The Amazing Reference Sheet*

or
"A Bunch of Stuff You Should Learn Before Attempting to Read Music"

Clefs Notes and Rests

 Treble Clef or G Clef
 Eighth 
1/2 Beat
 

Bass Clef or F Clef
Quarter
1 Beat
Barlines
 

Dotted Quarter
1 1/2 Beats
Normal

    

Half
2 Beats


Repeat Signs

  Dotted Half
3 Beats 
Final


 Whole 
Time Signatures
 
4 Beats

 or 4 Beats per measure

Quarter Note gets 1 Beat Dynamics

 pp pianissimo: really soft
3 Beats per measure
Quarter Note gets 1 Beat


p piano: soft

 2 Beats per measure

Quarter Note gets 1 Beat
mp mezzo piano: moderately soft

mf mezzo forte: moderately loud

Other Symbols f forte: loud

 Natural  Accent ff fortissimo: really loud

 Sharp  Staccato Crescendo: gradually louder

 Flat  Fermata or Hold Decrescendo or Diminuendo:

gradually softer

 

         
   
       

   ff
     
p mp mf f pp
         
 
* That you should NOT: lose, throw out, spill coffee on, totally disregard because you'd rather sleep or play video games, feed to your dog, mutilate, or destroy in any way before completely memorizing and internalizing its contents completely
if you have any hope of passing this course, actually learning how to read music or playing the piano in an educated manner. But if you know everything on it, just recycle it, or give it to some unenlightened person who you think would gain something from it.