Bass Clef Notes: Chart, Memory Tricks, Quiz and Worksheet
The bass clef, also called the F clef, marks the note F3 on line 4 of the staff. From the bottom, the five lines are G B D F A and the four spaces are A C E G. Middle C sits on one ledger line above the staff. The bass clef is used for lower sounds, such as the piano’s left hand, cello, trombone, tuba and bass guitar.
Updated · By the Classfern Music Department
Works in the UK and the US. This version uses US words and grades (measure, staff, quarter note, elementary school); the UK version uses bar, stave, crotchet and Key Stages. · UK version of this page
Key facts
- The bass clef is the F clef: it marks F3 on line 4 from the bottom, between its two dots.
- Lines from the bottom: G B D F A. Spaces: A C E G.
- Middle C (C4) is one ledger line above the staff.
- The five lines and four spaces hold nine notes, from G2 to A3. Ledger lines extend the staff up and down.
- Played by: piano (left hand), cello, double bass (sounds an octave lower), bassoon, trombone, tuba and more.
What are the notes of the bass clef?
The bass clef lines are G, B, D, F, A from the bottom, and the spaces are A, C, E, G. Together they run in alphabet order: G (bottom line), A (bottom space), B, and so on up to A on the top line.
Music only uses seven letter names, A to G, and then they start again. Moving up one step on the staff (line to space, or space to line) moves up one letter. That is why you only need one or two “anchor” notes: from F3 on line 4 you can count up or down to any note.
How do you remember bass clef notes?
Use a sentence for the lines and a word or sentence for the spaces. For the bass clef lines (G B D F A) try “Good Boys Do Fine Always”, and for the spaces, All Cows Eat Grass.
- Lines: Good Boys Do Fine Always, or Great Big Dogs Fight Animals.
- Spaces: All Cows Eat Grass (A C E G).
- Landmarks: learn three notes by sight – middle C (one ledger line above), F (line 4, between the clef’s dots) and the bottom-line G – and count from the nearest one. Readers who rely only on a sentence are slower than readers who know landmarks.
Where is middle C in the bass clef?
Middle C sits on one short ledger line just above the bass staff. It is the same note as the middle C written below the treble staff, which is how the two staves join up in piano music (the grand staff).
Bass clef notes chart
Every note from E2 to C4, where it sits, and a button to hear it on the piano.
| Note | Where it sits | Hear it |
|---|---|---|
| C C4 (middle C) | On 1 ledger line above | |
| B B3 | Just above the staff | |
| A A3 | Line 5 | |
| G G3 | Space 4 | |
| F F3 | Line 4 | |
| E E3 | Space 3 | |
| D D3 | Line 3 | |
| C C3 | Space 2 | |
| B B2 | Line 2 | |
| A A2 | Space 1 | |
| G G2 | Line 1 | |
| F F2 | Just below the staff | |
| E E2 | On 1 ledger line below |
Sounds are made in your browser. This tool never uses the microphone, and nothing is recorded, saved or sent.
Which instruments use the bass clef?
The bass clef is for lower sounds. Piano (left hand), Cello, Double bass (sounds an octave lower) and many more read it.
Full list: piano (left hand), cello, double bass (sounds an octave lower), bassoon, trombone, tuba, euphonium (bass clef in most school bands), bass guitar (sounds an octave lower), timpani, baritone and bass singers. Some instruments, such as the cello, bassoon and trombone, switch to other clefs for their highest notes.
When do children learn the bass clef?
Many US elementary music programs introduce the bass clef in grades 3 to 5, usually after the treble clef, and band or orchestra students learn it as soon as they start an instrument that uses it.
The National Core Arts Standards for music ask students to read and perform using standard notation as they move through the grades; middle school band and choir build fluent reading. For a full set of beginner lessons, try Classfern’s free bass clef lesson in the Learn to read music course.
Bass clef notes quiz: name the note
Marked by Classfern Ten notes on the bass clef staff. Pick the letter name. Choose “with ledger lines” when you are ready for a challenge. Questions are made fresh each time by the Classfern lesson engine; your answers stay on this device.
Bass clef worksheet maker (printable)
Self-assessed 24 notes to name, with an answer key that folds away. Every sheet is different, so a class can swap and check each other’s work. Print it on A4 or US Letter.
Bass clef facts quiz
Marked by Classfern 5 multiple-choice questions on the Classfern lesson engine. Your answers stay on this device.
Classfern’s free bass clef page is part of the Classfern Music Department at lessonplanner.info. The pictures are drawn with the same music drawing code as the Classfern reading course.
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