Preamble Preamble
This is an introduction to the Musical Instruments reference and terms
Concert Range
The piano has the widest range of any instrument in this Musical Instruments reference. We use the piano as a standard on which to superimpose every instrument's range.
Concert range is the range of notes on the instrument playable on the piano in the same frequency (the same name and octave). Concert range is a product of sound. Instrument and piano sound the same. Usually, but not always, the concert range of an instrument is directly related to its written range.
Scored Range
Western music is written within the bounds of the treble and bass clefs. Many playable notes are far away from these clefs. How do we write such high and low notes? We write 8va over the notes we want played an octave higher than written and 8vb over the notes we want played an octave lower than written.
The lowest note on the glockenspiel is higher than the treble clef. How tedious to write 8va above every glockenspiel note. We don't. It is taken for granted the glockenspiel sounds two octaves higher than written. Instruments whose notes are always written octave(s) lower or higher than concert pitch are
Scored Range is the range in which the instrument is written on the Concert Score. For these instruments, Scored Range and Concert Range differ.
Transposition
Fingering is the same for alto, tenor and baritone saxophones. A professional saxophonist can play any saxophone. Transposition eases the saxophonist's ability to read any saxophone part. Transposed notes [A B C D E F G] correspond with the physical layout of the playing of the instrument. Transposed A is fingered the same on every saxophone, but sounds concert C on alto and baritone saxophone, concert B on soprano and tenor saxophone.
Saxophonist Barry Vieth defined transposition for me as: C is the easiest note to play. The easiest key signature to play in is C. The most difficult key signatures to play in are C# and Cb. So if you write a Concert Score arrangement in E, by transposition, you are asking your alto saxophone to play in the key of C# and your tenor saxophone to play in the key of F#. Clearly, you would want to avoid writing a concert score in E for saxophone players.
How do you work out the transposed key? Alto saxophone is built in Eb. If you write C for alto saxophone they will play Concert Eb.
| Transposed | C | D | E | F | G | A | B |
| Concert | Eb | F | G | Ab | Bb | C | D |
The transposed range is applicable only to transposing instruments. Transposing instruments are: trumpet, flugelhorn, french horn, saxophone, alto flute, cor anglais and clarinet. The Transposed Range is the range of notes available to the player on the part given to them to read.
The player's extracted part
The player's part is extracted from the score. Two factors determine whether the extracted part differs from the Concert Score.
As illustration
| Instrument | Concert Score | Transposition | Player's Extracted Part |
| bass flute | Scored in bass clef. | None | The flautist is expected to know treble clef, not bass clef. The flautist's part is written an octave higher than it is scored to put it in treble clef range. |
© Badger Music, 1999
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