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1 | Accidental Symbols

Sharps and Flats

Peter Kun Frary

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Up to now, you have used the seven notes of the C major scale: C-D-E-F-G-A-B. Additional notes may be created by lowering or raising the pitch of these tones with symbols called accidentals.

Accidental Symbols

To indicate raising or lowering of pitch, an accidental is placed on the note's left side. The sharp, flat, and natural are the most common accidentals:

How to Say It

Speak the letter name of the note followed by the accidental: A-sharp, B-flat, D-natural, etc.

Accidentals for Beginning Guitar | Video version of this chapter.

Playing Accidentals

What is a Half Step?

A half step is the smallest interval (space) between notes. To hear a half step, play notes on adjacent frets on the same string or sing ti to do in the major scale.

Half Step | A one-fret movement along the same string.

Sharp | Raises Pitch

The sharp symbol raises a note's pitch by a half step—a shift of one fret higher. In the example below, the first note, G, is played on the open third string. The second note, G-sharp, is a half step higher in pitch—one fret—and thus played on the first fret of the third string.

Effect of Sharp Symbols

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Flat | Lowers Pitch

The flat lowers a note’s pitch by a half step—a shift of one fret lower. The first note in the example below is D. D is played on the third fret of the second string. The second note, D-flat, is a half step lower in pitch—one fret—and thus played on the second fret of the second string.

Effect of Flat Symbols

Natural | Cancels a Prior Accidental

The symbol that looks like an electric bolt is a natural. The natural cancels a prior sharp or flat, i.e., it restores a note to its original pitch. In the first measure below, the natural on the second beat cancels out the prior flat, restoring the second beat to D-natural.

Effect of Natural Symbols

Another Way to Look at It

You may find it helpful to think of accidentals in relation to the guitar's body:

• Sharp (): shifts the note one fret towards the body—to the right.
• Flat (): shifts the note one fret away from the body—towards the tuning keys or to the left.

Guitar Directions | Viewed from the player's perspective: sharps—higher in pitch—go to the right and flats—lower in pitch—go to the left.

Open String Flats

The notes E and B are normally played on the open first and second strings. What if you need to flat an open string? To flat an open string, the next lower string is used. For example, E-flat is on the fourth fret of the second string whereas B-flat is on the third fret of the third string:

Accidentals Within the Measure

When a note is altered by an accidental, later appearances of the same note within the measure are also altered. In the example, there's a C-sharp on beat 2. The C on beat 4 is also sharp because it is within the same measure, albeit not marked.

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Altered notes automatically revert back to natural in the next measure.

Enharmonic Pitches

Some notes have the same pitch but different names. These types of notes are called enharmonic pitches. For example, C-sharp and D-flat are enharmonic pitches because they share the same pitch and fret position, but different names:

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Enharmonic principles also apply to chords. For example, C-sharp 7 and D-flat 7 are the same chord.

TAB Musings If you're reading TAB instead of notes, reading accidentals doesn't apply to you. Nevertheless, understanding accidentals is useful. For example, a F chord becomes a F-sharp chord by shifting the chord shape up a fret. Tuner apps and recording software use accidental symbols on their screens, so understanding these symbols is essential.

Click the blue forward arrow and begin working on your first piece with accidentals.

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Vocabulary

accidental, half step, interval, sharp, flat, natural, enharmonic pitch

©Copyright 2026 by Peter Kun Frary | All Rights Reserved

Preface	Technique	Music Reading	Treble Strings
Accidentals	Bass Strings	Solos	Ensembles