The course › Unit 5: The bass clef and the grand staff
Lesson 26 of 72 · C, D, E, F, G for the left hand
Start on Bass C (2nd space) and go up: D on the 3rd line, the middle one, E in the 3rd space, F on the 4th line (your landmark), and G in the 4th space.
Line, space, line, space again! Your left-hand fingers go from your pinky (5) on C to your thumb (1) on G.
Left-hand C position, from Bass C up to G.
Tip: Bass F helps you read its neighbors: G just above it (4th space), E just below it (3rd space).
Why this way: In this lesson, you’ll also play patterns back by ear. The music educator Edwin Gordon called it audiation: hearing music in your head and understanding it. One day, it’s what will let you “hear” a piece of music just by reading it.
Play each note at its exact place, with the right finger of your left hand.
Go up and back down while reading the bass clef. Pinky on Bass C, thumb on G.
Same rule as in the treble clef: from a line to the next space, a step; from line to line, a skip. Find the first note from Bass C or Bass F.
Listen, then play it back with your left hand. The first note lights up; find the rest by ear.
You’ve played it with your right hand: now read it in the bass clef, an octave lower, with your left hand.
A low, singing melody, like a cello. The melody is in your left hand; the computer plays the chords above it. Pinky on Bass C.
← Lesson 25: The bass clef and Bass F Lesson 27: The grand staff →