The problem it solves
To read, name or play any note, you first have to tell whether a sound is lower or higher — and not confuse that with whether it sounds louder or softer.
Detailed theory
Key idea
Pitch (low–high) and volume (soft–loud) are two different, independent things.
The faster a sound vibrates, the higher we hear it.
Understand it
When a string, a column of air or a membrane vibrates, it does so at a certain speed, measured in hertz (Hz): that is the frequency. Your ear translates a higher frequency into a higher sound and a lower one into a lower sound.
Volume depends on the strength of the vibration (the amplitude), not its speed. That is why you can sing the same C loud or soft without it ceasing to be the same C: the pitch hasn't moved, only the volume.
Register is the band of pitches where a voice or an instrument lives, from the lowest sound it can make to the highest. Placing a note within its register is what lets you find it on the instrument and tell whether a melody sits comfortably for you.
An analogy: picture a ladder. Pitch is which rung you are on (low at the bottom, high at the top); volume is how hard you tap it. You can tap hard on a low rung or softly on a high one: that is why pitch and volume are independent.
How to recognise it
How it's written
The higher a note is placed on the staff, the higher it sounds. On the piano, the further right the key falls, the higher the sound.
How it feels
Focus only on whether the sound goes up or down, ignoring whether it is loud or soft: the sensation of pitch is vertical, that of volume is intensity.
Common mistake
Confusing higher with louder: turning up the volume doesn't make a note higher.
Naming a note without placing it in any octave — for example saying C without knowing whether it is C3 or C5.
Try it
Play C3 and then C5 at the same volume: the name repeats, but the pitch has gone up two octaves.
Sing a comfortable note and then make it louder without changing its pitch: volume and pitch move separately.
On the instrument
Tone generator
Move the pitch and volume and watch the wave vibrate: higher = higher pitch, louder = taller wave.
The same name (C) in three registers: low, middle and high. Tap each key and notice that what changes is the pitch, not the volume.
Staff & keyboard
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El mateix nom (C) en tres registres: greu, mig i agut. Toca cada tecla i fixa't que el que canvia és l'altura, no el volum.
Where it's used
- Placing your voice
- Knowing whether a melody sits too high or too low for your comfortable range.
- Comparing instruments
- Recognising that a guitar C and a flute C are the same pitch even though they sound different.
Examples
Staff & keyboard
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A melody rising step by step: each note sounds a little higher than the last. Listen to it and watch it climb on the staff and the keyboard.
Exercises
Explore pitches with the tone generator
Move the frequency and hear how the pitch changes without touching the volume.
Complete 10 attempts · 70% accuracy to pass
Mini test
Check that you've got it.
0/8 answeredQuestion 1/8
What does the pitch of a sound describe?