Transposing instruments cheat sheet

This page lists some of the most common transposing instruments found in the orchestra and their transpositions.

Instrument name Image Key Register Transposition Written note Sounding note

INSTRUMENTS IN C
Crotales Crotales C Super-high +2 8ves C4 C6
Glockenspiel Glockenspiel C Super-high +2 8ves C4 C6
Piccolo Piccolo C High +8ve C4 C5
Xylophone Xylophone C High +8ve C4 C5
Celeste Celeste C High +8ve C4 C5
Bass flute Bass flute C Low −8ve C4 C3
Contrabassoon Contrabassoon C Low −8ve C3 C2
Guitar Guitar C Low −8ve C4 C3
Double bass Double bass C Low −8ve C3 C2

INSTRUMENTS IN B♭
Piccolo trumpet Piccolo trumpet B♭ High +m7 C4 B<span class=♭ 4">
Soprano saxophone Soprano saxophone B♭ Low −M2 C4 B<span class=♭ 3">
Clarinet in B♭ Clarinet in B<span class=♭"> B♭ Low −M2 C4 B<span class=♭ 3">
Trumpet in B♭ Trumpet in B<span class=♭"> B♭ Low −M2 C4 B<span class=♭ 3">
Tenor saxophone Tenor saxophone B♭ Super-low −M9 C4 B<span class=♭ 2">
INSTRUMENTS IN E♭
Clarinet in E♭ Clarinet in E<span class=♭"> E♭ High +m3 C4 E<span class=♭ 4">
Alto saxophone Alto saxophone E♭ Low −M6 C4 E<span class=♭ 3">
Baritone saxophone Baritone saxophone E♭ Super-low −(M6 + 8ve) C4 E<span class=♭ 2">

INSTRUMENTS IN F
Cor anglais Cor anglais F Low −P5 C4 F3
Horn Horn F Low −P5 C4 F3

INSTRUMENTS IN G
Alto flute Alto flute G Low −P4 C4 G3

INSTRUMENTS IN A
Clarinet in A Clarinet in A A Low −m3 C4 A3

Michael Norris: Composer | Curator | Developer | Theorist