Tuba and euphonium fingering chart

Sizes

Tubas are made in four pitches, determined by the length of the open tubing with no valves engaged. The smaller is built in 12-foot (12′) F or 13′ E♭, while the larger is built in 16′ C or 18′ B♭. Often the contrabass tubas are called "CC" or "BB♭" tubas, based on an archaic English variant of Helmholtz pitch notation. The terms bass and contrabass are not often used by composers, with the choice of instrument left to the player, often based on the desired timbre rather than the range required by the part.

The modern F tuba descends from the original 1835 Baß-Tuba in F. It is commonly used by professional players as a solo instrument, or to play higher parts in orchestras where a C tuba would be the usual instrument. In most of Europe, the F is the standard orchestral tuba, the larger C or B♭ tuba used only when the extra weight is desired. In Vienna, the Wienerkonzerttuba is an F tuba with six rotary valves, three for each hand. The British orchestral tuba from the late 19th century until the 1950s was in F with four or five piston valves, and a narrower bore profile closer to that of the euphonium.

The E♭ tuba is most commonly found in brass and military bands. Often called the "E♭ bass" in bands, it is built in saxhorn form with three top-mounted piston valves, and usually a fourth compensating valve on one side. In British orchestras, the E♭ tuba displaced the old British F tuba in the 1960s, and is still found in British orchestras today, although some players have adopted the C tuba since the 1990s. E♭ tubas are also sometimes found in German form with five rotary valves, mostly in Scandinavian orchestras.

The tuba in C (sometimes denoted "CC") is the most widely used orchestral tuba outside of Germany and Russia, and all professional models have five non-compensating valves. It is also found in concert bands in the US. On piston-valve C tubas, the fifth valve is usually a rotary valve.

The largest tuba, the contrabass in B♭ is the tuba of choice in German, Austrian, and Russian orchestras, usually with rotary valves. In the United States, the B♭ tuba usually has front-action piston valves. It is the most common in schools, largely due to the use of B♭ sousaphones in high school marching bands. The B♭ tuba is also built in saxhorn style with three top-mounted piston valves, and usually a fourth compensating side valve. It is standard in British brass bands, where it is often denoted as the "BB♭ bass" or the "double B".

Valves

Modern tubas are made with either piston valves or rotary valves. Rotary valves, patented in Prussia by Joseph Riedl in 1835, were first used on Austro-Hungarian tubas made in the 1850s by Červený. Around the same time in France and Britain, the modern piston valve developed by François Périnet in 1839 had begun to replace the Berlin valves used on early saxhorn instruments.

Pistons can be top-action, oriented vertically so the buttons are operated from the top of the instrument, or front-action (sometimes called side-action), oriented horizontally so the buttons are at the front, operated from the side.

Tubas are made with three to six valves, but among professional players, tubas with four and five are the most common. Three-valve tubas are usually inexpensive student models, or smaller marching instruments made to conserve weight; the sousaphone usually has three valves. F tubas usually have five or six valves, including the six-valved Wienerkonzerttuba used in Austria.

Depressing a valve adds a length of tubing to the instrument, lowering its fundamental pitch. On modern tubas, the first three valves work the same way as other valved brass instruments: the first lowers the pitch by two semitones (whole step), the second by one semitone (half step), and the third by three semitones (minor third).

Fourth, fifth, and sixth valves

The fourth valve lowers the pitch by five semitones (a perfect fourth). The combination of valves 1 and 3 also lowers the pitch by a fourth, but this combination, and the 1-2-3 combination, tend to produce pitches that are slightly sharp. Using the fourth valve helps solve these intonation problems. Using the fourth valve with any or all of the first three extends the range down to the fundamental pitch, but some of these lower notes will be sharp.

The fifth and sixth valves, if fitted, provide alternative fingering possibilities to improve intonation, particularly in the octave between the fundamental pitch (pedal tone) and the second partial, and for smooth trills and ease of playing. Usually, the fifth valve is tuned to two and a half semitones (flattened whole step), and the sixth to one and a half semitones (flattened half step). On C tubas with five valves, the fifth valve may be tuned as a flattened whole step or as a minor third, depending on the instrument. B♭ instruments rarely have a fifth valve, but if they do, it is tuned similarly to that of a C tuba.

Compensating valves

Most high-end saxhorn-style tubas in E♭ and B♭, instead of providing a fifth or sixth valve, provide a compensating system on the fourth valve to adjust intonation when using valves in combination. This reduces the need to constantly adjust tuning slides while playing, and also simplifies fingering. The compensating piston valve was invented in the 1870s by David Blaikley (1846–1936), the factory manager at Boosey & Co, who patented it in 1878. The patent limited its application outside of Britain, and tubas with compensating valves are mainly found in Britain and British Commonwealth countries. The tubing of the fourth valve is re-routed back through the other three valves to add an extra set of small correcting tubing loops. This achieves correct intonation in the lower range of the instrument when using the fourth valve. Compensating valves can make the instrument significantly more "stuffy" or resistant to air flow when compared to a non-compensating tuba, and also make the instrument heavier.

Notation

In orchestras and symphonic bands, the tuba is written at concert pitch in the bass clef as a non-transposing instrument. Tuba players reading music in bass clef must therefore learn the different valve fingerings for each size of tuba. Unlike other bass clef instruments like the trombone, cello, or bassoon, high passages for tuba are not written in tenor clef, and players are used to reading up to five leger lines above and below the bass staff.

In British brass bands, all instruments except the bass trombone are transposing instruments using the treble clef notation popularized in France by the instrument maker Adolphe Sax for his families of instruments. Thus the tuba parts are notated in treble clef, sounding an octave and a sixth below written for E♭ tuba, like the baritone saxophone, or two octaves and a second for B♭ tuba, like the contrabass clarinet. This allows band musicians to change instruments without having to learn new fingerings for the same written music.

Concert band music sometimes provides tuba parts in E♭ and B♭ treble clef as well, to accommodate players from either background, although professional players are usually familiar with either notation.

Range

The written range of the tuba is large, partly because different-sized instruments have been used at different times and in different regions. The C or B♭ contrabass tubas called for by Wagner and later German composers could scarcely reach middle C, while the range of the euphonium-like French C tuba built an octave higher reaches the C₅ above middle C. On any tuba, the range from F₁ to C₄ (middle C) is easily accessible, but the full working range from contemporary solo repertoire includes the pedal range to at least B♭₀, and extends up to at least C₅.

Higher notes are possible, since the upper range is limited only by the fitness of the player's embouchure, although notes above the bell cutoff frequency around the tenth harmonic are difficult to center; continuous glissandi are possible, making valve fingering largely redundant. The wide bore profile of the tuba means that pedal tones are easily produced, compared to other brass instruments.

Resonance and false tones

Some tubas have a strong, useful resonance that deviates from the instrument's principal harmonic series. For example, most large B♭ tubas have a strong resonance around the low E♭₁ between the B♭₀ pedal and its second partial an octave above. These alternative resonances are often known as false, factitious or privileged tones, and allow the instrument to play chromatically from E₁ down to the B♭ pedal of the open horn using only three valves.

Overview

The euphonium (eufonio; bombardino) is a tenor- and baritone-voiced valved brass instrument pitched in 9-foot (9′) B♭ an octave below the B♭ trumpet or cornet, employed chiefly in brass, military, and concert bands. As with any brass instrument, sound is produced with a lip vibration or "buzz" in the mouthpiece. The euphonium is a member of the large family of valved bugles, along with the tuba and flugelhorn, characterized by a wide conical bore. Most instruments have four valves, usually compensating piston valves, although instruments with four or five rotary valves are common in Eastern and Central Europe.

Euphonium repertoire can be notated in concert pitch in the bass clef, or in the treble clef as a transposing instrument in B♭. In British brass bands, it is typically treated as a treble-clef instrument, while in American band music, parts may be written in either treble clef or bass clef, or both. A musician who plays the euphonium is known as a euphoniumist, a euphonist, or simply a euphonium player.

Construction

The euphonium, like the tenor trombone, is pitched in 9-foot (9′) B♭ an octave below the trumpet or cornet, and played with a mouthpiece similar to those used on the ophicleide or bass trombone. When no valves are in use, the instrument will produce partials of the B♭ harmonic series which result from the vibrating air column within its 9 ft of tubing.

The euphonium has a wide conical bore, gradually increasing in diameter throughout its length (apart from the necessarily cylindrical valve tubing). The bore ranges from .563 to .654 in at the first valve, and the bell ranges from 10 to 12 in. Like the flugelhorn and tuba, the conical bore of the euphonium emphasises lower frequency spectral content by favouring the lower partials, resulting in a mellower tone compared to cylindrical-bore instruments such as the trumpet or trombone.

The valves each add lengths of tubing to lower the pitch of the instrument, combining to produce a fully chromatic scale and range. Euphoniums commonly have three top-action piston valves, played with the first three fingers of the right hand, plus a fourth valve, generally found midway down the right side of the instrument and played with the left index or middle finger. On most models, the fourth valve is a compensating valve which resolves intonation issues below E₂. On European instruments with rotary valves, the three or four valves are operated together by the right hand and are non-compensating; some include a fifth valve to allow for alternate intonation fingerings instead. Beginner models often have only the three top-action valves and no fourth valve, while some intermediate models may have a non-compensating fourth top-action valve placed next to the other three and played with the fourth finger of the right hand.

Compensating valves

The modern compensating euphonium uses four valves and routes the tubing of the fourth valve back through the other three valves to add an extra set of small correcting tubing loops. This achieves correct intonation in the lower range of the instrument when using the fourth valve, the range being from E₂ down to B₁.

Less commonly, there are three-valve compensating euphoniums. Usually older instruments, these have a similar compensating mechanism, but route the tubing of the third valve back through extra loops on the other two valves. This corrects the intonation, of C₃ and B₂ in particular. This compensating system is also found on some three-valve British-style baritone horns.

Notation

In British brass bands, all instruments except the bass trombone are transposing instruments using the treble clef notation popularized in France by instrument maker Adolphe Sax for his families of instruments. Thus the euphonium, along with the tenor trombones and baritones, are notated as B♭ instruments in treble clef sounding a major ninth lower than written, like the tenor saxophone and bass clarinet.

In orchestras, concert bands, and US military bands, the euphonium is generally written at concert pitch in the bass clef, treating the euphonium as a non-transposing instrument like the orchestral trombone, with high passages often written in tenor clef. Concert band music often provides the euphonium parts in both bass and B♭ treble clef, to accommodate players from either background, although professional players are usually familiar with either notation. In continental European band music, parts for the euphonium are occasionally written in transposing B♭ in bass clef, sounding a major second lower than written.

Range

The euphonium has a large range of at least four octaves. The range from E₂ to about G₄ is easily accessible, but the full working range from contemporary solo repertoire includes the pedal range from B♭₁ down to B₀, and extends up to at least D₅. Higher notes are possible since the upper range is limited only by the fitness of the players' embouchure, although notes above the bell cutoff frequency, around the tenth harmonic in tuba family instruments (D₅ on euphonium), are difficult to centre and continuous glissandi are possible, making valve fingering largely redundant.

The lowest notes obtainable depend on the valve set-up of the instrument. All instruments are chromatic down to E₂, and four-valved instruments extend that down to at least C₂. Non-compensating four-valved instruments suffer from intonation problems in this range and cannot produce low B₁. These problems are solved with the modern compensating fourth valve, or with five non-compensating rotary valves on some European models, using a flat whole-tone tuning for the fifth valve, as is common on five-valve tubas. Although less satisfactory, a good player can also provide these notes on a three-valve instrument using falset tones, which are more distinct on instruments with wide conical bores and large bells. From B♭₁ down lies the pedal range, the fundamentals of the instrument's harmonic series. They are more easily produced on the euphonium and tuba than on other brass instruments, and the extent of the pedal range similarly depends on the instrument.

Tuning compensation

The additional tubing for each valve usually features a short tuning slide of its own for fine adjustment of the valve's tuning, except when it is too short to make this practicable. For the first and third valves this is often designed to be adjusted as the instrument is played, to account for the deficiencies in the valve system.

In most trumpets and cornets, the compensation must be provided by extending the third valve slide with the third or fourth finger, and the first valve slide with the left hand thumb. This is used to lower the pitch of the 1–3 and 1–2–3 valve combinations. On the trumpet and cornet, these valve combinations correspond to low D, low C♯, low G, and low F♯, so chromatically, to stay in tune, one must use this method.

In instruments with a fourth valve, such as tubas, euphoniums, piccolo trumpets, etc. that valve lowers the pitch by a perfect fourth; this is used to compensate for the sharpness of the valve combinations 1–3 and 1–2–3 (4 replaces 1–3, 2–4 replaces 1–2–3). All three normal valves may be used in addition to the fourth to increase the instrument's range downwards by a perfect fourth, although with increasingly severe intonation problems.

When four-valved models without any kind of compensation play in the corresponding register, the sharpness becomes so severe that players must finger the note a half-step below the one they are trying to play. This eliminates the note a half-step above their open fundamental.

Compensation system

In the Compensation system, each of the first two (or three) valves has an additional set of tubing extending from the back of the valve. When the third (or fourth) valve is depressed in combination with another one, the air is routed through both the usual set of tubing plus the extra one, so that the pitch is lowered by an appropriate amount. This allows compensating instruments to play with accurate intonation in the octave below their open second partial, which is critical for tubas and euphoniums in much of their repertoire.

The compensating system was applied to horns to serve a different purpose. It was used to allow a double horn in F and B♭ to ease playing difficulties in the high register. In contrast to the system in use in tubas and euphoniums, the default 'side' of the horn is the longer F horn, with secondary lengths of tubing coming into play when the first, second or third valves are pressed; pressing the thumb valve takes these secondary valve slides and the extra length of main tubing out of play to produce a shorter B♭ horn. A later "full double" design has completely separate valve section tubing for the two sides, and is considered superior, although rather heavier in weight.