Euphonium

B♭3 on the Euphonium

Written B♭3. Tap the diagram to hear it.

B♭3
4th partialBeginner note
Written B♭3 on the bass staff

B♭3 is an open note on the 4th partial: no valves down, so the lip alone picks the slot. With no valves down the tuning is honest, which makes it a useful note to tune against. This is the heart of the euphonium's range — the most comfortable notes for tuning and long tones.

About this note

B♭3 is an open note on the 4th partial: no valves down, so the lip alone picks the slot. With no valves down the tuning is honest, which makes it a useful note to tune against. This is the heart of the euphonium's range — the most comfortable notes for tuning and long tones.

  • Primary fingering: Open (no valves)
  • Written pitch: B♭3
  • Sounding frequency: 233.08 Hz
  • Harmonic partial: 4 — the valves set the tube length, but your air and embouchure select the partial.

Alternate fingerings for B♭3

  • 2-3: Valves 2 + 3. A 5th-partial fingering for the same pitch, useful where an open note would break a slur.

Euphonium fingering data last updated . Every diagram here, in the printable PDF and in the chart image comes from one dataset, so the paper and the screen cannot disagree.