# Staff (music)

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Musical notation to represent the pitch

A typical five-line staff

In [Western](/source/Western_culture) [musical notation](/source/Musical_notation), the **staff**[1][2] ([UK](/source/British_English) usually **stave**);[3] (plural: *staves*),[1] also occasionally referred to as a **pentagram**,[4][5][6] is a set of horizontal lines (usually five) with spaces between them, that each represent a different musical pitch. However in the case of a [percussion staff](/source/Percussion_staff), there may be from one to five (or perhaps more) lines which denote different percussion instruments, as may the spaces in between. In [guitar tab](/source/Guitar_tab) there are up to six (or perhaps more) lines denoting different strings.

Appropriate music symbols, depending on the intended effect, are placed on the staff with the vertical position showing their pitch, percussion instrument or string, and the horizontal position showing their approximate location in time.

The absolute pitch of each line of a pitched staff is indicated by the placement of a [clef](/source/Clef) symbol at the appropriate vertical position on the left-hand side of the staff (possibly modified by [conventions for specific instruments](/source/Transposing_instrument)). For example, the [treble clef](/source/Treble_clef), also known as the G clef, is placed on the second line (counting upward), fixing that line as the pitch first G above "[middle C](/source/Middle_C)".

The lines and spaces are numbered from bottom to top; the bottom line is the *first line* and the top line is the *fifth line*.

The musical staff is analogous to a mathematical [graph](/source/Graph_of_a_function) of [pitch](/source/Pitch_(music)) with respect to [time](/source/Duration_(music)). Pitches of notes are given by their vertical position on the staff and notes are played from left to right. Unlike a graph, however, the number of [semitones](/source/Semitone) represented by a vertical step from a line to an adjacent space depends on the key, and the exact timing of the beginning of each note is not directly proportional to its horizontal position; rather, exact timing is encoded by the musical symbol chosen for each note in addition to the [tempo](/source/Tempo).

A [time signature](/source/Time_signature) to the right of the [clef](/source/Clef) indicates the relationship between timing counts and note symbols, while [bar lines](/source/Bar_(music)) group notes on the staff into [measures](/source/Bar_(music)).

## Staff positions

Staff, with staff positions indicated

When a staff is used for pitched instruments other than guitar tab, the vertical position of the notehead on the staff indicates which note to play: higher-pitched notes are marked higher on the staff. The notehead can be placed with its center intersecting a line (*on a line*) or in between the lines touching the lines above and below (*in a space*). Notes outside the range of the staff are placed on or between [ledger lines](/source/Ledger_line)—lines the width of the note they need to hold—added above or below the staff.

Which staff positions represent which [notes](/source/Note_(music)) is determined by a [clef](/source/Clef) placed at the beginning of the staff. The clef identifies a particular line as a specific note, and all other notes are determined relative to that line. For example, the [treble clef](/source/Treble_clef) puts the G above [middle C](/source/Middle_C) on the second line. The [interval](/source/Interval_(music)) between adjacent staff positions is one [step](/source/Steps_and_skips) in the [diatonic scale](/source/Diatonic_scale). Once fixed by a clef, the notes represented by the positions on the staff can be modified by the [key signature](/source/Key_signature) or [accidentals](/source/Accidental_(music)) on individual notes. A clefless staff may be used to represent a set of [percussion](/source/Percussion_instrument) sounds; each line typically represents a different instrument.

## Systems, braces and brackets

Musical brace.

Musical bracket.

A **vertical line** drawn to the left of multiple staves creates a **system**, indicating that the music on all the staves is to be played simultaneously. A **[brace](/source/Bracket#Curly_brackets_or_braces_.7B_.7D)** (curly bracket) is used to join multiple staves that represent an instrument, such as a piano, organ, harp, or marimba.[7] A **bracket** is an additional vertical line joining staves to show groupings of instruments that function as a unit, such as the string section of an orchestra. Sometimes a second bracket is used to show instruments grouped in pairs, such as the first and second oboes or first and second violins in an orchestra.[8] In some cases, a brace is used for this purpose.[7][9]

When more than one system appears on a page, often two parallel diagonal strokes are placed on the left side of the score to separate them.[10]

Four-part [SATB](/source/SATB) vocal settings, especially in [hymnals](/source/Hymnal), use a *divisi* notation on a two-staff system with [soprano](/source/Soprano) and [alto](/source/Alto) voices sharing the upper staff and [tenor](/source/Tenor) and [bass](/source/Bass_(voice_type)) voices on the lower staff.

Confusingly, the German *System* (often in the combined forms *Liniensystem* or *Notensystem*) may refer to a single staff as well as to the *Akkolade* (from the French) or system in the English sense; the Italian term is *accollatura*.[10][11]

## Grand staff

The grand staff

When music on two staves is joined by a [brace](/source/Bracket#Curly_brackets_or_braces_.7B_.7D), or is intended to be played at once by a single performer (usually a [keyboard instrument](/source/Keyboard_instrument) or [harp](/source/Harp)), a **grand staff** ([American English](/source/American_English)) or **great stave** ([British English](/source/British_English)) is created.[*[dubious](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Accuracy_dispute#Disputed_statement) – [discuss](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Staff_(music)#Dubious)*] Typically, the upper staff uses a [treble clef](/source/Treble_clef) and the lower staff has a [bass clef](/source/Bass_clef). In this instance, [middle C](/source/Middle_C) is centered between the two staffs, and it can be written on the first [ledger line](/source/Ledger_line) below the upper staff or the first ledger line above the lower staff. Very rarely, a centered line with a small C clef is written, and usually used to indicate that B, C, or D on the line can be played with either hand (ledger lines are not used from a center alto as this creates confusion). When playing the [piano](/source/Piano) or harp, the upper staff is normally played with the right hand and the lower staff with the left hand. In music intended for [organ](/source/Organ_(music)) with [pedalboard](/source/Pedal_keyboard), a grand staff normally comprises three staves, one for each hand on the manuals and one for the feet on the pedalboard.

A simple grand staff. Each of the staves shown above has seven notes and one rest.

Musical keyboard and treble and bass clef

## History

12th-century Beneventan manuscript showing diastematic neumes and a single-line staff

Excerpt from a keyboard work by William Byrd written on a six-line staff, 1591

Early Western medieval notation was written with [neumes](/source/Neume), which did not specify exact pitches but only the shape of the melodies, i.e. indicating when the musical line went up or down; presumably these were intended as mnemonics for melodies which had been taught by rote.

During the 9th through 11th centuries a number of systems were developed to specify pitch more precisely, including **diastematic neumes** whose height on the page corresponded with their absolute pitch level (Longobardian and Beneventan manuscripts from Italy show this technique around the year 1000). **Digraphic** notation, using letter names similar to modern [note names](/source/Note_(music)) in conjunction with the neumes, made a brief appearance in a few manuscripts, but a number of manuscripts used one or more horizontal lines to indicate particular pitches.

The treatise *[Musica enchiriadis](/source/Musica_enchiriadis)* (c. 900) uses [Daseian](/source/Daseian) notation for indicating specific pitches, but the modern use of staff lines is attributed to [Guido d'Arezzo](/source/Guido_d'Arezzo) (990–1050), whose four-line staff is still used (though without the red and yellow coloring he recommended) in [Gregorian chant publications](/source/Liber_usualis) today. Five-line staves appeared in Italy in the 13th century and it was promoted by [Ugolino da Forlì](/source/Ugolino_da_Forl%C3%AC); staves with four, five, and six lines were used as late as 1600.[12]

## See also

- [Tablature](/source/Tablature)

- [Sight reading](/source/Sight_reading)

- [Rastrum](/source/Rastrum)

## Notes

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-collins_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-collins_1-1) ["staff" in the Collins English Dictionary](https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/staff): "in British English: also called: stave; plural: staffs or staves"

1. **[^](#cite_ref-mw_2-0)** ["staff" in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/staff)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["stave Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary"](https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/stave). *dictionary.cambridge.org*. Retrieved 17 March 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Antunes, Ines P.; Rosa, Carlos; Almeida, Flávio (2024). ["Information Design and Semiology: A Visual Study on Deconstructing Musical Notation for Improving First-Grade Children's Learning"](https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-47281-7_53). In Martins, Nuno; Brandão, Daniel (eds.). *Advances in Design and Digital Communication IV*. Springer Series in Design and Innovation. Vol. 35. Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland. pp. 639–650. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1007/978-3-031-47281-7_53](https://doi.org/10.1007%2F978-3-031-47281-7_53). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-3-031-47281-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-3-031-47281-7).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Dolmetsch Online – Chart of Musical Symbols"](https://www.dolmetsch.com/musicalsymbols.htm). *www.dolmetsch.com*. Retrieved 2023-12-03.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["How To Read The Notes On The Pentagram » The Art Of Playing"](https://www.theartofplaying.net/en/read-notes-pentagram-easy-and-fast/). 2022-04-06. Retrieved 2023-12-03.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-IrvinePauly1999_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-IrvinePauly1999_7-1) Irvine, Demar; Pauly, Reinhard G.; Radice, Mark A. (1999). [*Irvine's writing about music*](https://books.google.com/books?id=2RrYmediD2QC&pg=PA213). Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 213. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-57467-049-3](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-57467-049-3). Retrieved 18 October 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Rachmaninoff1965_8-0)** Rachmaninoff, Sergei (1965). [*Piano concertos nos. 1, 2, and 3*](https://books.google.com/books?id=kIXcT_ooWpoC&pg=PA261). Courier Dover Publications. p. 261. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-486-26350-2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-486-26350-2). Retrieved 18 October 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Strauss1904_9-0)** Strauss, Richard (1993) [1904]. [*Eine Alpensinfonie and Symphonia domestica*](https://books.google.com/books?id=-FE08SeSZnYC&pg=RA1-PA71). New York: Courier Dover Publications. p. 71. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-486-27725-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-486-27725-7). Retrieved 18 October 2011.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Grove_System_10-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Grove_System_10-1) Rastall, Richard (2001). "System". In [Sadie, Stanley](/source/Stanley_Sadie); [Tyrrell, John](/source/John_Tyrrell_(musicologist)) (eds.). *[The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians](/source/The_New_Grove_Dictionary_of_Music_and_Musicians)* (2nd ed.). London: [Macmillan Publishers](/source/Macmillan_Publishers). [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-56159-239-5](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-56159-239-5). ‎

1. **[^](#cite_ref-Wikipedia-DE_11-0)** [description in the German language Wikipedia](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notensystem_(Musik)#Akkolade)[*[circular reference](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Wikipedia_and_sources_that_mirror_or_use_it)*]

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** Harvard Dictionary of Music (2nd edition, 1972): Neume, Staff

## Further reading

- Haines, John (2008). "The Origins of the Musical Staff". *[The Musical Quarterly](/source/The_Musical_Quarterly)*. **91** (3/4). [Oxford University Press](/source/Oxford_University_Press): 327–378. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1093/musqtl/gdp002](https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fmusqtl%2Fgdp002). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [20534535](https://www.jstor.org/stable/20534535).

## External links

- [Dolmetsch Online](http://www.dolmetsch.com/manuscriptpaper.htm): Printable [PDF](/source/PDF) files of musical staff (A4 size)

- [Audio Graffiti Free Manuscript Paper](https://web.archive.org/web/20090418154531/http://www.audiograffiti.com.au/dwn_ms.htm): Printable [PDF](/source/PDF) files of musical staff (A4 and Letter size; standard, TAB and more; with or without clefs)

- [Printable files of musical staff](http://www.people.virginia.edu/~pdr4h/musicpaper) in [PDF](/source/PDF) and [PostScript](/source/PostScript) formats provided by Perry Roland of Alderman Library at The University of Virginia

- [Customizable Manuscript Paper](http://www.williamburnson.com/engraving/staff-paper.html): Customizable staff paper in varying dimensions, staff heights, thicknesses, and margins in PDF format

v t e Musical notation Staff 8va 15ma Abbreviation Bar Clef Da capo Dal segno Key signature Ledger line Mode Ossia Scale Rehearsal letter Repeat sign Tempo Time signature Transposition Transposing instrument Musical notes Accidental flat natural sharp Cue note Dotted note Grace note Note value beam Notehead stem Pitch Rest Tacet Tuplet Tremolo Interval Helmholtz pitch notation Letter notation Scientific pitch notation Articulation Accent Caesura Damping Dynamics Fermata Fingering Legato Marcato Ornament Appoggiatura Glissando Grace note Mordent Portamento Slide Trill Portato Slur Staccato Tenuto Tie Tonguing Chords Chord chart Chord diagram Figured bass Lead sheet Sheet music History of music publishing Music engraving Music publisher Scorewriter Other systems Ancient Greek Braille music Chinese Ekphonetic Eye music Gamelan Graphic notation Klavarskribo Kunkunshi Mensural notation Nashville Number System Neume Numbered musical notation Parsons Percussion notation Shakuhachi Shape note Simplified Tablature Swaralipi Znamenny Related Music stand Perfect pitch Sight-reading Transcription List of musical symbols Category:Musical notation

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Staff (music)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staff_(music)) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staff_(music)?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.