Tools
Note Reading Trainer
A note appears on the staff and you name it, either by clicking the note name or a piano key. Choose treble clef, bass clef or both, set the note range and include ledger lines when you are ready. Instant feedback and a running score make daily sight-reading drills quick and fun. Works in any browser.
How to use it
- Choose the clef: treble, bass or mixed.
- Set the range, starting with notes on the staff only.
- Name each note with the buttons or the on-screen keyboard.
- Watch the score and the average response time.
- Widen the range to ledger lines once you are fast and accurate.
Reading notes is a speed skill
Most people can work out a note by counting lines. Reading music means recognising it instantly, the way you recognise a word. That only comes from many short repetitions, which is exactly what this trainer gives you.
Landmark notes
Instead of counting from the bottom every time, learn a few landmarks and read the rest as steps from them:
- Treble clef: G4 (the line the clef curls around), middle C4 (one ledger line below), and the top line F5.
- Bass clef: F3 (the line between the two dots), middle C4 (one ledger line above), and the bottom line G2.
Every other note is a step (line to space) or a skip (line to line) away from a landmark.
A good routine
- Two to five minutes a day, one clef at a time.
- Aim for accuracy first; speed follows.
- When you get above 90% with a short response time, add ledger lines or switch clef.
- Finish with a few lines of real music: read slowly and name every note before you play.
Related
Learn the basics in note names and the staff and clefs. Print the reading worksheets treble clef 1 and bass clef 1 for practice away from the screen, and use the piano notes chart to link the staff to the keyboard.