Many beginner saxophone players encounter problems transposing music written in concert C. In this post I shall attempt to de-mystify things and throw in a few tips.

Transposing on sight is often expected of professional musicians at the drop of a hat. It’s also a very handy skill for the amateur and semi-pro player to acquire. There are many advantages. Being able to play vocal parts from piano song sheets is an obvious example. Once a player is reasonably fluent at reading “dots”, transposition isn’t so difficult and can be learned quickly.

Q. HOW CAN I TRANSPOSE VOCAL PARTS ON PIANO SONG SHEETS FOR TENOR SAXOPHONE?

A. It’s not too difficult. The note Bb on a piano is played as C on the tenor sax. So read everything one tone higher.

1. Fix your concentration on the line or space directly above the written note. For example; A becomes B, D becomes E, and so forth.
2. Add two sharps to the key of C and the sharp keys. For example, the key of C becomes D (two sharps) and the key of G (one sharp) becomes A (three sharps).
3. Subtract two flats from the flat keys. For example; the key of E flat (three flats) becomes F (one flat) and the key of Bb (two flats) becomes C.
4. Be aware that accidentals require a little more thought. For example, in the key of G the notes G A Bb transpose as A B C natural (not C flat). The same series of intervals in the key of F, the notes F G Ab, transpose as G A Bb. Things are not always as they seem at first glance.

Q. HOW CAN I TRANSPOSE VOCAL PARTS ON PIANO SONG SHEETS FOR ALTO SAXOPHONE?

A. This is a little harder. The note Eb on a piano is played as C on the alto sax. So read everything down a minor third.

1. Fix your concentration one line or one space down from the written note. For example, C becomes A and D becomes B and so on.
2. Add three sharps to the key of C and the sharp keys. For example, the key of C becomes A (three sharps) and the key of G (one sharp) becomes E (four sharps).
3. Subtract three flats from the flat keys. For example, the key of E flat (three flats) becomes C and the key of Bb (two flats) becomes G (one sharp). Note that we ran out of flats to subtract here and added a sharp instead.
4. Be aware, accidentals require a little more thought. For example, in the key of G the notes G A Bb transpose as E F# G natural (not G flat). The same series of intervals in the key of D, the notes D E F natural transpose as B C# D natural. Once again, things are not always as they seem at first glance.

Baritone players can read from the bass clef. Just mentally substitute a treble clef and change the key as above, and read the notes as they appear on the staff. Again, beware of the accidentals. For example a C flat would be played as C natural. Why? Because it is written in the bass clef and it is really an Eb - now your C. Confusing, isn’t it.

Did you find this article useful? Any questions? Do you have something to say on the subject of transposition? Leave a comment. We’d love to hear from you.

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