Hobbies Playing Music Musical Terms and Symbols: Sharps Share PINTEREST Email Print Brandy Kraemer Playing Music Playing Piano Tutorials Piano Chords Buying Advice Music Education Playing Guitar Home Recording By Brandy Kraemer Updated March 19, 2019 A sharp is an accidental that indicates a slight increase in pitch. It’s seen as a noun, a verb, and an adjective. Definitions (n) A sharp is a symbol (♯, also ‘#’ in type) placed in front of a note, increasing its pitch by a half step. D# is a half step higher in pitch than D; and D is a half step higher than C#. (v) To “sharpen” a note means to raise its pitch by a half step (see double-sharp). (adj.) The word sharp can describe a pitch that is slightly higher than desired (or “off-pitch”), even if the pitch does not match an actual sharp note. For example, when tuning a piano, a particular string might sound “a bit sharp,” and would need to be “flattened” to match the correct pitch. In Other Languages diesis (It) dièse (Fr) Kreuz (Ger) More Music Symbols to Know marcato: informally referred to as simply an “accent,” a marcato makes a note slightly more pronounced than surrounding notes. legato or slur: connects two or more different notes. In piano music, the individual notes must be struck, but there should be no audible spaces between them. decrescendo: to gradually decrease the volume of the music. A decrescendo is seen in sheet music as a narrowing angle, and is often marked decresc. delicato: “delicately”; to play with a light touch and an airy feel.