ALTO Sax Major scale Fingering

Compilation
By SAYANI BIDOLF NFOR

Something that many saxophone fingering charts fail to address is the names that key groupings are
regularly referred to by. Groups of keys have names. I’ve provided a saxophone fingering chart key
that labels the key groupings. This will give you an idea of what someone is referring to when they
talk about the “palm keys” or the “spatula keys” or the “side keys”. In addition, certain individual keys
have names they’re referred to by as well. To distinguish alternate fingerings, certain keys are
referred to as the “bis key” or the “front F key”.

Alternate Fingerings
Most notes on the saxophone have only one viable fingering. As stated above, the fingerings on the
provided saxophone fingering chart are, for the most part, in order of preference. Where there is
more than one fingering listed, the fingerings are listed in order of which is utilized more often. For
the most part, when there is a second fingering listed, it is a fingering that’s used for trills or for fast
chromatic passages. Since most fingering charts come with little or no explanation, I’ve decided to
provide a brief explanation of scenarios when you would use one of the alternate fingerings in place
of the main fingering.

 Bb/A# Fingerings: I made a point above of stating that the fingerings on the provided
saxophone fingering chart are “for the most part” in order of utilization. Bb/A# is one of two
exceptions to this rule. The two fingerings for Bb/A# are used pretty much equally; 50/50.
The side key is useful when playing in a key with A#, such as F# or B, where you’ll be going
from A# to B a lot. The bis key is useful when playing in keys with Bb, such as F and Bb,
where you won’t really be playing B. This is, of course, a huge oversimplification, but a good
rule of thumb. There are two more fingerings for Bb/A# that I’ve intentionally left off of my
fingering chart. The “1+1” fingering and the “1+2” fingering are included on many other
fingering charts, but I don’t think they’re good for beginners to use. In fact, I don’t really think
they’re good for anyone to use. I use them 0% of the time, and most people I’ve met or
played with do the same. Bb/A# with these fingerings have little resonance and poor
intonation on most horns. When you become a more advanced player, you can decide if they
work well for you, but for now, it’s probably best to use the main two fingerings.

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  Side Keys (Side C and Side F#/Gb): In addition to the side Bb/A# key, there are also side
keys for C and F#/Gb. The side C key isn’t the most resonant or in tune. It doesn’t sound
nearly as good as the main C fingering, but definitely has a purpose. It’s useful when playing
a B trill, when playing a chromatic scale, or when playing certain fast passages like the
example provided. The side F#/Gb key is similar, although it’s used a little more often. Its
resonance and intonation is actually pretty good, at least on my horns. It’s useful when
playing an F-to-F# trill, a chromatic scale, or fast passages like the example provided. It’s
also useful when playing an F# major scale or Db major scale, or any scale that has F to
F#/Gb in it.

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G# Fingerings: One of the spatula keys is the “G# key”, but it’s helpful to know that any spatula key
can be used to play G#. Knowing this can make certain passages a little easier or a little more fluid.
If you need to play low B to G#, you can use the B spatula key to finger G#, requiring less movement.
In keys with both G# and C# (such as A, E, B, F#, Db, Ab), I usually keep my pinky on the C#
spatula key the whole time. I probably use the C# spatula key to finger G# just as often as I use the
G# key, if not more often. It’s also good to know that you can leave the G# key, or any spatula keys,
down the whole time you’re playing. This makes certain passages easier. I often joke that this is the
saxophone’s improvement over the clarinet and flute. On those instruments, you cannot leave this
fingering down when playing other notes.

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  High F Fingerings: High F is the other “for the most part” exception. The two high F
fingerings are, like the Bb/A# fingerings, used pretty equally, depending on the situation. The
main F fingering sounds a bit better than the front F fingering, but doesn’t work as well in
certain situations. The front F fingering is useful when playing an F arpeggio. It also becomes
very useful when playing in the altissimo register. I think of it as the “gateway” into the
altissimo register. But, that’s more of an advanced concept. Similarly, there is a fingering for
high E, which is this fingering plus your left hand ring finger.

The provided saxophone fingering chart is in no way an exhaustive resource. Even the alternate and
extra fingerings just explained don’t provide a full list of possible saxophone fingerings. The
fingerings on the provided saxophone fingering chart will most likely be the fingerings you use 90-
100% of the time. However, with time and experience, you may figure out some more possible
alternate fingerings that work well for you.

Most other fingerings you will figure out will just be slight adjustments to the fingerings on the
provided chart. Adding certain keys to the main basic fingerings can slightly change intonation,
timbre, or resonance. The high F# on my tenor saxophone runs a little flat, so I add the Bb spatula
key whenever I can to bring it in tune. You may find that certain notes on your particular horn benefit
from adding other keys in some situations. Other fingerings provide enough of a timbre difference
that it sounds as though a note was reattached. This is an effect you can use, a la Brecker, with
certain notes, such as middle Bb, B, C, C#, high G, etc.

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Conclusion
It is beneficial to have a good saxophone fingering chart, especially for beginning saxophone
students. The chart I’ve provided is intuitive, accurate, concise, and precise, but is in no way
exhaustive. Over time, you would develop a feel for what is comfortable for you. Just remember,
what is comfortable at the moment is not always what’s ultimately best. It’s easy to call a bad habit
the easiest option. In other words, a new fingering is naturally more difficult than what you’ve
become used to, but getting past the initial learning curve will make the new fingering ultimately
more efficient. You should also keep in mind that the information provided in this article is my opinion.
From my experience, I also believe that it’s the most popular opinion on the subject, but it’s not the
only one. Some saxophone players use the “1+1” fingering as their main Bb fingering. Most people
I’ve talked to about it don’t. I also know that the “1+1” fingering sounds absolutely terrible on my
particular horns. Maybe it sounds good on your horn. These are things that will develop over time.
This saxophone fingering chart is simply a good resource to have on hand when you are learning
play the saxophone.

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MAJOR SCALES

START - FULL – FULL – HALF – FULL – FULL – FULL – HALF

START - 1 - 1 - ½ - 1 - 1 - 1 - 1/2

C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C, Major scales
C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C
C D E F G A B C
C# D# F F# G# A# C C#
D E F# G A B C# D
D# F G G# A# C D D#
E F# G# A B C# D# E
F G A A# C D E F
F# G# A# B C# D# F F#
G A B C D E F# G
G# A# C C# D# F G G#
A B C# D E F# G# A
A# C D D# F G A A#
B C# D# E F# G# A# B
C D E F G A B C

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C
C D E F G A B C

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 C D E F G A B C

C#
C# D# F F# G# A# C C#

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D
D E F# G A B C# D

D#
D# F G G# A# C D D#

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E
E F# G# A B C# D# E

F
F G A A# C D E F

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F#
F# G# A# B C# D# F F#

G
G A B C D E F# G

G#
G# A# C C# D# F G G#

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A
A B C# D E F# G# A

A#
A# C D D# F G A A#

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B
B C# D# E F# G# A# B

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The Saxophone Range

Below is the saxophone fingering chart. Whether you play an alto saxophone, tenor
saxophone or any others, the range is the same for all saxophone, therefor, the saxophone
fingering chart shown below applies to every type of saxophone. The lowest note is B flat
and goes up 2 and one half octaves to the top F. Everything above that top F is called
the altissimo range which can be learned after you have really good control over the
normal range.
Other instruments that have similar fingering systems are the clarinet and especially the
flute. Those who come to the saxophone from those instruments will find the sax
fingering system very easy to learn.

The fingering is the same for the whole saxophone family, the two most
popular ones being the alto and the tenor:
 sopranino
 soprano
 alto
 C melody
 tenor
 baritone
 bass
 contra bass

Are You Confused Why a Note played on a Tenor Sounds Different Than
the Same Note Played on an Alto?
If you have an alto and you play your C, then pick up a tenor and play that same C the
notes are note the same. Why? because the saxophone is a “Transposing Instrument”
which means because of the way it’s built; size, design etc, they will produce different
pitches, even though we’re fingering the exact same note.
For a detailed explanation on this please check out one of my other blog posts Saxophone
Keys ExplaNATION.

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 Top Notes (left hand)
The very top key marked OK
stands for Octave Key. All
saxophones have a thumb rest
right below it and it is pressed
using your thumb as required.
The next key marked X is for an
alternate fingering which you
will learn in another lesson.
Next is the key marked 1. This is
your index finger.
Next is the key marked 2. This is
for your middle finger.
Next is the key marked 3. This is
for your 3rd finger.
Below that is the cluster, which
consists of 4 notes, all of which
are pressed using your pinky
finger.
Top Side Keys
The D side key is pressed with
the palm of your hand right
below your index finger.
The Eb key is pressed with your
index finger.
The F key is pressed with your
3rd finger.

Bottom Notes (right hand)

The key marked 4 is for your index finger.
The key marked 5 is for your middle finger.
The key marked 6 is for your 3rd finger.
Below that are the 2 half moon-shaped keys which are pressed using your pinky finger.
Bottom Side Keys
The 3 side keys, E, C, and Eb are all pressed with your index finger.
The side F# key is pressed with your 3rd finger.

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