Reading Music · Chapter 7 of 12

Sharps, Flats and Naturals

Three small signs, written just before a note, send you to a black key or back to a white one.

In Piano Basics you met the black keys and their two names. On the page, three signs called accidentals tell you to use them.

♯ Sharp

Raise the note a half step: play the very next key to the right.

♭ Flat

Lower the note a half step: play the very next key to the left.

♮ Natural

Cancel a sharp or flat: play the plain note again, usually a white key.

On the staff the sign goes before the note, on the same line or space. In words we say it after the letter: “F sharp,” written F♯.

F, then F♯. B, then B♭. C, then C♯. Each sign sits just to the left of its note.

How long does an accidental last?

An accidental lasts until the end of the measure, for every note on that same line or space. The bar line cancels it. Within the measure, a natural sign cancels it early.

Bar 1: the second F is still F♯; no new sign is needed. Bar 2: a new measure, so F is plain F again. Then F♯, and a natural sign brings it back to F.

Some music adds a reminder sign, called a courtesy accidental, even when the rule doesn’t require it. It never hurts to check.

One key, two names

C♯ and D♭ are the same key, with the same sound. Notes like these are called enharmonic. Which name the music uses depends on the key and the direction of the melody: rising lines often use sharps, falling lines often use flats.

C♯ and D♭ look different on the staff but play the same key. So do F♯ and G♭.

Practice

Remember

♯ raises a half step, ♭ lowers a half step, ♮ cancels.
The sign goes before the note on the staff, and lasts until the bar line.
One key can have two names (enharmonic), like C♯ and D♭.