The Twelve Notes
Everything in music is built from twelve sounds
Western music uses just twelve notes, repeating in a cycle: A, A♯, B, C, C♯, D, D♯, E, F, F♯, G, G♯ — and then A again, one octave higher. The distance between any two neighbors is a half step (one fret on the guitar). That is the entire alphabet. Every riff, chord, and solo you have ever heard is spelled with these twelve letters.
Two spellings can name the same sound: A♯ is also B♭. Which name is "correct" depends on the key you are in — flat keys spell with flats, sharp keys with sharps. Don't let this bother you early on; your hands care about frets, not spellings.
On the guitar, each fret raises the pitch by one half step. The strings, from thick to thin, sound E, A, D, G, B, E. Notice there is no fret between B–C and E–F: those pairs are natural half steps. Knowing where the naturals live turns the fretboard from a mystery grid into a map.
Remember
- ·Twelve notes, then the cycle repeats an octave higher.
- ·One fret = one half step (semitone).
- ·B–C and E–F are natural half steps — no sharp between them.
- ·Learn the notes on the low E and A strings first; chords and scales are anchored there.