EASY GUIDE Sharps and flats

If you’re reading this mag, there’s a fair chance that you’ll have some sort of MIDI or piano keyboard nearby. Take a look at it, and you’ll notice the one thing about its iconic and functional design that’s remained true throughout its centuries-long history: the fact that it’s arranged with white keys at the front, and black keys to the rear.

When first starting out on the keyboard, the white keys are usually the ones we tend to deal with first, with the result that the black keys can sometimes seem a bit intimidating. Without these sharps and flats though, music would be a very bland affair indeed, so what exactly are they, and why are they there?

In Western music, an octave is comprised of 12 distinct notes, all separated