8: The Bass of the Clef
This Clef is Not a Fish!
Remember clefs used to be letters way back when? Well, bass clef is no
exception (by the way, this bass is not a fish. This kind of bass is
pronounced base).
The bass clef used to be the letter F until those nutty artistic-type
composers kept messing with it, making it fancier and fancier until we
got what we have today, something that looks nothing like an F. And
even though it looks nothing like an F, it’s called the F clef because it
shows us where the note F is on the staff.Example 8.1 The bass clef in all its bulbousness.
The bass clef tells us that the fourth line is an F in two ways. The first
way is the head of the clef, the round part at the top left of the clef. It’s
smack-dab on the fourth line. In case that isn’t enough, there are also two
little dots which straddle the fourth line as if they’re saying, “Hey! Hey
You! This is an F!”Example 8.2 The bass clef as it sits on the staff. Notice the 4th line?