signature
(SIG-nah-chur)
[Eng.]
- A key signature is a symbol placed at the beginning of the staff, indicating in which key the following composition is to be played. A key signature may consist of sharp signs, flat signs, and sometimes natural signs.
- 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 is one beat).
More about key signatures - More about time signatures and meter
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