The Sharp Sign

What is a Sharp?

A sharp sign (♯) is a musical symbol that looks like a hashtag. When you see a sharp next to a note, it means you need to play the very next key to the right. That raises the pitch by a half step — a half step being the shortest distance between two keys on a piano.

Finding the Black Keys

Most of the time, moving one key to the right of a white key takes you to a black key. For example, the black key directly to the right of C becomes C sharp (C♯). These black keys sit nestled between the white keys and are named after the white key just below them.

How to Play Them

To play a sharp note, look at the white key first, then move your finger up and to the right onto the neighboring black key. In this lesson, you will practice finding all five black keys in an octave: C♯, D♯, F♯, G♯, and A♯. Notice how E and B do not have a black key directly to their right!