The Whole Horn
| Instrument | Written | Sounds | Learner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flute | B3 – C7 | B3 – C7 | C4 – G6 |
| Piccolo | D4 – C7 | D5 – C8 | D4 – G6 |
| Oboe | B♭3 – A6 | B♭3 – A6 | B♭3 – D6 |
| Bassoon | B♭1 – E5 | B♭1 – E5 | B♭1 – G4 |
| B♭ Clarinet | E3 – C7 | D3 – B♭6 | E3 – C6 |
| Bass Clarinet | E3 – C7 | D2 – B♭5 | E3 – G5 |
| E♭ Clarinet | E3 – C7 | G3 – E♭7 | E3 – C6 |
| English Horn | B3 – A6 | E3 – D6 | B3 – E6 |
| Instrument | Written | Sounds | Learner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alto Saxophone | B♭3 – F♯6 | D♭3 – A5 | B♭3 – F♯6 |
| Tenor Saxophone | B♭3 – F♯6 | A♭2 – E5 | B♭3 – F♯6 |
| Soprano Saxophone | B♭3 – F♯6 | A♭3 – E6 | B♭3 – F♯6 |
| Baritone Saxophone | B♭3 – F♯6 | D♭2 – A4 | B♭3 – F♯6 |
| Instrument | Written | Sounds | Learner |
|---|---|---|---|
| B♭ Trumpet | F♯3 – C6 | E3 – B♭5 | F♯3 – A5 |
| B♭ Cornet | F♯3 – C6 | E3 – B♭5 | F♯3 – A5 |
| French Horn | F♯2 – C6 | B1 – F5 | F3 – C6 |
| Trombone | E2 – B♭4 | E2 – B♭4 | F2 – B♭4 |
| Euphonium | E2 – B♭4 | E2 – B♭4 | F2 – B♭4 |
| Tuba | D1 – F4 | D1 – F4 | G1 – C4 |
| Instrument | Written | Sounds | Learner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violin | G3 – E7 | G3 – E7 | G3 – C6 |
| Viola | C3 – no fixed top | C3 – no fixed top | C3 – F5 |
| Cello | C2 – no fixed top | C2 – no fixed top | C2 – E4 |
| Double Bass | E2 – no fixed top | E1 – no fixed top | E2 – G4 |
| Instrument | Written | Sounds | Learner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vibraphone | F3 – F6 | F3 – F6 | C4 – C6 |
| Marimba | C2 – C7 | C2 – C7 | C2 – C7 |
| Xylophone | varies by model | varies by model | C4 – C6 |
| Glockenspiel | varies by model | varies by model | C4 – C6 |
All three columns are given as the player reads them or as the audience hears them, and each page says which is which. The written range is the range parts are scored in — the answer to “what can I put on the page”. The sounding range is that same range transposed by the instrument's interval — the answer to “will this be the pitch I wanted”. The learner column is the written compass The Whole Horn treats as secure for a developing player.
That last one is a range, not a fence. It marks where the note stops being the hard part, not a boundary the instrument enforces. Both ends move outward with practice, at different rates and for different reasons, and no student should be told a note is outside their instrument when it is simply ahead of them.
The written range is what appears on the player's page. The sounding range is the concert pitch the audience hears. On a concert-pitch instrument like the flute, trombone or tuba they are the same notes. On a transposing instrument they differ by the instrument's interval — a B♭ trumpet's written F♯3 sounds concert E3.
Of the instruments listed here that have a scored range at both ends, the widest is the marimba, at 5 octaves. Among the winds and brass it is the clarinet family, written across roughly three and a half octaves. Several instruments are left out of that comparison because they have no fixed top to measure to — viola, cello, double bass, xylophone and glockenspiel — and on a bowed string that is not a gap in the data but the actual answer. Width on the page is also not the same as width in a school ensemble, which is why each page gives a learner-comfortable range as well.
The written compass The Whole Horn treats as secure for a developing player — the range where the note is not the hard part. It is narrower than the scored range on almost every instrument. It is a range, not a fence: both ends move outward with practice.
The scored written ranges come from the instrument table that also drives The Whole Horn's band transposition chart. The learner-comfortable ranges come from the app's own instrument table. The sounding ranges are derived from the written ranges by interval. Each instrument's page names its sources.
The Whole Horn plays all twelve major scales in your instrument's own written pitch and clef, for every instrument on this page.
Get the app → The band transposition chart