Confusing tones - who is B?
„B” - this note always causes confusion. Because „B” is not the same as „B”.
In most countries, „B” means the whole note above A (and thus a semitone below C). In the C major scale, that is CDEFGABC. - Sounds logical. It is.
In Germany, Russia, Poland and the Scandinavian countries, however, the C major scale is written as follows: CDEFGAHC. The note B is therefore called B in these countries - and B is the semitone below. This semitone, in turn, is called Bb (or b flat) in all other countries.
Confusing? Yes, it is. But as with so many things, there is an explanatory story behind it. Unfortunately, it is not that of a medieval monk whose handwriting was so bad that it could not be properly deciphered later. Although we particularly like this legend.
What is behind the "B" confusion?
Simply put, it all has to do with the development of tones and notes. In the Middle Ages, all songs were played with the notes C, D, E, F, G, A and B. In addition, there were no musical staves - people just wrote down the letters. Later, music became more complex and a second version of the note B was developed, which was a semitone below the original note. In writing, these two notes were distinguished as follows:
- „Original“ B: (♮) - with a square belly
- „Deep“ B: (♭) - with a round belly
Time passed and people began to print music. The problem: The printers often did not have the printing plate for the ♮ symbol. Without further ado, they simply replaced it with the small "h", which looked very similar to this symbol, and so the note name "H" became established in Germany, Scandinavia and the West Slavic region.
There have been and continue to be attempts to standardize the system - but it has not yet prevailed. And so the note B is sometimes still referred to as B and the semitone Bb below it is sometimes still referred to as B. And somehow this little bit of diversity has something to it.
A little tip: If in doubt, check which country your piece of music comes from. Then it is easy to clarify which "B" you are dealing with in each individual case.
We wish you continued success and especially lots of fun on your musical journey.
Your Musikmarkt team
Blog image: Del, Pixabay
