Lloyd and list,
I was brought up on Helmholtz Notation as were many others on the list. I just
did a brief search on Google and found that the system you use is an American
system. The various articles mentioned that because many keyboards are not the
length of the full piano keyboard (synthesizers and such) that the system you
use is not practical for some folks. Scientists and acousticians seem to use
both systems although one of the articles (dolmetsch.com theory site) says that
scientists usually use the Helmholtz notation.
One of the sites shows a side by side comparison of the major note naming
systems. I now know that organ builders use a note naming system different
from all the others.
When I've posted and mentioned pitches I always note parenthetically that I'm
using Helmholtz. I've noted others doing the same.
It will be interesting to see which system list members use and their home
countries. Thanks for posing the question.
Cindy Donnell
Sorry there is so much confusion about the note placement system.
But the accepted system in the US and, as far as I understand it,
Europe, is to call middle C (which is the fourth C up from the bottom
of the piano) C4. The B below it is considered part of the octave
below it so it is called B3. All notes beginning with C4 (middle C)
up to the seventy note of the scale are designated with the suffix
number 3. In other words, an octave above C4 is C5 which begins the
next octave and all notes in that octave carry the suffix 5. etc/ etc.
Is this what most on the list understand the system to be?
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