Notation

In this section

• Notation

  One sound, two pages: how brass-band and concert parts notate the same note differently — and how to read whichever one lands on your stand.

• What is a tenor tuba

  'Tenor tuba' is what orchestral scores call the euphonium. When Holst, Strauss, or Wagner wrote for tenor tuba, a euphonium is what plays it — read in concert-pitch bass or tenor clef.

• What does 'sounds a major ninth lower' mean

  A major ninth is an octave plus a whole step. On a treble-clef euphonium part, a written C sounds the B♭ a major ninth below — the fixed interval that defines the brass-band transposition.

• Bass vs treble vs tenor clef for euphonium

  Euphonium parts appear in three clefs: concert bass clef (orchestra, US wind band), transposed treble clef (brass band), and occasionally tenor clef in high orchestral writing. Each signals a different reading system.

• Why is my brass band euphonium part written in treble clef?

  British brass bands notate almost every instrument in transposed treble clef so players can switch horns without relearning to read. Your B♭ euphonium sounds a major ninth below the written note.