This page dedicates to the so-called Symbolic Method, a universal notation for card tricks. Based on a categorization of the technical elements employed in card magic it allows to describe their technical backbone in a most concise manner. It is to card magic what notes are to music.

From here on it‘s all crap they‘ll say, not relevant at all to cardmagic. It‘s why this site isn‘t called magic dot com, yeah.

The "Método Simbólico", as it is originally named, was designed by Juan Tamariz, who published it in 1978. Mostly ignored, silently forgotten, and uncontradictedly declared as too specific, difficult, theoretical and obsolete, it may be considered the maestro's most fundamental, most practical, highly intuitive and visionary contribution to card magic, ranking among the most intellectual and groundbraking ever delivered to the inner circle.

The concept of a notation, as opposed to the use of words, has been introduced and established in many artistic disciplines such as music, dance, choreography. In all these places notation is unquestioned and fundamentally anchored as it allows for fast workflows and efficient studies. The underlying idea is a strict separation of the artistic and technical elements, the latter ones which are addressed by symbolic notation. This approach is also applicable to card magic.

The artistic jacket of a performance aside, card tricks can be primarily described as a sequence of position checks and actions. Secondary elements, adding context, involve patter (statements, questions, responses), structural elements (eg. set-up, phases, loops), dramatical elements (eg. pause, effect) and compositional elements (eg. in-transit, synchronized, intersecting actions). Notation is the best way to reveal all this in a most accurate, consistent and transparent manner, visually and holistic. As if x-raying the card trick while it evolves, its technical backbone gets drafted, step by step. Dissected and layed out in this way, the student is in a best position to elaborate over all aspects of the performance - approaching tricks in this manner literally opens up new perspectives to the students. Traditional formats, books and videos, serve as the primary source to introduce the trick, to discuss sleight details and, in a more or less tideous manner, to explain the trick's backbone. Notation serves for the practical work in the same way notes serve the musician during the daily rehearsals.
 

Three ideas are applied:

1. Trick sequences are formulated by means of symbols for position checks (eg. the sequence of cards in the piles) and symbols for actions (eg., turn card, take a break, do a double lift, etc.)

2. The symbols are parametrized for additional context: the card's suit and value, its position in a deck (eg. a break below the 3rd from top), whether a position is face-up or face-down, or whether an action delivers a card in either face-up or face-down condition (eg. deal a card in face-up or face-down manner).

3. Some amazingly powerful rules apply:

- on position checks, dots/circles on the left signal a face-down condition, dots/circles on the right signal a face-up condition.

- on actions, arrows pointing up signal an action that delivers a card in a face-down (ie. in an back-up) condition, and vice versa.

All this allows for efficient visual formulations, illustrated on the following simple example, which may represent a typical trick sequence embedded into a larger routine. An ace of hearts, followed by a king of spades is located topmost on a face-down deck. Ace and King are reversed (a). A double turnover is executed (1), followed by a push-off (2) of the now top card which is dealt (3) face-down to the table. The ace remains on top of the deck, while the king is tabled instead (b). This description encloses two position checks, a) and b), and three actions, 1),2), and 3). In notation, top-downwards:

a)

An ace of hearts, followed by a king of spades is located topmost on a face-down deck. Ace and King are reversed.

1

A double turnover is executed...

2

... followed by a push-off of the now top card...

...which is dealt face-down to the table.

The ace remains on top of the deck, while the king is tabled instead.

The above serves to give a first idea. Even though the symbolic vocabulary has not been disclosed yet, the reader may spot the radically different approach.

Taken further, that is, rearranged to a horizontal lay-out and framed, the symbols shown below represent the same sequence with additional details to specify the performer's patter; that the turnover and the pushoff are synchronized actions; and where the card was dealt to (to the upper right table segment). Also, some boxes for closely related actions and position checks were combined vertically. Read each row from left to right before moving downwards.

Only the relevant information is rendered.

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Position Checks

1.1

single card, face-down

1.2

single card, face-up

1.3

an ace of spades, face-down

1.4

double face card, AC is face-up, and 2H is face-down

1.4

double backer, blUe back showing-up, and Red back showing-down

a pile of cards

a sequence of cards (aces) on top of a deck, all face-down

a sequence of cards, all face-down except face-up ace of diamonds

same as above, in 1.8, but with break below the aces

Deck, generic symbol

a deck, face-down

a deck, face-up

a deck, face-down

a deck, face-up

Turns

turning a single card  face-down (back-up)

turning a single card  face-up (back-down)

turning a deck face-down (back-up)

turning a deck face-up (back-down)

double turnover, ending face-down

triple turnover, ending face-down

quadruple turnover, ending face-down

Breaks, Arrangements

taking a break below 3rd from top

taking a break above 3rd from bottom

combining right hand pile over the left hand pile

splitting the deck, taking top part into right, and bottom part into the left (hand)

Deals, Takes, Push-offs

lifting one card (face-down)

double-lifting two cards (face-down)

stud dealing a card, so it ends face-up (back-down)

stud dealing a card, so it ends face-down (back-up)

forcing a card, here: the KH

selecting a card

returning a card

counting n cards without reversing the order

counting n cards reversing the order

buckle the bottom three cards

Cuts

straight cut

false cut

a pass

a half pass

Controls

controlling a card, controlling the chosen card to 2nd from top

glimpsing, here:  the 2nd card from above, and the 2nd card from below

Hidden Maneuvers

squaring the deck

switch in AH, and switch out 2C

palming once card in left hand

palming once card in right hand

culling, here: the Kings

crimping at lower left corner

crimping at lower right corner

7.6

out jogging a card, here: the chosen card

7.7a

inserting a card, here: below the 4th from top

7.7b

tilting a card, here: below the 2nd from the top

Open maneuvers

spreading a deck face-down

fanning a deck face-down

Detailed Counts

numbers indicate the original positions;

dashes mark the separate counts or beats

asterisks mark hidden cards

the arrow indicates the order in which cards are sequenced from the top after the count. The positions within each beat are always sequenced from left-to-right. Of course, cards can only be sequenced once, even if the were counted twice.

Jordan count

count 5 as 4; the 4th card is hidden at the 3nd beat; the arrow indicates that the final order is: 1,2,3,4,5

Elmsley count

count 4 as 4; the 3rd card is hidden at the 2nd beat; the arrow indicates that the final order is: 1,4,2,3

count 4 as 4; cards actually shown are 2, 4 and 2, 4 again; the arrow indicates that the final order is: 4,2,3,1

count 4 as 4; cards actually shown are 2, 4 and 2, 4 again;the arrow indicates that the final order is: 2,4,3,1

count 5 as 4; 3rd card is hidden; the arrow indicates that the final order is: 1,2,3,4,5

count 5 as 4; 3rd card is hidden; the arrow indicates that the final order is: 2,3,1,4,5

count 5 as 4; 4th card is hidden at 3rd beat; the arrow indicates that the final order is: 5,3,4,2,1

10

Shuffles

10.1

Out faro

10.2

In faro

10.3

riffle shuffle, left pile goes first

10.4

strip out

10.5

push through

10.6

Shank/Zarrow shuffle

10.7

ovrhand shuffle

10.8

running cards

10.9

milking cards

10.10

OLRAM subtlety

Objects

11.1

table

11.2

pen

11.3

case

11.4

coin

11.5

left hand

11.6

right hand

11.7

spectator

11.8

magician

11.9

Pockets

11.10

left outer breast pocket, 5D in outer right breast pocket

11.11

left jacket pocket, AH in right jacket pocket

11.12

left jacket pocket, 3S in right jacket pocket

11.13

left inner jacket pocket, right inner jacket pocket

12

Miscellaneous

12.1

watch

12.2

say

12.3

think

Generic

Drama and Compositional overlays

place, coordinates overlays

Structure

Tamariz' original publication, see the references listed below, compiles more symbols, and also a most concise and consistent system to express various layers of details (the detailed finger positions, the details of counts, the details of sleights, the details of the body posture etc.). His underlying idea was that tricks can exclusively and completely be described by notation. In contrast to this extreme approach, the reduced set of symbols listed here rather allows for a milder, intermediate approach that suggests to take advantage of the best of both worlds: A synnergy of both the traditional formats and notation where each excels. Notation is suggested rather as a short hand and quick style summary delivering the macroscopic layer of tricks without too much focus on the microscopic details such as finger positions or the exact mechanics of the sleights.

Tamariz originally devised the method as a shorthand script for pencil and paper. This way it serves to annotate books and publications, and to take notes during lectures, during creative sessions, and to pin down ideas. Only a few attempts are needed to achieve accurate and concise results.

Additionally, the symbolic method is available in digital format on iPhone. Documents can be finetuned, extended, if needed printed to paper,  shared by email etc. The digital application uses vector graphics for the symbols and allows the student to configure the number of rows and columns on the screen, to set the colours and font sizes to allow for the best possible rendering. Documents are encryptet in xml file format. The iPhone app (ideally launched on an iPad, supported by a stand while you practise with the cards in your hand) serves to manage an entire repertoire, making it available for the daily dedication to the tricks and ideas. Symbolic Method is available on the Appstore, here.

A set of example documents, renderedd to PDF but also available to be imported directly into Symbolic Method, are given in the App's area of this website, here.

1

Credit: Juan Tamariz for the original formulation of the symbolic notation for card tricks

2

Authorization: to publish, lecture, and commercially offer the electronic version of the symbolic notation through handshake agreement with the maestro, olé!

Juan Tamariz

Método Simbólico Vol. I

1978

Escuela Mágica de Madrid

Juan Tamariz

Método Simbólico Vol. II

1978

Escuela Mágica de Madrid

Juan Tamariz

El Nuevo Método Simbólico

ca. 1985

Editorial Frakson

Juan Tamariz

Editorial Frakson