Music Glossary: 1.64 concert pitch

## 1.64 concert pitch

ES: en Do, afinación de concierto, I: ?, F: ?, D: ?, NL: ?, DK: ?, S: ?, FI: konserttikorkeus.

The pitch at which the piano and other nontransposing instruments play: such instruments are said to be ‘in C’. The following list includes some (but not all) instruments that play in concert pitch:

Woodwinds | Brass | Strings
--- | --- | ---
flute oboe bassoon | alto trombone tenor trombone bass trombone | violin viola violoncello

The trombones are a special case: although they are said to be ‘in F’ (alto or bass) or ‘in B-flat’ (tenor), this refers to their fundamental note, not to their parts’ transposition. (In fact, the trombones’ parts are written at concert pitch with an appropriate clef – alto, tenor or bass.) This differs from other instruments ‘in F’, ‘in B-flat’, and so on, which are transposing instruments.

Instruments that play ‘in C’ but in a different octave than what is written are, technically speaking, transposing instruments:

- piccolo (plays an octave higher)
- celesta (plays an octave higher)
- double bass (plays an octave lower)

#### See also

transposing instrument.

#### Music glossary