01 / ONE NOTE FIRST
Set up Melody for the note chart
- Open the instrument and choose Melody. Start with Use Mouse Mode on desktop or Play without camera on a touch screen.
- Set Key (the root note) to C. In Sound settings, select Scale: Major. Triangle is a comfortable Wave for learning; keep the volume low.
- Press and hold near the left edge of the playing area. Confirm that the note label says C4, then release. Move a little right for D4 and E4.
Do this before arranging a webcam view. Mouse and touch let you learn the musical layout without camera permission or hand tracking. When those notes are predictable, switch to Camera and use a thumb-index pinch to sound them. Separate the fingers to release. The complete playing tutorial covers startup and the other modes.
This reference applies to Melody on gesture-synth.com. Sing & Play selects chords through a different set of controls, and other gesture instruments have their own mappings. A video that says “show three fingers” may describe another mode or website. Check the mode before copying its hand shapes.
02 / FIND A PITCH
Gesture Synth notes: the complete C Major map
Read positions from the left edge of the playing area, not the browser window. Fourteen equal note bands fill the width. Aim near a band's centre so small movements do not push you into its neighbour. The percentages below are rounded guides; the live note label is your final check.
| Note | Centre from left | Note band |
|---|---|---|
| C4 | 3.6% | 0.0–7.1% |
| D4 | 10.7% | 7.1–14.3% |
| E4 | 17.9% | 14.3–21.4% |
| F4 | 25.0% | 21.4–28.6% |
| G4 | 32.1% | 28.6–35.7% |
| A4 | 39.3% | 35.7–42.9% |
| B4 | 46.4% | 42.9–50.0% |
| C5 | 53.6% | 50.0–57.1% |
| D5 | 60.7% | 57.1–64.3% |
| E5 | 67.9% | 64.3–71.4% |
| F5 | 75.0% | 71.4–78.6% |
| G5 | 82.1% | 78.6–85.7% |
| A5 | 89.3% | 85.7–92.9% |
| B5 | 96.4% | 92.9–100.0% |
C4 and C5 share a letter but have different pitches. C5 is one octave above C4. The number changes at C: the next note after B4 is C5. To reach the upper octave in this setup, move into the right half; Melody does not have a separate Octave selector. Moving upward changes brightness, not the octave.
03 / WHY A NOTE IS MISSING
C Major, Pentatonic and Minor use different notes
Key and Scale answer different questions. Key sets the starting pitch; Scale selects the available pattern above it. With Key C, the three choices begin as follows. Each sequence repeats an octave higher across the second half of the playing area.
- Pentatonic: C4, D4, E4, G4, A4; then C5, D5, E5, G5, A5.
- Major: C4, D4, E4, F4, G4, A4, B4; then C5 through B5 in the same pattern.
- Minor: C4, D4, D#4, F4, G4, G#4, A#4; then the same pattern from C5.
The default Pentatonic choice has five notes per octave, so C Pentatonic leaves out F and B. If a melody needs either one, change Scale to Major. Wave changes the sound's character; it does not repair a missing pitch. Minor changes several pitches too: the # labels above are how this instrument displays notes often written as E-flat, A-flat and B-flat in C minor.
Changing Scale also moves the note positions
Pentatonic spreads ten bands across the stage, while Major and Minor each spread fourteen. G4 sits near 35.0% in C Pentatonic and 32.1% in C Major. C5 moves from 55.0% to 53.6%. Keep Key C, change only Scale, and watch the note row update before playing again. A remembered hand position is not a fixed piano key.
04 / TWO SHORT CHECKS
Practise note order before a song
A five-note climb
In C Major, play C4 → D4 → E4 → F4 → G4, then return through F4, E4, D4 and C4. Use one relaxed count per note. Release before moving if you want separate attacks; holding while moving produces a connected change. This original position exercise checks neighbouring bands without requiring a song score.
Now try the climb in C Pentatonic. The fourth available pitch is G4, so the sequence skips F4. Return to Major to recover the five-note climb. Hearing that difference is more useful than trying to force F out of an unavailable band. Keep your vertical position steady while comparing the scales.
An octave comparison
Return to C Major and alternate C4 → C5 → C4. Aim near 3.6%, then 53.6%, then 3.6% again. Use the displayed number to confirm the change. Repeat with D4 and D5 at approximately 10.7% and 60.7%. The letter stays the same; the higher number identifies the higher register.
Once those changes are comfortable, use the short song exercises for Little Star or Ode to Joy. A song note list tells you pitches and their order, but timing and clean releases still matter. This page is a location reference, not automatic song playback or a full sheet-music library.
05 / CHANGE ONE SETTING
What happens when you change Key?
Melody offers roots C, D, E, F, G and A. Each begins on its named note in octave 4. Changing Key shifts the selected scale while keeping its number of bands. With Major selected, the leftmost band becomes D4 for Key D or G4 for Key G. The C Major table no longer names those bands correctly.
For example, Key D with Major starts D4, E4, F#4, G4, A4, B4 and C#5. It then continues D5 through C#6. The boundary between the two halves is a repeat of the root an octave higher; it is not always the boundary between numbered octaves. Read the complete note names rather than assuming every left-half note ends in 4.
If you are converting a melody from another source, identify both its key and its required notes. Check that the selected scale actually contains them. Melody is scale-based, with no chromatic keyboard offering every semitone simultaneously. For harmony instead of single pitches, use the separate chord-position guide and the controls for that mode.
06 / RECOVER QUICKLY
When the displayed note is not the one you want
First confirm Melody, Key and Scale. If the letter is right but the number is wrong, check the horizontal octave region. If the note flickers between neighbours, move toward the band's centre. With a camera, keep the whole hand visible and relax unnecessary movement; return to mouse or touch to separate a tracking problem from a musical setting.
If you see the correct note but hear silence, press and hold on the stage or pinch in Camera mode, then check instrument and device volume. Release between repeated notes. The phone guide covers touch and device-specific recovery. Camera tracking happens locally; wider site data practices are explained in the privacy policy.
Keep practice short before deciding to save it. Playing, recording and full preview are free without an account. Video export is optional, requires sign-in and payment, and starts at US$9.99 for one recording. Download packs show their price and included exports before purchase. Use the recording and saving guide for durations, temporary previews and paid file availability.
QUESTIONS / QUICK LOOKUP
Gesture Synth notes FAQ
Where are the notes on Gesture Synth?
On gesture-synth.com, Melody uses horizontal position to choose a note from the selected Key and Scale. With Key C and Scale Major, the fourteen notes run from C4 to B5. Use the position table on this page and check the live note label before playing.
Why can I not find F or B in the default scale?
With Key C, Pentatonic contains C, D, E, G and A in each octave. It leaves out F and B. In Sound settings, change Scale to Major for all seven C Major notes. Changing Wave will not add missing pitches.
How do I play C5 instead of C4?
In C Major Melody, C4 is near 3.6% and C5 near 53.6% of the playing area width. Move to the right half for C5. Melody has no separate octave selector; the octave number is part of the displayed note name.
Do finger counts choose single notes?
In Melody, use position for pitch and a thumb-index pinch to sound the note. Mouse and touch use a press or hold instead. Sing & Play has different chord controls. A finger-count chart from another instrument is not a Melody note map.
Can I play sharps and flats?
Major and Minor scales in different roots include some sharps, which the live note row displays with a #. For example, C Minor shows D#, G# and A#, equivalent in pitch to Eb, Ab and Bb. Melody offers selected scales rather than all twelve chromatic notes at once.
Can I follow this guide for free on a phone?
Yes. Reading the chart, playing, recording and previewing are free without signing in. Use Play without camera for touch. Saving a video is optional and paid, with sign-in required; a single-recording export costs US$9.99 and packs show their price before purchase. Device support and sharing vary.