The Highs and Lows of
PITCH
Presented
By
Chris McVay
Grade 3-General Music
What Is Pitch?
Highness or lowness of a sound
We can hear the highs and lows of the
sound with our ears
We can see the highs and lows of the
pitches when the notes are placed on
the music staff
We can sing the high and lows of pitch
with our voices
Things That Make High or Low
Sounds
Create your own list of things that make high or
low sounds.
Do these things create high or low pitches?
Electric saw High
Thunder Low
Cats’ meow High
Dentist drill High
Fog horn Low
Lions’ roar Low
Tea kettle whistle High
Some instruments make only high or low
sounds, but most instruments can do both.
The flute makes
mostly high sounds
The bass drum
makes low sounds
The piano can make
high and low sounds,
even at the same
time
Pitch Can Be Notated on the
Music Staff
If a note is placed near the top of the
staff, it will be a high pitch
If a note is placed near the bottom of
the staff, it will be a low pitch
If a note is placed near the middle of
the staff, it will be a medium pitch
Let’s look at some examples
Here are some examples of High,
Medium, and Low pitches
Is It a Line or a Space Note?
Notes that are placed in the line are
called “Line Notes”
Notes that are placed in the space are
called “Space Notes”
Let’s look at an example of Line and
Space notes
Line Notes Space Notes
Which Way Do We Go?
We read notes on the music staff going
in the direction from LEFT to RIGHT
When we read, play or sing the pitches
on the staff, we have to look from one
note to the next to see if the next note
will be higher, lower, or the same
Repeated Pitches
Notes that are in the
same line will have
the same pitch
Notes that are in the
same space will
have the same pitch
Stepping Notes
Stepping notes are notes that go from a line
to the next space or a space to the next line
When notes step up, the pitches go higher
When notes step down, the pitches go lower
Skipping Notes
Skipping notes are notes that go from a line
to the next line, or a space to the next space
When notes skip up, the pitches go higher
When notes skip down, the pitches go lower
Roller Coaster Ride of Pitches
Music can go up and down
QUIZ:
1.Identify if these notes are: stepping up or down; skipping up
or down; or staying the same (repeated).
2.Identify if the pitches are: high; medium; or low.
Stay the same Skipping down Stepping down Stepping up
Medium Low High Low
Remember: Musicians are like
detectives, they have to:
Look for repeated
notes
Look for stepping
notes
Look for skipping
notes
Look for how the
notes move up and
down
Enjoy the music !