Lesson 6: Reading Notation and Rhythm
- Read the treble staff fluently up to D5 without thinking about it.
- Read the treble staff fluently up to G (on your alto staff) without thinking about it.
- Distinguish whole, half, quarter, and eighth notes by feel.
- Lessons 0–5 — the diatonic notes up to D5.
- Treble staff reading.
- Note values (whole, half, quarter, eighth).
- Rhythm vocabulary.
You read music the way you read English: at first letter by letter, eventually phrase by phrase.
Notes on the staff name pitches; the shapes of the noteheads name durations. Everything else is decoration.
The staff
The recorder reads in treble clef. Lines, from bottom to top, are E·G·B·D·F; spaces are F·A·C·E. Memorise the lines and spaces separately — do not count up from the bottom every time, that is the slow way.
The notes you can play (C4 to D5) range from one ledger line below the staff (C4) to a space above the top line (D5).
On your alto staff (the same treble clef, with letter names unchanged), the notes you can play so far range from one ledger line below the staff (F) to a space above the top line (G). The letter mnemonic for the lines is identical for both instruments — only which fingering each line names changes.
Note durations
In 4/4 time, the durations you know are:
- Whole note · w
- Four beats. An open notehead with no stem. Count: ta-a-a-a.
- Half note · h
- Two beats. An open notehead with a stem. Count: ta-a.
- Quarter note · q
- One beat. A filled notehead with a stem. Count: ta.
- Eighth note · 8
- Half a beat. A filled notehead with a stem and one flag (or beamed in pairs). Count pairs: ti-ti.
Counting with syllables
Clap or speak the syllables before you play them. The system — ta, ti-ti, ta-a, ta-a-a-a — lets you rehearse the rhythm without the recorder in your hands, which is faster than fixing rhythms with fingering loaded on top.
Three bars of 4/4, clapped and spoken — tap your foot on each quarter. Bar 1: ta · ti-ti · ta · ta. Bar 2: ta-a · ti-ti · ta. Bar 3: ta-a-a-a. Recorder stays in your lap.
The same note sequence in four different rhythms. Hear how the rhythm transforms the melody.
Play: a chorale and a jig
Two pieces that use the same five notes but contrast in rhythmic character. Read them off the staff — don't memorise.
Half and whole notes. Hold each note exactly its full length; the breath between bars is your rest.
Quick eighths in pairs. Keep the air steady; tongue lightly.
Now play these
- Bingo
- Strong rhythmic shape. Mark beats with your foot if helpful.
- Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
- Read it off the staff this time, without copying fingerings from memory.
- Lightly Row
- A study in stepwise motion. Notes that move by step look like a neighbour line; notes that leap, jump on the staff.
When you can sight-read a four-bar tune in C major using whole, half, quarter, and eighth notes, you are ready for Lesson 7.
When you can sight-read a four-bar tune (in F major on your alto staff) using whole, half, quarter, and eighth notes, you are ready for Lesson 7.
For a sight-reading practice routine, see daily practice.