hi evry1

ive jst started learning piano and am finding it really hard to read the bass cleff notes

i also play flute and saxophone which are both treble cleff

plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz plz help me i need all the advice i can get

thanx frm flute_girl

Basically, it's a Minor 3rd down...someone please correct me if I am wrong. Er...well I suppose you just have to get used to it! A way of checking is that if the note is on the line in the treble clef, it's in the space in the bass clef. (And Vice Versa).


Oddball

I wouldn't advise learning to read the bass clef as a transposition of the treble clef: it's not efficient in the long run as you need it to be just like you recognise notes in the treble clef, just by looking at where it falls on the stave (particularly since you'll have to read two lines at once). Hence the best way to learn it is exactly the way you learnt to read treble clef, from first principles, it works better in the long run.

To get some practice at it try reading just the left hand of as many pieces as you can (it might be tricky to do it hands together at first but you should be able to play just the left hand more easily and thus get more practice at the bit you need to practise).

sarah i think youve only had like 2 lessons, its not going to just click just like that, you will start to understand it soon!

I had this problem too, soon overcame it though by learning which dot applied to which key rather than which dot applied to a note name. Of course, the note names just came straight away due to the pattern of the keys so now I like to think I'm equally proficient in reading both.

you'll get use to bass clef, its really not too hard...

ps. in your signature, its not "oral tests" its "aural tests"

hi well in treble clef when you read in the gaps it says FACE. In bass it says ACEG so if you remember that you should be okay. Also remember that the middle line is D. Hope this helps.

Musicbox

theres the rhymes that lots of people i know have been taught concerning reading notes - in the bass clef spaces its ACEG - All Cows Eat Grass and in lines Good Boys Deserve Football/Fun Always. Hope this helps but when i'm teachin they help pupils a lot. Linz x

How about finding some pieces where both hands play in the bass clef - I found that helped.
Cat

A couple of landmarks are useful - for example,

the fourth (top) space is the G below middle C,

and the second space from the bottom is the C below middle C.


The "rhymes" can help (ACEG etc) but sometimes they can get in the way too. I quite often find pupils coming from other teachers know them, or half-know them, but are not quite sure how to use them on the keyboard. By all means use them if they work for you but keep in mind if you are starting to name notes from the bottom line or space of the bass stave you need to be starting more than an octave below middle C.

I like the idea of finding some pieces that have both hands in the bass - otherwise do plenty of left-hand only playing and don't be tempted to play hands together before your left hand is confident of its notes.

If you need some extra things to do, go to the Oxford website and look for PianoTime - extra pieces. You can download some if you have a printer.

Maggie

Most of the advise here is generally what I did, so probably useful to listen to. When I first started the piano, the first piece I played was two handed, and I sort of memorised it (that was when I didn't have a music teacher - now I'm better at sight-reading than remembering), and from there on I sort of related to certain notes, e.g. C was penultimate space, and also on the first leger line, G the first space etc., then you can sort of figure out the keys from these notes at first, and then when you get more confident at reading all the notes down the staff. (Do people call it stave or staff, coz I normally say staff)

Basically, it's like learning the treble clef all over again, you just have to comprehend it. I never really used mnemoics, I generally use them for things like facts as opposed to information you need straight away (e.g. having to recite the mnemonic to find what note you're on), but some people find using mnemoics easier, so whichever you prefer. In the end, with enough practise and playing, you just sort of learn the notes as you go along. If you can find a piece with both hands bass clef, then if would be very helpful, but if you can't, then don't worry too much, because as you go on in piano, bass clef is used alot, and so you'll get used to it.

Wobby

QUOTE

C was penultimate space, and also on the first leger line, G the first space etc.,

A bit misleading that explanation....
C is in the 2nd space and G the 4th... always count lines and spaces from the bottom upwards.

I've looked at the Oxford website - thanks Maggie, I haven't noticed those downloads before. Having said that, we now have a problem with the printer so I can't print any of them for the time being!

I find that pupils are often a bit slower to learn the bass clef notes, but plenty of practise in reading / playing those notes helps.
And theory of course...............!

QUOTE

I've looked at the Oxford website - thanks Maggie,

oh good ! Pleased it was useful.

I've had great success with a couple of pupils doing "March on the Left". It's for LH alone, bass clef, in G but including use of accidentals. Sort of grade one-ish. There's a treble part for the teacher to play. Goes well. Sorry I can't remember who wrote it (David Blackwell possibly?? I'll check that)
ps yes that's the one. It's in extra pieces book 2.

Hope the printer gets back to normal quickly. We had a problem with our printer connection a few weeks ago and it was sooo inconvenient. How we rely on this pesky technology!

M

Thanks, I'll try those ideas.

The printer gives me the message that an internal component needs replacing but I can't find out any more exact diagnostic info! So, as it's not covered by insurance it may just be easier to replace the printer.

You're right, we rely on all this technology for our every day existence and sanity (well just about).

Also, for anyone more fluent in reading treble than bass (eg sopranos, recorder players) there's my all time favourite, 'The Bass Clef book', by Maisie Aldridge, published by Galliard, and still available. After a few weeks of this, the LH is reading more fluently than the RH.