Playing range

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The playing range of a musical instrument is the region of pitch in which it can play, i.e. upper and lower boundaries of the notes it can play. Its designated range is the set of notes the player should or can achieve while playing. All instruments have a designated range, and all pitched instruments have a playing range.

"Range" sometimes refers just to the size of the range, as in "A horn has a greater range than a trumpet."

While most woodwind instruments have no upper limit to their range, they generally cannot go below their designated range. This is not the case for brass instruments. All brass instruments can play beyond their designated ranges. Notes lower than the brass instrument's designated range are called pedal tones; notes higher than the designated range are called screech notes. The playing range of a brass instrument depends on both the technical limitations of the instrument and the skill of the player.

While woodwind and brass instruments can play above (and in the case of brass instruments) below their designated ranges, it is not often called upon in classical arrangements. It is extremely rare for musicians to play the extremes of their instruments. The most common exception is that of trombones. Bass trombones are occasionally asked to play pedal tones.

[edit] Typical ranges