HearmonyBass and Treble Clef Notes: Lines, Spaces and Mnemonics That Stick
The bass clef lines, from the bottom up, are G, B, D, F, A ("Good Boys Do Fine Always"), and the spaces are A, C, E, G ("All Cows Eat Grass"). The treble clef lines are E, G, B, D, F ("Every Good Boy Does Fine"), and the spaces spell F, A, C, E. Middle C sits on a short extra line between the two staves.
Below are both clefs in one table, the mnemonics, the ledger lines around middle C, and a faster method than reciting sentences: landmark notes plus a five-minute daily drill.
What are the notes of the bass clef?
The bass clef notes are G B D F A on the lines and A C E G in the spaces, always counted from the bottom up. The bass clef is also called the F clef: its two dots sit on either side of the fourth line, which is the F below middle C. Find that F and you can count to any other note.
The bass clef is read by the left hand on piano and by cello, bass guitar, double bass, bassoon and trombone. Its five lines cover most of the two octaves below middle C, from G2 on the bottom line to A3 on the top line, with middle C just above the staff.
What are the notes of the treble clef?
The treble clef notes are E G B D F on the lines and F A C E in the spaces, from the bottom up. The treble clef is also called the G clef: its curl wraps around the second line, which is the G above middle C. It is used by the piano's right hand, violin, flute, guitar, trumpet and most voices.
Here are both clefs side by side, position by position. The numbers after each letter are octave numbers in scientific pitch notation, where middle C is C4.
| Position (bottom to top) | Treble clef | Bass clef |
|---|---|---|
| Line 1 (bottom line) | E4 | G2 |
| Space 1 | F4 | A2 |
| Line 2 | G4 (clef curls here) | B2 |
| Space 2 | A4 | C3 |
| Line 3 (middle line) | B4 | D3 |
| Space 3 | C5 | E3 |
| Line 4 | D5 | F3 (clef dots here) |
| Space 4 | E5 | G3 |
| Line 5 (top line) | F5 | A3 |
Read across any row and you will spot a shortcut: the bass clef letter is always two letters later than the treble letter in the same position. Treble E becomes bass G, F becomes A, G becomes B, and so on. If you already read treble clef, you can read bass clef by "adding two letters" until it becomes automatic.
What does Every Good Boy Does Fine mean?
"Every Good Boy Does Fine" is a mnemonic for the treble clef lines: the first letters give E, G, B, D, F from the bottom line to the top. Each clef has its own sentences, and the classic set is short enough to learn in one sitting:
| Clef | Lines or spaces | Notes | Mnemonic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Treble | Lines | E G B D F | Every Good Boy Does Fine |
| Treble | Spaces | F A C E | FACE (spells the word) |
| Bass | Lines | G B D F A | Good Boys Do Fine Always (or Great Big Dogs Fight Animals) |
| Bass | Spaces | A C E G | All Cows Eat Grass |
Mnemonics get you started, but they are slow: to name the fourth line you recite four words. Treat them as training wheels and move on to landmarks (below) within a week or two.
Where is middle C on the treble and bass clef?
Middle C sits on one ledger line below the treble staff, and on one ledger line above the bass staff. It is the same note in both places. On the grand staff, the two-staff system piano music uses, it is the short line exactly halfway between them.
Ledger lines are short lines added above or below the staff for notes that don't fit on the five lines. Counting them works just like counting inside the staff, alternating line and space:
- Below the treble staff: D4 hangs in the space under the bottom line, C4 (middle C) is on the first ledger line, B3 is just under it, A3 is on the second ledger line.
- Above the bass staff: B3 sits in the space over the top line, C4 (middle C) is on the first ledger line, D4 is just above it, E4 is on the second ledger line.
- Above the treble staff: G5 sits on top of the top line, A5 is on the first ledger line.
- Below the bass staff: F2 hangs under the bottom line, E2 is on the first ledger line.
The Wikipedia article on clefs shows these clefs alongside the less common C clefs used for viola and some vocal music.
How do you memorize clef notes fast?
To memorize clef notes fast, learn a handful of landmark notes by sight and read everything else as a step or skip from the nearest one. This is quicker than mnemonics because you never start from the bottom line.
- Treble G: line 2, where the clef curls.
- Bass F: line 4, between the clef's dots.
- Middle C: one ledger line between the staves.
- Treble C: space 3, the C an octave above middle C.
- Bass C: space 2, the C an octave below middle C.
From a landmark, line to the next space is one letter up (a step), and line to the next line is two letters up (a skip, a third). So the treble line above G is B, and the bass space just below F is E. Steps and skips are intervals, and once you know what each interval sounds like, the page and your ear start to agree.
Common mistakes and how to fix them
- Reading bass clef with treble names. A very common slip. Fix: before each piece, find the bass F between the dots and say its name out loud.
- Counting from the top. Every mnemonic runs bottom to top. Fix: always count up from line 1 or from a landmark.
- Losing track on ledger lines. Fix: anchor on middle C and count from there, not from the staff.
A five-minute daily drill (one week)
- Day 1: Treble lines and spaces only. Name ten random notes on a printed staff, out loud.
- Day 2: Bass lines and spaces only, same drill.
- Day 3: Landmarks. Point to treble G, bass F, middle C, treble C and bass C until you can do it without looking at the table.
- Day 4: Steps and skips from each landmark, up and down.
- Day 5: Ledger lines around middle C, both clefs.
- Day 6: Mixed: alternate one treble note, one bass note.
- Day 7: Take a simple piece and name every note in the first line, then play or hum the line slowly.
Self-test: name each note. Treble, space 3 · bass, line 4 · bass, space 2 · treble, line 2 · bass, top line · one ledger line above the bass staff. Answers: C5, F3, C3, G4, A3, middle C (C4).
Practice note reading in Hearmony
Hearmony's Note Reading side quest is free and teaches exactly the first steps of this guide. It starts on the piano keyboard (C is just left of the group of two black keys), moves through all the white keys, then puts notes on the treble staff with Every Good Boy Does Fine, FACE and middle C on its ledger line, and finishes with sharps. Each teaching card plays the notes on a sampled piano, so you hear what you read.
Note Reading works on the treble staff; for the bass clef, use the table and the drill above. Reading and hearing go together, so once the names stick, the ear training exercises for beginners guide and the guide to scale degree names are good next steps.