In a cheerful world full of sounds, where melodies chased each other like butterflies, there lived a small, round note named Cee. He was cheerful and always hopping about, but something was troubling him. Whenever he took a run-up and bounced, he only managed a small hop. The other notes, the high and thin ones, whizzed over him like silver arrows. Cee watched them and longed for the same.
"Why can't I jump higher?" he asked himself, sadly rolling back and forth. His sound was pleasant, just right, neither deep nor high. But he wanted to experience what it was like to fly high up by the sun, where the thinnest and brightest sounds are born.
As he was thinking, he rolled up to a huge wooden land they called a guitar. It lay on its side, and a shiny wire stretched across its long neck. It was a string. She looked tired and was lolling about lazily. Cee bravely rolled up to her.
"Hello," he greeted. "I'm Cee."
The long string quivered lazily and made a deep, humming sound. Thrummm. "I'm Gita. What brings you here, little one?"
"I want to know how to jump high," Cee said with determination. "You're so long, you must know how."
Gita laughed, shaking all over. "Quite the opposite! When I'm long and loose like this, I only sing deep notes. Try hopping on me."
Cee didn't hesitate. He took a run-up and hop! He landed right in the middle of the string. Gita trembled, and together they made a beautiful, deep tone. It was a nice sound, but it wasn't flying.
"See?" said Gita. "I wave slowly, and that's why the sound is deep. Deep sounds are like slow snails; they're in no hurry. High sounds are like swift swallows."
"Oh," Cee mused. "So, if you want to sing high, you can't be so long?" That was an interesting thought.
"Exactly! You're a keen observer," Gita praised him. "When something shortens me, I start to vibrate much faster. And faster vibrating means a higher tone. That's when I can jump!"
"What can shorten you?" Cee inquired, curiously examining Gita's long neck. He noticed small metal strips embedded in it at regular intervals.
"These are my helpers, the frets," Gita explained. "When someone presses a part of me against a fret, the part that can vibrate becomes shorter."
Just then, Cee met one of them. It was a shiny fret named Paulie. Cee asked him nicely: "Mr. Fret, could you please help us? Gita would like to get shorter."
Paulie smiled. From the wooden neck, an invisible force gently rose and pressed Gita right against him. The string was suddenly shorter.
"Awesome! Now jump!" Gita exclaimed excitedly.
Cee took another run-up and hop! He bounced off the shortened string. This time it was completely different! The sound was brighter, more cheerful, and Cee flew a little higher. He laughed with joy.
"That's it! Let's go even higher!"
Together with Gita and Paulie, they continued. They tried touching the next fret, then another. With each step, Gita became shorter and shorter. And with each jump, Cee got higher and higher. It was as if they were climbing invisible musical stairs. Cee sang "re," then "mi," then a cheerful "fa." He felt wonderful.
When they had almost reached the end of the neck, Gita said, "This is one way to sing high. But there's another."
"What is it?" Cee blurted out, beside himself with curiosity.
"I have to be tighter. When I'm tight, I vibrate even faster. It's like with a rubber band. The more you stretch it, the higher the sound it makes when you pluck it."
"And who can make you tighter?"
Gita caressed Cee with her sound and pointed to the very end of the guitar, where a shiny metal peg stuck out. "That's my friend, Twirly the tuning peg. When he turns, he tightens or loosens me."
Cee immediately rolled over to Twirly. "Mr. Twirly, please, could you tighten Gita a little? We want to see if we can fly even higher!"
Twirly turned with pleasure. Cee felt Gita tighten beneath him like a bowstring. She was firm and ready.
"We're ready! Jump!" called Gita.
Cee jumped with all his might. BZZZING! This time it wasn't just a jump, it was a flight! He flew so high that he almost touched the ceiling of the sound world. The sound they created together was thin, clear, and as bright as a star.
"Hooray!" shouted Cee as he floated down like a feather. "I understand now! For a tone to jump high, the string must be either shorter or tighter! And best of all, both at once!"
Then they all played a wonderful game together. Twirly tightened and loosened Gita, Paulie and his fret friends shortened and lengthened her, and Cee jumped on her. They climbed up the musical stairs to the highest notes and then slowly descended to the deepest ones. Cee learned that every note has its place and every one is important. Even the deep notes are beautiful, because they are like the solid ground beneath your feet. And the high ones are like cheerful birds in the sky.
From that day on, Cee no longer worried. He knew that if he wanted to jump higher, he just needed the right teamwork and to understand how things work. He didn't need magic, but knowledge.
And what do you think, kids? With your parents' help, try to find a regular rubber band at home. Stretch it between two fingers and pluck it. Do you hear that sound? Now stretch it a little more. Did the sound change? Is it higher or deeper? This way, you can build your own musical stairs.