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Post by drumsrock777 on Sept 23, 2007 19:13:57 GMT -5
OK...so I'm a percussionist and completely love band...but my little brother's playing the trumpet, most of my friends play clairinet, etc., and I'd like to learn other instruments some day...so my question is what keys are the different instruments tuned to? I know bells and the flute are tuned to C and trumpets are in Bb, right? I'd really like to know the rest though, thanks a lot!!
..Maddy~
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Post by trumellotonium on Sept 23, 2007 22:43:03 GMT -5
These are going to be in marching band arc order (or at least mine), plus whatever other ones I know/can think of.
Piccolo/flute: C
Clarinet: Bb
Trumpet: Bb
Alto Sax: Eb
Tenor Sax: Bb
Mellophone/French Horn: F
Tuba: C
Baritone T.C.: Bb
Baritone B.C.: C
Trombone: C
English Horn: F
Ones I don't know and so didn't list:
Oboe
Other sax variants
Other flute variants
Bass Clarinet
Also, keep in mind, there are other keys for almost all of these. For example, there are also G, Eb, and A trumpets (probably more), A clarinets, Eb Horns, etc... and there's plenty of odd and rarer instruments, like the Alto horn, the Flugelhorn (which I happen to know is in Bb), and many more. But there's most of your common band layout.
(Someone please correct me if I'm wrong on any of these...)
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Post by Scott Benson II on Sept 24, 2007 7:06:15 GMT -5
Everything above is correct.
The oboe is in C. The baritone saxophone is in Eb. Just as the saxes listed alternate between Bb and Eb, there is another set of saxophones that alternate between C and F. The alto flute is in G. The alto clarinet is in Eb; the bass clarinet is in Bb. There are also contra-alto Eb and contrabass Bb clarinets. Tubas can also exist in Bb. In addition to the other trumpet keys listed above, the piccolo trumpet is in D. String instruments are all in C, but the bass sounds an octave lower than written. The guitar also sounds an octave lower than written (when it's not written in TAB). Oh, and remember that the piccolo is in C, but sounds an octave HIGHER than written.
Any others I missed?
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Post by drumsrock777 on Oct 2, 2007 17:51:19 GMT -5
wow! thanks, that helps a WHOLE lot!!
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Post by hardcorpsflute on Oct 10, 2007 7:50:41 GMT -5
There's such thing as a D flat piccolo, but I'm not sure how much those are used nowadays (probably not, but you never know.)
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Post by Scott Benson II on Oct 12, 2007 7:26:56 GMT -5
^ They are not very common at all, though you will sometimes see a part for them in older printings of pieces, especially marches. The instrument would sound a minor ninth (octave and a half-step) higher than written.
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Post by brassdancer on Oct 18, 2007 11:05:03 GMT -5
Yeah, I saw a D Flat picc at the school I taught at. What is up with them?
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Post by philnotfil on Oct 22, 2007 9:42:55 GMT -5
Tubas mostly come in Bb and C, with a little bit of Eb and F, but all tuba music is in concert pitch (C)
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Post by Scott Benson II on Oct 23, 2007 7:47:15 GMT -5
Regarding the Db piccolo: I suspect that it's the same as having an A clarinet: it has a slightly different timbre, and is more at home in different keys. There is also, by the way, an Ab piccolo that is only common in Italian marching bands.
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KUguardgrl13
Band Nerd
I'm a sister in the bond of this kinship I am fond[F4:687065693]
Posts: 442
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Post by KUguardgrl13 on Oct 30, 2007 22:38:59 GMT -5
harmonicas come in most keys. Also, Scott Benson II is correct in saying that all strings are in C. However, violas read in alto clef and cellos sometimes read in tenor clef. personally, i hate when composers only write a third violin part and make the violas read in treble. i mean, i can, but it's a pain.
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Post by Scott Benson II on Oct 31, 2007 7:51:17 GMT -5
^You could just transcribe it into alto clef...although, viola parts are sometimes written in treble clef when they get high enough, so manybe some familiarity with treble clef isn't a bad idea.
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KUguardgrl13
Band Nerd
I'm a sister in the bond of this kinship I am fond[F4:687065693]
Posts: 442
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Post by KUguardgrl13 on Nov 1, 2007 22:16:59 GMT -5
i can read treble clef. it's just a pain because i'm so used to alto and haven't really thought about treble since i quit piano in 7th grade.
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Post by Duel of the Flutes on Nov 5, 2007 22:22:53 GMT -5
Regarding the Db piccolo: I suspect that it's the same as having an A clarinet: it has a slightly different timbre, and is more at home in different keys. There is also, by the way, an Ab piccolo that is only common in Italian marching bands. you're just a walking music encyclopedia, aren't you?  jk, I love you for that!  Db piccolos... I remember someone telling me once there was actually a reason the piccolo was originally in Db, but I can't remember what it was. I think it had something to do with common keys at the time, but I could just be making things up. |
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Post by Scott Benson II on Nov 6, 2007 8:16:47 GMT -5
Oh, every instrument used to exist in every key.
Only a slight exaggeration, really...remember that the system of keys (as in the mechanical ones, not the sharps and flats) we use today is a relatively recent development. Before the keys, fingerings were more complicated, especially as music moved away from the home-key of the instrument. A piccolo in Db would be well-suited for music written with a number of flats (or sharps, since Db=C#). So use a C-piccolo for music in one or two sharps or flats, and as you get closer to Db-C#, switch to a different instrument.
It's just a theory, but it sounds good to me!
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Post by drumsrock777 on Nov 11, 2007 0:52:24 GMT -5
Out of curiosity, exactly what is alto cleft? I've heard of treble and bass, but never alto...I'm an alto in choir, my friend plays alto sax, but never heard of alto cleft
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