Flattening (lowering)
Lowering a note by a semitone (flat ♭) or by a whole tone (double flat), for example from E to E♭. It is cancelled by the natural sign.
- Semitone lower
- flat ♭ (E → E♭)
- Whole tone lower
- double flat (D → D double flat)
- Note names
- E♭, A♭, B♭ (German names Es, As, B)
- Cancelled by
- natural sign
- Counterpart
- raising
Flattening is the counterpart of raising: a note is lowered by a semitone. The sign for it is the flat ♭. In the name the flat is added: D becomes D♭, G becomes G♭. A double flat lowers by a whole tone, D becomes D double flat.
From D via D♭ to D double flat
Each lowering lowers by a semitone. D double flat lies two semitones below D and sounds like C.
Lowering in a scale: F major
F major has one flat as its key signature. The fourth note is not B but B♭, the lowered B. That puts the semitone step between the third and fourth notes, as in every major scale.
A note on German note names
If you read German-language scores, you will meet different names: there the letter H stands for B natural and the letter B for B♭, and the flats of the other notes get the ending -es (Es for E♭, As for A♭). In English, as on this site, you say B and B♭. A double flat on the German H is called “heses”, which is B double flat.
| Sign | Name | Effect | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| ♭ | Flat | semitone lower | E → E♭, A → A♭, B → B♭ |
| 𝄫 | Double flat | whole tone lower | D → D double flat |
| ♮ | Natural sign | cancels a flat | E♭ → E |
Flattening and key
Like the sharp, the flat appears either as a sign before the note or in the key signature. A single sign applies until the barline, the key signature for the whole piece. In F major one flat is in the key signature, in B♭ major two, so the number of flats grows with every fifth downwards on the circle of fifths. The effect is described by the second example: the flat moves the semitone step to where a major scale needs it.
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Related terms
Sharpening (raising)Double flatNatural signAccidentalSemitoneEnharmonic equivalenceSharp
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 3 October 2026
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