Notes

Every Good Boy Does Fine
Elvis' Guitar Broke Down Friday).


This is the treble staff. The treble clef (the large fancy symbol to the far left) shows the musician that the staff is treble. Since it curls around the G line, it is also called a G clef. The treble staff begins with the first line as E. Each successive space and line is the next letter in the musical alphabet. The staff ends with the last line as an F. Many mnemonic devices exist to help a person remember which line and space are which. One of the most common phrases to remember the names of the lines is: Every Good Boy Does Fine. (Also popular is Elvis' Guitar Broke Down Friday). To remember the spaces, just remember that they spell FACE starting from the bottom.

This is the bass (pronounced 'base' ) staff. The bass clef, also known as the F clef because it locates the line known as F, is on the far left. The bass clef uses the same musical alphabet as treble, but the letters start in different places. Instead of an E, the bottom line is a G, and the letters proceed logically from there. Again, simple mnemonics can be used to remember the names of the notes. The lines on the bass cleft, from bottom to top are: G, B, D, F, A (Good Boys Don't Fight Anyone), and the spaces are A,C,E,G (All Cows Eat Grass).