Key signature sometimes called "standard key signatures". Other scales are written either with a standard key signature and use accidental as required, or with a nonstandard key signature. Examples of the latter include the E (right hand), and F and G (left hand) used for the E diminished (E octatonic) scale in Bartók's "Crossed Hands" (no. 99, vol. 4, "Mikrokosmos"), or the B, E and F used for the D Phrygian dominant scale in Frederic Rzewski's "God to a Hungry Child". The absence of a key signature does not always mean that the music is in the key of C major /
Key signature Key signature In musical notation, a key signature is a set of sharp (), flat (), and rarely, natural () symbols placed together on the staff. Key signatures are generally written immediately after the clef at the beginning of a line of musical notation, although they can appear in other parts of a score, notably after a double barline. A key signature designates notes that are to be played higher or lower than the corresponding natural notes and applies through to the end of the piece or up to the next key signature. A sharp symbol on a line or