Stage 1First position & the staffLesson 19 of 43 · Reading
Reading the A and D strings
Time to put the eye and the hand together. For every natural note on the A and D strings — the
first two you learned — you want the chain staff position → pitch → string and finger to
happen in one glance.
The A string on the page
54 bpm
A string only, top half of the staff. Work out name, string and finger for each — then check.
The D string on the page
54 bpm
D string only, across the bottom of the staff. Same three things for every note.
Crossing between them
54 bpm
This one moves between the two strings. Notice where the line jumps from the D string up to the A string — a skip on the page, a string crossing in the hand.
The usual mistake
Reading name → finger and skipping the pitch. You decode the symbol, place the finger, and
never actually hear what should come out. Sing the note, then play it, then check.
Try
Play the A-string line above once, reading only the labels. Then hide them and do it again
from the notation alone. The second time is the one that counts.