B♭3 Bassoon Fingering
How to play B♭3 on the bassoon: Flick the B key as the note starts · left hand 1-2-3 · right thumb B♭ key · right hand 1-2.
Filled keys and holes in the diagram are the ones you press or cover, and a part-filled first hole is partly covered — a quarter, a half or three quarters, exactly as the fingering states. The column down the left is the left thumb’s nine keys: the whisper key at the top, then the C♯ key, the three flick keys and the four low keys; a dashed flick key is touched only as the note starts, then released. Below them sit the left pinky’s E♭ and C♯ keys — drawn as two keys, because on the instrument they are two. The columns on the right are the right thumb’s four keys and the right pinky’s three, and the narrow key between the right hand’s second and third holes is the sliver B♭ key.
Hear B♭3 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♭3 fingering, step by step
- Flick the B key with your left thumb as the note starts: touch it for the attack, then let it go while the note keeps sounding. The flick vents the note so it starts cleanly instead of cracking — it is never held down for this note.
- Cover hole 1 with your left index finger.
- Cover hole 2 with your left middle finger.
- Cover hole 3 with your left ring finger. The third left-hand hole is closed by a ring key rather than a plain hole — your finger presses the ring and the pad seals the hole.
- Press the B♭ key with your right thumb — one of the four keys in the right thumb’s own cluster on the boot joint.
- Cover hole 1 with your right index finger.
- Cover hole 2 with your right middle finger.
In short: flick the B key as the note starts · left hand 1-2-3 · right thumb B♭ key · right hand 1-2.
Alternate fingering for B♭3
Flick the B key as the note starts · left hand 1-2-3 · right hand 1-2 · sliver B♭ key.
This version plays B♭ with the sliver B♭ key under the right middle finger instead of the right thumb’s B♭ key. The flicked attack is the same in both — the B flick key starts the note either way.
About B♭3 on the bassoon
The second octave is where the bassoon’s special techniques arrive together. It opens with the three partial-hole notes, where the left index finger covers a quarter, a half and three quarters of its hole; continues through the flick notes, where a thumb key is tapped at the attack and released; and closes with plainer fingerings in which the whisper key quietly retires and the thumb keys take over the work.
B♭3 has two complete routes, and the alternate below is worth learning early: the main fingering takes B♭ on the right thumb’s B♭ key, while the alternate uses the sliver B♭ key under the right middle finger instead — the version to reach for when the right thumb cannot get to its key in time. Both sit on the same flicked attack: the B flick key, dashed in both diagrams, starts the note.
B♭3 is note 25 of the 37 in the full bassoon fingering chart, sitting between A3 below it and B3 above it.
Like every fingering on this site, it was checked against Yamaha’s Musical Instrument Guide bassoon chart, the Woodwind Fingering Guide’s bassoon charts and the First 5 Notes bassoon chart before publishing.
Practising B♭3
Practise the flick as a separate tap: finger A3 silently, tap the A flick key with the thumb, then play the note and flick at the same instant — the thumb should already be hovering over the cluster. For the partial-hole notes, work against a tuner and learn the fractions by feel; your finger cannot watch itself in a fast passage.
Questions about B♭3
What is the fingering for B♭3 on bassoon?
Flick the B key as the note starts · left hand 1-2-3 · right thumb B♭ key · right hand 1-2. B♭3 is a second octave note on the bassoon. The full step-by-step is on this page, and you can hear the note with the Fingering Finder.
What does B♭3 sound like on a bassoon?
Exactly B♭3 — the bassoon is a non-transposing instrument that reads at concert pitch in the bass clef, so written B♭3 sounds as concert B♭3. When your conductor asks for a concert B♭3, this is the note you finger.
Is there an alternate fingering for B♭3?
Yes — Flick the B key as the note starts · left hand 1-2-3 · right hand 1-2 · sliver B♭ key. This version plays B♭ with the sliver B♭ key under the right middle finger instead of the right thumb’s B♭ key. The flicked attack is the same in both — the B flick key starts the note either way.
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