Sharp
A sharp raises the affected written pitch by one semitone in ordinary 12-tone notation. It changes pitch spelling as well as sounding height, even when another spelling would reach the same piano key.
- Accidentals
- Just before the note
- A straight line, A cross or plus
Do not confuse it with
A double sharp raises by two semitones; a quarter-sharp requires a microtonal notation system.
What the sources say
- Half Steps, Whole Steps, and Accidentals
A sharp (♯) raises a note by a half step.
- An introduction to music theory
The qualifying label, ‘sharp’, indicates that the note has been raised a semitone
- SMuFL — Standard accidentals (12-EDO)
accidentalSharp — Sharp