In this article, I’m going to give you a thorough explanation of how musical notes are named. Don’t assume that you know because you might not know as much as you think you currently do. If you read this post to the end, you will have a clear understanding of how musical notes are named. The picture above shows some of the names that are used to name musical notes. I will explain the logic behind these names and I will also talk about other names that are used to name musical notes in this lesson.
In music, a particular note can have a couple of possible names. For example, one musical note can be named as E# and the same musical note can also be named as F. It is the musical context that determines the name that a musical note is named by. For example, the third note in what is called the C# Major Scale is known as E#. However, the same musical note is known as the note F in what is called the C Major Scale (the note F is the 4th Note in the C Major Scale).
If you move from one musical note to the next musical note on the left or the right of the Piano, then that means that you have moved by a half step (a half step is also known as a semitone). If you move by 2 half steps to the right or to the left of the Piano i.e. if you skip one musical note and you move to the note that is after the note that you skipped (e.g. if you move from the note C to the note D), then that means that you have moved by a whole step (a whole step is also known as a whole tone).
In music, ‘sharp’ means ‘higher in pitch’ by a half step. What this means is that, if you move from one key to the next key on the right on the Piano, the new key that you’ve moved to will be known as the name of the key that you moved from with an added sharp symbol (the sharp symbol looks like a #). For example, if you move from the key of B to the next key on the right on the Piano, that key will be known as B# (this is pronounced as ‘B Sharp’). By the way, don’t forget that this key that is known as B# can also be known as C i.e. this key can be identified with either of these two names (‘B#’ or ‘C’).
In music, a double sharp is represented by a symbol that looks like an x . The double sharp symbol is like having two sharp symbols i.e. ## next to a note (e.g. C##). So if a musical note has an x symbol next to it (e.g. Cx), the purpose of the x symbol is to denote a double sharp. Therefore, if a musical note has an x symbol next to it (e.g. Dx), then you just need to move to the right of that musical note on the Piano by a half step twice (or a Whole Step once) in order to locate the musical note that has been named with a double sharp symbol. For example, the note Cx is pronounced as ‘C double-sharp’. Cx can also be named as the note D. Like I said, the symbol that is used to denote a double sharp in music looks like an x.
Let me give you some examples:
The note Cx (C double sharp) can also be named as the note D
The note Dx (D double sharp) can also be named as the note E
The note Fx (F double sharp) can also be named as the note G
The note Gx (G double sharp) can also be named as the note A.
The note Ax (A double sharp) can also be named as the note B.
In music, ‘flat’ means ‘lower in pitch’ by a half step (a half step is also known as a semitone). What this means is that, if you move from one key to the next key on the left on the Piano, the new key that you’ve moved to will be known as the name of the key that you moved from with an added flat symbol (the flat symbol looks like a small letter b). For example, if you move from the key of F to the next key on the left on the Piano, that key will be known as Fb (this is pronounced as ‘F flat’). By the way, don’t forget that this key that is known as Fb can also be known as E i.e. this key can be identified with either of these two names (‘Fb’ or ‘E’).
If a musical note has two flat symbols next to it (e.g. Cbb), then you just need to move to the left of that musical note on the Piano by a half step twice (or a Whole Step once) in order to locate the musical note that has been named with 2 flat symbols. For example, the note Gbb is pronounced as ‘G double-flat’. Gbb can also be named as the note F.
In music, a note is natural when it is neither flat nor sharp. In order for the note to be a natural note, the note can also not be a double sharp or a double flat note. In summary, a note that doesn’t have any flat or sharp symbols in its name is a natural note. The Natural Notes are the notes A , B , C , D , E , F , G
At times (not all the time) the symbol that is used to denote a natural note is this symbol: ♮
So, a B♮ will be known as a ‘B Natural’ musical note.
Even though the notes Fb , Cb , E# and B# are practically the same notes as the natural notes E , B , F and C, these notes (Fb , Cb , E# and B#) are not known as natural notes. Instead, they are known as enharmonic equivalent notes of natural notes. An enharmonic equivalent note is a note that is equivalent to another note but is named differently. The note Fb is an enharmonic equivalent of the note E. The note Cb is an enharmonic equivalent of the note B. The note E# is an enharmonic equivalent of the note F. The note B# is an enharmonic equivalent of the note C.
Please remember the following key points:
Each of the 12 keys on the Piano can be named with at least 2 different names.
What determines the name that a musical note is given is the musical context.
If you are interested in one or more of our Courses, click the link below to enrol in one or more of them:
Very informative.
Thank you