Pitch on the stave: the treble clef

Music is written on five lines called the stave (or staff). Where a note sits on the stave tells you its pitch.

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The stave and clef

The stave has 5 lines and 4 spaces. Higher on the stave means higher in pitch.
Notes are named with the letters A B C D E F G, then the pattern repeats.
A clef at the start tells you which notes the lines stand for. The treble clef is used for higher instruments and voices, such as the violin, flute and right hand of the piano. It is also called the G clef, because it curls around the line for the note G (the second line up).

Lines and spaces

Treble clef lines, from the bottom: E G B D F (Every Good Boy Deserves Football).
Treble clef spaces, from the bottom: F A C E (they spell FACE).
The note in the space below the bottom line is D; the note in the space above the top line is G.

Ledger lines and middle C

Notes above or below the stave are written on short extra lines called ledger lines.
Middle C sits on one ledger line below the treble clef stave. It is the C nearest the middle of a piano keyboard.
From middle C going up, the notes run C D E F G A B C: eight notes from one C to the next is called an octave.
Worked example

A tune's notes are on: the bottom line, the second space, the third line. Name the notes.

  1. Lines from the bottom are E G B D F, so the bottom line is E.
  2. Spaces from the bottom are F A C E, so the second space is A.
  3. The third line is B.

Answer: E, A, B.

Key idea

The stave has 5 lines and 4 spaces. Treble clef lines are E G B D F; spaces are F A C E. Middle C is on a ledger line below the treble stave. From one note to the next with the same name is an octave.

Key words
Pitch
How high or low a sound is.
Stave
The five lines and four spaces on which music is written. Also called the staff.
Treble clef
Lines E G B D F (Every Good Boy Deserves Football); spaces F A C E. Middle C is one ledger line below.
Octave
The distance from one note to the next note with the same letter name, 12 semitones.

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Extra practice

2 more questions

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  1. In the treble clef, what is the note on the top line?

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    Answer: F

    Treble clef lines from the bottom: E, G, B, D, F (Every Good Boy Deserves Football). The top line is F.

  2. In the treble clef, what is the note in the bottom space?

    Show the answer

    Answer: F

    Treble clef spaces spell FACE from the bottom: the bottom space is F.

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Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.