What the note symbols actually are
♩ is a quarter note (crotchet), ♪ an eighth note (quaver), ♫ and ♬ are beamed pairs of eighths and sixteenths. The fancy 𝄞 is the treble clef — G clef — from Unicode's Musical Symbols block, which contains enough notation to typeset real scores (𝅘𝅥𝅮 and friends), though fonts supporting the full block are rarer, so the classic four notes remain the safe set.
Sharps, flats, and the hashtag problem
♯ (sharp, U+266F) is not # (the number sign) — the sharp's strokes slant to stay legible on staff lines. Writing C# with a hashtag summons programmers and social tags; C♯ says music unambiguously. Likewise ♭ (flat) is its own character, not a lowercase b — B♭ vs Bb. For song-title captions the convention is quotes plus notes: ♫ "Song Title" ♫.
Frequently asked questions
How do I type music notes on my keyboard?
Windows: Alt+13 gives ♪ and Alt+14 gives ♫ (numeric keypad). No Mac shortcut exists — use the character picker or copy from this page. Phones: the 🎵 emoji is on every keyboard; the text notes ♪ ♫ are copy-paste only.
What's the difference between ♪ ♫ and 🎵 🎶?
♪ ♫ are text characters that stay flat and inherit your font color; 🎵 🎶 are emoji rendered as colorful graphics. Text notes suit usernames and elegant captions; emoji notes read louder in chats.
What does 𝄞 mean?
It's the treble (G) clef, which fixes the G above middle C on the second staff line. In bios it's shorthand for 'I'm a musician' — and it's the prettiest single character in the whole music block.
Why does C♯ look different from C#?
♯ is the musical sharp with slanted strokes; # is the number sign/hashtag. Fonts draw them distinctly, and search engines treat them differently — C# finds a programming language, C♯ finds a key.