How to read guitar sheet music?

Question

I've been given a guitar sheet music book. Only thing is the symbols are like hieroglyphics to me. Can anyone help me understand them? The music kinda looks like this:

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.onlineguitarlessonsfree.com/img/listenmockingbird.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.onlineguitarlessonsfree.com/mockingbirds.html&usg=__EnVEke5gGSFnpHwbs8vf0ikDa_A=&h=712&w=545&sz=109&hl=en&start=0&sig2=o83VnaD3gSOIAKlakxvjhw&zoom=1&tbnid=4WHWegP6OI8NbM:&tbnh=121&tbnw=93&ei=8gQWTue2DZHE8QOJ_Igt&prev=/search%3Fq%3DGuitar%2BSheet%2BMusic%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26rlz%3D1C1CHNU_enGB375GB375%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D709%26tbm%3Disch%26prmd%3Divns&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=169&vpy=347&dur=584&hovh=257&hovw=196&tx=118&ty=187&page=1&ndsp=36&ved=1t:429,r:18,s:0&biw=1280&bih=709

Any help, is greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

I'd just like to start out by saying that kind of sheet music isn't only for guitar - it's for any instrument that plays in higher registers (e.g. violin, flute, right hand piano, etc.).



The treble clef is the first symbol on the staff (the name for the set of five lines the notes are on). A clef tells you what note each line/space on the staff stands for. Here's a diagram. You'll notice it goes in alphabetical order.

http://cnx.org/content/m10941/latest/TrebleClef.png

I'm not going to teach you where the notes are on guitar, because I'm assuming you already know.



The second symbol (#) is the key signature. A key signature tells you which key you're in. (If there's nothing there, you're in C Major or a minor.) There can either be flats or sharps there, but because there is only one sharp, that is telling you you're in G Major (or e minor, but I don't think it is). Here are the key signatures, if you don't already know what they are:

http://www.piano-keyboard-guide.com/images/music-key-signatures.GIF

That sharp in the song is sitting on the F line. That means every single F in that song is sharped as long as that key signature is in effect.



Wait do you know what accidentals are?

Sharp = one half step up (So... F# equals half step up from F)

Flat = one half step down (Gb equals half step down from G)

Natural = play written note and ignore sharps/flats in measure/key signature

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/Accidentals.gif



The third symbol is the time signature. I'm not going to go over every single time signature. That (c) sign only means that there are going to be 4 beats in every measure, and that one beat would equal a quarter note. So that means four quarter notes can go in one measure.

http://www.piano-lessons-central.com/image-files/bar-measure.gif

Here is a lesson on time signatures. This will prep you for rhythm.

http://datadragon.com/education/reading/timesig.shtml

Here is a lesson on rhythm notation. This will tell you how to read the stems of the notes.

http://www.studybass.com/lessons/reading-music/rhythmic-notation/

Here is a lesson on treble clef notation. This will teach you how to read the heads of the notes.

http://www.musictechteacher.com/quiz_help_treble_clef.htm



The checkerboard symbols above the staff give you the chords you could also play with the song.

Here are some common guitar chords. I only play guitar a little bit, so I can't teach you how to play each chord.

http://people.bukiki.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/bukiki-guitar-chords.jpg



The symbol at the very end of the song is called a final barline. It tells you the song is over.

http://0.tqn.com/d/piano/1/G/j/E/-/-/GL_final-barline.jpg



Feel free to email me if something else confuses you. I am a huge advocate for learning to read sheet music. It's kind of like learning a different language - it's really frustrating at first, but once you become fluent, it becomes an integral part of your life.

Answer 2

Well you would start at the beginning of the piece, first off it is in the treble or G clef, meaning the lines are named E G B D F and the spaces F A C E those are the tones. then comes the key signature this song is in the key of G major with one sharp (#) on the top F, this means all the Fs in this song will be F# (F sharp) unless specified with a natural sign before an F (Google a natural to see what it looks like), but there are no naturals in this song so you won’t have to worry. next is the time signature the C stands for common time or 4/4 time, this means 4 beats in each bar, a bar being separated by a single line, the first bar only has one beat this is ok because it is called the upbeat or pickup and would be counted as 4 as opposed to 1. And that first note is a D I can tell this because it is one tone below E (the first line). I would hope you know note values and counting and if not Google it. Same to with rests Google. The curved lines under some notes are called ether ties or slurs. A tie usually connecting two of the same note combining their values. And a slur making two notes sound not separated. any more questions feel free to email me just look up my profile.

Answer 3

This will take a lot longer than learning tablature. Almost any guitar instruction book will teach you the notes as they are on the fretboard and the music scale. You have to learn the name of the notes on the frets and their corresponding note on the staff. Then you have to practice a lot to train your brain how to recognize the notes and instantly translate them to your fingers. That is called sight-reading, when you don't have to look at the fretboard. I'd recommend going to your local library and seeing if they have any guitar instruction books. I'd be surprised if the instruction books didn't have notes on how to read music. Good luck. FP

Answer 4

Oh my gosh, where to start!? O_o