NEUMES, nuniz (OF. neuntc, from ML. nen ma, pia tune:, song, musical sign, from Gk, pnru met, breath, from rvtiv, putin, to breathe). in Gregorian music, melodic ornaments, espe eially series of notes sung to one syllable. Also characters in a peculiar system of musical nota tion which was in use from the eighth or ninth to the eleventh VIlltIlry. The oldest preserved manuscript written in this notation is the Anti pituitary of Saint (ninth century). No staff was used. The notes were represented by a sys tem of dots and hooks and their respective pitch by the height at which they were placed above the :yllables of the text. A single long note was indi cated by the rirga (> ), two notes on one syllable by the birirgct ()), three by the trivirga ()))), etc. A shorter note was indicated by the /nine Ins ( ), two by the bipunctus ( •• ), etc. The rising and falling of the voice was marked by a corresponding higher or lower position of the signs. In order to obviate the difficulty of
determining the exact pitch of the various tones. a red line was drawn horizontally across the parehment (tenth century), and the signs were written above and below this line. Any sign upon the line denoted F. Before another century a second line was drawn above the red one. This was yellow and the note upon it was C. But in the plainer manuscripts the dis tinction of color was soon abandoned. and two black linos were drawn with the letters F and C played at the beginning. In the course of time these letters underwent a series of conventional modifications. until they finally assumed the shape in which they are used to-day as clef-sig natures (ti,1.4 ), The G clef, which was added later, underwent a similar change (0). See