Duets
A duet is a piece of music played by two instruments at the same time. This may be two saxophones, or a sax and a guitar, or a piano and a singer for example. The following example is a duet for two saxophones, using the note B along with the other notes you already know.
The top line is for you to play and the bottom line is for your teacher. When you get to the end of bar four, remember to look at the top line of the second system of notation for your next bar rather than the bottom line of the first system (the teacher’s part). Learn your part well so you don’t get distracted by the other part. You can also practice your part along with the CD.
There are no breath marks in this piece, but there are several rests. You can breathe anywhere a rest occurs in the music. This is a good general rule to follow.
Here is another melody which makes use of the notes G, A and B. Once you can play a melody, try playing it from memory with your eyes closed. This will help you learn the fingerings of the notes and also make you more aware of your tone.
The Whole Note
This is a whole note.
It lasts for four beats.
There is one whole note in one bar of * time.
The Whole Rest
This symbol is called a whole rest.
It indicates either four beats of silence or a whole bar of silence.
This duet features both the whole note and the whole rest. Remember to keep counting regardless of whether you see notes or rests in the music.
The Note C
This C note is placed in the third space of the staff.
Notes written above the middle line of a staff usually have their stems going down on the left side of the note.
Once you have memorized the fingering for the note C, play the following example which combines this new note with the other notes you have learnt.
The Three Four Time Signature
This is the three four time signature.
It tells you there are three beats in each bar.
There are three quarter notes in one bar of ^ time.
The Dotted Half Note
A dot written after a note extends its value by half.
A dot after a half note means that you hold it for three beats.
One dotted half note makes one bar of music in ^ time.
Here is a typical example of the way dotted half notes are used in ^ time. As there are no rests in this example, breath marks are placed in every fourth bar after a dotted half note. From now on breath marks will only be placed every four bars to encourage you to develop more breath control. However, you can still breathe more often if you need to.
