The 'Accidental'.?

The sign used to indicate a sharp, flat or natural is called an Accidental, so called because a composer used them to indicate what you might call an 'accidental' change in the melody.? In most popular music accidentals occur very rarely so it isn't necessary for you to worry about them too much but when they do appear you should know how to treat them.

C flat and E sharp.?

You will have noticed on your fret board chart that there are no sharps or flats between B & C or? between E & F.? In these unusual instances the sharp of flat can be played on the natural note.? (B is Cb).? These notes are very rarely sharpened or flattened so it is not necessary for you to concern yourself with them at this time.?? We will discuss this in more detail in a later lesson.

Playing sharpened notes.?

The best way to get acquainted with sharpened notes is to play them so let's have a go.???

It is a good idea to train yourself to be thorough and look at the music from the beginning.? If you started by looking at the first note the two important signs before the first note could escape your attention.?

The two signs in the following example are:

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??????????? 1.???????? The TREBLE CLEF (Which indicates how the notes on the stave will be named).

??????????? 2.???????? The TIME SIGNATURE (Which tells you how many counts you are to make in each bar).?

If you still have trouble naming the notes, pencil them in lightly above each note after checking it's line or space position.? When you come to a SHARPENED note remember to play it one fret position above the equivalent natural.?