The high educational value of music notation means and the necessity of studying its fundamentals in the general music teaching process is stipulated by a):the exceptional importance of didactic and artistic-educational functions of music notation, the direct connection of the music-graphical symbols with the concept of the musical language and musical thinking; b) the richness and variety of forms for space fixation of music and intonation forms ; c) the inseparable links of the written music history with the history of creative music activity, with the abundance of priceless artistic heritage of written musical culture. The written 24 musical culture fundamentals mastering is defined in the work as the process of personal properties acquiring, which are necessary for reproductive and productive actions with musical script. The pedagogical essence of this process is the formation of musical-grammar competence - the personal features complex, consisting of the written music empiric and theoretic knowledge, as well as the development of technical skills and artistic abilities for the application of notation means in musical activity. The theoretical model of musical grammar competence constructed in the work includes: a) basic and empiric knowledge, b) abilities and skills of reading (decoding and re-decoding) of musical notation text; c) abilities and skills of musical notation (encoding of the sound text);d) artistic and esthetic attitude to the written culture artifacts. The history and semiotic peculiarities of the Chinese musical culture investigation, as well as the analyses of the musical notation application practice allowed us to make such a conclusion: a) figure notation widely spread in Chinese schools today doesn't meet the modern national culture development requirements; b) the most up-to-date system is the notes-linear European system, giving the Chinese youth the access to the thesaurus of the world music classics. Basing on the developed theoretical model of musical grammar competence the general principles, methods, forms and conditions were stated for written music fundamentals mastering at secondary schools. The suggested methods are based on the principles of cultural compliance, artistic expediency, didactic expediency, semiotic expediency, the prepared designation of musical intonation forms, verbal support, connection with musical performing, artistic motivation. The methods suggested in the theses supposes the conventional step by step musical grammar competence formation. The first step implies the basic empiric and theoretic knowledge formation. Its main methods and forms are: observation of the notation, using of visual-kinetic analogues of intonation forms (cheironomics), creation of the approximate graphic melody analogues. The second step sets the task of the notation reading skills mastering. The main forms and methods here: rhythmic declamation, solmisation, using absolute or relative verbal denominations, the musical notation observation synchronic to its sounding; training tests, the game "Meistersingers" etc. The task of the third step is to master the skill of musical writing (encoding) of the sound form. The forms and methods are: the training tests, the game "the Encoder", "The Notes Puzzle", the simplest types of musical dictation. Special attention of this method is paid to the pupils' awareness of the artistic potential and the cultural sense of the musical notation. The methods approbation included the stating and forming experiments. The stating experiment was based on the specially developed diagnostics. It suggests the evaluation of the music notation competence by 12 criteria, associated in four groups: basic knowledge; ability to read (encode and recode) the musical notation; ability to fix (encode) the musical sound text; the existence of cultural connotations of notation artifacts and the artistic motivation for musical-graphic activity.
