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The world of music: how we got the notes

10/6/2017
5,085 views
music Story: The world of music: how we got the notes

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We can write music in a sheet of paper as well as we write words. Have you ever thought how the musical notes became what they are now? Let's learn together!

In the Middle Ages music used to be written with help of letters.

music Story: In the Middle Ages music used to be written with help of letters.
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This way of writing allowed to denote only a pitch of tone, but not its time-value. In due course, such scripts became insufficient as polyphonic music gained currency.
music Story: The world of music: how we got the notes
maxpixel Public Domain Dedication
To make music score more convenient Guido of Arezzo, Italian music theorist, started using special signs - notes, that looked like hatched squares placed on one of the four lines depending upon the pitch of tone. Later, the fifth line appeared and musicians learned how to indicate rhythm.

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There is a curious story about the names of the notes. You may have never heard of it before!

music Story: There is a curious story about the names of the notes. You may have never heard of it before!
pexels Public Domain Dedication
Guido of Arezzo used a Catholic hymn of that time to name the notes. He took the first syllables of the first six lines of the hymn in Latin.

The first lines of the hymn are following:

Ut queant laxis
Resonare fibris,
Mira gestorum
Famuli tuorum,
Solve polluti
Labii reatum,
Sancte Iohannes

Thus, the names of the notes were: Ut, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La. The note "Si" was added later. All of the syllables, except for "Ut" are open ones, they are easy to sing. As a result, "Ut" was changed into "Do" - that probably came from a Latin word "Dominus" (God).

Here is the Catholic hymn for you to get acquainted with:


Do you have something to add or discuss? You are welcome to do so in the comments below! And remember to share it with your friends!

#music #knowledge #art #inspiration

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What are your thoughts on this subject?
20 Comments
John W Shreve
John W Shreve
Robert Snow, Don't stop. It sounds like you have the start of a good song.
0
Apr 19, 2023 5:27PM
Fred Mayes
Fred Mayes
Amar Dhillon, it is there, you just don't use it.
0
Nov 26, 2021 1:25AM
tbear
tbear
When did te get changed to si? Just asking! 😊👍
0
Oct 2, 2021 6:03PM
Christopher Ridings
Christopher Ridings
No mention of Duns Scotus?
1
May 24, 2020 4:39PM
Robert Snow
Robert Snow
Doe a Deer a female Deer , Ray , a drop of golden sun , Me , a name I call myself ............
3
May 6, 2019 4:58PM
Jakob Gerber
Jakob Gerber
You forget something old every day ...
0
May 24, 2018 4:47PM
Dan McIntyre
Dan McIntyre
liked the info, dislike all the Damn ads and pop ups all of a sudden. You try to read what someone posted and your damn screen keeps jumping up and down! How the hell is someone suppose to get anything done! You can't even grab the slide bar to hold it still. This keeps up I won't participate any longer.
2
May 21, 2018 5:47PM
djgard
djgard
Chromatically is Do, De, Ray, Re, Me, Fa, Fe, Sol, Si, Te, Do
0
May 13, 2018 8:22PM
Richard Elliott
Richard Elliott
I thought that the added note would have been "Ti" not "Si"
0
Apr 20, 2018 8:36AM
Amar Dhillon
Amar Dhillon
Very unique really. Perhaps this language of music exists only in the West. Here in India, and perhaps in the East, there is no such written language for music.
2
Jan 31, 2018 7:17PM
ninakamwene
ninakamwene
WOW! That was amazing. Thank you.
0
Oct 31, 2017 12:56AM
Tom Seigo
Tom Seigo
I come from a family that loves to sing but never took a single lesson of music composition!! Still, interesting!
0
Oct 30, 2017 8:26PM
Geraldine Tettemer
Geraldine Tettemer
very interesting, never heard this
0
Oct 30, 2017 11:02AM
scottlarock
scottlarock
fascinating...I sing...for myself...and really can't read music...that is one of the things I wish I would have done...too busy with football...and girls....
0
Oct 28, 2017 8:36PM
Shirley Hambrick
Shirley Hambrick
Thanks for the info. I had never heard.
0
Oct 7, 2017 7:21AM

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