B4 Clarinet Fingering
How to play B4 on the clarinet: Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2-3 · right hand 1-2-3 · left pinky E key.
Filled keys and holes in the diagram are the ones you press or cover. The thumb hole is on the back of the clarinet, so it is drawn to the left; the small cluster at the bottom is the pinky keys.
Hear B4 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 B4 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, 3.
- Right hand: cover holes 1, 2, 3.
- Press the E key with your left pinky.
In short: register key · thumb · left hand 1-2-3 · right hand 1-2-3 · left pinky E key.
Alternate fingering for B4
Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2-3 · right hand 1-2-3 · right pinky E key.
Use whichever little finger the notes around it leave free — the alternate exists so you never have to slide a pinky between two keys in a fast passage.
About B4 on the clarinet
The clarion is the clarinet’s bright, singing register. Almost every clarion fingering is a low-register fingering plus the register key — which is why the low register is worth learning properly first.
B4 is the first note of the clarion register — the note on the other side of the break. Its fingering is low E’s fingering plus the register key: the same fingers, sounding a twelfth higher.
B4 is note 20 of the 42 in the full clarinet fingering chart, sitting between B♭4 below it and C5 above it. Like every fingering on this site, it was checked against Yamaha’s official chart and the Woodwind Fingering Guide before publishing.
Practising B4
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.
Questions about B4
What is the fingering for B4 on clarinet?
Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2-3 · right hand 1-2-3 · left pinky E key. B4 is a clarion register note. The full step-by-step is on this page, and you can hear the note with the Fingering Finder.
What does B4 sound like on a clarinet?
The clarinet is a transposing instrument in B♭, so written B4 sounds one whole step lower, as concert A4. When your band director asks for a concert A4, this is the note you finger.
Is there an alternate fingering for B4?
Yes — Register key · thumb · left hand 1-2-3 · right hand 1-2-3 · right pinky E key. Use whichever little finger the notes around it leave free — the alternate exists so you never have to slide a pinky between two keys in a fast passage.
Think this fingering is wrong? Report it — every report is checked against the source charts.