Trombone note chart and positions professional#

After some early introductions of the instrument into the orchestra by Baroque and Classical composers, the Romantics settled on a group of three trombones, the alto, tenor, and bass trombones. For that, read on!įirst, let’s go back to the modern orchestral trombone’s beginnings. The average orchestrator may just stop right here and move on – but that won’t really give them any justifications for accepting the above advice in an argument, nor the tools for using it in a knowledgeable way. The tenor clef remains a useful resource for trombone, but it must be applied as an indication of register, rather than just to save ledger lines.

Trombone note chart and positions professional#

Any trombonist at the full-time professional level had better be able to read and play tenor clef instinctively and without complaining.The trombone is basically a tenor-range instrument, which only recently has been trending toward a lower spectrum of tones.But before I get into it, let me give you the tl:dr version: There’s a spectrum of history and craft that must be absorbed before one can honestly decide whether the tenor clef should be utilised or annihilated. Though I greatly empathise with these perspectives, I find them more revealing of the trombone’s recent evolution than necessarily useful advice. This viewpoint is sometimes backed up by personal experience as a trombonist – in their view, they didn’t need to use it and when they did, it was a bother. The reasons cited for this point of view are usually a.) that the bass clef is good enough, and b.) the player isn’t bothered by a few high ledger lines. Many professional-level composers with band or semipro orchestra experience will dismiss it peremptorily, even suggest its use be abolished. Few topics on the Orchestration Online Facebook page have incited more controversy and strong feelings than the use of the tenor clef for trombones.