Ways to use this list
- Fretboard drill for guitar: spin a note and find it on every string within 30 seconds. Rank everyone gives all 12 notes in a fresh order each day.
- Keyboard race for young pupils: spin a natural note and race to press every one on the piano, from the lowest to the highest.
- Sight-reading: spin, then point to the note on the treble and bass staves. Natural notes keeps it simple while beginners learn the lines and spaces.
- Ear training with a friend: one person spins and plays the note, the other sings it back or finds it by ear on their own instrument.
- Improvising: spin a starting note and make up a four-bar tune that begins and ends on it. Spin the Guitar strings button too for a string to play it on.
Press Spin the wheel, tap the game or press the Space bar. Change the list in the box as you
like: add your own, delete what doesn't suit you, or write *2 after an entry to give it double the
chance. The game buttons switch the same list to a duck race, hat, claw machine and more.
The full list (12 entries)
- C – the white key just left of each pair of black keys
- C♯/D♭ – the first black key of each pair
- D – the white key between the two black keys
- D♯/E♭ – the second black key of each pair
- E – the white key just right of each pair of black keys
- F – the white key just left of each group of three black keys
- F♯/G♭ – the first black key of each group of three
- G – the white key between the first and second of the three black keys
- G♯/A♭ – the middle black key of each group of three
- A – the white key between the second and third of the three black keys
- A♯/B♭ – the last black key of each group of three
- B – the white key just right of each group of three black keys
Questions people ask
How many musical notes are there?
Western music uses 12 different notes, which repeat in higher and lower octaves: seven natural notes, A to G, plus five sharps or flats between them. On a piano those five are the black keys in each group.
Why do some notes have two names?
The black key between C and D is a semitone above C and a semitone below D, so it can be called C♯ or D♭. Names that sound the same but are written differently are called enharmonic, and the key of the music decides which name is used.
Is there an E♯ or a B♯?
Yes, on paper. E♯ sounds the same as F, and B♯ the same as C, because there is no black key between those pairs. They turn up in keys with many sharps, such as C♯ major, but this wheel uses the everyday names.
Can the note generator play the note out loud?
No. It shows the note name, and the only sounds are the spin effects. That suits instrument practice: you find and play the note yourself, which is exactly what builds the skill.