List of transposing instruments
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This is a list of transposing instruments and their transposition. Transposing instruments are instruments for which the convention is to write music notation transposed relative to concert pitch.
| Instrument family | Instrument name | The note C4 written down produces: | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accordion | Bass accordion | C2 | |
| Arpeggione | C2/C3 | ||
| Bagpipe | Great Highland bagpipe | variable D♭4 - D4 | A minority of bagpipes, made for playing with other instruments, are exactly D♭4 (referred to as B♭, relative to the tonic note A rather than C). Most bagpipes are sharper than this, between D♭4 and D4.. |
| Northumbrian smallpipes in F or F+ | B♭4 for F (~20 cents sharp for F+) | Older and traditionally made instruments use a pitch sharp of F described as F+ (F-plus) | |
| Bajo Sexto (or Bajo Quinto) | Bajo Sexto | C2 | - |
| Banjo | Banjo | C3 | |
| Tenor banjo | C3 | ||
| Bassoon | Tenoroon | F4 | |
| Contrabassoon | C3 | ||
| Bugle | Soprano bugle Mellophone bugle French horn bugle | G3 | |
| Baritone bugle Euphonium bugle | G2 | ||
| Contrabass bugle | G1 | ||
| Carillon | Various | Since they are seldom played in concert with other instruments and carillonneurs need standardized sheet music, carillons often transpose to a variety of keys—whichever is advantageous for the particular installation; many transposing carillons weigh little, have many bells, or were constructed on limited funds. An increasing number of new carillons have been installed in concert pitch as a result of the desire to establish the carillon as a full-fledged concert instrument. | |
| Celesta | C5 | ||
| Clarineta | A♭ clarinet | A♭4 | |
| G piccolo clarinet | G4 | ||
| E♭ clarinet | E♭4 | ||
| D clarinet | D4 | ||
| B♭ clarinet | B♭3 | ||
| A soprano clarinet Basset clarinet | A3 | ||
| G soprano clarinet Clarinet d’amour | G3 | ||
| Basset horn | F3 | ||
| Alto clarinet | E♭3 | ||
| Bass clarinet | B♭2 | ||
| Contra-alto clarinet | E♭2 | ||
| Contrabass clarinet | B♭1 | ||
| Octocontra-alto clarinet | E♭1 | ||
| B♭ octocontrabass clarinet | B♭0 | ||
| Cornet | Soprano cornet | E♭4 | |
| Cornet | B♭3 | ||
| Crotales | C6 | ||
| Csakan | A♭4 | ||
| Euphonium | B♭2 | When notated in treble clef | |
| Fife | Folk B♭ fife | A♭4 | |
| Flute | D♭ piccolo | D♭5 | |
| Piccolo | C5 | ||
| Treble flute | G4 | ||
| F soprano flute | F4 | ||
| Soprano flute | E♭4 | ||
| D♭ Flute | D♭4 | ||
| B♭ flûte d'amour | B♭3 | ||
| A flûte d'amour | A3 | ||
| Alto flute | G3 | ||
| Bass flute | C3 | ||
| Contra-alto flute | G2 | ||
| Contrabass flute | C2 | ||
| Subcontrabass flute | G1 | ||
| F subcontrabass flute | F1 | ||
| Double contrabass flute | C1 | ||
| Hyperbass flute | C0 | ||
| Glockenspiel | C6 | ||
| Guitar | Guitar | C3 | |
| Handbells | C5 | ||
| Hardanger Fiddle | D4 | ||
| Horn | Marching horn | B♭3 | |
| Horn | F3 | ||
| Mellophone | Mellophone | F3 | |
| Oboe | F piccolo oboe | F4 | |
| E♭ piccolo oboe | E♭4 | ||
| Oboe d'amore | A3 | ||
| Cor anglais | F3 | ||
| Heckelphone and Bass oboe | C3 | ||
| Oud | G2 | Bolahenk tuning | |
| Recorder | Garklein recorder | C6 | |
| Sopranino recorder | C5/F5 | ||
| Soprano recorder | C5, formerly G4 | ||
| B♭ Soprano recorder | B♭4 | ||
| Alto recorder | C5 sometimes | ||
| Voice flute | formerly A3 | ||
| Tenor recorder | formerly G3 | Modern convention is to notate all recorders as transposed at the octave where necessary; in this case the tenor recorder sounds at pitch. | |
| Basset recorder | C3 | ||
| Bass recorder | C3 | When notated in treble clef | |
| Great bass recorder | C2 | ||
| Contrabass recorder | C2 | ||
| Saxhorns | Flugelhorn | B♭3 | |
| Tenor horn | E♭3 | ||
| Baritone horn | B♭2 | When notated in treble clef | |
| Saxophone | Piccolo saxophone | B♭4 | |
| Sopranino saxophone | E♭4 | ||
| Soprano saxophone | B♭3 | ||
| F alto saxophone | F3 | ||
| Alto saxophone | E♭3 | ||
| C melody saxophone | C3 | ||
| Tenor saxophone | B♭2 | ||
| Baritone saxophone | E♭2 | ||
| Bass saxophone | B♭1 | ||
| Contrabass saxophone | E♭1 | ||
| Subcontrabass saxophone | B♭0 | ||
| Tin whistle | C5 | Transposes at the octave. Some whistle players treat whistles pitched higher or lower than the "standard" D tin whistle as (additionally) transposing instruments. | |
| Trombone | Tenor trombone | B♭2 | When notated in treble clef in a British-style brass band |
| Soprano trombone | B♭3 | When notated like a B♭ trumpet; otherwise, in concert pitch | |
| Trumpet | C Piccolo Trumpet | C5 | |
| Piccolo trumpet | B♭4 | ||
| Piccolo Trumpet in A | A4 | ||
| F trumpet | F4 | ||
| E trumpet | E4 | ||
| E♭ trumpet | E♭4 | ||
| D trumpet | D4 | ||
| Trumpet | B♭3 | ||
| A trumpet | A3 | ||
| E♭ bass trumpet | E♭3 | ||
| D bass trumpet | D3 | ||
| Bass trumpet | B♭2 | ||
| Tuba | E♭ tuba | E♭2 | When notated in treble clef |
| B♭ tuba | B♭1 | When notated in treble clef | |
| Venova | Venova | C5 | |
| Alto Venova | F4 | ||
| Violin | Treble violin | C5 | |
| Alto Violin | C5 | ||
| Octobass | C2 | ||
| C0 | |||
| Viol | Double bass | C3 | |
| Wagner Tuba | Tenor Wagner tuba | B♭3, formerly B♭2 | |
| Bass Wagner tuba | F3, formerly F2 | ||
| Xylophone | C5 |
See also
Notes
^aOnly clarinet types currently in production or planned for production are listed. Additional obsolete or experimental transposing members of the clarinet family are listed at clarinet family.
Further reading
- Kennan, Kent Wheeler. The Technique of Orchestration, Second Edition. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1970, 1952; ISBN0-13-900316-9
- Del Mar, Norman. The Anatomy of the Orchestra. University of California Press, 1981