Legato means play smoothly and connected, with each note lasting until the next one begins.
On the piano it is a finger skill: you hold one key until the moment the next sounds, so there is no gap. It is what makes a melody sound sung rather than typed.
How to spot it
The word legato under the staff, or a long slur curving over a group of notes.
Find it in thirty seconds
Play five notes and listen for a gap between any two. If you hear one, you lifted early, hold each key until the next sounds.
Open any piece of sheet music on this site and do it now. Reading is a recognition skill, and recognition is built by finding things, not by reading about them.
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How to Read Sheet Music: Learn how to read sheet music using interactive lessons from Chordzy. Or browse our various reading music topics.
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Dynamics: Dynamics in piano music. Dynamics are the letters under the staff telling you how loud to play: p is soft, f is loud, and mp and mf are the moderate versions o…
Slur: Slur in piano music. A slur is a curved line over a group of notes at different pitches, meaning play them smoothly and connected as one phrase.
Staccato: Staccato in piano music. A staccato dot above or below a note head means play it short and detached, roughly half its written length, with silence filling the…
Tie: Tie in piano music. A tie is a curved line joining two notes of the same pitch. You play the first one and hold it through the second, rather than playing it a…
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