Staff Notation or Numbered Music Notation That Is the Question: A Brief History of Numbered Music Notation and an Examination on Its Effectiveness of Music Learning

Abstract

The staff music notation was originated from Gregorian chants of medieval Europe. It became the universal standard notation although there were music notations found in other ancient cultures. During 19th century, a new and simplified notation system in which Arabic numbers were used to represent musical notes began to circulate among amateurish music learners all over the world. While this notation system, named numbered music notation (NMN) in this article, started to wane in other countries in the early 20th century, Chinese adopted it earnestly and continued to use it as a major practice in music printings and education. In the field of traditional Chinese music, some readily assume it is a Chinese invention. This article puts forward a discussion on the emergence of the NMN and its application in China, compares it with the staff music notation, and exams how notations affect music training.