A Brief Guide to “White” Notation Gordon Haramaki These As Some Very General Rules About How Read White Notation

A Brief Guide to “White” Notation Gordon Haramaki These as some very general rules about how read White Notation.

STAFF, CLEFS and ‘KEY’ SIGNATURES White Notation uses a five-line staff, and three clefs—G, C, and F. Usually the only accidental notated as a ‘key’ signature is B-flat, though later composers experimented with more.

MEASURES AND BARLINES There are no barlines or measures in White Notation, but the length of the breve (see below) usually acts as a time unit analogous to the modern concept of a measure.

NOTE VALUES and RESTS Notes and rests (left to right from longer to shorter values). The two-space and three- space rests for the longa indicate whether or not there are 2 or 3 breves per longa. (see below).

Longa Breve Semibreve Minim Semiminim Fusa (downward tail (stem in either (stem in either (stem in either to the Left) direction) direction) direction)

MENSURATION (i.e. “Time Signatures”) Mensuration deals mainly with the division of the Breve (called Tempus or “time”) and the division of the Semibreve (Prolationis Species or “prolation”). These divisions are either “perfect” (division into 3s) or “imperfect (division into 2s).

Tempus (Time) and Prolationis (Prolation)

At the level of Tempus, perfect or imperfect division of the breve into semibreves is indicated by either a full circle (perfect, i.e. 3) or a broken circle (imperfect, i.e. 2). At the next level Prolationis Species, the perfect or imperfect division of the semibreve into minims is indicated by the presence or absence of a dot (the punctum perfectionis). The inclusion of the dot indicates a “perfect” division of the semibreve into three minims, while the lack of one indicate an “imperfect” division of the semibreve into two minims. A line through the broken circle mensuation symbol indicates that all note values are cut in half (alla breve). Thus, the four general divisions of mensuration are:

DOTTING and COLORATION The value of a note in a mensuration can be changed by coloring in the white space of breve, semibreve, or minim (coloration) and by dotting. Coloration subtracts part of a note’s value while dotting adds to the note’s value. As in modern notation, dotting increases a note’s value by half its value.

LIGATURES Reading White Notation is complicated by several factors, one of them being the continued use of the ligatures (multiple-note units) and the conventions associated with their use that are carried over from neumes. There are two main ligatures, the pes for upward melodic movement, and the clivis for downward melodic movement: each are governed by different conventions.

“Breve” ligatures At the tempus level, each two-note ligatures has the value of a breve followed by a long (indicated by the downward tail).

Pes Clivis melodic movement UP melodic movement DOWN

Breve Long Breve Long (a mirror image of the Pes)

The note values of the clivis can be The note values of the pes can be changed changed by either deleting the tail or by moving, adding, or deleting a tail. changing it into an “oblique” (slanted) ligature.

Long Long Breve Breve Long Long Breve Breve Long Breve Long Breve (- tail) (+ tail and (+ tail) (- tail) (move tail) (oblique and oblique) – tail)

“Semibreve” ligatures The two-note ligatures that begin with an upward tail are semibreves, and each two-note pes or clivis has the value of two semibreves, both the square or oblique forms.

Pes Clivis

Semibreve Semibreve Semibreve Semibreve Semibreve Semibreve Semibreve Semibreve