Alto, tenor, soprano, baritone: same fingerings, so what is different?
How the saxophone types differ: sound and size, which one to start on, and why written notes and sounding notes differ (E♭ and B♭ instruments).
Four sizes of saxophone are common. The good news: the fingerings are all the same. What you learn on alto works on tenor right away.
| Type | Sound | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Soprano | Highest and brightest | Often straight. Tuning is tricky, so it is not ideal to start on. |
| Alto | Middle, smooth | Light, with keys close together: the most common first sax. |
| Tenor | Lower and fuller than alto | A jazz favorite. Bigger and heavier than alto. |
| Baritone | Lowest | Large and heavy, mostly used in ensembles. |
Same music, different sound
- On saxophone, the written note and the note you hear differ by instrument. The same written C with the same fingering sounds at a different pitch on alto and tenor.
- Alto and baritone are E♭ instruments; tenor and soprano are B♭ instruments.
- That is why playing straight from piano music sounds wrong. You need music written for saxophone.
On FingerNola
Choose your sax in the instrument picker and the playback, the backing and the "sounds as" pitches on the chart all follow it. The music and fingerings stay the same.