better equipped to read sheet music and bring melodies to life.

Notehead

The notehead determines the note’s duration. Filled-in noteheads represent shorter note values, while open noteheads represent longer values. The notehead can be positioned between the staff lines, forming a space note, or intersected by a staff line, referred to as a line note. Together, line notes and space notes create the full range of pitches that can be played.

Stems

The stem is a thin vertical line attached to the notehead, extending either upward or downward. The direction of the stem is important for instruments like the piano, where it may indicate which hand should play. Stems pointing up generally represent notes in the treble clef, while stems pointing down indicate notes in the bass clef.

Beams

Beams are horizontal lines linking the stems of multiple notes, primarily indicating the rhythm. Beams can connect eighth notes or sixteenth notes, or even more rapid notes, to clarify the timing and flow of the music. The presence of one, two, or more beams across the stems shows musicians the correct rhythm.

Dots

A dot next to a note extends its duration by half of its original value. For example, if a quarter note typically holds for one beat, adding a dot increases its length to one and a half beats. This modification allows composers to create new rhythmic patterns.

Flags

A flag is a small curved stroke attached to the stem of a note. A flag indicates a faster rhythm, and each additional flag halves the duration of the note. By observing the flags attached to the note stems, musicians can easily know the tempo and pace of the music.

Ties

A tie is a curved line that links two notes of the same pitch. Tied notes should be played seamlessly and held for the total duration of both notes, as if they were one extended note.

Different types of music notes

Now that you know the parts of music notes, it’s time to explore different types of notes. If you’re a beginner, start with whole and half notes. Once you know these basics, you can move on to eighth, quarter, and sixteenth notes.

Whole note

A whole note, often shown as a hollow oval without a stem, has a duration of four beats. This makes it one of the longest single notes in standard rhythmic notation.

Half note

A half note has a duration of two beats, filling half of a four-beat measure. It is shown as an open notehead connected to a vertical stem.

Quarter, eighth, and sixteenth notes

A quarter note, identified by its solid notehead and straight stem, has a duration of one beat. Conversely, an eighth note lasts for half a beat. When paired together, two eighth notes connected via a horizontal beam represent one full beat.

Sixteenth notes are marked by double flags on their stems, and they represent just a quarter of a beat. It takes sixteen of these notes to complete the duration of a whole note, allowing musicians to mix rhythmic patterns in their performances.

Practice musical notes and learn to play different instruments

We’ve just gone through the basics of music notes, and now you know the different types of notes a bit better. To improve your musical skills, try Yousician’s interactive online lessons and learn the musical notes of your favorite songs. By downloading the Yousician app, you can master basic and advanced techniques to play various instruments or sing better, all at your own pace and convenience.

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