Learn to read sheet music
Lessons starts at one note on the stave and runs to Grade 8, a short lesson at a time, with something to play in every one. You do not need to know anything before the first one.
What one lesson looks like
- 1
Read the idea
Every lesson opens with one new thing and nothing else: a note, a rhythm, a key signature, a hand position. A paragraph or two, in plain words, with the notation in front of you.
- 2
Play the piece
Then a short piece that uses it. Play it on a MIDI keyboard, on the on-screen piano, or on any instrument you already have.
- 3
See what landed
Notes you get right turn green as you play them. Misses turn red. With the metronome on, early notes shade blue and late ones yellow, so you can see the habit, not just the mistake.
Where the path goes
Ten stages, each one a handful of units, each unit a few lessons and a checkpoint. The grades follow the same ladder the exam boards use, so if an exam is the goal you are already practising for it. If it is not, the ladder still tells you what comes next.
Foundation
The stave, the note names, where your hand goes. Nothing assumed before it.
Initial
Both hands, a five-finger position, and the first pieces that look like real music.
Grades 1 to 5
New keys, hands together, the hand moving out of position, dotted rhythms and compound time, at the pace the exam boards introduce them.
Grades 6 to 8
Irregular metres, ornaments, pedal, multi-voice textures. The reading a Grade 8 test asks for.
For a child learning at home
A lesson is short enough to finish before anyone loses interest, and the path always shows the next step, so practice does not depend on an adult sitting alongside deciding what to do. Finish a stage and we issue a certificate you can download and put on the fridge. If your child has a teacher, the teacher can set pieces too, and see what was practised.
Common questions
Can I start if I have never read music at all?
Yes. Foundation begins with a single note on one line of the stave and builds from there, and it is free in full. No exam, no jargon, nothing to know first.
What if I already read a bit?
Take a checkpoint. It is a short test at the head of a stage: pass it and the lessons below are marked done, so you start where you actually are rather than at the beginning.
Do I need a piano or a MIDI keyboard?
A MIDI keyboard is best, because then we hear every note as you play it. Without one you can use the on-screen piano, or play on any instrument and record your own result.
How much of it is free?
All of Foundation, then the first five lessons of every stage up to Grade 5. Pro opens the rest, including Grades 6 to 8, for £5 a month.
Is this the same as the grade practice?
They share the same marking and the same difficulty ladder. Lessons teaches, one idea at a time, and the grades test you against exam-shaped material. Plenty of people use both.
Start at the first note
Foundation is free in full, and the first five lessons of every stage up to Grade 5 are free too. You will know within a lesson or two whether this is for you.
Start Foundation free