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NoteAtlas

Low E on the Tenor Saxophone

To play Low E (E4) on tenor sax: Left hand: 1, 2, 3 · Right hand: 4, 5.

Full chart
BackPalm keysLeft handSide keysL pinky tableRight handR pinkyOctave key: openOctFront F key: openfFPalm D key: openDPalm E♭ key: openE♭Palm F key: openFLeft index key: pressed1Bis key: openbisLeft middle key: pressed2Left ring key: pressed3Side E key: openESide C key: openCSide B♭ key: openB♭Left pinky G♯ key: openG♯Left pinky low C♯ key: openC♯Left pinky low B key: openBLeft pinky low B♭ key: openB♭Right index key: pressed4Right middle key: pressed5Right ring key: open6High F♯ key: openF♯Right pinky low E♭ key: openE♭Right pinky low C key: openC
Now showingBeginner note
Low EE4
Left hand: 1, 2, 3 · Right hand: 4, 5
Written
E4
Sounds
D3
E4 on the treble staff

Play along: hear the note for 2 beats, then you play it for 2.

Press or cover
  • Left index key
  • Left middle key
  • Left ring key
  • Right index key
  • Right middle key
Tip · Low E

Low E is steady on tenor, so if it keeps flipping up an octave the left thumb is almost certainly brushing the octave key.

B♭3Low B♭B3Low BC4Low CC♯4Low C♯D4Low DE♭4Low E♭E4Low EF4Low FF♯4Low F♯G4G♯4A4B♭4B4C5C♯5D5E♭5E5F5F♯5G5G♯5A5B♭5B5C6C♯6D6High DE♭6High E♭E6High EF6High FF♯6High F♯
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Speed72BPM
Tip · Low E

Low E is steady on tenor, so if it keeps flipping up an octave the left thumb is almost certainly brushing the octave key.

Sound and display

Next moves

Previous noteLow E♭Left hand: 1, 2, 3 · Right hand: 4, 5, 6 + right little-finger low E♭ keyNext noteLow FLeft hand: 1, 2, 3 · Right hand: 4Full chartAll 33 tenor sax notesThe whole fingering chartScaleConcert B♭ majorWritten C major, fingering under every noteTrainerNote trainerRead treble clef notesPrintPrintable PDFLetter · A4 · blank

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Written and sounding pitch, and how the note works

About this note

Low E is written E4 and sounds concert D3.

Lift the right ring finger from low D. Low E is steady on tenor, so if it keeps flipping up an octave the left thumb is almost certainly brushing the octave key.

  • Primary fingering: Left index key + Left middle key + Left ring key + Right index key + Right middle key
  • Written pitch: E4 · Concert pitch: D3
  • Sounding frequency: 146.83 Hz

What to press, key by key

  • Left index key
  • Left middle key
  • Left ring key
  • Right index key
  • Right middle key

Questions

How do you play Low E on tenor sax?

To play Low E (E4) on tenor sax: Left hand: 1, 2, 3 · Right hand: 4, 5. Low E is written E4 and sounds concert D3. Press: Left index key, Left middle key, Left ring key, Right index key, Right middle key.

Is Low E written or concert pitch?

The name on this page is the written note you read. On B♭ tenor sax it sounds concert D3.

Tenor Saxophone 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.