What This Book Covers

Chapter 1

Time Signatures

The first chapter delves into time signatures at Grade Two, building upon the knowledge from Grade One.

You'll learn about the new time signatures for Grade Two, the difference between 2/2 and 4/4 and the difference between duple, triple, and quadruple time.

Chapter 2

Triplets

Next we'll look at triplets, a common rhythm in lots of music.

By the end of this chapter, you'll understand what triplets are, their time value in relation to regular notes, and how to handle triplets with rests and other note values.

Chapter 3

Grouping Notes

Building on the foundation of note grouping at grade 1, this section covers some more advanced concepts.

You'll learn about avoiding tied notes in 3/2 and 4/2 time signatures, beaming notes in minim beat time signatures, and handling rests within beamed notes.

Chapter 4

Grouping Rests

Chapter four looks at some of the rules around grouping rests.

Here we introduce concepts such as what to do with whole bars of silence, having a new rest on every beat, and the exceptions to this rule.

Chapter 5

Ledger Lines

Ledger lines are a very important aspect of music notation.

This chapter builds on the knowledge from Grade One and introduces notes up to two ledger lines above and below the staff.

Chapter 6

Major Scales

In chapter six, we introduce the three new major scales that you'll need to know for grade two.

You'll learn about the A Major, Bb Major and Eb Major scales.

Chapter 7

Major Key Signatures

Delving into key signatures, this chapter looks at key signatures you need to know for this grade.

You'll learn about major key signatures with up to three sharps or flats, the order of sharps and flats, and how to identify them.

Chapter 8

Minor Scales

The concept of minor scales is introduced in this chapter.

You'll gain a thorough understanding of what a minor scale is, the difference between natural and harmonic minor scales, and the three minor scales you need to know for Grade Two.

Chapter 9

Relative Keys

Relative keys are an important aspect of music theory, and this section explains their significance.

You'll learn how to determine relative keys and how they are related to each other and how they can help you work out the key signature of minor keys.

Chapter 10

Intervals

Building on the foundations from Grade One, this chapter explores intervals at Grade Two.

You'll learn about the two types of intervals (harmonic and melodic) unison intervals, and the difference between major and minor 3rds and 6ths.

Chapter 11

Performance Directions

And finally, in this chapter you'll learn about all the different performance directions you'll need to know for Grade Two.

We'll cover all the Italian terms and their definitions plus the different notation symbols that you might come across and what they mean.