Tones and Semitones
Semitones (Half Steps) A semitone (or “half step” in the USA) is the smallest distance between two different notes. Let’s use the piano keyboard to look at some examples of …
Simple Time Signatures
Time Signatures A time signature is a symbol which we write at the beginning of a piece of music to show how many beats there are in one bar. Time …
Time Names of Rests
Rest Shapes In music theory, rests are symbols which tell you to stop playing, and how long to stop for. Rests come in different shapes depending on how long they …
Time Names of Notes
This page uses UK note names. USA note names are shown in brackets. Note Shapes To show how long notes should be held for, we draw them with different shapes. …
Accidentals
In music theory, the term “accidentals” is used to describe some notes which have been slightly altered. Accidentals are the symbols which are placed before the note on the stave …
The Bass Clef
We’ve already learned about our first clef, the treble clef. For most low-pitched music (where most of it is lower than middle C), we use the bass clef. The bass …
Trinity Grade 1 Music Theory
Welcome to the Trinity Grade 1 Music Theory start page! If you (or your child/pupil) are just starting out on your music theory journey, this is the right place to …
Pitch & the Treble Clef
Staff Notation in Music Music is written down in a number of different ways around the world. In the West, most instruments use a method called staff notation. The music …