Transposition Terminology

transposition

the process or operation of moving a collection of notes (pitches or pitch classes) up or down by a constant interval

transposing instrument

instrument whose sounding pitch is different from their notated pitch

non-transposing instrument

instrument whose sounding pitch matches their notated pitch

interval of transposition

the relationship between C and the named pitch of the transposing instrument

fundamental (pitch)

the lowest pitch in an instruments harmonic series (an instrument’s fundamental pitch typically corresponds to its transposition)

concert pitch

the sounding pitch of any instrument

C-score

a musical score that is not transposed to show the written notation within the transposed instruments’ parts (all parts in the score read as if in concert pitch)

transposed score

a musical score that includes the instruments’ transposed parts

why do so many instruments transpose?

• instruments produce sound based upon their fundamental pitch

• instrument families maintain fingerings throughout their different versions for simple transition by players

• instruments with different pitch centers may perform music with more idiomatic fingerings

Play a “__,” sound its ___, usually ___.

C, key, down

when transposing written to sounding, you will usually go

down

when transposing sounding to written, you will usually go

up

Why do we transpose?

• accommodate for a singer’s/instrumentalist’s range

• allow for easy transfer of musical material

• allows music to be played properly on another instrument

• allow music to be played in a secondary key