Alto Sax Transpose

[montunoman]

Greeting,

 

My nephew will be visiting for thanksgiving and he says we wants to jam with me with his alto sax. He has a bunch of lead sheet but they're their written for alto sax. All my charts are in concert key. I think I'll just "cheat " and use my transpose button- please don't call the jazz police : )

 

Concert C is an is a Eb on the alto, correct?

 

So when I'm playing off the alto charts, how do I transpose my keyboard? When we are playing from my concert key charts how do transpose my keyboard?

[Morrissey]

[video:youtube]

[stoken6]

"Concert C is an is a Eb on the alto, correct?"

 

Um I think that's the wrong way round. Concert Eb is scored as a C on an Alto part.

 

Alto plays a major 6th lower than written. So a *written* C is a *sounding* Eb. Baritone sax is an octave below Alto.

 

There's a well known trick for converting Baritone to Trombone (bass clef, non-transposing): replace the treble clef with a bass clef, make the key signature "three flatter" (so D major would become F major), and "do the right thing" with accidentals. You could use that to read alto charts.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[El Lobo]

I'm a sax player. I think stoken6 said it correctly. It's always confusing. If I'm on Bb tenor and guitar player calls key of C, I'm up a step and play in D. If I'm on Eb alto or bari and key of C is called, I go down a step and a half and play in A. I think. So if the alto lead sheet key is C, transpose up a step and a half. I think. Or is it the other way around? Try it and see. You'll quickly figure it out.

[Jonathan Hughes]

I don't think the guy in the video knows what a "hack" is. If didn't;t already know how to transpose, that video would just make me more confused. The piano is on the second floor, and the alto sax is on the first because it's a minor third below, but, wait a second â you've got to write it up a major sixth if you want to sound in the same octave as the piano.

 

 

That's all correct, but that explanation isn't remotely a "hack".

[El Lobo]

The C on the alto sax is concert Eb. To transpose the keyboard to read the Eb alto lead sheets, transpose up 3 half steps. That's moving the keyboard C up to Eb so when you read the alto Eb lead sheet, you're playing in the same key as the alto sax.

 

If the alto sax is reading your concert C charts, I think it's the same problem. When the alto is reading and playing a C on the concert key chart, it's really concert Eb so you need to raise the keyboard 3 half steps to be playing in the same key as the alto when you're both reading from the concert C chart.

 

It's possible I have this backwards. I can't think this out. I always play it to find out what the correct thing to do is. This is where trial and error comes in.

[Tom Williams]

Let's hear it for the web! Taming the Saxophone

contains the following text:

Yes an alto is in Eb and a tenor is in Bb so your Eb on alto sounds the same pitch as C on a piano.

They get it right later in a table.

[montunoman]

I'm a sax player. I think stoken6 said it correctly. It's always confusing. If I'm on Bb tenor and guitar player calls key of C, I'm up a step and play in D. If I'm on Eb alto or bari and key of C is called, I go down a step and a half and play in A. I think. So if the alto lead sheet key is C, transpose up a step and a half. I think. Or is it the other way around? Try it and see. You'll quickly figure it out.

I'm a sax player. I think stoken6 said it correctly. It's always confusing. If I'm on Bb tenor and guitar player calls key of C, I'm up a step and play in D. If I'm on Eb alto or bari and key of C is called, I go down a step and a half and play in A. I think. So if the alto lead sheet key is C, transpose up a step and a half. I think. Or is it the other way around? Try it and see. You'll quickly figure it out.

I'm a sax player. I think stoken6 said it correctly. It's always confusing. If I'm on Bb tenor and guitar player calls key of C, I'm up a step and play in D. If I'm on Eb alto or bari and key of C is called, I go down a step and a half and play in A. I think. So if the alto lead sheet key is C, transpose up a step and a half. I think. Or is it the other way around? Try it and see. You'll quickly figure it out.

 

 

Thanks that helped a lot! The Jamey Aebersold books came in handy too as they have C, Bb, and Eb parts. We had a great time a jammed on holiday tunes, bossas and jazz and blues standards until late in the evening. My nephew is really passionate about music and we is really taking off on his instrument.

[ElmerJFudd]

Tune them to your keys by playing a Bb. Tell them it"s concert Bb.

They"ll stop chatting, straighten their posture and play a G.

[Docbop]

Good thing most horn players transposing is just part of the gig and we don't have to worry.