Transposing Instruments and Their Pitches on the Piano

Transposing instruments sound in a different key from their written notation. In other words, the note that sounds differs from the note the player reads and plays.

Common examples in Turkey include B-flat and G clarinets, bağlama, and soprano and tenor saxophones.

Their pitches in relation to the piano can be shown as follows:

Taking C on the piano as the reference:

On B-flat clarinet: up a major second, or a whole tone, to D.

On G clarinet: up a perfect fourth, or two and a half tones, to F.

On the bağlama: down a minor third, or one and a half tones, to A.

On soprano and tenor saxophones: down a major second, or a whole tone, to B-flat.

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Rekor Sanat – Music Teacher