Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of
music notation that uses
modern musical symbols to indicate the pitches (melodies) and rhythms of a
song or musical piece. Like its analogs – books, pamphlets, etc. – the medium of sheet music typically is paper (or, in earlier times,
parchment), although the access to musical notation since the 1980s has included the presentation of musical notation on computer screens. Use of the term "sheet" is intended to differentiate written or printed music from a
sound recording, radio or TV broadcast or a recorded live performance, which may capture film or video footage or the performance as well as the audio component. In everyday use, "sheet music" (or simply "music") can refer to the print publication of commercial music in conjunction with the release of a new film, TV show, record album, or other special or popular event which involves music. The first printed sheet music was made in 1473.