Repeat sign
A double barline with two dots is a repeat sign: the music is played twice. Dots on the left of the bar mark the end of the repeated section; dots on the right mark its start.
How to read it
If there is only an end repeat, the music repeats from the beginning, or from the last double bar before it. If a start repeat faces an end repeat, only the section between them is repeated. The dots sit in the spaces of the staff. Brackets marked 1 and 2 over the last measures (first and second endings) give a different ending for the repeat.
Look-alikes
A double bar without dots only marks the end of a section or piece.
Repeats that aren’t played
Not every repeat is played. Elson’s Music Dictionary (1905) says repeats in Bach, Handel, Haydn, Mozart and Schubert may sometimes be left out, while Beethoven’s are generally respected.
More music symbols
Sources
- Music Notation and Terminology, Karl W. Gehrkens, 1914, A. S. Barnes Company (Project Gutenberg), Chapter III, §35; Chapter IV, §36–37
- Primer of Facts about Music, M. G. Evans, 1909, Theodore Presser Co. (Internet Archive, University of Toronto), Q. 28–29
- Stainer and Barrett's Dictionary of Musical Terms, John Stainer and W. A. Barrett, new and revised edition, 1898, Novello (Internet Archive, Cornell University Library), Repeat
- Elson's Music Dictionary, Louis C. Elson, 1905, Oliver Ditson Company (Internet Archive, Cornell University Library), Repeat
- SMuFL: Repeats, Standard Music Font Layout, glyph table U+E040–U+E04F, W3C Music Notation Community Group, U+E040–U+E041
Last reviewed September 26, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research