signature

SIG-nah-chur

[ English ]

Definition

  1. A key signature is a symbol placed at the beginning of the staff, indicating in which key the following composition is to be performed. A key signature may consist of sharp signs, flat signs, and sometimes natural signs.

  2. A time signature is a symbol placed at the beginning of the staff, indicating the meter of the composition. A time signature consists of two numbers; the top number indicates the number of beats in each measure, and the bottom number indicates the kind of note that is counted as one beat (e.g., a time signature of 3/4 would indicate that there are three beats to each measure, and that a quarter note receives one beat).

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Last Updated: 2016-06-12 13:41:44