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I dont really understand why the 12 notes shouldn't be labeled ABCDEFGHIJKL instead of sharps and flats. Wouldn't it be easier to forma and remember the major and minor and other keys? Adding flats and sharps just seems to convolute it more, it almost adds a tertiary unit to the system... so rather than 12 letters, you have 7 letters times 3 possible dimensions (natural, sharp, flat) ... so you took 12 and turned it into 21... why?

gunslingor
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  • On the face of it, 12 seems like a better way, but dig deeper... – Tim Feb 12 '22 at 17:52
  • I guess it makes sense... changing keys while playing something just shifts frequency of everything up and down relatively, similar effect to playing a record slower or faster except for the duration. However changing the signature of the key changes everything, Mozart fifth was written in c major, but sounds fine in f major, and wierd an anything minor.. starting note is import... ultimately, key signatures only sound different in relation to each other, especially when patterns overlap... thus, makes sense to do all key signatures relative to one common base signature. – gunslingor Feb 12 '22 at 18:12
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    What sounds easier, a major scale labeled as CDEFGABC or CEGHJLB? There is a logic to common scale tones using sequential letters. – John Belzaguy Feb 12 '22 at 18:32
  • CDEFGABC in this case because C is what everything is built around. But, for everything else I suspect the other way is easier. B♭ minor is B♭CD♭E♭FG♭A♭; but in the proposed system it would be BDEGIJLB. Which is easier to remember probably isn't the real reason. I suspect the real reason is that, due the human ear, any note only has real/significant meaning in relation to another note and the same is true for any scale, A minor and C major are the same notes with a different starting point. Thus, everything is relative in music, and so by convention it is setup relative to C major. – gunslingor Feb 17 '22 at 13:30

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