Etymology:
The word "enharmonic" is derived from two Greek words:
Meaning:
In music, the term "enharmonic" refers to the equivalence of two musical notes that are written differently but sound the same.
Origin:
The concept of enharmonic equivalence goes back to ancient Greek music theory. The Greek musical scale consisted of seven notes arranged in ascending order:
Two notes in this scale, Parhypate and Lichanos, were considered to be enharmonic equivalents. They were written with different names but sounded the same.
This concept was later adopted into Western music theory and expanded to include other notes that were considered to be enharmonically equivalent. For example, the notes C# and Db are enharmonic equivalents, as are G# and Ab.
Usage:
The term "enharmonic" is used in several contexts in music:
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