Music Notes

Musical notes are symbols that represent the pitch of a sound within a given musical system. In Western tonal music, the user employs seven note names that form the diatonic scale: C, D, E, F, G, A, B.

These notes correspond to the letters C, D, E, F, G, A, B in Anglo-Saxon alphabetical notation.

These note names form the basis of solfège, a discipline that studies the reading, writing, and understanding of musical language.

The conversion between alphabetic notation (A, B, C) and other notations such as French/Italian notation (Do, Ré, Mi) is a simple correspondence of names for the same pitch.

Other musical notations exist around the world, adapted to different theoretical systems. In India, the Svara notation (Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni) is used in Hindustani and Carnatic classical music. In the East, the Gongche notation is used, notably for traditional Chinese music, etc.

D# becomes Re# (Ré sharp).

Use the music sheet tool on dCode (contains eighth notes, quaver, half notes, whole/white note, flats ♭, sharps #, etc.).

The notation Do, Re, Mi (Latin notation) is used in many European countries (in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Belgium) as well as in Latin America.

The alphabetical notation A, B, C is used in English-speaking countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Australia.

An important distinction: in Germany and Central Europe, the letter B is written as H.

Music notes come from the latin text Ut queant laxis

In the 17th century, UT was gradually replaced by DO, which was easier to sing because it ended with an open vowel.

Sharps and flats are accidentals used to raise or lower the pitch of a note. A sharp note (#) raises the pitch by a semitone, while a flat note (b) lowers it by a semitone.

Alterations play a fundamental role in the construction of scales and chords.

In the Western equal temperament system, the octave is divided into 12 semitones. Therefore, there are 12 different pitches per octave: C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B.

The tuning fork is the reference frequency used to tune instruments. Today, the international standard sets A4 at 440Hz, but this value has varied historically (415Hz for Baroque music).