Intervals
In Clairnote DN all of the interval relationships between notes are visible and explicit. Each type of interval is visually distinct. For example, you can see the difference between major thirds and minor thirds (shown below), which is not possible in traditional music notation.
When an interval spans an even number of semitones then both notes are solid or both notes are hollow (e.g. a major third). When it spans an odd number of semitones then one note is solid and the other note is hollow (e.g. a minor third). This is the effect of Clairnote DN's 6-6 pitch pattern.
When compared with intervals in traditional music notation, intervals in Clairnote DN are more explicit, consistent, and direct. Clairnote DN's representation of intervals fully supports reading music relatively by reading the intervals between notes (which complements reading absolutely, by an individual note's position on the staff).
Intervals are some of the most basic building blocks of music. Being able to clearly and consistently see the differences between them leads to a better awareness and understanding of music and common melodic and harmonic musical patterns. This kind of understanding supports the development of skills such as improvising and playing by ear, skills that involve an intuitive awareness of the interval relationships between notes.
Learning to Identify Intervals
When learning to identify intervals in Clairnote DN the first strategy is to pay attention to the consistent patterns of solid notes and hollow notes. Solid notes either appear on a staff line or half-way between two staff lines (the C ledger line represents a staff line). Hollow notes can be "sitting" in the space directly above a line, or "hanging" in the space directly below a line.
For a given interval, if both notes are solid notes or both notes are hollow notes then the interval is one of the following six intervals that span an even number of semitones. (The number of semitones spanned by each interval is shown in parentheses. Grouping intervals into four groups — based on the position of the lower note — helps highlight similiarities and differences in their appearance.)
If one note is a solid note and the other is a hollow note, then the interval is one of the following six intervals that span an odd number of semitones.
For example, seconds are some of the simplest intervals to identify since they are the smallest and their notes appear on the opposite sides of the stem (as in traditional music notation). Minor seconds have one solid note and one hollow note. Major seconds have two solid notes or two hollow notes.
Smaller intervals are generally simpler to identify, but for larger intervals an additional strategy is to pay attention to the interval's relationship to the line pattern of the staff. The lines of Clairnote DN's staff are a major third apart (four semitones). The notes of major thirds, minor sixths, and octaves (four, eight, and twelve semitones) are aligned with the staff's line pattern. The two notes making up these intervals are always in the same basic position relative to the nearest staff line, making them simpler to identify and a great place to start when learning to identify intervals.
By learning these intervals first a musician can use them as reference points when learning to identify other intervals. For example, after learning to identify major thirds, the next step can be to learn to identify minor thirds by seeing them as "one staff position smaller than a major third" and then perfect fourths as "one staff position larger than a major third".
Similarly, after learning to identify minor sixths, the next step can be to learn to identify perfect fifths by seeing them as "one staff position smaller than a minor sixth" and then major sixths as "one staff position larger than a minor sixth".
And finally, after learning to identify octaves, the next step can be to learn to identify major sevenths by seeing them as "one staff position smaller than an octave" and minor sevenths as "two staff positions smaller than an octave" (or "one staff position larger than a major sixth").
That leaves tritones (augmented fourths and diminished fifths). They can be learned by seeing them as "one staff position larger than a perfect fourth" or "one staff position smaller than a perfect fifth" (or "two staff positions larger than a major third").
Practice reading intervals and put these learning strategies to work by playing the intervals games on the Learn page. In these games the intervals are progressively introduced in an order that draws on the strategies discussed above.
The following two PDF files contain illustrations of intervals in Clairnote DN arranged in a 4×3 grid pattern in order to highlight similarities in their appearance.
And below is a comprehensive illustration of all the common intervals (from unisons up through octaves) showing the consistent patterns in their appearance. The number of semitones spanned by each interval is given in parentheses.
