← All lessonsModule 10 · Read Music Fast
Key Signatures on the Staff
The few sharps or flats next to the clef change notes all over the page. Learn where each one sits on the treble and the bass staff, how a signature changes every note with that letter in every octave, how accidentals and naturals work until the bar line, and how to spot the key of a piece at a glance.
In this lesson you'll
- Find every sharp and flat of a key signature on the treble and the bass staff: two fixed zig-zags, one line lower on the bass staff.
- Read accidentals in the music: sharp, flat and natural, lasting until the bar line, and naturals that cancel the key signature.
- Read short melodies in G and F and name the major key of any signature from the staff in seconds.
Music in this lesson
- Moonlight Sonata (first movement)Ludwig van Beethoven · four sharps · C♯ minor
- Clair de luneClaude Debussy · five flats · D♭ major
Remember
Sharps start on the F line and flats on the B line, in fixed zig-zags; on the bass staff the same shapes sit one line lower.
The key signature changes every note with that letter, in every octave; accidentals last only until the bar line.
Last sharp plus a half step, or the second-to-last flat, names the major key.