Why is it called F# instead of Gb ?
 

Hello,

This is kind of related to another thread but to save confusion I'm starting a new thread for this question. Ok, all the other half steps as far as I know are referred to as flats, eg. Ab, Bb, Db, Eb... and then we get to Gb and it's called F#. Just wondering why that is, anyone cleverer than me know the answer ?

Thanks, Gordon.:crazy:

That's called an enharmonic. An enharmonic note is one pitch with TWO different names, called enharmonic equivalents. You will see these pop up once in a while in written sheet music (on staves, not tabs), depending on the key you are playing in. They generally show up in chromatic runs or chord changes. Enharmonic notes are also used to avoid parallel 5ths and octaves when writing four-part harmony.

List of enharmonic notes:

• C# = Db
• D# = Eb
• E = Fb
• F = E#
• F# = Gb
• G# = Ab
• A# = Bb
• B = Cb
• C = B#

You might benefit from reading this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enharmonic.

Whew! That was a lot to take in all at one go... That's interesting but I see that is talking about individual notes.

I know I forgot to mention it but I was just thinking in chords. In the case of chords, why would it be F# and not Gb when all the other chords are called flats?

Thanks again,Gordon.

Wow again ! I'm just glad I don't need to know all that stuff to play and write music. Emaj on the second fret is good enough for what I do, ha,ha.

Interesting though.

Thanks again, Gordon.

truthfully with enharmonics it doesn't usually matter which you call them

in fact this was the way i was taught an octave: C C# D D# E F# G G# A Bb B
truthfully names don't matter but the note itself does, some people prefer to seprate minor and major keys with enharmonics
ex: C# major ---> Db minor

Sorry, I'm a music major who tends to get excited when people ask questions :o:

i always thought it was a matter of preference. interesting to learn that there are actual differences but when you're playing guitar and you get to those chord shapes i've always gone with F# and Bb. not real reason why, i just like the sound of those chord names more than Gb and A#.

I played bass in my dad's jazz band for a few years and to begin with, I didn't know a lot of the tunes they played. The guitar/banjo player was good enough to shout across the key before each tune started so at least I could start in the right key.

Because that type of jazz,(mainly New Orleans and Chicago stuff), is based around saxes, clarinet and trombone, everything was mainly in Eb, followed by Bb and then probably F and a few in C .

At no point did anyone refer to anything being in A# or D# or E#. That just sounds weird to me and I can't remember seeing that written anywhere on music sheets as a key signature.

Gordon.

Its basically a case of being used when other names would cause problems or dont make sense.

Say you have a descending run. It doesnt make sense to call all the accidentals sharps, because thats making your brain think up and down at the same time. Much easier to think of it all as a sequence descending.

It seems pretty unlikely those would be used as a key signature for anything because of the way the notes would work out.

Like the scale starting on A#/Bb... in Bb it'd be [Bb C D Eb F G A Bb], but in A#, it'd have to be [A# B# Cx D# E# Fx Gx A#] to hit the same notes. And while you can write in a scale with double sharps (although I've never seen it in a key signature), I suppose, it's just a helluva lot easier not to have to.

Which is where the chord names things come in, at least some of the time (eg: the Bb chord), since chords are based on scales. I think some of it also has to do with the commonality of the note--if I remember right, F# (the name, rather than the tone) appears in more/more common major scale notations than Gb does, which might explain why that name gets used more.

(Note* that this is based on old and fuzzy memory of theory. If I'm wrong here, somebody let me know--it's the only way I'll learn.)

[*Pun intended]

One thing to consider is the key you are playing in. If your playing in a flat key, you are going to refer to that note as Gb. If not, it will be F#.

Example:

Key of E - the 2nd chord in this key will be F#
Key of Gb - you will refer to the first chord in the key as Gb

this is very simplified and doesnt give much theoretical explanation, but i think it will help you understand why and when a chord is referred to as a # rather than a b...

:) hope i helped, I apologize if there was any redundancy!

... i play songs in F# major, that's how they're written that's how i play, and when i play in the key of Bb i still consider it F# because it was like that when i learned