Accidental
An accidental is any sharp, flat or natural written in front of a note, changing its pitch for the rest of that measure.
Accidentals are local. They last until the next bar line and apply only to the exact pitch they were written on — a sharp on the middle-C-line F does not sharpen the F an octave up.
How To Spot Accidental
A ♯, ♭ or ♮ sitting immediately before a note head, rather than in the group after the clef.
Find It In Thirty Seconds
Find an accidental, then check whether the same note appears again later in that measure. If it does, it is still altered — that is the rule people miss most often.
Open any piece of sheet music on this site and do it now. Reading is a recognition skill, and recognition is built by finding things, not by reading about them.
Related Topics...
How to Read Sheet Music: Learn how to read sheet music using interactive lessons from Chordzy. Or browse our various reading music topics.
Music Notation Glossary: Every symbol on a page of piano music, explained in one sentence each — clefs, note values, rests, accidentals, dynamics and repeat marks.
Double Sharp: A double sharp (𝄪, written like an x) raises a note by two semitones — two keys to the right.
Flat: A flat (♭) lowers a note by one semitone — the very next key to the left, black or white.
Key Signature: The key signature is the group of sharps or flats just after the clef. It applies to every note of those letter names, in every octave, for the whole piece.
Natural Sign: A natural (♮) cancels a sharp or a flat, returning the note to its unaltered pitch for the rest of the measure.
Sharp: A sharp (♯) raises a note by one semitone — the very next key to the right, black or white.
More in This Section
Pickup (Anacrusis): A pickup — also called an anacrusis — is an incomplete measure at the start of a piece, holding the note or notes that lead into the first full bar.
Bar Line: A bar line is the vertical line crossing the staff that divides music into measures. A double bar line marks the end of a section, and a thick double bar marks…