Clefs and lattices of lines, notes and rests, presence and absence, signatures and articulations, the graphic art of musical notation serves as both rigid explanation and expressive abstraction. Below find samples illuminated and otherwise unadorned from our Picture Collection, ranging from the Italian Renaissance to 2006.

Medieval Sheet Music

Following is a selection of sheet music from the 1879 book The Baby’s Boutique, Illustrated by Walter Crane, an influential, prolific illustrator that you can learn more about in our book stacks:

Sheet Music from a 2006 Video Art piece by Cory Arcangel.

The Etude Magazine, April 1946.

The Etude Magazine, March 1946.

The Etude Magazine, March 1946.

The Etude Magazine, February 1933.

The Etude magazine, January 1933