transposing instrument


noun

a musical instrument played at a pitch different from that indicated in the score.

Origin of transposing instrument

First recorded in 1880–85

British Dictionary definitions for transposing instrument

transposing instrument

noun

a musical instrument, esp a horn or clarinet, pitched in a key other than C major, but whose music is written down as if its basic scale were C major. A piece of music in the key of F intended to be played on a horn pitched in F is therefore written down a fourth lower than an ordinary part in that key and has the same key signature as a part written in C