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Music
Grade 9-12
Transposing Instruments Reference Cheat Sheet
A printable reference covering concert pitch, transposition formulas, common instrument keys, and written versus sounding notes for grades 9-12.
Related Worksheets
Transposing instruments sound a different pitch than the note they read on the page. This cheat sheet helps students quickly compare written pitch, concert pitch, instrument key, and transposition interval. It is useful for score reading, arranging, composing, and rehearsing with mixed ensembles. Students in grades 9-12 can use it as a printable binder reference when moving parts between instruments.
Key Facts
- Concert pitch is the actual sounding pitch, so non-transposing instruments such as flute, oboe, trombone, and piano read and sound the same note.
- For a B-flat instrument, written C sounds as concert B-flat, so the instrument sounds a major 2nd lower than written.
- For an E-flat alto instrument, written C sounds as concert E-flat, so the instrument sounds a major 6th lower than written.
- For an F instrument, written C sounds as concert F, so the instrument sounds a perfect 5th lower than written.
- To write a part for a B-flat instrument from concert pitch, transpose the concert notes up a major 2nd.
- To write a part for an E-flat alto saxophone from concert pitch, transpose the concert notes up a major 6th.
- To write a part for an F horn from concert pitch, transpose the concert notes up a perfect 5th.
- When transposing key signatures, move the key by the same interval and direction as the notes, such as concert C major becoming written D major for a B-flat clarinet.
Vocabulary
- Concert pitch
- Concert pitch is the pitch that actually sounds, regardless of what note a transposing instrument reads.
- Written pitch
- Written pitch is the note printed in the part that the player reads and fingers.
- Transposing instrument
- A transposing instrument is an instrument whose written note sounds as a different concert pitch.
- Instrument key
- Instrument key is the concert pitch that sounds when the instrument plays a written C.
- Interval of transposition
- The interval of transposition is the distance between the written pitch and the concert pitch.
- Key signature transposition
- Key signature transposition means changing the written key by the same interval used to transpose the notes.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Transposing in the wrong direction is common because students mix up written-to-concert and concert-to-written. For a B-flat instrument, concert-to-written goes up a major 2nd, but written-to-concert goes down a major 2nd.
- Changing notes but not the key signature is wrong because the part will no longer match the intended tonal center. Always transpose the key signature by the same interval and direction as the notes.
- Treating all saxophones the same is wrong because alto saxophone is in E-flat while tenor saxophone is in B-flat. Check the instrument key before choosing the interval.
- Forgetting octave placement can make a correct transposition sound in the wrong register. After finding the right pitch class, place the note in the practical range for the instrument.
- Assuming written C always sounds C is wrong for transposing instruments. Written C sounds as the instrument key, such as B-flat on B-flat clarinet or F on horn in F.
Practice Questions
- 1 A B-flat trumpet part shows written G. What concert pitch sounds?
- 2 A concert F must be written for alto saxophone in E-flat. What written note should appear in the part?
- 3 A horn in F reads written C, D, E, and F. What concert pitches sound?
- 4 Why must the key signature be transposed along with the notes when preparing a part for a transposing instrument?