242 Par t 6:Arranging
◆Each instrument should be clearly marked at the beginning of each staff.
(The first instance typically has the full instrument name spelled out; sub-
sequent staves can use abbreviations.)
◆In band and orchestral scores,group like instruments together (all the
trumpets together, for example).
◆For instruments that use the grand staff (both bass and treble clef), group
the two staves by using braces.
◆Measure lines should be drawn through all the instruments belonging to
the same section—but not through allthe instruments in the score.
◆If you want, you can combine all like instruments on a single staff (all the
trumpet parts on one staff, for example).
◆If an instrument or voice will be resting for an extended period of time,
you don’t have to include the staff for that instrument or voice during the
rest period.
◆Use letter markings to notate individual sections of the music. (For ease of
reading, letter markings are typically enclosed in a box or circle.)
◆Number your measures—or at least the first measure of every line.
(Alternately, you can insert a number mark every 5 or 10 measures.)It goes without saying that the music you create should also be readable. If you’re
writing it all out by hand, make sure you produce clear and distinct notes, and
they’re easily distinguishable on the staff. If you have poor penmanship (like I
do!), consider taking a calligraphy course to improve your handwriting, or use a
computerized music notation program to create great-looking music on your
computer printer. (See the “Use the Computer” section later in this chapter.)
These rules apply to the score you compose and that the conductor uses. As for
the music that the musicians themselves read, you have to create individual
parts for each instrument. (This is not a requirement for vocal scores.) So if
you’ve written a piece for a big band, you have to create a separate first trumpet
part, and a separate second trumpet part, and a separate third trumpet part, and
so on. When you write out the individual parts, include only that instrument’s
part—the conductor is the only person who gets to see all the parts together on
the master score.Take the Lead
The most common form of written music is the lead sheet.A lead sheet doesn’t
include any individual instrumental parts; all you get is the song’s melody,
chords, and lyrics.
As you can see in the example on page 244, a typical lead sheet consists of one
staff for the melody line, with lyrics under the staff and chords above it.
Lead sheets are simple to create, and they’re ideal for notating popular songs. If
you play in a rock or country band (or even a jazz trio or quartet), you can use
lead sheets to present much of the music you play.The master piece
of music—the one that
contains all the individual
parts—is called the score.DefinitionA lead sheet is
not commercial sheet
music. Sheet music typi-
cally includes full piano
parts, whereas lead sheets
contain melody and
chords only. In addition,
lead sheets are not avail-
able commercially, unlike
sheet music.Warning