Taking music from concert key to Bb and Eb or from Bb to Eb/Eb to Bb can be a little bit tricky or somewhat confusing if you do a few of those things.
Personally, I have mostly played tenor sax, but I play a little alto and have tried alto and bari.
The tenor saxophone and soprano saxophone are both in Bb. So if you have music in concert key and you’re playing tenor/soprano, you just have to go up a whole step since Bb is a whole step below C.
The alto saxophone and baritone saxophones are in Eb. So you can either go down a minor third or up a major sixth. Eb is a minor third above C.
The keys of Bb and Eb are a perfect fourth apart.
A few examples
Concert C = D for tenor/soprano = A for alto/bari.
Concert Bb = C for tenor/soprano = G for alto/bari.
Concert Eb = F for tenor/soprano = C for alto/bari.
Advice please: wanting to create a harmony between tenor &alto on blues riffs. Asked the alto to play my tenor notes and it sounded good, is this technically correct. What is happening in interval terms. I know that a tenor playing up a 3rd against another tenor is good. Thanks in anticipation. Louis
Hey Louis,
An alto and a tenor will be a fourth apart. So if you were playing a concert Eb on tenor it would be an F and if the alto sax also played an F, that would be a concert Ab. The two notes would be Eb and Ab (concert)…. Probably not the best harmony for all situations, but you say you liked how it sounded for the song you were playing?
That’s really helpful, many thanks.
Louis
I appreciate the explanation as well. Thanks!