Ledger Line
Short lines added above or below the staff to place notes outside its range
Related
A ledger line is a short line added above or below the staff to carry notes outside its range. The number and position of those lines fix the pitch.
Ledger lines belong to the notes they serve; they do not extend into a new staff. Long passages high above the staff are often rewritten with 8va or a clef change, and low passages with 8vb, to spare the reader the counting.
The usual error is counting the lines wrongly. The first ledger line is the one next to the staff, and lines and spaces alternate; upper and lower ledger lines run in opposite directions, so distance alone cannot tell you the note.
Sources
- 加线的记谱规则，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Notation"；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.