From Zero to Mozart
Stage 2RhythmLesson 20 of 37 · Reading

Repeats and endings

Music repeats itself constantly, and rather than print the same bars twice, notation uses a few shorthand signs. You need two of them to play a strophic tune or a round.

The repeat barline

A thick barline with two dots — :|| — means "go back and play from the start again" (or from the matching ||: if there is one). Play the enclosed section twice, then carry on.

72 bpm
Play 'D E F G', then the repeat sign sends you back — play 'D E F G' again — then on to the final A. Four notes on the page, five in the air, then one more.

First and second endings

Often a repeated section should end differently the second time round. That's what the bracketed "1." and "2." are for:

  • Play through to the first ending (under the "1." bracket), then take the repeat.
  • On the way back through, skip the first ending — jump straight to the second ending (the "2." bracket) — and carry on from there.
72 bpm
First time: D E F G, then the '1.' ending (A, then a rest), then repeat. Second time: D E F G, skip the '1.' ending, play the '2.' ending (A held for four beats). The route is: bars 1–2, back to 1, bar 1, bar 3.

Count the bars you actually play

Check yourself

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3

Just these two, for now

Scores have a whole set of navigation signs — D.C. (go back to the beginning), D.S. (go back to the sign), Coda, Fine, segno, rehearsal letters. Those are the rest of the road-map, and they get their own lesson in Stage 3. Here you only need the repeat and the two endings.

The usual mistake

Playing both endings in a row the first time through, or forgetting to take the repeat at all. Trace the route with your finger before you play — where does the repeat send you, and which ending do you take each time?