F# And Gb

[Scarlett]

My sister believes that F# and Gb are two different sounding notes. On the piano they are played as the same note but on other instruments (like a violin) they are played differently.
What do you think?!

[bhg481]

I agree with you but I am not a musician, just remembering what I was taught at school 60 years ago.

[Buenchico]

[Old_Geezer]

The video seems to be for the already knowledgable. I don't have pre-understanding of the spiral so soon get distracted.

[TheChair]

They are exactly the same note, regardless of the instrument on which they are played. At concert pitch (A440) this 369.994 Hz

[Aquariel]

F-sharp and G-flat are exactly the same note. You can play this note at several positions on a violin or guitar, but it should be the same pitch wherever you play it. If one string is not perfectly in tune, then they may sound ever so slightly different. The thickness of the strings also makes some difference to the overall sound.

[Old_Geezer]

Testing
F♯ B♭

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%E2%99%AF_(musical_note)

Seems like it depends on how tempermental you are. (No, I don't know either.)

[Old_Geezer]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_temperament

Oh apparently one is allowed to tune things differently ! Madness. No wonder it's an art not a science. I think I going to claim all the notes on my keyboard are middle C then.

[The Builder]

"Enharmonic" notes, Scarlett. They only have the different names depending on the key of the piece. Roughly, if it's a flat key (e.g. Db) then it's a Gb. If it's a sharp key (C#) then it's an F#.

As the others have said, they are the same frequency. With stringed instruments, the "timbre" of a notes depends on how far up the fretboard you are. Still the same note though :o)

[Scarlett]

Hi TheBuilder! My sister's argument is that they are different notes even though we use the same note to play them (F sharp or Gb). The notes differ in ways that are not just their name- they differ musically and apparently sound-wise too!!