The development of the musical staff: If and when did it have fifteen lines?

Question

I am doing research on music history and I cannot find information between the four line chant staff and the grand staff. Also, I do believe that at different times in its development the staff actually had 12, 13, 14, and 15 lines. Where can I find proof or evidence of this?

Answer 1

Of course music originally had no lines and then 1. A singer would not know the exact pitch, but only the direction (up or down) and a larger or greater distance. The staff then grew to multiple lines which tended to vary in exact number by location and composer, but could have many lines. As music became more complicated, it became impossible, without counting the lines, to tell what the pitches were. There was some commonality in the number of lines since much of the early reading was passed on by monks who learned from each other, but there was no standard.

Also very early on, a monk by the name of Guido invented his own system using hands. In many monasteries, including the ones here in the southwestern USA, in the music room, you will see a large hand painted on the wall. They are called Guido's Hands. Each finger was a relative pitch.

It is my belief that the 5 line standard staff and the 10 line grand staff came about because of Guido's Hand and the fact that notes could be figured on your fingers.