By default, most text notation doesn’t bother to distinguish between a high and low version of a note. It is assumed either that this is evident from the surrounding notes or that the reader is at least somewhat familiar with the music already.
However, there are ways of describing the exact pitch of a note, most notably the Roland system of MIDI note numbers developed in the early 1980’s to transmit and receive musical note pitch information between controllers and synthesisers.
This system is based on counting note names in octaves, where middle C = C4.
NOTE: The octave numbers change at C, not A! Be careful not to mis-count the number of octaves…
For Example, A4-C5 is a major 3rd, not an octave plus a major 3rd.
In order to make this blog accessible to a wide range of musicians, I have tried to include text notation where I can. Octave numbering expands my capacity to use text for examples and exercises.
For more on octave numbers and the pitch of different instruments, please visit my Beginner’s Tip, Pitch Ranges.
