Editing Musical notation (section)

{{Short description|Visual representation of music}}
{{about|a notation for music|the "musical" notation in mathematics|Musical isomorphism}}
{{Redirect|Music markup|the XML application|Music Markup Language}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
[[File:Bachlut1.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Hand-written musical notation by [[Johann Sebastian Bach|J. S. Bach]] (1685–1750). This is the beginning of the Prelude from the Suite for [[Lute]] in G minor, BWV 995 (transcription of [[Cello Suites (Bach)|Cello Suite]] No. 5, BWV 1011).]]
'''Musical notation''' is any system used to visually represent music. Systems of notation generally represent the elements of a [[piece of music]] that are considered important for its performance in the context of a given musical tradition. The process of interpreting musical notation is often referred to as '''reading music'''.

Distinct methods of notation have been invented throughout history by various cultures. Much information about [[ancient music]] notation is fragmentary. Even in the same time frames, different styles of music and different cultures use different music notation methods.

For example, [[classical music|classical]] performers most often use [[sheet music]] using [[staff (music)|staves]], [[time signature]]s, [[key signature]]s, and [[notehead]]s for writing and deciphering [[Musical composition|pieces]]. But even so, there are far more systems just that, for instance in professional [[country music]], the [[Nashville Number System]] is the main method, and for [[string instrument]]s such as [[guitar]], it is quite common for [[tablature]] to be used by players.

The symbols used include ancient symbols and [[modern musical symbols|modern symbols]] made upon any media such as symbols cut into stone, made in [[clay tablet]]s, made using a pen on [[papyrus]] or [[parchment]] or [[manuscript paper]]; printed using a [[printing press]] ({{circa|1400}}), a [[computer printer]] ({{circa|1980}}) or other [[Music engraving|printing]] or [[Photocopier|modern copying technology]].

Although many ancient cultures used symbols to represent [[melody|melodies]] and [[rhythm]]s, none of them were particularly comprehensive, which has limited today's understanding of their music. The direct ancestor of the modern [[Western culture|Western]] system of notation emerged in [[Middle Ages|medieval Europe]], in the context of the [[Christian Church]]'s attempts to standardize the performance of [[plainsong]] melodies so that chants could be standardized across different areas. Notation [[Renaissance music|developed further during the Renaissance]] and [[Baroque music]] eras. In the [[classical period (music)|classical period]] (1750–1820) and the [[Romantic music era]] (1820–1900), notation continued to develop as the [[music technology (mechanical)|technology for musical instruments]] developed. In the [[contemporary classical music]] of the 20th and 21st centuries, music notation has continued to develop, with the introduction of [[graphical notation (music)|graphical notation]] by some modern composers and the use, since the 1980s, of computer-based [[scorewriter]] programs for notating music. Music notation has been adapted to many kinds of music, including [[classical music]], [[popular music]], and [[traditional music]].