Father Charles Goes Down and Ends Battle

The Order of Sharps

It might sound like an epic secret organisation, yet The Order of Sharps is actually a super handy mnemonic for remembering which order the sharps progress in. In music, sharps (♯) are symbols that tell you to play a note one step higher in pitch than the original note.

Young People Learning Music

F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯, A♯, E♯, B♯

Father Charles Goes Down and Ends Battle

In music we use special symbols called sharps (♯) to tell us to play certain notes higher or sharper. It’s like a secret code that musicians use to read and play music.

The Order of Sharps tells us which notes get sharper as we go along. It starts with the note F, then adds a sharp to make it F♯. The next is C, which adds another sharp to make C♯, and so on until you have the complete set.

In this way, remembering the phrase Father Charles Goes Down and Ends Battle, helps musicians, like you, to remember the order which notes need the sharps and in what order they progress.

Find that one complicated? Here are some fun and easy alternatives to Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle:

Children at Piano

Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles' Father

The Order of Flats

Similar to the Order of Sharps, the Order of Flats is another secret code, or mnemonic, for musicians to remember which flat notes to play in a song. It helps you know which keys on the piano or which strings on a guitar should be pressed to make a nice sound.

 

Girl Playing Guitar

B♭, E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭, F♭

Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles' Father

Just like sharps (♯), musicians use flats (♭) to tell us to play certain notes lower or flatter. Combining sharps and flats with regular notes helps musicians play music with the right sound and feeling.

The Order of Flats tells us which notes get flatter as we go along. It starts with the note B, which becomes B♭. Then it adds E to make E♭, and continues through A♭, D♭, G♭, C♭, and finally F♭ — giving us the full set of flat notes used in music.

In the same way as for the Order of Sharps, remembering the phrase Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles’ Father helps musicians, like you, remember the Order of Flats.

Looking for another? Here are some cheeky and memorable alternatives to Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles’ Father:

Girl Learning Violin

© 2020–2025 Swansea Council (Education Department)