# US 7,608,773 B2 · Teaching system and method for stringed musical instruments

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- Number: US 7,608,773 B2
- Document ID: US7608773B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 10/716,123
- Filed: 2003-11-17
- Published: 2004-05-27
- Granted: 2009-10-27
- Earliest claimed: 2001-03-20
- Inventors: Robin Kay Deverich
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US7608773B2

## CPC

- G09B 15/02: Boards or like means for providing an indication of notes
- G10G 1/02: Chord or note indicators, fixed or adjustable, for keyboard of fingerboards
- G09B: EDUCATIONAL OR DEMONSTRATION APPLIANCES; APPLIANCES FOR TEACHING, OR COMMUNICATING WITH, THE BLIND, DEAF OR MUTE; MODELS; PLANETARIA; GLOBES; MAPS; DIAGRAMS (devices for psychotechnics or for testing reaction times A61B5/16; games, sports, amusements A63; projectors, projector screens G03B)
- G10G: REPRESENTATION OF MUSIC; RECORDING MUSIC IN NOTATION FORM; ACCESSORIES FOR MUSIC OR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, e.g. SUPPORTS (music stands A47B; non-musical aspects of musical toy instruments A63H5/00; metronomes G04F5/02; teaching music G09B15/00)

## Abstract

A method for teaching stringed instrument students how to play sheet music through the use of colored fingering numbers. This method assists the user in knowing which finger to use on which string as they play instrumental music. It also indicates which position their hand should be in as they play sheet music. Numbers correspond to which finger should be used to play a particular note. Separate, distinctly identifiable colors are assigned to notes that should be played on a particular string in a particular position, and are visually displayed as colored fingering numbers that indicate which string and in which position the user should play the fingered notes on.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A system for instructing a student to play music on a stringed instrument having a fingerboard, the system comprising:
sheet music comprising a musical staff and musical notes with colored fingering numbers placed above the musical notes; and broken lines between some of the colored fingering numbers, wherein the colored fingering numbers indicate the string on which the student should place a finger and indicate the hand position of the student's hand on the fingerboard and the finger that should be used, and wherein the broken lines indicate a shift in the hand position of the student's hand on the fingerboard.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the broken lines are colored, and the color of a given broken line corresponds to the string on which the student's finger should be placed.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the broken lines comprise dotted or dashed lines, and the number of dots or dashes in a given broken line corresponds to the hand position into which the student's hand should be shifted.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein the colored fingering numbers have different formats, and the format of a given colored fingering number indicates the hand position on the fingerboard in which the student's hand should be placed.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The system of claim 4, wherein the different formats comprise variations in the boldness, italics, font type and/or font size of the colored fingering numbers.

### Claim 6

A method for customizing colored fingering numbers for playing music, comprising:
(a) selecting a region of the music in which a default colored fingering is to be customized;
(b) enabling a user to edit one or more colors of the default colored fingering in the selected region;
(c) enabling a user to edit one or more fingering numbers of the default colored fingering in the selected region; and
(d) enabling a user to edit one or more hand position shifts of the default colored fingering in the selected region.