Editing Shape note (section)

{{Short description|Musical notation for group singing}}
{{for|the tradition of music primarily associated with shape-note notation|Sacred Harp}}
{{more citations needed|date = December 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}
[[Image:Star in the east.png|thumb|400px|right|"Star in the East" from the 1854 edition of ''[[Southern Harmony]]'']]
{{listen |filename=Star in the east.ogg|title=Star in the East|description=Audio recording, performed multi-tracked|format=[[Ogg]]|pos=right}}

'''Shape notes''' are a [[musical notation]] designed to facilitate congregational and [[Sing-along|social singing]].  The notation became a popular teaching device in American singing schools during the 19th century. Shapes were added to the [[notehead]]s in written music to help singers find [[pitch (music)|pitches]] within [[major scale|major]] and [[minor scale]]s without the use of more complex information found in [[key signature]]s on the [[staff (music)|staff]].

Shape notes of various kinds have been used for over two centuries in a variety of music traditions, mostly [[sacred music]] but also secular, originating in [[New England]], practiced primarily in the [[Southern United States]] for many years, and since 2013 experiencing a renaissance in other locations as well.