Music

Music 101: What Is Musical Notation? Learn About The Different Types of Musical Notes and Time Signatures

Written by MasterClass

Last updated: Jun 7, 2021 • 6 min read

Printing music on a page allows a composer to convey information to a musician who will ultimately perform that composer’s work. The more detailed the musical notation, the more precise a performer will be. In this sense, musical notation is no different from printed text.

When a stage actor reads a script, it gives her all sorts of information: her lines, undoubtedly, but perhaps also certain instructions for inflection, her blocking, and information about the scene around her. Musical notation gives the same information to a musical performer: it tells her what notes to play, how fast or slow to play them, and perhaps instructions about dynamics or timbre. Both the theatrical script and the musical score are, at their core, forms of communication.