Benesh Movement Notation

Invented by Joan and Rudolf Benesh in the late 1940s, the system uses abstract symbols based on figurative representations of the human body.

Benesh notation is recorded on a five-line staff from left to right, with vertical bar lines to mark the passage of time.

From top to bottom, the five lines of the staff coincide with the head, shoulders, waist, knees and feet.

[2] A short horizontal line is used to represent the location of a hand or foot that passes through the Coronal plane which extends from the sides of the body.

The height of the hands and feet from the floor and their distance from the mid-line of the body are shown visually.