Lessons · Unit 9: Accidentals
Until the bar line
An accidental does not apply only to its own note: it applies to every note in that same position until the bar line. If an F♯ appears at the start of the bar, any other F on that same line or space, later in the bar, is also sharp even without a sign.
The bar line wipes it out: in the next bar, F is natural again.
To cancel an accidental inside the same bar, use the natural sign (♮). The same rules apply: until the bar line.
- Same bar, same position, no sign: the accidental still holds.
- New bar: everything is natural again.
- Natural sign: cancels the accidental from that note on.
In the exercise one note is marked and you say how it sounds. Check for an accidental earlier in the bar.
Drill
The session goes on until every skill below is mastered: at least 10 answers, at most 40. Your progress carries over between sessions.
Master the previous lesson first: The flat