French horn transposition: horn in F
modern horn parts are written for horn in F, which sounds a perfect 5th lower than written. to write a horn part from concert pitch sheet music, raise every note a perfect 5th. older scores add two twists covered below: parts for horns in other keys, and bass clef notes written an octave off.
- write horn in F parts a perfect 5th above concert pitch.
- the key signature gains one sharp or loses one flat.
- older parts may have no key signature and bass clef an octave off.
the interval: a perfect 5th
a horn player reading written C sounds the F a fifth below, which is why the instrument is called horn in F. from concert pitch to the part, go up seven half steps and four letter names. concert F becomes written C, and concert E♭ becomes written B♭. the written key has one more sharp, or one fewer flat, than the concert key.
written vs concert: a horn call
horn writing often outlines a chord, the way old hunting horns did. here is a call in concert F major and the notes on the horn part, in C major.
| concert pitch | written for horn in F | chord tone |
|---|---|---|
| F | C | root |
| A | E | third |
| C | G | fifth |
| F | C | root, an octave up |
| C | G | fifth |
| A | E | third |
| B♭ | F | fourth, passing |
| F | C | root |
range and clefs
the horn's written range runs from about F♯ an octave and a half below middle C to the C two octaves above middle C, which sounds from roughly B1 to F5. most of the part sits in treble clef; the lowest notes go in bass clef. the upper and lower ends depend a lot on the player, so school parts usually stay between written C4 and G5.
bass clef is where horn parts disagree. in modern notation a bass clef note is transposed exactly like a treble clef note, down a fifth. in many older scores, horn bass clef notes were written an octave lower than that, so they sound a fourth higher than written instead of a fifth lower. check the edition before you copy notes out of an old score.
horns in other keys
before valves, a horn could only play the notes of one harmonic series, so players added a crook of tubing to put the horn in the key of the piece. that is why classical scores have parts for horn in E♭, D, E or G. each one transposes by its own interval: horn in E♭ sounds a major 6th lower, horn in D a minor 7th lower. today players read those parts on an F horn by transposing at sight. many orchestral horn parts were also written with no key signature, adding accidentals as needed, and some editions still print them that way.
writing for horn
horn players pitch notes by ear and lip as much as by valves, so leaps are riskier than on a trumpet and a high entrance from silence is hard to place. give them a moment to find the pitch. the transposer handles horn in F for note names and chord symbols, and the transposing instruments guide covers the rest of the band.
all 12 major keys for horn in F
every concert key moves up a perfect 5th for horn in F, which adds one sharp or removes one flat. notei's notation editor writes these parts at the right pitch for you, but the table is the quick check.
| concert key | horn in F part | horn key signature |
|---|---|---|
| C major (none) | G major | 1 sharp |
| G major (1 sharp) | D major | 2 sharps |
| D major (2 sharps) | A major | 3 sharps |
| A major (3 sharps) | E major | 4 sharps |
| E major (4 sharps) | B major | 5 sharps |
| B major (5 sharps) | F♯ major | 6 sharps |
| F♯ major (6 sharps) | D♭ major | 5 flats |
| D♭ major (5 flats) | A♭ major | 4 flats |
| A♭ major (4 flats) | E♭ major | 3 flats |
| E♭ major (3 flats) | B♭ major | 2 flats |
| B♭ major (2 flats) | F major | 1 flat |
| F major (1 flat) | C major | none |
every note, concert and written
up a perfect 5th for every note: four letter names and seven half steps. concert F is a written C, which is where the horn gets its name.
| concert pitch | written for horn in F |
|---|---|
| C | G |
| C♯ | G♯ |
| D | A |
| E♭ | B♭ |
| E | B |
| F | C |
| F♯ | C♯ |
| G | D |
| A♭ | E♭ |
| A | E |
| B♭ | F |
| B | F♯ |
common questions
what key is the French horn in?
modern horn parts are written for horn in F. a written C sounds as the F a perfect 5th below. most players use a double horn in F and B♭, but the parts are still written in F.
what is concert F on horn?
a written C. a horn player tuning to concert F plays a written C, and concert B♭, the band tuning note, is a written F.
do horn parts use key signatures?
most modern horn parts do. many older orchestral parts have no key signature, with every sharp and flat written in as an accidental, a habit from natural horns that changed key by changing crooks.
sources
- Vienna Symphonic Library: horn
- Yamaha musical instrument guide: horn
- 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.
notei is a free music notation editor in the browser for band, orchestra and small groups. its Transpose tool moves a passage or a full score to a new key in one step.
write it in notei