## Octave Sign

8va above a passage means play it one octave higher than written; 8vb below means one octave lower. The dashed line shows how far the instruction lasts.

It exists to avoid ledger lines. A passage five ledger lines above the staff is nearly unreadable; the same passage written an octave down with 8va over it is obvious at a glance.


## How To Spot Octave Sign

A small "8va" or "8" with a dashed line running above (or below) a group of notes, ending in a downward hook.


## Find It In Thirty Seconds

Find an 8va passage and play it as written first, then an octave up. The second one is what the composer asked for, and hearing both makes the sign stick.

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.