Note Names

Every pitch has a name. In the common Western note-naming system, the seven letters - A, B, C, D, E, F, G - repeat. These names are the labels you use when writing a melody, checking a chord, or editing a piano roll.

After G, the sequence starts over at A. The letters stay the same across the instrument's range; the octave number tells you which register the note occupies.

The seven natural notes

These are the white keys on a piano. Tap each one to hear the pitch rise as you move through the alphabet.

Music theory traditionally starts on C, not A. That's because the C major scale uses only natural notes - no sharps or flats. It's the simplest starting point.

Watch out: the alphabet is not the same thing as the chromatic scale. The letter names skip the notes between some natural notes, so sharps and flats are needed to label all 12 pitches.

Sharps and flats

Between most natural notes there's a black key. These are named using sharps (#) and flats (b).

That means C# and Db are the same key on the piano. Same pitch, two names. This is called an enharmonic equivalent - like how "aubergine" and "eggplant" are the same vegetable.

All 12 notes

Within one octave starting on C, there are 12 distinct pitches - 7 natural notes plus 5 sharps/flats. These 12 notes form the chromatic pitch set used in much Western tonal music. Most songs in that tradition use some combination of them, although other musical systems may divide the octave differently.

The two exceptions

Notice there's no black key between E and F, and no black key between B and C. These pairs are already one step apart (a semitone). Every other pair of natural notes has two steps (a tone) between them with a sharp/flat in between.

This uneven spacing is what gives the major scale its distinctive sound. The next lesson explores steps and semitones properly.

One of each letter per scale

Here's an important rule that trips up beginners: every major or minor scale uses exactly one version of each letter from A to G. No letter is skipped, and no letter appears twice. Sharps and flats exist so that this rule always works - sharps and flats adjust each letter to fit the scale's pattern.

In C major, every note is natural - C, D, E, F, G, A, B. Simple. But in other keys, some letters need a sharp or flat to keep the correct spacing. And in extreme keys, you'll even see double sharps (##) or double flats (bb) to maintain the one-per-letter rule.

You don't need to memorise this now - it'll make more sense once you learn scales. The key idea: sharps and flats aren't random. They exist so that each letter gets one seat at the table, keeping music readable and consistent.

Try it

Why note names matter

Note names are the shared language of music. When someone says "play an F#", every musician in the world knows exactly which pitch that is. Every scale, chord, and key is described using these names.

Next: what happens when the same note name appears at different heights - octaves.