Notation & Symbols

Ottava (8va, 8vb)

Pronounced oh-TAH-vahWritten as 8va

Definition

Ottava, written 8va, tells you to play the notes under its dashed line an octave higher than written; 8vb (ottava bassa) means an octave lower. It keeps very high or low notes readable without stacks of ledger lines.

Ottava is Italian for "octave". An 8va sign with a dashed line above the staff means: play everything under the line one octave higher than written. The music is printed an octave lower so that it sits on or near the staff, instead of floating above it on a ladder of ledger lines.

Two treble-clef examples in 4/4. The first has quarter notes E, F, G, A and half notes G, E in the top of the staff, under a dashed line that starts with an 8. The second has the same notes an octave higher, high above the staff on three and four ledger lines. — The same two bars twice, sounding identical. Left: written on the staff under an octave line (printed here as an 8 with a dashed line, the modern short form of 8va), the notes read E, F, G, A, G, E but sound an octave higher. Right: the same sounding notes written where they sound, on up to four ledger lines.

The family of octave signs

8va (all'ottava, "at the octave"), above the staff: play an octave higher.
8vb (ottava bassa, "low octave"), below the staff: play an octave lower. Some editions write 8va bassa, or just an 8, below the notes.
15ma (quindicesima, "fifteenth"): two octaves higher; 15mb, two octaves lower. Two octaves is a fifteenth because intervals are counted inclusively, just as an octave is an eighth.
loco ("in place"): back to normal. It is printed where the octave sign ends if the end might be unclear.

Many modern editions print just the numeral 8 at the start of the line, above the staff for higher and below it for lower. The sign lasts as long as its dashed line, which usually ends with a short hook. An octave sign printed without a line applies only to the note or chord it stands over.

A bass-clef staff in 4/4: quarter notes A, C, E, C and a whole note A, with a dashed line that starts with an 8 below the staff. — In the bass clef, with an octave line below the staff (an 8 with a dashed line, short for 8vb): the notes are written A, C, E, C and A on the staff, but sound an octave lower, down to A1, the second-lowest A on the piano.

Not the same as coll'8va

Coll'ottava ("with the octave"), written coll'8va, means something different: add the octave to the written notes and play both, rather than moving them.

Reading tips

Read the notes as written first, then move your hand up (or down) an octave. Don't try to name the notes in the new octave.
Watch for the end of the line. Players often forget to come back, especially when the dashed line ends at the end of a system.
In piano music, 8va is common in the right hand and 8vb in the left; you will also see octave signs in parts for high instruments such as flute and violin.

Practice with Octave Signs: 8va & 8vb and 8va & 8vb: ride the elevator.

Common questions

What does 8va mean in music?

Play the notes under the 8va line one octave higher than written. It is short for ottava, Italian for octave.

What is the difference between 8va and 8vb?

8va, above the staff, means an octave higher. 8vb (ottava bassa), below the staff, means an octave lower.