Before entering fully into the the term flat it is necessary that we know its etymological origin. In this case we can determine that it is a word that derives from Latin. Specifically, it comes from “be molle”, which can be translated as “be suave”.
In music, flat is an adjective applied to a note when its intonation is a semitone lower than the intonation of its usual sound. The sign that indicates that a note has this particular characteristic is also called flat.
According to DigoPaul, when the flat sign appears on a staff, it means that the pitch of the note will be altered, reducing it by a semitone. The sign resembles a stylized lowercase letter B.
If the flat appears in the key signature, it affects all the notes of the same name that are in its space or on its staff line, and also the same notes that are located in other higher or lower octaves. This effect is maintained until the completion of the piece or until a change of armor.
On the other hand, we speak of accidental flat, when the alteration only affects the note that appears before its writing and all the notes that have the same name and height in the measure where it is located. In other words: this accidental flat affects all the sounds that appear to the right of the corresponding sign, until the arrival of the next bar.
If the musical note is altered by two semitones (that is, by a whole tone), mention is made of a double flat. Even triple flat may appear, a rare alteration that reduces pitch by three semitones (one and a half tones).
In the same way, we cannot ignore the existence of what is known as microtonal flats. Those that appear, above all, in what is contemporary music can be divided into two fundamentally:
-Bemol y medio. It is responsible for lowering the pitch of the note three-quarters of a semitone. We cannot ignore either that it is also known as sesqui flat. The way it is represented is by means of a half flat next to a normal flat.
-Semibemol. It also responds to the name of half flat and is represented as an inverted flat horizontally. It is established that what it does is decrease the height of the note, which is half a semitone.
In addition to all that is indicated, we cannot ignore the existence of a wine that bears the name of the term that we are now analyzing. We are referring specifically to the Bemoles broth. Its origin is Almonaster la Real, it belongs to the Bodega y Viñedos Cerro San Cristóbal brand and is classified as a young wine.
It can be noted that it is indicated to take it at any time of the year and even for any type of public. This is due to the fact that it has a marked fruity touch as well as a remarkable freshness.
In the language colloquial, finally, the expression “having tricky” refers to that something has certain complexities or complicated. For example: “It is a difficult competition, which has its flats”, “We will have to work with creditors to avoid certain flats”, “Living in this town must have its flats”.
