B2 Euphonium Fingering
How to play B2 on the euphonium: Valves 1 + 2 + 3 pressed. — on the 3rd partial, in bass clef, sounding exactly as written. The baritone horn plays this note with exactly the same fingering.
Filled valves in the diagram are the ones you press. Valve 1 is nearest you and is worked by your right index finger, valve 2 by the middle finger, and valve 3 — nearest the bell — by the ring finger. These are three-valve fingerings for the B♭ euphonium; the staff is in bass clef, and in bass clef the euphonium sounds exactly as written. The same fingering serves the baritone horn, and a treble-clef player will find this note written as C♯4.
Hear B2 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 B2 fingering, step by step
- Press valve 1 with your right index finger — press it straight down, all the way, with the pad of the finger. The three valves sit under the right hand on both euphonium and baritone horn.
- Press valve 2 with your right middle finger — press it straight down, all the way, with the pad of the finger. The three valves sit under the right hand on both euphonium and baritone horn.
- Press valve 3 with your right ring finger — press it straight down, all the way, with the pad of the finger. The three valves sit under the right hand on both euphonium and baritone horn.
- Keep the fingers you are not using curved and resting lightly on their valve caps, ready for the next note.
- This combination (valves 1 and 3 together) runs sharp, because two shorter valve slides added together always come up short. Lip the note down a little — and if your instrument has a fourth valve, this is exactly the fingering the fourth valve replaces: play valve 4 alone instead. On a compensating euphonium the extra tubing corrects this note automatically when the fourth valve is used.
- All three valves together is the longest and sharpest-playing combination on the instrument. Lip it down and give it slow, warm air — or, on a four-valve instrument, play valves 2 + 4 instead, which is the in-tune version of the same tube length.
In short: valves 1 + 2 + 3 pressed.
About B2 on the euphonium
The low register runs from the 2nd partial (B♭2, open) through the 3rd partial’s ladder (B2 up to F3). These notes want slow, warm air and a relaxed, open embouchure — the euphonium’s low register is where its dark tone is built, and it is coaxed, not forced. The two longest combinations, C3 and B2, play sharp and need the lip — or a fourth valve — to bring them home.
B2 is the hardest-working fingering in the low register: all three valves down, borrowed from the F3 harmonic above and pulled down six semitones. It is also the sharpest-playing note on a three-valve instrument. On a four-valve euphonium, play valves 2 + 4 instead — the same tube length, cut correctly. The University of Mississippi chart lists that 2+4 fingering first for this note, which tells you how sharp the three-valve version is understood to be.
B2 is note 2 of the 25 in the full euphonium fingering chart, sitting between B♭2 below it and C3 above it. Like every fingering on this site, it was checked against the NoteAtlas euphonium chart and the University of Mississippi's euphonium and baritone chart before publishing — and the same fingering serves the baritone horn.
Practising B2
Low notes speak with slow air and a dropped jaw. If this note cracks upward, your lips found the partial above: loosen the embouchure, slow the air down, and let the note settle rather than pushing it.
Questions about B2
What is the fingering for B2 on euphonium?
Valves 1 + 2 + 3 pressed. B2 is played on the 3rd partial (harmonic) of the B♭ euphonium in the low register, with the three-valve fingerings this site charts. The baritone horn uses exactly the same fingering for this note. The full step-by-step is on this page, and you can hear the note with the Fingering Finder.
Does B2 sound as written on euphonium?
In bass clef, yes: euphonium and baritone parts are written at concert pitch, so written B2 sounds as concert B2 — the same pitch a piano plays. In a treble-clef (brass band) part the same sounding note is written a major ninth higher, as C♯4. The fingering is identical either way.
Is there an alternate fingering for B2?
For B2, the fingering above is the one to learn. It is the basic fingering both reference charts give for this note, and the one teachers expect to see.
Think this fingering is wrong? Report it — every report is checked against the source charts.