The_Complete_Idiot%27s_Guide_To_Music_Theory

Another navigation technique uses a separate section of music called the Coda.
When you insert a Coda sign in your music, that indicates that you should
jump to the section marked Coda. A common navigation technique is notated
“D.C. al Coda” or “D.C. al Fine,” where you jump to the beginning of the
song and then follow through to the Coda or the end (Fine). The following
table details these and other common Italian navigation markings.
Italian Navigation Markings
Marking Means …
D.C. al Fine Go back to the beginning and play through to the end.
D.C. al Coda Go back to the beginning and play to the Coda sign; then
skip to the Coda section.
D.S. al Fine Go back to the Segno sign and play through to the end.
D.S. al Coda Go back to the Segno sign and play to the Coda sign; then
skip to the Coda section.
Use the Segno (left) and Coda (right) signs to navigate a piece of music.
Repeating Measures
If you have only a single measure to repeat, you can use a measure repeat sign.
Just insert this sign between the bar lines after the measure you want to repeat;
musicians will know to repeat the previous measure.
Use the measure repeat sign to repeat the contents of the previous measure.
You can use the measure repeat sign in multiple measures. For example, if you
have three measures worth of repeat signs, you play the original measure four
times (the original time plus three repeats).
Repeating Notes
If you’re really lazy, you’ll like the fact that you don’t always have to write each
individual note in a piece of music. If you’re repeating notes of the same rhythmic
value and pitch, you can use note repeat notation to spare yourself the trouble
of writing down all those eighth or sixteenth notes in a row.
Chapter 7: Tempo, Dynamics, and Navigation
85
Definition
“D.S.” is short for
Dal Segno, which means
“from the Segno” (or, in
English, “from the sign”).
“D.C.” is short for Dal
Capo, which means “from
the head” or “from the
start.” (Capo is Italian for
“head”—literally, the top
of the chart.)