If:

You are struggling to sight-read

You have problems remembering key signatures and accidentals
You are tired of the forest of accidentals in modern music
You are frustrated by dyslexia or your working memory

Inside...

Why not try

Simplified
Music
Notation?

World-wide
Academic Support
Instructions
Free Score
Catalogue

www.SimplifiedMusicNotation.org

Contents
History of Simplified Music Notation................................................................2
Key perfect books....................................................................................................3
Simplified Music Notation: what is it?...............................................................4
What are the benefits?............................................................................................5
Transcription example from Key Perfect one.................................................6
Transcription example from Intermediate three...........................................7
Sight-reading and the working memory.........................................................8
The working memory and Simplified Music Notation................................9
Simplified Music Notation Sibelius plugin....................................................10
Key Perfect catalogue...........................................................................................11
Catalogue of books and individual scores..............................................12-14
Order form................................................................................................................15
Bibliography...............................................................................Inside back cover

I bought Intermediate Volume 1 some months ago. It is a

very enjoyable to approach music in more than 3 sharps
and flats! As an adult learner and very much a second
study pianist, Ive found the most remarkable thing is that
when going back to my regular practice pieces, certain
troublesome passages have improved, especiallly involving
block chords and runs, possibly because when using
Simplified Music Notation one is able to concentrate on
intervals and patterns once the key signature is dispensed
with.
As a way of freeing up the mind from clutter (like
double flats and sharps) it is quite amazing. I shall
certainly be ordering another book soon.

Simplified
Music
Notation

Julie Hercock, Head of

Music, Marist Prep School,
Sunninghill.

because . . .

Simplified Music Notation is absolutely excellent! I am

fully convinced that your system would save music students
much unnecessary effort. ... Within seconds of starting to look
at your music examples, I found myself reading the
Simplified Music Notation versions much easier than the orginals,
even though Ive known some of the works quoted for many years.
.. And Ive just found, the re-learning can be done in seconds,
or at least minutes!
Ian Milnes, BSc (Hons) MPhil,

Viola and violinist (studied with

Eta Cohen); Former P/T teacher

Brilliant! I just wanted to thank you; your work has made my life a lot easier!
I did my grade one exam nine years ago and hadnt gone back to the piano since.
Now within just one day I am playing Claire de Lune with your help. Thanks.

Laura Elmes, adult learner/customer

xxx

xxx

xxx

The history of
Simplified Music Notation
Sight-reading can, for many, be one of the
most difficult aspects of learning to play a
musical instrument. Simplified Music Notation
is a notation-based learning tool designed to
overcome this problem and make reading music
simpler. It gives players complete freedom in
all keys right from the start whilst developing
skills in reading traditional notation.

Peter George discovered he was not alone in

finding sight-reading a problem. Reading music
presents particular difficulties to those with poor
working memories, learning difficulties such as
dyslexia or attention deficit disorder, and to
people with visual impairments. But there are
many people with no diagnosed problem who
also find reading music fluently to be a real
struggle. Some muddle along, relying on other
skills to overcome their difficulties, such as a
good ear or the ability to memorise a piece
quickly. Others simply fall by the wayside and,
unable to master this essential skill, give up on
learning music altogether.

Its inventor, Peter Hayes George, began learning

the piano as an adult. He was well aware that
his working memory was far from perfect: for
example as a professional actor he had always
struggled to remember long speeches.
However, he thought that learning to play an
instrument would be relatively easy because,
unlike the theatre, you are allowed to keep the
music in front of you while you perform.

Believing that music should be accessible to

everyone, regardless of their ability to perform
the mental gymnastics required for sight-reading,
Peter and his wife Annelie founded the Creative
Arts Research Foundation, a charity which
researches ways to make music learning more
accessible to all. They worked for many years to
develop Simplified Music Notation, consulting
widely amongst music professionals, where the
idea was generally very well received by teachers
and performers. Supporters include: Acker Bilk,
Carl Davis, Sir James Galway, Dame Evelyn
Glennie, Kat Havas, Howard Shelley, Roger
Woodward and in particular John Kember and
John York who composed and compiled the Key
Perfect piano repertoire books for beginners.

So it came as a bit of a shock to realise that in

fact, whilst reading music, one has to remember
all sorts of things: what the key signature is,
which accidentals have appeared previously in
a bar, and which notes are no longer
accidentals in the next bar.
The mental effort and feats of memory
required just to read the notes came as a
surprise. Surely, music should be as easy to
read as possible, allowing the player to
concentrate on inter-pretation and musicality?

It is the hope of all involved in making these

books that it will indeed make music learning
more accessible to everyone, and help those
who struggle with sight-reading discover just
how enjoyable it can be

As he laboured to master the skill by day, by

night Peter George was mystified by dreams he
was having of triangles, squares and other shapes
floating about in space. Then one day, during
a particularly frustrating piano lesson, the idea
came: why not use different shaped note
heads to indicate whether a note is sharp or
flat? That way, the player would automatically
know how to play each note without needing
to recall any additional information.
This simple change kept all the best aspects of
staff notation, was quick and easy to learn and
limited the unnecessary demands that
traditional notation makes on the memory.

Key Perfect books

The Key Perfect series are early-grade repertoire
books that make it possible for learners to be
perfect in any key right from the start.
The two first books in this series are for the piano and
were compiled by John York and John Kember. They also wrote many
of the compositions and the pedagogical notes introducing each piece.
The Creative Arts Research Trust also ran a competition for new composers
and selected five compositions for inclusion in the Key Perfect books.
The series A More Rational Approach to Traditional Music Notation has piano
compositions from grade 2 to grade 8+ for more advanced students.

Recitals
and a sight-reading workshop can be viewed on www.simplifiedmusicnotation.org.
.

Key Perfect composers

John Kember
John Kember studied at Trinity College of Music. Since then
he has enjoyed a full and varied career in both performing
and academic spheres. Activities range from teaching,
composing and arranging to working as a pianist and
conductor in concert halls, theatres and recording studios
across the UK. He has a busy private teaching practice in
south-east London and tutors students at the Kent Music
Academy. He examined for the Associated Board of the
Royal Schools of Music from 1989 until 2005.
He currently has over 70 publications available with Faber
Music and Schott Music in London including a 21-part series of
sight-reading books, 7 books of string quartet arrangements
and numerous books for the jazz pianist including his Jazz
Studies, Jazz Piano Player and On the Lighter Side series.

John York
John Yorks career was launched 36 years ago when he was
awarded the International Debussy Prize in Paris, and it has
taken him around the world as soloist with such orchestras
as the London Philharmonic and London Mozart Players,
and as a chamber music partner, primarily with cellist
Raphael Wallfisch and (with his wife Fiona) in the piano duo
team of York2.
John composes, contributes as journalist to the musical
press and works with students of the highest level at Astona
International of Switzerland and the Australian National
Academy in Melbourne. In the UK he was Professor for 33
years at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and is
Senior Music Head at the illustrious St. Paul's Girls' School in
London.

Simplified Music Notation - what is it?...

Simplified Music Notation is a training aid to help develop sight-reading skills and encourage
students to overcome their fear of difficult keys right from the start. It is designed for learners
in general as well as students with working memory problems and other learning difficulties.
It can also be helpful for more advanced musicians, especially in modern music.
You no longer have to remember:

Why improve staff notation?

the key signature whilst playing

(even though it is still there)
to carry accidentals through the bar
to cancel accidentals at the end of
the bar

Musicians are generally so accustomed to staff notation

that they do not stop to reflect upon its defects. .... A
glance at a page from, say, a work of Boulez or Stockhausen,
should be convincing to any musician who maintains
that the present notation is good enough. It is certainly
not good enough. ... The inventor of any reasonably
thought-out reformed staff notation can claim that he is
offering the means of saving several years of music study
or, alternatively, of freeing students from reading
difficulties in order that they may devote themselves
more completely to other aspects of their work.
Scholes, P. Oxford Companion to Music

Nothing is lost:
Simplified Music Notation keeps all the
original information in the score intact.
However, it removes the need to
remember accidentals and key
signatures whilst playing.

Easy to learn - complementary to traditional notation:

"I was surprised how simple it was to adjust to your system: I was able to sight-read fluently
within a minute or two. This in itself indicates the enormously increased accessibility of
printed music to those who would otherwise be discouraged by conventional notation."
Henry Herford, MA(Hons), ARNCM, GRNCM; Internationally renowned singer

Summary of common symbols

Symbols
Sharps
Flats

Simplified
Music Notation

Traditional
Notation
SHARPS

FLATS

Double Sharp
History Sign

DOUBLE
SHARP

Double Flat
History Sign

DOUBLE
FLAT

=
=
=
=

Sharps and flats

are each represented
by their own unique
symbols.
Double sharps &
flats are written at
the pitch at which
they are actually
played. Such notes
are marked by a
'History Sign' which
signals how they
were originally
written but can be
ignored whilst
playing.

I feel this is an important development in music.

Carl Davis, CBE (Hon.), BAFTA Award-winning Composer, Conductor

. . . and what are the benefits ?

Helps learning to read music:

Solves working memory problems:

I tried Simplified Music Notation out today at

school with immediate success. A group of
secondary pupils aged 14 who can read simple
melodies in C were able to play comfortably in
A major using your technique.
Robert Norris, LGSM,ARCM,GGSM,MTC,
Pianist, former Director of Music, Albany School

I find myself enthusiastic concerning this

novel and beautifully simple solution to
the memory difficulties suffered by so
many musicians, both professional and
amateur."
Emanuel Hurwitz, BCE, FRAM
Internationally renowned Violinist

Traditional Notation

Simplified Music Notation

From: Air in D minor by Henry Purcell (Key Perfect Two)

Key Signature

Sharp
Note Head

Flat
Note Head

Reduces clutter:

Easy to switch between standard

and new notation:

There is no doubt in my mind that the

value [of Simplified Music Notation] in the
earlier stages of learning and playing music
will be invaluable. The morass of accidentals
in chromatic music is quite absurd and
points in fact to the obsolescence of the
current notational system.
Dr Ronald Senator, PhD, FTCL.,Composer,
former Professor Guildhall School of Music

Simplified Music Notation is

straightforward and logical - the fact that it
is based on the traditional system means
that those who have studied (it) can
approach traditional notation without
abandoning what has already been learnt.
Emeritus Prof. Dr Ronald Woodham, DMus,
FRCO, ARCM, University of Reading

Frees player to concentrate on musicality,

rather than just notes:

Assists those with learning disabilities:

Your concise clarification of sharps and flats

alleviates retentive memory problems and
leads to the quicker learning of pieces, thus
giving more time for interpretative aspects."
Dr Herbert Winterbottom, MSc,
FNSM, FRCL,FRSA, LRAM, ARCM;
Organist; former Examiner
& Professor of Music

It has been my experience that students

with learning disabilities have an extremely
difficult time reading music. Consequently,
I see many students with great gifts of
music ability fail because they are unable to
master the skill necessary to succeed.
Simplified Music Notation seems to be a
solution to success."

Suzanne Guisasola Salvo, M.Ed. Director,

Office of Disability Services, Ashland Univ.

Take a look
at our Key Perfect
example
and our advanced
book excerpt

From: Key Perfect One

Simplified Music Notation

Big-time blues
A steady walking down left hand as a basis for a relaxed swinging right hand,
the blue note (B flat) giving the piece its character
.

ea z=e[p e] p

Medium swing

W
P
1

mf

P
p

P
P P

John Kember

Traditional notation

Big-time blues
Medium swing

ea z=e[p e] p

John Kember

mf

Comparison excerpt from Intermediate 3 (Grades 7-8)

Prelude, Op. 11, No. 10 - Alexander Scriabin
Simplified Music Notation
rubato

c
R R
R
R
o R o R

cR
F
WW
R
WW
R R R
F
R

R
W

n5
G W
F
W W
WW

W
WW
R

WW
W W R

R
R
R

R
R

c
WW
WW

G W
Ro
W
F
W
W

W
W

R
R R R
R W

R
o

R
R

n
R
R

R
R
R
R

R R R R
R

W
W
W

R
R
R R
W
R R
R R

W
F
W

R
R
R

R W
Wo
R
rit.

R R R
o

R
R
R

R R R R

Ro
W W
W

G W
W
W

W
W
W
W

R
R
R R R R

R
R
R
R

R W
W
R
R

____________________________________________________________________
Traditional notation
rubato

q
t

c
R

o
fo

R
f ff
g
f

R
g
n
5

g

f ff

f
R

f ff
f

f ff
f

5
c

R
o
5

n
f

R
d

f d

rit.

f
o

R d


d

o
f

d
R R
d

Sight-reading and the working memory

Sight-reading
Sight-reading is an integral part of learning to play an instrument and is absolutely vital for
performers to master. According to Ji In Lee in his book Component Skills Involved in SightReading Music (2004): Sight-reading seems to be a complex combination of skills which consists not
only of expertise, but also of cognitive skills and psychomotor optimisation. He shows that there are
many processes involved during the task of reading music, especially when one is reading music
for the very first time.
Therefore, music problem-solving is extremely necessary in sight-reading, which is complicated
by the fact that external demands on the musician divert some attention away from the reading
task. In such instances the readers have to either remember or, if they can not, be relegated to
simplified pieces.

The working memory

It is almost paradoxical to talk about memory in sight-reading since the very nature of sight-reading
would seem to contradict the importance of recall. However, in traditional notation the link
between sight-reading and memory is unavoidable as musicians have to rely on their working
memory to keep relevant and complex pieces of information active in their mind.

Chunking
Humans are able to process these complex tasks involved in sight-reading by what is known as
chunking. Chunking refers to the process of grouping responses whilst performing a task. For
example the key of C major has a set of rules that make learning easier. The individual thinks of
the notes in a particular key (chunking) rather than each individual note within that key.
Even though helpful, chunking only partially solves the problem. Not only do players have to
become utterly familiar with the large number of key signatures in music, but in particular, they
have to remember all the modifiying accidentals whilst sight-reading. This is difficult for many
beginners and a huge feat of memory for advanced musicians in more complex music where
accidentals only too frequently litter the staves.

Limitations of the working memory

In the comprehensive work Psychology for Musicians: Understanding and Acquiring the Skills John
A. Sloboda et al. point out that sight-reading and memory skills can be improved with training. They
also introduce the notion that professional musicians have acquired a privileged access to their
long-term memory and that this is a crucial feature underlying sight-reading, ear-playing and
memorised performance (recall).
However, in spite of the obvious benefits of training, the most recent research in working memory
and sight-reading suggests that working memory has a limit with regards to sight-reading. Those
who have a better working memory would be more likely to become virtuosos than those whose
memory suffers slightly.
In a recent study at Durham University, researchers found that about 10% of children might have a
working memory impairment which leads to under-achievement. In Great Britain alone, they
thought this could mean that about 500,000 school children could be affected in that manner. At
the same time, in numerous peer reviewed journals music tuition has been identified as stimulating
mental skills, such as mathematics and speech, thus improving the academic performance in
children. What a pity it is, therefore, that music has a written language that, because of its inherent
dependence on memory, puts it beyond the reach of so many people.

The working memory and Simplified Music Notation

You simply play what you see
The advantage of Simplified Music Notation is that it allows poor sight-readers to enjoy the music as
written by the composer because the pitch of the notes is indicated by their shape and players can
simply play what they see!
As a result, Simplified Music Notation manages to significantly reduce the amount of working memory
needed to sight-read effectively. Taking on board the aforsesaid research, it facilitates memory
retention by reducing the number of processes that are involved in sight-reading. Consequently,
players are able to use their capacity in order to accomplish a higher level of difficulty than would
otherwise have been achievable.
Furthermore, the Creative Arts Research Trust is in the process of approaching neuro-psychologists
across Europe and the USA in order to fully understand the difference between traditional and
Simplified Music Notation in respect to the working memory.

Sharps and flats

The main difference with traditional
notation is that in Simplified Music
Notation all sharps and flats are
represented by their own shaped
noteheads. The traditional oval note
is used where a note is natural.

SHARPS

FLATS

Traditional Notation

Key signature
In order to be able to fully benefit
from the advantages of the chunking
process, the key signature is still there,
at the start of each line. Players just
dont need to refer to it whilst playing
because the pitch is always indicated
by the shaped noteheads.

=
=

Simplified Music Notation

SHARPS

FLATS

The only difference with the traditional key signature is that the Simplified Music Notation
symbols are used instead of the standard sharps and flats.

No re-learning
No re-learning is required for Simplified Music Notation as it is based on traditional 5-line staff
notation, allowing players to switch easily between the two.
This is why all pieces in the Key Perfect series of early-grade books show Simplified Music Notation
on the left-hand page, with the traditional notation version of the same score on the right. In this
way students can chart their own progress in becoming fluent readers, not just in Simplified Music
Notation but also in traditional notation.
These small but vital changes in Simplified Music Notation mean that musicians can play each
note exactly as it appears on the page, without having to make a mental adjustment for key
signatures or accidentals. Through these techniques Simplified Music Notation allows the
memory to focus on playing style, note accuracy and expression, whilst eliminating the struggle
of having to remember each individual note.

xxx

xxx

Simplified Music Notation Sibelius plugin

How it works
The plugin allows anyone who is using Sibelius 5
or 6 to convert any music to Simplified Music
Notation.
The plugin can be automatically installed
and is then listed in the plugin menu of
your Sibelius program as Simplified Music
Notation converter.
You simply click on the plugin to convert to
Simplified Music Notation. Click on the plugin
again to restore the music to its original
traditional notation format.

How does it help?

If there is a tricky piece that you have always wanted to play, you can now do so without the
laborious pursuit of sight-reading difficult keys (even though the key signature is still there) and
working out the pitch of the notes.
The plugin allows teachers to switch at a click between traditional and Simplified Music Notation to
meet the demands and struggles in the classroom, thereby helping students to overcome sight-reading
problems. The plugin will also benefit the professional musician and composer in respect of
accidental-littered chromatic and atonal music.
As a learning aid, a teaching aid, or for personal use, the plugin removes the rigidity and tedium of
traditional notation and introduces a fun, more rational approach to reading music.

Use in the classroom

Sibelius software is used in the majority of UK
schools. The Simplified Music Notation plugin
is an excellent teaching aid for the classroom
environment. It significantly narrows the gap
in levels of musical competence between
students. They all can now simply play what
they see, thereby enabling them to perform
their pieces fluently much sooner!

Network deployment
The network deployment method of installing this plugin is suited to IT administrators and managers who need to install it onto a large number of computers, or in any situation in which it is not
feasible to install singly onto each computer. The plugin will be installed as part of each computers
startup procedure.

Purchase
You can purchase the plugin via our website www.simplifiedmusicnotation.org.
Alternatively you can use the order form enclosed or contact us directly.

Price: 20.00
10

Key Perfect contents

Be perfect in any key right from the start with Simplified Music Notation
Every compositon in the Key Perfect books is shown with Simplified Music Notation
on the left-hand page and traditional notation on the page opposite
so students can see how their sight-reading is progressing
Key Perfect Volume One - Pre-Grade 1 to Grade 1
Simple story, Gurlitt
Horns and their echo, Turk
Village dance, Wohlfart
Melody in F, Kember
Old German dance, Praetorius
Follow me, Kember
Petite valse, Kember
Keeping in shape, York
Sighs and cries, York
Frog dance, Boden
Detectives!, Shelbourn
Slithery snake, York
Taking it easy, Kember
Canon, Spindler
Allegretto grazioso, Gurlitt
Morning greeting, Bischoff
Minuetto, Wilton
Two little inventions, Ryba
Waltz, Kember
Sad song, York
Big time blues, Kember
Five penny piece, Kember
Andantino, Le Couppey

Passacaglia, Kember
Sad sighing, York
Two by two, Kember
Cantabile, Kember
Lenfant sage, Gurlitt
In disguise, York
Shaping up, Kember
Study in A, Czerny
Sure fire canon, Kember
Study in E flat, Duvernoy
Up-beat two step, Kember
Lesson in D, Brunner
Run and jump, York
Happy go lucky, Kember
Simple syncopation, Kember
Jumping beans, Kember
Sad at heart, Fuchs
Ground bass, Kember
Saraband, Purcell
Allegro moderato, Clementi
Broken dream, Holm-Mercer
Study in D, Czerny
Morning greeting, Gurlitt
Study in F, Duvernoy

Key Perfect
Early-grade repertoire books
with pedagogical notes

Volume One

Be perfect
in any key
right from the start
with
Simplified Music
Notation

Broadway nights, Kember

Rondo, Bertoni
Variation in A, Hob XII:2, Haydn
Klezmernaut, House
Allegro in B flat, Mozart
Menuet in D, L. Mozart
Folk song, Kember
The joker, Kember
A line to infinity, York
Liebestod, Kember
Minuet, York
A trick with mirrors, York
The sick doll, Tchaikovsky
To a wild rose, MacDowell
Gukkuk im Versteck, Schumann
Un gros chagrin, Sandr
Elidors capture, Carlile

11

Compiled and composed by

John Kember and John York

using

Simplified Music Notation

an invention by

Peter Hayes George

9.95

Available from
www.SimplifiedMusic
Notation.org
9.95

Key Perfect Volume Two - Grade 2 level

Air in D minor, Purcell
Questions but no answers, York
Mystery melody, Kember
Dolce, Kember
Menuet in D minor, Bach
Stand up straight, York
Scherzo in F, Hassler
Tarantella, Kember
Fantasia no. 10
in D minor, Telemann
Look before you leap, York
Cowboys!, Shelbourn
Rondo KV15/L
(amended), Mozart
KV15, Mozart
Allegro moderato,
Op. 136 No. 2, 1st mov., Reinecke

Pre-Grade 1 to Grade 1
Piano

Key Perfect
Early-grade repertoire books
with pedagogical notes

Volume Two
Be perfect
in any key
right from the start
with
Simplified Music
Notation

Grade 2 level
Piano

Compiled and composed by

John Kember and John York

using

Simplified Music Notation

an invention by

Peter Hayes George

12

13

14

ORDER FORM
Books and Individual Compositions

Name and address:

Tel:
Email:

Please send me the following items (fill in as appropriate):

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TITLE
Key Perfect - Early-grade piano compositions
with pedagogical notes:
Volume One (pre-grade1 to grade1+)
Volume Two (Grade 2 level)
A More Rational Approach to Traditional Music
Notation - Piano:
Elementary 1
Elementary 2
Intermediate 1
Intermediate 2
Intermediate 3
Advanced 1
Advanced 2
Classical Favourites
Jazz Favourites
Individual Compositions - Piano:
Sonata in C minor, Op 13 Pathtique, Beethoven
Sonata in C# minor, Op 27-2 Moonlight, Beethoven
Sonatine, Op 20-2, Kuhlau
Sonata in A, K331, Mozart
Individual Compositions - Flute and Piano:
Romance, Saint Sans
Petite Valse, Caplet
Individual Compositions - Flute Solo:
Syrinx, Debussy
Individual Compositions String:
Third movement of Quartet no. 13, for 2 violins,
viola and cello, Op130, Beethoven

PRICE

Simplified Music Notation plugin for Sibelius software

20.00

Quantity

TOTAL

9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
9.95
5.95
6.50
5.95
4.95
5.50
5.50
2.90
15.00

Subtotal
In UK: Please add 2 for first item and 1 for each additional item for: P&P:
(Outside UK please contact us for a quote.)
TOTAL

If ordering by post, please make cheque payable to: The Creative Arts Research Trust
Return form to:

The Creative Arts Research Trust

245 Kingsway,
Hove, BN3 4HE,
East Sussex

If ordering by telephone, please contact us on: 01273 746-818

(We accept card payments.)

Orders can also be placed via our website at: www.SimplifiedMusicNotation.org

Bibliography
Alloway, T.P., Gathercole, S.E. Working Memory and Learning: A Practical Guide for Teachers. Sage, University
of Virginia, University of Durham. (2008)
Lee, J. I., Component Skills Involved in Sight Reading Music. University of Michigan Press, Michigan. (2004)
Lehmann, A.C., Sloboda, J. A., Woody, R. H., Psychology for Musicians: Understanding and Acquiring the Skills
Oxford University Press, New York. (2007).
Meinz, E.J. & Hambrick, D.Z. (2010). Deliberate practice is necessary but not sufficient to explain individual
differences in piano sight-reading skill: The role of working memory capacity. Psychological Science, 21,
914-919.

Further reading
Cowan, N. Working Memory Capacity. Psychology Press, U.S.A. (2005)
Cross, I., Hallam, S., Thaut, M.H. Oxford Handbook of Music Psychology Oxford University Press, London. (2008)
Deutsch, D. The Psychology of Music. Academic Press, London. (1999)

Hambrick, D. Z., Meinz, E.J., & Oswald, F. L. (2008). Individual differences in current events knowledge:
Contributions of ability, personality, and interest. Memory and Cognition.
McPherson, G. Parncutt, R. The Science and Psychology of Music Performance: Creative Strategies for Teaching
and Learnig, Oxford University Press. London, New York. (2002)

Pickering, S. J. Working Memory and Education. Academic Press, Oxford, New York. (2006)

Sloboda, J. A. Exploring the Musical Mind: Cognition, Emotion, Ability, Function. Oxford University Press,
Oxford, New York. (2005)

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Simplified Music
Notation

As with most great ideas, it is easy to understand. I found I could play from
Simplified Music Notation after a few minutes familiarisation. I believe it
could help all musicians - why not print all music this way in the future?
Robert William Winder
FLCM; LTCL; LRAM; ARCM
Professor pianoforte

Simplified Music Notation is an invention by Peter Hayes George.

The system of Simplified Music Notation is protected by:
European Community Designs No. 387014/0001-0010 and
USA Patent No. D545,889 S
The Creative Arts Foundation is a registered charity set up to research ways to make music-learning
accessible to all. As part of this aim, the charity has supported the development of Simplified Music
Notation, which was invented with the intention of encouraging a much greater percentage of
people, including those with retentive memory problems and learning disabilities to become more
active participants in music.
The charity is funded by the Creative Arts Research Trust, a limited non-profit publishing company
which sells books in Simplified Music Notation. All profits from UK sales of books and scores in
Simplified Music Notation will be donated to the Creative Arts Research Foundation to support
music-learning for the disadvantaged.
The Creative Arts Research Trust
245 Kingsway
Hove
East Sussex BN3 4HE
Tel: 01273 746 818
E-mail: info@SimplifiedMusicNotation.org
Website: www.SimplifiedMusicNotation.org
The Creative Arts Research Trust, 2010