THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO MUSIC NOTATION

An extraordinary achievement... I would pray that it becomes a kind of Holy Writ

for notation in this coming century. Certainly nobody could have done it better,
and it will be a reference for musicians for decades to come.
Sir Simon Rattle
After more than 20 years in the business Gould has seen (and heard) it all and
Behind Bars is an encyclopaedic distillation of practical professional wisdom.
Gramophone Magazine (Arnold Whittall)
© James Hopkirk
Behind Bars
Specialist music editor Elaine Gould provides a comprehensive grounding in notational principles
in this seminal reference work, the most thorough guide ever published in this field. An essential
resource for composers, editors, music-setters, students and teachers, Behind Bars covers
everything from basic rules of mainstream practice to complex instrumental and vocal techniques
and new technologies.

Supported by 1,500 music examples, this all-encompassing guide encourages new standards of
excellence and accuracy. With the rise of computer technology, there is an ever greater need for
ready access to principles of best practice in this dynamic field.

Currently in its sixth impression, Behind Bars was short-listed for the Music Industry
Association’s Music Awards 2011 (Printed Music Awards, Best Classical Publication). The
German-language edition Hals über Kopf was published in 2014, with a Chinese-language edition
scheduled for release in 2018.

If you are a composer or a copyist, you cannot live without this book. If you are a
conductor, it is equally enlightening and indispensable.
Artsjournal.com (Norman Lebrecht)

Elaine Gould
Elaine Gould is a leading authority in the field of
contemporary music editing. As New Music Editor at Faber
Music, she has worked on the complex and varied scores of
house composers Thomas Adès, Julian Anderson, George
Benjamin, Jonathan Harvey, Oliver Knussen and Colin
Matthews amongst others. Composers, conductors and
professional musicians depend upon her skill and knowledge
to deliver clean scores in high-pressure situations such as
international premieres.

A specialist in standard notation and practices, Elaine is

highly sought after as an authority and arbiter of best practice.
Composers and music-setters all around the world rely on her
expertise and guidance in this increasingly complex field.

Elaine is passionate about sharing her knowledge and raising standards of editing and notation
through education. She is regularly invited to deliver lectures and composition seminars to
university music departments and music colleges. She teaches a notation course at the University
of Birmingham as well as a course she co-designed for editors entering the industry run by the UK
Music Publishers’ Association.
 • Practical and readable, providing clear
clefs 7
solutions and precise guidance
Clefs to use
Except for percussion, each stave must begin with a clef. Never omit the clef;
only in hand-copied theatre and entertainment music has it ever been an
• Provides a thorough grounding in
accepted convention to use a clef on the first line and no other.
notation principles and accepted
using alto and tenor clefs conventions, progressing from basic
Among common orchestral instruments, only the viola uses the alto clef. The
alto clef should be used for alto trombone parts (see Trombone and tuba, p. 262). elements to the most complex
Bassoon, trombone, cello, and occasionally double bass, use the tenor clef.
Some nineteenth-century editions place tenor-voice parts in the tenor rather
than the treble clef. • Everything you need to know about
Changing clef
editing and publishing contemporary
A change of clef placed after the beginning of the system is two-thirds of music
the size of the clef at the beginning of the stave (see following examples).

• Each subject introduced with a clear

For performance material, stay in one clef for as long as is practicable, using
up to at least three ledger lines rather than changing clef frequently. This
shows the contour of the pitches, which a change of clef would obscure:
definition, followed by frequent
examples, tables, score excerpts,
discussion and amplification

• Topics divided into small sections with

The practice of retaining the most commonly used clef at the beginning of the plentiful headings for easy reference
stave while inserting a new clef after it is obsolete. This includes the very
start of a piece:

at the beginning of the system

Give warning of the clef change by placing the new clef at the end off the
sustaining notes across beats 167
previous system before the barline:

Dividing long notes according to the metre

simple time
A long duration that starts on the beat may be written as a single note-value:

When the rhythms are not part of a regular pattern, the long duration may
be divided to expose the beats or half-bar, to make the rhythm easier to count
and therefore to place. In it is the third (not the fourth) beat that should
• Supported by 1,500 music examples be exposed:

– extracts of works from Bach to

Xenakis – including some of the Some composers prefer to divide a long note that is followed by a rest into

most influential composers of recent its separate beats, in order to emphasize that the note should be held for its
full value:
decades

• Comparative examples of correct, A long duration that starts after the beat is usually divided to show further
beats. This helps the placing of the second note:
alternative and incorrect layouts
aim to train the editorial eye

• Illustrates multiple notational compound time

possibilities and contexts for every No note-value should be written across the beat, except combined whole beats:

eventuality
 • Covers idiomatic notation particular
404 strings
to each section of the orchestra, as well
The use of grace notes indicates that the rhythm is the result of the bounced
bow. Otherwise short note-values may be accompanied by an ad lib.
as for piano, harp, guitar and voice
instruction to suggest the flexible rhythm:

• Clear easy-reference tables for

transposition as well as for wind- and
brass-band scoring
Two-note tremolos
When a tremolo between two notes is played in one bow stroke, place a slur
between the two notes. The tremolo will be either between two fingers on
• Practical supporting tables for
one string (‘the finger tremolo’), or between two strings (‘the bow and finger harmonics on guitar and bowed strings
tremolo’):

• Documentation of extended
techniques and how to communicate
When tremolo note-values are repeated within one bow stroke, use a single
slur. A slur should always indicate the length of the bow stroke (there should
effects most clearly
not be separate slurs for each two-note tremolo unless each has a separate
bow stroke). To use two sets of slurs is confusing, as it is unclear whether a
second set functions as bowing or phrasing: • Extensive cross referencing to
highlight associated notation in
different contexts
When a two-note tremolo is articulated by separate bow strokes, there is a
change of bow and finger, or bow and string, for each note. This technique is
much less commonly used than the slurred tremolo, so clarify that bow
changes are required:

476 vocal music

(See also Two-note tremolos, p. 225.)

dynamics and articulation
A reduction requires minimal dynamics, since all dynamics appear in the
vocal parts. Omit syllabic slurs (see Searle extract, below), but include other
articulation, since this will affect the way a pianist plays the reduction:

• Everything you need to know for

creating a vocal score and choral
score

• How to create choral and orchestral

piano reductions
enharmonic spelling
Note-spelling must make melodic sense for each vocal line (see Enharmonic
• Unique discussion of word division spelling, p. 437). In the reduction it is better to spell notes so that the harmonic
sense is clear – this is easier for the pianist to read (bar 2):
principles

• Extensive documentation of
avant-garde vocal techniques
 • How best to present your music to
620 freedom and choice
your performers
Note that marking conductor signals may be sufficient cue without additional
pitch or rhythm cues.
• How to produce professional-level
Performer signals instrumental parts
Place a diagonal line between staves to indicate a signal from one performer
to another, or to and from a cue of electronic sounds. It is helpful to attach an
arrow to the diagonal line, pointing towards the stave of the performer to be
signalled.
• Addresses the minutiae of score and
Where synchronization points need to be indicated as well, use vertical lines: ensemble layout complexities
a vertical line always indicates simultaneous events. Use contrasting designs
of vertical and diagonal lines: either have solid lines for signals and dotted
lines for synchronization (as below), or vice versa.
• De-mystifies contemporary notation
and main-stream avant-garde practices

• Explores the impact of free metre,

pitch and other parameters
and addresses what and how to
communicate

(The cello part is shown opposite.)

performer signals in instrumental parts

It is essential to indicate where one performer is giving a signal to another,
as well as to indicate where to follow a signal. Note the following guidelines:
• Where one performer signals another, an arrow points away from this
stave
tave
• Where a performer receives a signal, an arrow points towards this stave
ntry
• Where a player must co-ordinate with a succession of entries, each entry
must be written in as a cue
notation and co-ordination 593
The following example highlights the comprehensive cueing that may y be
required to synchronize parts in unmeasured bars of unconducted music. usic.
n be:
The more cue information provided, the more precise the co-ordination can To make the starting and stopping points of a recording obvious, centre
opening and closing brackets on the stave. All CD tracks or individual sound
files must be numbered, and numerals framed clearly above the stave (
below = Track 1):

• Ground-breaking documentation of
notation for electroacoustic sounds
When performers require cues or must synchronize with a recording or live
produced by new technologies processing, provide notation of significant events. The most appropriate nota-
tion depends on the nature of the music and the type of co-ordination required.

• Extensive discussion of scoring and Rhythm and pitch cues

cueing with electronic sounds Distinctive rhythmic and pitched materials are the clearest cues. Where
rhythms would be the most helpful element, providing pitches may be
irrelevant. (To provide an indication of pitch contour, see Options to show
approximate pitch, p. 640). Description is simplified by replacing the five-line
• Detailed 16-page index for quick stave with one (or more) lines. Different notehead shapes may indicate con-
trasting textures. The line (or lines) may alternate with a five-line stave, should
reference, in addition to content lists selected sections be notated more helpfully as pitched material. Pitched cues
may be necessary only where the performer has to tune to the electronic part
preceding each chapter (bar 2, below).
Large dense chords can provide too much information and may be replaced
by a single melodic line or even rhythms alone. For example, Harvey’s
Bhakti, movement II, deals with such chords in precisely this way (the follow-
ing bars 1–2 have similar notation):
Contents
PART I: GENERAL CONVENTION
1 Ground Rules: The Stave – Clefs – Noteheads – Stems – Tails – Beams – Ledger Lines – Octave Signs –
Rest Symbols – Barlines – Rhythmic Spacing – Spacing Symbols

2 Chords, Dotted Notes, Ties

3 Accidentals and Key Signatures: Accidentals – Key Signatures – Key Changes – Microtones

4 Dynamics and Articulation

5 Grace Notes, Arpeggiated Chords, Trills, Glissandos and Vibrato

6 Metre: Time Signatures – Beaming – Rests – Syncopation – Cross Rhythm – Polymetre – Mixed Metres –
Denominators – Tempo Indications – Pauses – Silent Bars (G.P.)

7 Tuplets: Numerals – Brackets – Placing – Rhythmic Alignment – Note-values – Rests within a Tuplet –
Tuplets within Tuplets – Tuplet Repetition

8 Repeat Signs: Tremolos – Repeat-beat and Repeat-bar Abbreviation – Repeated Sections

PART II: IDIOMATIC NOTATION

9 Woodwind and Brass: General (Articulation, Microtones, Glissandos, Special Techniques, Transposition) –
Woodwind (Clefs, Techniques) – Brass (Clefs, Transpositions and Key Signatures, Mutes, Techniques)

10 Percussion: Allocating Instruments – Labelling – Tuned Percussion – Instruments of Indefinite Pitch –

Note Duration – Damping – Sticks, Beaters and Mallets – Tremolos, Rolls and Trills –
Beating Spots (Striking Points) – Timpani – Drum Notation – Cymbals – Symbols

11 Keyboard: General (The System and Clefs, Distributing Notes between the Hands, Fingering, Part-writing,
Octave Signs, Glissandos, Note Clusters) – Piano Notation (Pedalling, Silently-depressed Keys, Effects Produced
inside the Piano, The Prepared Piano) – Organ Notation (System Layout, Manuals, Registration, Pedal Markings,
Wedges and Weights)

12 Harp: The Tuning Mechanism – Note-spelling – Pedal Settings – Playing Style of Chords – Glissandos –
Tremolos and Bisbigliando – Damping and Laissez Vibrer – Harmonics – Plucking – Scordatura – Percussive Sounds

13 Classical Guitar: String Designation – Right-hand Fingering – Left-hand Fingering – Left-hand Techniques –
Right-hand Techniques – Sustaining and Damping – Harmonics – Scordatura

14 Strings: Clefs – String Designation – Open Strings – Fingering – Multiple-stopping – Bowing Techniques –
Pizzicato – Percussive Sounds – Harmonics – Scordatura – Technical Instructions – Divided String Ensemble

15 Vocal Music: Clefs – Beaming – Syllabic Slurs – Phrasing and Breathing Points – Enharmonic Spelling – Text –
Word Division – Extenders – Hyphens – Alternative Text Underlay – Qualifying Text Sounds – Falsetto –
Speech Notation – Voiced and Unvoiced Sounds – Choral Writing – Choral Reduction

PART III: LAYOUT AND PRESENTATION

16 Preparing Materials: Page Sizes and Formats – Stave Sizes – Pagination – Bar Numbers –Rehearsal Marks
Indentation and Layout between Movements – Casting Off – Vertical Alignment – Performance Instructions –
Optional Cuts – The Ossia

17 Score Layout: What is Included – Transposition – Clefs – Instrument Labelling – Order of Instruments –
Brackets and Barlines – Placing Tempo and Rehearsal Marks – Stave Sharing – Stave Allocation – Playing Score –
Wind and Brass Band – Orchestral Reduction

18 Part Preparation: Labelling the Part – Page-turns – Clefs, Octave Signs and Time Signatures – Mute Instructions –
Multiple Rests – Cue Notation – Repeated Bars – Tacet – Accidentals – Combined-instrument Parts

19 Electroacoustic Music: Equipment – Notation and Co-ordination – Dynamics – Co-ordination with Pre-recorded
Material (Fixed Media) – Sampled Sounds – Delay Lines – Program Changes – Continuous Controllers

20 Freedom and Choice: Rhythmic Independence and Synchronization (Music without Metre, Independent Parts,
Independent Repetition) – Proportional Spacing (Time-Space Notation) – Options to Show Approximate Pitch –
Alternatives (Choices)
Title: Behind Bars
Author: Elaine Gould
Format: Hardback
Extent: 694 Pages
Price: £75.00/€95.28/$99.00
ISBN: 0-571-51456-1
EAN13: 978-0-571-51456-4
USA Item No: 12-0571514561
E-Book: iBook and Kindle editions available

“Gould’s book shows composers how to ensure that

the magical transfer of musical ideas from their
imaginations to their scores, from their performers to
their audiences, is as seamless as possible.
Behind Bars is a practical revelation of the poetics of
musical communication.”
The Guardian (Tom Service)

“As a single volume, written by one person, it is a

remarkable achievement and should be on the bookshelf
of any musician.”
Classical Music Magazine (Jonathan Wikeley)

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