Range (music)

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In music, the range of a musical instrument is the distance from the lowest to the highest pitch it can play. For a singing voice, this is known as vocal range.

The range of a musical part is the distance between its lowest and highest note. The duration range is the difference between the shortest and longest rhythm used.

Dynamic range is the difference between the quietest and loudest volume of an instrument, part or piece of music.

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.

While some woodwind instruments have no theoretical upper limit to their range (although they often have practical limits), 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. String musicians play the bottom of their ranges very frequently, but the top of a string instrument's range is rather fuzzy, and it is unusual for a string player to exceed the designated range. It is quite rare for wind 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

<timeline> ImageSize = width:700 height:auto barincrement:17 PlotArea = left:0 right:0 top:0 bottom:0 AlignBars = justify Colors =

 id:b value:rgb(0.85,0.85,0.85) # instruments
 id:f value:gray(0.8)      # background bar
 id:heading value:rgb(0.1,1,0.4) #
 id:subhead value:rgb(0.5,1,1) # 

BarData =

 bar:pitch
 bar:Hz
 barset:ranges
 bar:pitch2
 bar:Hz2

Period = from:0 till:720 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal

Define $cc2 = 2 Define $cc1 = 74 Define $cc = 146 Define $c = 218 Define $c1 = 290 Define $c2 = 362 Define $c3 = 434 Define $c4 = 506 Define $c5 = 578 Define $c6 = 650 Define $dd2 = 14 Define $dd1 = 86 Define $dd = 158 Define $d = 230 Define $d1 = 302 Define $d2 = 374 Define $d3 = 446 Define $d4 = 518 Define $d5 = 590 Define $ee2 = 26 Define $ee1 = 98 Define $ee = 170 Define $e = 242 Define $e1 = 314 Define $e2 = 386 Define $e3 = 458 Define $e4 = 530 Define $e5 = 602 Define $ff2 = 32 Define $ff1 = 104 Define $ff = 176 Define $f = 248 Define $f1 = 320 Define $f2 = 392 Define $f3 = 464 Define $f4 = 536 Define $f5 = 608 Define $gg2 = 44 Define $gg1 = 116 Define $gg = 188 Define $g = 260 Define $g1 = 332 Define $g2 = 404 Define $g3 = 476 Define $g4 = 548 Define $g5 = 620 Define $aa2 = 56 Define $aa1 = 128 Define $aa = 200 Define $a = 272 Define $a1 = 344 Define $a2 = 416 Define $a3 = 488 Define $a4 = 560 Define $a5 = 632 Define $hh2 = 68 Define $hh1 = 140 Define $hh = 212 Define $h = 284 Define $h1 = 356 Define $h2 = 428 Define $h3 = 500 Define $h4 = 572 Define $h5 = 644

Define $max = 650 PlotData=

 align:center textcolor:black fontsize:10 mark:(line,black) width:12 shift:(0,-4)
 barset:ranges
 color:heading from:$ee  till:$c3  text:human voice
 color:b from:$ee  till:$e1  text:bass
 color:b from:$aa  till:$a1  text:baritone
 color:b from:$c   till:$c2  text:tenor
 color:b from:$e   till:$e2  text:alto
 color:b from:$a   till:$a2  text:mezzo-soprano
 color:b from:$c1  till:$c3  text:soprano
 color:heading from:$aa2 till:$c5  text:string instrument
 color:subhead from:$ee1 till:$d4  text:instruments whose strings are usually bowed
 color:b from:$ee1 till:$a   text:double bass
 color:b from:$cc  till:$g2  text:cello
 color:b from:$c   till:$e3  text:viola
 color:b from:$g   till:$d4  text:violin
 color:subhead from:$hh2 till:$f4  text:instruments whose strings are usually plucked
 color:b from:$hh2 till:$f4  text:harp
 color:b from:$ff1 till:$f3  text:harpsichord
 color:b from:$ee  till:$e3  text:guitar
 color:b from:$g   till:$d4  text:mandolin
 color:b from:$d   till:$a2  text:5-string banjo
 color:subhead from:$aa2 till:$c5  text:instruments whose strings are usually struck
 color:b from:$aa2 till:$c5  text:piano
 color:b from:$d till:$d3  text:hammered dulcimer
 color:b from:$aa2 till:$a4  text:cymbalum
 color:heading from:$cc2 till:$c6  text:woodwind instrument
 color:subhead from:$aa2 till:$f3  text:double reed
 color:b from:$aa2 till:$f   text:contrabassoon
 color:b from:$aa1 till:$d2  text:bassoon
 color:b from:$e   till:$h2  text:cor anglais
 color:b from:$a   till:$f3  text:oboe
 color:subhead from:$cc2 till:$c4  text:single reed
 color:b from:$cc2 till:$g text: octocontrabass clarinet*
 color:b from:$aa2 till:$g1 text:contrabass clarinet
 color:b from:$gg1 till:$d1  text:bass saxophone
 color:b from:$aa1 till:$g2  text:bass clarinet
 color:b from:$cc  till:$g1  text:baritone sax
 color:b from:$gg  till:$e2  text:tenor saxophone
 color:b from:$c   till:$a2  text:alto saxophone
 color:b from:$d   till:$g3  text:clarinet
 color:b from:$g   till:$d3  text:soprano saxophone
 color:b from:$g   till:$c4  text:sopranino clarinet
 color:b from:$c1  till:$c4  text:xaphoon
 color:subhead from:$cc  till:$d4  text:free reed
 color:b from:$cc  till:$c4  text:harmonium
 color:b from:$gg  till:$a3  text:accordion
 color:b from:$c   till:$d4  text:16-hole harmonica
 color:b from:$c1  till:$c4  text:typical C harmonica
 color:subhead from:$c   till:$c5  text:transverse flute
 color:b from:$c   till:$c3  text:bass flute
 color:b from:$g   till:$g3  text:alto flute
 color:b from:$c1  till:$c4  text:flute
 color:b from:$c2  till:$c5  text:piccolo
 color:subhead from:$f   till:$c5  text:fipple flute
 color:b from:$f   till:$c3  text:bass recorder
 color:b from:$c1  till:$g3  text:tenor recorder
 color:b from:$f1  till:$c4  text:alto recorder
 color:b from:$c2  till:$g4  text:soprano (descant) recorder
 color:b from:$f2  till:$c5  text:sopranino recorder
 color:subhead from:$cc2 till:$c6  text:combination of flutes and reeds
 color:b from:$cc2 till:$c6  text:organ
 color:heading from:$ee1 till:$c3  text:brass instrument
 color:b from:$ee1 till:$d1  text:tuba
 color:b from:$aa1 till:$d2  text:trombone
 color:b from:$aa1 till:$e2  text:horn
 color:b from:$e   till:$c3  text:trumpet
 color:b from:$e   till:$c3  text:cornet
 color:heading from:$cc  till:$c5  text:percussion
 color:subhead from:$cc  till:$c1  text:membranophone
 color:b from:$cc  till:$c1  text:timpani
 color:subhead from:$cc  till:$c5  text:idiophone
 color:b from:$cc  till:$c4  text:marimba
 color:b from:$c   till:$f1  text:tubular bells
 color:b from:$c   till:$c5  text:celesta
 color:b from:$f   till:$f3  text:vibraphone
 color:b from:$f1  till:$c5  text:xylophone
 color:b from:$g2  till:$c5  text:glockenspiel
 color:f textcolor:blue align:left fontsize:S mark:(line,white) shift:(3,-4)
 
 bar:pitch 
 from:0 till:$max
 at:$cc2  text:C0
 at:$cc1  text:C1
 at:$cc   text:C2
 at:$c    text:C3
 at:$c1   text:C4
 at:$c2   text:C5
 at:$c3   text:C6
 at:$c4   text:C7
 at:$c5   text:C8___Note
 bar:Hz
 from:0 till:$max
 at:23    text:20
 at:65    text:30
 at:105   text:44
 at:153   text:70
 at:190   text:100
 at:232   text:150
 at:262   text:200
 at:304   text:300
 at:344   text:440
 at:392   text:700
 at:430   text:1000
 at:472   text:1500
 at:502   text:2000
 at:544   text:3000
 at:583   text:4400 Hz
 bar:pitch2 # exact copy of bar:pitch 
 from:0 till:$max
 at:$cc2  text:C0
 at:$cc1  text:C1
 at:$cc   text:C2
 at:$c    text:C3
 at:$c1   text:C4
 at:$c2   text:C5
 at:$c3   text:C6
 at:$c4   text:C7
 at:$c5   text:C8___Note
 bar:Hz2 # exact copy of bar:Hz 
 from:0 till:$max
 at:23    text:20
 at:65    text:30
 at:105   text:44
 at:153   text:70
 at:190   text:100
 at:232   text:150
 at:262   text:200
 at:304   text:300
 at:344   text:440
 at:392   text:700
 at:430   text:1000
 at:472   text:1500
 at:502   text:2000
 at:544   text:3000
 at:583   text:4400 Hz

</timeline>

*This chart displays only to a low C, though the octocontrabass clarinet extends down to at least a low A.

pl:Skale instrumentów muzycznych sv:Mall:Röst och instrumentomfångeo:Tonetendo es:Rango (música) fr:Tessiture he:מנעד ko:음역 nl:Ambitus no:Register (musikk) pl:Skale instrumentów muzycznych

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