High C on the Soprano Recorder
To play High C (C6) on recorder: Left hand: half thumb, 1 · Right hand: 4, 5.
Play along: hear the note for 2 beats, then you play it for 2.
- Thumb hole (half covered)
- Hole 1 (left index)
- Hole 4 (right index)
- Hole 5 (right middle)
High C is the top note most school music asks for, and it needs fast, focused air behind a narrow thumb pinch; volume will not help. A harder, more forward tongue on the attack stops it slipping back a register.
High C is the top note most school music asks for, and it needs fast, focused air behind a narrow thumb pinch; volume will not help. A harder, more forward tongue on the attack stops it slipping back a register.
Sound and display
Next moves
Teaching a class? Class mode keeps Stand mode and Test me on the notes your class is learning (B, A, G).
More for advanced players
The thumb pinch · Air, not volume · When it will not come out
About this note
High C is written C6 and sounds concert C7.
Pinched thumb with holes 1, 4 and 5 only — left-hand fingers 2 and 3 both come off. High C is the top note most school music asks for, and it needs fast, focused air behind a narrow thumb pinch; volume will not help. A harder, more forward tongue on the attack stops it slipping back a register.
- Primary fingering: Thumb hole (half) + Hole 1 (left index) + Hole 4 (right index) + Hole 5 (right middle)
- Written pitch: C6 · Concert pitch: C7
- Sounding frequency: 2093.00 Hz
What to press, key by key
- Thumb hole (half covered)
- Hole 1 (left index)
- Hole 4 (right index)
- Hole 5 (right middle)
The thumb pinch
High C is a top-register note, so the thumb hole is only partly covered. Bend the left thumb so its nail presses into the hole and leaves a small gap at the top — the pinch. The size of that gap is what lets the upper notes speak, and keeping it the same every time is most of the skill.
With the pinch in place, lift left-hand fingers 2 and 3 and keep holes 1, 4 and 5 covered. Check the covered holes are sealed with the pads of the fingers; a tiny leak anywhere stops high C before the air does.
Air, not volume
Top-register recorder notes need fast, focused air — but not loud air. Think of blowing a narrow, quick stream rather than a big one. A firm tongue on the attack (a crisp “t”) helps the note start in the right register instead of sliding back down.
Practice by slurring up from notes you already have: E5 to high C, then G5 to high C, keeping the thumb pinch the same and changing only the fingers and the air speed.
When it will not come out
A shriek or a squeal usually means too much air; a note that falls back to a lower register means the pinch is too closed or the air is too slow. If nothing sounds clean, look for leaks — the double holes 6 and 7 and the thumb are the usual culprits.
Recorders differ a little in how they like their top notes. If your instrument came with its own chart, use it alongside this one.
Questions
How do you play High C on recorder?
To play High C (C6) on recorder: Left hand: half thumb, 1 · Right hand: 4, 5. High C is written C6 and sounds concert C7. Press: Thumb hole (half covered), Hole 1 (left index), Hole 4 (right index), Hole 5 (right middle).
Is High C written or concert pitch?
The name on this page is the written note you read. On C recorder it sounds concert C7.
Soprano Recorder 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.