Questions tagged [instrument-range]

The range of a musical instrument is the distance from the lowest to the highest, pitch it can play.

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How can I help my beginner horn players access the mid and high range?

I'm teaching trumpet, french horn, and trombone this year in a school setting. The students are around 11 years old and have all been playing for about a year. They can read music with some success ...
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Writing for bass clarinet in Bb in the same range

The written ranges of clarinet and bass clarinet are shown in Wikipedia as following: clarinet: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarinet#/media/File:Clarinet_range.svg bass clarinet: https://en....
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Magic Bells in The Firebird

Is a campanelli the same instruments as a glockenspiel? Although a literal translation of campanelli (It.) is something like "little bells", I thought that campanelli in an instrumentaion ...
Elements In Space's user avatar
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What are good range limits for STARTING a phrase?

Range suggestions abound online, divided by skill level, resonance, and so on. Range is also a big part of trumpet culture: how do trumpet players flex on each other? "I can play higher than you.&...
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French horn - Getting higher register

Does anyone know some good techniques or practises I can do to improve my high range on the horn relatively quick (like 2 months quick)? It can be for brass and doesn't have to be specific for horn- ...
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Which is the highest note playable on the classical guitar?

Let us consider a standard classical guitar with only 19 frets and 6 strings being played with the standard tunning E2-A2-D3-G3-B3-E4. In this configuration, the classical guitar has a 'normal' ...
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Can it be simply put what is the tessitura of an left-hand of a Stradella bass accordion?

I have seen no such chart that's a simple bass clef gliss of what the left of a Stradella accordion plays. I have seen the chart linked in this answer about accordions, but it says nothing of the ...
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Playing clarinet from saxophone music

I am starting to study the clarinet and have been given some sax music. As both instruments are in B-flat, if I use the clarinet to play the sax music: what must I be aware of? are there octaves ...
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Difference between Thomanns "Alto/Baritone horn", "tenor horn", "baritone" and euphonium?

Apparently BAritones and Alto/Baritone horns are sold as different things. Also, I thought alto horns were called so in america and tenor horns in UK (or viceversa, cant remember), but it turns out ...
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Why is the clarinet able to play lower notes than the soprano sax?

The clarinet and the soprano sax are similar in size, but the clarinet is able to play much lower notes than the soprano sax. Why is this the case? I understand that when the clarinet is overblown the ...
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What frequency ranges are most instruments in

I made a spectrum analyzer, but I'm struggling to find a range where I can cover the most instruments, but also still make the bars visible. I tried the range 20Hz - 800 Hz but seems like some songs I ...
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How do I transpose an orchestral piece if it will push some of the instruments out of their range?

Chord inversions seem to be the obvious choice, but sometimes it changes the overall harmony or disturbs the voice leading. Am I stuck with that key of whatever the orchestral piece is originally ...
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Why is the range of the great highland bagpipe so limited?

The Great Highland Bagpipe has a range of only one octave + one note. Why is the range so limited, and would there be a way to increase it?
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Which brass wind instrument has the widest range?

Which brass wind instrument has the widest range? I mean, which one has more notes between playable lowest note and playable highest note?
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Alto saxophone fingering for notes written below the staff

I am a beginner on the alto saxophone. I understand the fingering for playing notes on the staff but I do not understand the fingering for playing notes below the staff. Sometimes there are two extra ...
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Why does a 97 / 92 key piano exist by Bösendorfer?

Pianos normally have 88 keys, ranging from A0 to C8. One of Bösendorfer's pianos go down to F below the low A. The other model goes down to C. How did this happen?
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Will my voice sit better in the mix with a baritone guitar?

I have a deep singing voice (pleasant range: E2 to D4, extreme range: B flat 1 to F4). It is not shockingly bassy but warm. So if I want to cover a song, I need to transpose it. But I have to ...
Joseph Dieudonné's user avatar
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What is the violin's range including all the positions? [duplicate]

What is the violin's range including the positions(1st position, 3rd position, 5th position, 7th position, etc.)?
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Time for muscular recovery for brass players

I've been practising a lot for an upcoming concert. Before a particularly demanding rehearsal a couple of weeks ago I was able to hit C6 reliably but since then my upper range has been effectively ...
intuited's user avatar
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How to get a better altissimo tone?

I'm currently practicing my overtone series and trying to get a play some altissimo. Right now, I've been able to play up to a D7 using Sigurd Rascher's Top Tones for the Saxophone, but the notes are ...
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Range implications of C extension on double bass

I know the C-extension allows playing C1 on a double bass, but it's not entirely clear to me what the implications are of using it: AFAICT if none of the mechanical fingers are used you can play C1 ...
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Terminology confusion between Range, Register, Ambitus and Tessitura

We use the terms range, register, ambitus and tessitura with regard to how high and low an instrument or vocalist can go. I'm not at all sure how or where the terms cross over, and indeed whether they ...
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Trumpet low range in a big band

A common voicing technique in big band music is to have the 4th trumpet play an octave below the lead trumpet. Is there a limit to how low this can go and still be effective, other than the hard limit ...
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a flute question - low B status

This question is for flute users and experts, including flutists, flute sellers, flute repairers, flute teachers, and others who know the current state and keying system of the transverse flute in ...
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Identifying orchestral sounds

Following my previous question about new instruments in orchestras, I was listening to a few concerts and well, some write the instruments being used throughout the concert, others don't. Most don't. ...
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Alto-ranged brass instrument?

As a high school French horn player I am wondering whether there is a brass instrument with a range similar to the alto saxophone. Although horn and alto are usually given the same parts the horn has ...
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Arabic Maqam Keyboard?

I have read that the Arabic maqam system has 24 pitches in an octave. Are there any instruments (keyboards especially) that have been made specifically to be able to play all 24 tones?
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What Notes does Trumpet play?

I am a total novice. I'm thinking about getting a trumpet so I can practise at home for fun and I want to find out how to play. I am curious to know what notes you can play on the trumpet. I am not ...
Marcs Tcidineb's user avatar
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How to develop a proper trumpet embochure: Tuning and range

I recently started playing the trumpet, and I am struggling with the upper range, but what concerns me even more than that is that my notes in the range I mostly control are out of tune. In general ...
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Name for instruments that can only play one octave, vs one that can play many octaves?

Is there a word for instruments that are limited to only one octave, as opposed to instruments that can play multiple octaves? I think this is a matter of classifying instruments with a certain narrow ...
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Playing the Low E Flat on a Trombone

For an audition I have to play 2 octave scales and for E flat. I have to go to the low one(below the staff). I have an F attachment, so that helps I can play it in T3.5, but every time I play it doesn'...
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Limit on Trombone Mouthpiece Buzzing Range

I've been doing some buzzing exercises on my mouthpiece where I do octave slides from Bb on the second from bottom line of the bass clef, moving up in semitones. My highest is the octave slide ...
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What does it mean when we say that this musical instrument is n octaves?

When we say that this Piano/Keyboard is 5 octaves,Does it mean that 5 complete octaves (CDEFGAB CDEFGAB CDEFGAB CDEFGAB CDEFGAB) or 4 complete octaves plus C in octave 5 (CDEFGAB CDEFGAB CDEFGAB ...
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How can I extend the pitch range of the ribbon on a Monotron?

Inspired by one of leftaroundabout's answers, I got a Monotron and I love the wicked tones it can make. I have the dual-oscillator version so I tune by pressing the 'G' (or whatever note) and adjust ...
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Cello A5 possible?

I am working on a composition of mine. When I transposed an already high section on the Cello to a different key it ended up having an A5 in it. Is this possible to play for a good Cello player?
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Extended range electric basses versus extended range electric guitars

The differences between standard electric basses (four strings) and standard electric guitars (six strings) are very clear: in addition to have a different number of strings, they also differ in their ...
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Can someone clarify the range of orchestral strings?

The Wiki article lists a 27 note range for the violin, viola, 'cello, and double bass. The first three are listed as conservative estimates, and less so for the double bass. Am I correctly inferring ...
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9 answers
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Why is the lowest note on the piano an A?

I've always wondered why almost every piano's lowest note is an A. In fact, I've never seen a piano whose lowest note is not an A, and I have also noticed that this pattern only occurs in pianos; most ...
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How does the flute range extend with experience?

I can play from C4 up to about half way through the second octave - the highest note I can (reliably) play would be around the G5. I cannot play C6, even when blowing as hard as I can. I'm told being ...
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What are the musical instruments that have the sounding range that has at least all notes on this range A#1-C5?

What are the musical instruments that have the sounding range that has at least all notes on this range A#1-C5? The instrument can go up to C6, or down to c0, it just need to have all the notes on A#1-...
E-dman's user avatar
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Average Melody Range

When it comes to melodies they may take on many different shapes, timbers, and rhythms based on style and instrument. The range however of a melody however it seems that certain ranges are much, much ...
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Recorder bell question

I'm doing some research on the recorder, and I've got a little stuck on the range. Some says the soprano recorder's highest note goes to the 2nd octave only, but other people say that by adding a ...
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Max acceptable key range in piano chords?

I learning how to play the piano by myself, using an electronic keyboard and a software called Synthesia along with some books and online resources. I am checking out some songs, and some have chords ...
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Do timpani have access to all notes in their playing range?

I understand that timpani normally have a tuning mechanism, usually involving a pedal that controls the tension on the drum surface, which allows the timpanist to play a range of melodies. However, it ...
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Instrument range cheat sheets

I am just beginning to learn composing (lots of fun so far!) and I am beginning to move from compositions for solo instruments (mainly piano) to making scores for groups/orchestras. I have not ...
Daniel Neel's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
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Trombone attachments, bore, and range

Contrast a straight tenor trombone versus a larger-bore tenor trombone with F attachment. It appears that the larger-bore with F attachment activated will go down to C2 without having to hit any ...
maxpolk's user avatar
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Is the trumpet's theoretical range unlimited?

I'm more wondering about the upper register here, but I suppose this applies to pedal notes also. Is the trumpet's range theoretically unlimited? Is there anything (besides the player) that ...
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Extending upper range on a brass instrument

I'm looking for some input into techniques that I can use to extend my range on a Euphonium. I'm able to get a top C reasonably reliably, but anything above that is just not there. What are common ...
Peter Nunn's user avatar