A3 Trumpet Fingering
How to play A3 on the trumpet: Valves 1 + 2 pressed. This fingering is the same on cornet and flugelhorn — only the tone differs.
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. The same diagram serves the cornet and flugelhorn charts, because all three instruments share these combinations.
Hear A3 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 A3 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.
- Press valve 2 with your right middle finger — press it straight down, all the way, with the pad of the finger.
- Keep the fingers you are not using curved and resting lightly on their valve caps, ready for the next note.
In short: valves 1 + 2 pressed.
Alternate fingering for A3
Valve 3 pressed.
Valve 3 alone lowers the same step and a half as 1+2. Yamaha’s official chart draws it as the alternate for this note, and many players use it as their everyday fingering because it often sits slightly lower and truer in pitch.
About A3 on the trumpet
The low register is built as a chromatic ladder: the open harmonics (C4 above all) are lowered step by step by the seven valve combinations. This is where the system makes sense — valve 2 takes off a semitone, valve 1 a whole step, and the combinations add up exactly as the arithmetic says they should.
A3 is the first note with a genuine choice of fingerings: 1+2 is the standard, and valve 3 alone — Yamaha’s chart draws it as the alternate — lowers exactly the same step and a half and often sits a touch lower in pitch. Many players quietly use 3 as their everyday A3.
A3 is note 4 of the 31 in the full trumpet fingering chart, sitting between G♯3 below it and B♭3 above it. The same fingering serves the whole family — see it on the cornet fingering chart and the flugelhorn fingering chart too. Like every fingering on this site, it was checked against Yamaha’s official chart and the NoteAtlas valve chart before publishing.
Practising A3
Low notes need relaxed lips and slow, warm air — pressing the mouthpiece harder only thins them. If this note uses valves 1+3 or 1+2+3, build the third-slide movement into the fingering from the start: slide out as the valves go down.
Questions about A3
What is the fingering for A3 on trumpet?
Valves 1 + 2 pressed. A3 is a low register note, fingered identically on trumpet, cornet and flugelhorn. The full step-by-step is on this page, and you can hear the note with the Fingering Finder.
What does A3 sound like on a trumpet?
Trumpet, cornet and flugelhorn are all transposing instruments in B♭, so written A3 sounds one whole step lower, as concert G3, on all three. When your band director asks for a concert G3, this is the note you finger.
Is there an alternate fingering for A3?
Yes — Valve 3 pressed. Valve 3 alone lowers the same step and a half as 1+2. Yamaha’s official chart draws it as the alternate for this note, and many players use it as their everyday fingering because it often sits slightly lower and truer in pitch.
Think this fingering is wrong? Report it — every report is checked against the source charts.