transposing

[Dom]

Transposing? How to transpose with guitar esp. or with any other instrument? If I play an alto sax and the guitar is in what key? How do we play a song together? If we are reading out of an Ambersold book for the E-flat key song then does the guitar transpose it for his key?
Transposing is confusing could someone explain how this works? :?

[Ritchie]

There is such a thing as a concert key, which is the standard relative to which the "transposing instruments" are transposing. Concert key instruments are e.g. the piano, all C-Instruments like C-Flute, C-Melody horns, almost all string instruments like bass, cello, viola, violin, and guitar (at least in the standard tuning). "C-instrument" means the C played on the instrument sounds in the pitch of C in concert key.

Most woodwinds and brass are transposing instruments. Alto sax is an Eb instrument, which means if you play a C on an alto sax, its pitch is Eb in concert key. If you play from the same sheet as a guitar player who uses standard tuning, either you have to transpose three half steps down (which adds three sharps for you) or the guitar player has to transpose three half steps up (which adds three flats for the guitar).

If you want to be more precise, the guitar is a transposing instrument, too, because it transposes one octave down. A note on the guitar sounds one octave lower than it is written. But a C is still a C then, and you usually need not worry about this.

If you want to play the Eb-parts from an Aebersold book with guitar reading from the same page, the easiest thing would be that the guitar player transposes three half steps up using a capo at the the third fret. Or you guitar player could read the C parts, you read the Eb parts, and everything is fine.

Hope this helps!

[Dom]

Thank-You for replying to my question about transposing. This does help and I will print this and show it to the guitarist.