B♭5 Bass Clarinet Fingering
How to play B♭5 on the bass clarinet: Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2 · left pinky E♭/B♭ key.
Filled keys and holes in the diagram are the ones you press or cover. The thumb hole is on the back of the instrument, so it is drawn to the left; the clusters at the bottom are the pinky keys, and the wide key marked "Low E♭" is the bass clarinet's extension key, below the right-hand pinky keys.
Hear B♭5 and try the fingering
Pick an instrument and a note and the diagram updates instantly — filled keys are the ones you press. The same finder sits on every note page, pre-set to that note.
The B♭5 fingering, step by step
- Press the register key with your left thumb.
- Keep the thumb hole covered with your left thumb.
- Left hand: cover holes 1, 2.
- Press the E♭/B♭ key with your left pinky.
In short: register key · thumb · left hand 1-2 · left pinky E♭/B♭ key.
Alternate fingering for B♭5
Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2 · trill key 4.
The trill-key version is the Woodwind Fingering Guide’s basic fingering for this note. It comes into its own in fast passages and trills, where the lever would be slower to reach.
About B♭5 on the bass clarinet
The clarion is the bass clarinet’s singing register. Almost every clarion fingering is a low-register fingering plus the register key — which is why the low register, extension key and all, is worth learning properly first.
B♭5 is note 32 of the 34 in the full bass clarinet fingering chart, sitting between A5 below it and B5 above it.
Doubling from soprano clarinet? This is the same fingering as B♭5 on the clarinet — the Boehm fingerings are shared across the clarinet family, which is why the bass is the standard first double. Like every fingering on this site, it was checked against the Woodwind Fingering Guide's bass clarinet charts and Yamaha's official chart before publishing.
Practising B♭5
If this note squeaks or drops to its low partner, check your left thumb: it must keep the thumb hole covered while its tip presses the register key. Half-covering the hole is the usual culprit, on bass exactly as on soprano.
Questions about B♭5
What is the fingering for B♭5 on bass clarinet?
Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2 · left pinky E♭/B♭ key. B♭5 is a clarion register note on the bass clarinet. The full step-by-step is on this page, and you can hear the note with the Fingering Finder.
What does B♭5 sound like on a bass clarinet?
The bass clarinet is a transposing instrument in B♭ that sounds a major ninth below its written notes, so written B♭5 sounds as concert A♭4. When your band director asks for a concert A♭4, this is the note you finger.
Is there an alternate fingering for B♭5?
Yes — Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2 · trill key 4. The trill-key version is the Woodwind Fingering Guide’s basic fingering for this note. It comes into its own in fast passages and trills, where the lever would be slower to reach.
Think this fingering is wrong? Report it — every report is checked against the source charts.