Recorder
The recorder is a woodwind instrument from the group of duct flutes. The most common sizes are the soprano recorder with the lowest note C5 and the alto recorder with F4. It is written in the treble clef in such a way that the lowest note appears as C4 or F4; the soprano recorder therefore sounds an octave higher than written.
- Family
- woodwind instrument, duct flute
- Soprano recorder
- lowest note C5; written as C4
- Alto recorder
- lowest note F4
- Notation
- treble clef
- Fingering systems
- Baroque and German fingering
A duct flute
The recorder is a woodwind instrument from the group of duct flutes. Unlike on the transverse flute, the player does not have to shape the air stream: a block in the head joint directs the air through a narrow duct onto an edge. On the back there is a thumb hole operated by the left thumb; for the higher notes the thumb covers it only partly.
Sizes and notation
Recorders come in many sizes. The best known are the soprano recorder with the lowest note C5 and the alto recorder with the lowest note F4. Today it is usual to write everything from the smallest recorder up to the tenor recorder in the treble clef, so that the lowest note appears as C4 or F4. For the soprano recorder this means: it sounds an octave higher than written.
Soprano recorder: lowest note, written and sounding
On the left the written C4, on the right the note that actually sounds: C5, an octave higher.
Alto recorder: the range from F4
An F major scale from the lowest note of the alto recorder. On the alto recorder the lowest note appears in the music as F4.
| Size | Lowest note | Written as |
|---|---|---|
| Soprano recorder | C5 | C4 |
| Alto recorder | F4 | F4 |
Baroque and German fingering
For the same size of recorder there are two fingering systems. Among advanced and professional players Baroque fingering is the most widespread. German fingering simplifies the basic scale: it needs no cross-fingering for the fourth degree, but other notes are harder to play in tune. When buying a recorder you should know which fingering is meant.
Common mistakes
- Reading the soprano recorder at sounding pitch: It sounds an octave higher than written.
- Confusing soprano and alto fingerings: On the alto recorder the lowest note is F4, not C5; so the fingerings lie differently.
- Mixing fingering systems: Baroque and German fingering differ for some notes.
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Related terms
Concert flutePiccoloCross-fingeringFinger holeTreble clefOctaveBaroqueTransposition
Editor: Maik Krohm · reviewed on 4 October 2026
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