Notation & Symbols

Segno

Pronounced SEN-yoh

Definition

The segno is a stylized S crossed by a slanted line, with a dot on each side. It marks the place a D.S. (dal segno) instruction sends you back to, so a passage can be repeated without going back to the beginning.

The segno (Italian for "sign") is a decorative S crossed by a diagonal line, with a dot on each side. On its own it asks you to do nothing: it is a bookmark. The instruction that uses it is dal segno (D.S., "from the sign"), which sends you back to the segno to play on from there.

A treble-clef staff in 4/4 with five bars. A segno sign stands above the start of bar 2. To Coda is printed above the end of bar 3. D.S. al Coda is printed above bar 4, which ends with a double bar line. Bar 5 begins with a coda sign and ends with a final bar line. — Play bars 1 to 4. D.S. al Coda sends you back to the segno sign at bar 2. Play bars 2 and 3, and at To Coda jump to the coda (bar 5): bars 1, 2, 3, 4, 2, 3, 5. The audio follows that route.

Where you will find it

The segno is printed above the staff at the start of the bar where the return begins. Typical places:

just after an introduction, so the repeat skips the intro;
at the start of a chorus or refrain in a song;
at the start of the main theme in a piece with several sections.

Segno and coda

The segno often works together with the coda sign, a circle crossed by two lines. "D.S. al Coda" means: go back to the segno, play until "To Coda", then jump to the coda at the end. With these two signs a whole song (intro, verse, chorus, verse and chorus again, then a new ending) fits on one or two pages.

The two signs are easy to mix up at first. The segno is an S shape and marks where you go back to; the coda sign is a circle with crosshairs and marks where you jump from and where you land.

Reading tip

When you first look at a piece, find every segno and coda sign and trace the route with your finger: where you go back to, where you leave and where you land. Doing that before you play saves you from hunting for the sign at full speed.

Learn both signs in D.S. & the Coda, then try Trace the road map.

Common questions

What is the segno sign in music?

An S-shaped sign crossed by a slanted line, with a dot on each side. It marks where to go back to when you reach a D.S. (dal segno).

What is the difference between the segno and the coda sign?

The segno (an S shape) marks where a D.S. sends you back to. The coda sign (a circle with crosshairs) marks where you jump from and the ending you jump to.