Reading Notes on the Treble and Bass Clef

Reading music can look like a secret code, but it follows a few simple rules. Once you know them, any piece of piano music becomes a map telling your fingers where to go.

The staff

Music is written on a staff: five lines with four spaces between them. Each line and each space stands for one white key. The higher a note sits on the staff, the higher it sounds.

Piano music uses two staves joined together:

• The treble clef is usually played by your right hand.
• The bass clef is usually played by your left hand.

Middle C

Middle C is the note that connects the two clefs. On the keyboard, it's the C closest to the middle, often right under the brand name. On the staff, it sits on its own short line, called a ledger line, just below the treble staff or just above the bass staff.

C

Treble clef notes

From the bottom line to the top, the lines are E, G, B, D, F:

Every Good Boy Deserves Fruit

The spaces spell a word on their own, from the bottom up: F, A, C, E.

E

G

B

D

F

Bass clef notes

From the bottom line to the top, the lines are G, B, D, F, A:

Good Boys Do Fine Always

And the spaces, from the bottom up, are A, C, E, G:

All Cows Eat Grass

Practise a little every day

Reading improves fastest with short, regular practice. Two or three minutes a day of naming notes is more useful than half an hour once a week. Try our free trainer, and aim to beat your score each day.

Free toolNote Reading TrainerFlashcard-style practice for naming notes on the treble and bass clef, with sound, scoring and streaks.

Last updated 9 October 2026

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