alto sax transposition: E♭ to concert pitch
the alto saxophone is pitched in E♭ and sounds a major 6th lower than written. to make an alto part from concert pitch sheet music, move every note up a major 6th, or find the same letter by going down a minor 3rd and then up an octave. the key signature moves with it.
- write E♭ alto sax parts a major 6th above concert pitch.
- the key signature gains three sharps or loses three flats.
- baritone sax reads the same key, an octave lower.
the interval: a major 6th
when an alto player reads a written C, the sound is the E♭ a major 6th below. going the other way, from concert pitch to the alto part, add nine half steps and five letter names. concert C becomes written A, and concert B♭ becomes written G. the quick shortcut players use is "down a minor 3rd for the letter, then put it where it fits on the staff".
written vs concert: the E♭ major scale
concert E♭ major is a common key for bands. on alto sax it turns into C major, with no sharps or flats at all.
| concert pitch | written for E♭ alto sax | half steps above concert |
|---|---|---|
| E♭ | C | 9 |
| F | D | 9 |
| G | E | 9 |
| A♭ | F | 9 |
| B♭ | G | 9 |
| C | A | 9 |
| D | B | 9 |
| E♭ | C | 9 |
keys on alto sax
the written key for alto has three more sharps, or three fewer flats, than the concert key. concert B♭ major is written in G major, concert F major in D major, concert A♭ major in F major and concert C major in A major. a tune in concert E major lands in C♯ major with seven sharps, so arrangers write it as D♭ major instead, which sounds the same and reads far more easily.
range
the alto's written range runs from the B♭ below middle C to the F above the treble staff's top line F, written B♭3 to F6, and most modern instruments add F♯6. in concert pitch that is D♭3 to A♭5, or A5 with the extra key. notes beyond that, called altissimo, are possible for advanced players but are rarely written into school or community band parts.
writing for alto sax
the bottom few notes are hard to play quietly, and the top few are hard to play in tune, so the middle of the staff is where the alto sounds its best. in a big band the alto usually leads the saxophone section, and in concert band it often doubles the horns or carries countermelodies. baritone sax is in E♭ too and reads the same written key, an octave lower in sound.
to change a whole chart in one go, paste the chord symbols or notes into the transposer and choose E♭ alto sax.
all 12 major keys for alto sax
every concert key moves up a major 6th for alto sax, which adds three sharps or removes three flats. the baritone sax reads the same key an octave lower, because it is also in E♭. notei's notation editor writes these parts at the right pitch for you, but the table is the quick check.
| concert key | alto sax part | alto key signature | baritone sax part |
|---|---|---|---|
| C major (none) | A major | 3 sharps | A major |
| G major (1 sharp) | E major | 4 sharps | E major |
| D major (2 sharps) | B major | 5 sharps | B major |
| A major (3 sharps) | F♯ major | 6 sharps | F♯ major |
| E major (4 sharps) | D♭ major | 5 flats | D♭ major |
| B major (5 sharps) | A♭ major | 4 flats | A♭ major |
| F♯ major (6 sharps) | E♭ major | 3 flats | E♭ major |
| D♭ major (5 flats) | B♭ major | 2 flats | B♭ major |
| A♭ major (4 flats) | F major | 1 flat | F major |
| E♭ major (3 flats) | C major | none | C major |
| B♭ major (2 flats) | G major | 1 sharp | G major |
| F major (1 flat) | D major | 2 sharps | D major |
every note, concert and written
up a major 6th, or down a minor 3rd to the same letter name: concert C is a written A either way. only the octave differs.
| concert pitch | written for E♭ alto sax |
|---|---|
| C | A |
| C♯ | A♯ |
| D | B |
| E♭ | C |
| E | C♯ |
| F | D |
| F♯ | D♯ |
| G | E |
| A♭ | F |
| A | F♯ |
| B♭ | G |
| B | G♯ |
common questions
what key is the alto sax in?
E♭. a written C on alto sax sounds as the E♭ a major 6th below, so alto parts are written a major 6th above concert pitch.
what is concert C on alto sax?
a written A. concert C major, with no sharps or flats, is A major for alto sax, with three sharps.
is baritone sax written the same way as alto sax?
yes, in the same key: both are E♭ instruments. the baritone sounds an octave lower than the alto, so its part is written a major 6th plus an octave above concert pitch.
sources
- Vienna Symphonic Library: alto saxophone
- Yamaha musical instrument guide: saxophone
- Wikipedia: transposing instrument
notei publishes this guide, and notei is our product. written and checked by the notei team. how these guides are written and corrected.
in notei you can add an E♭ alto sax to a score and the editor handles the transposition, so the written part matches what the saxophone should sound. it is on the free plan.
write it in notei