I am working towards Grade 5 theory, and in the practice test it says `transpose this tune down a perfect fifth, so it is in concert pitch.` What? My teacher said the clarinet is a transposing instrument, so I thought I`d ask u clarinet experts why they do that? Why play music five notes lower in concerts? Why don`t all instruments do that? Thank u.

A c on the clarinet is equivalent a d in concert pitch.

Why? Why can`t u just play it like normal. I must get very confusing.

A transposing instrument just plays in one key and sounds in another.By the same token other instruments don`t have to transpose because the key the music is written in is the key the instrument will sound in. For instance, if I played a C major scale on my clarinet(a Bb clarinet), it would actually sound like a Bb major scale, and the same would go for trumpets. Meaning the equivalent of a C on a clarinet is Bb, not D, if you`re talking about the most common type of clarinet(Bb), that is.

And Argentina was wrong...the B-flat clarinet`s C is the same as a concert B-flat. So like, a french horn, which is in F, their C would be the concert F pitch. Get it?

Yeah im pretty sad, i`ve even done my gr 5 theory and got a distinction. Yeah i meant the other way, like a C in concert pitch is a D on the clarinet. Like the A clarinet was made for ease of key signatures. Thats why, if i remember correctly...i did my theory a while ago.. the a clarinet was made. They have dif clarinets to ease playing. But im not sure if i really answered ur question, sorry.

Thank u. I sort of get it now.

Clarinets was made in many different keys so if a piece was in A-major you would play an a-clarinet not having to think about those pesky little # and so on. Both an a clarinet and a b clarinet and a c clarinet is played in the same way if you see a c on the sheet so the musician don`t have to think about that either. If it wasn`t like that, if a concert c instead was written on the sheet and not transposed you would, indeed, be very, very confused changing between the different instruments since the concert c is not the same on the different instruments. That is why you transpose.