Trumpet Valve Chart: Written Notes and Fingerings

A trumpet valve chart helps when your fingers freeze on F♯, but it won’t stop that note from cracking by itself. You need the right valves and a clear pitch target. The horn is annoyingly firm about both.

I’d start with the chart, then play a few short patterns. Your goal isn’t to memorize a page. It’s to hear the note and move your fingers without a committee meeting.

How to read this trumpet valve chart

These are written pitches for B-flat trumpet, not concert pitches. Written C4 sounds as concert B♭3. If you’re reading a concert-pitch part, transpose it up a whole step for B-flat trumpet.

Here’s how the valve numbers work:

• 1: The first valve, nearest your mouthpiece.
• 2: The middle valve.
• 3: The third valve, nearest the bell.
• 0: Open. Don’t press any valves.
• 1–3: Press the first and third valves together.
• 1–2–3: Press all three valves together.

Combinations such as 1–2 and 2–3 also mean pressing those valves together.

The octave numbers are part of the note name. C4 is written middle C, one ledger line below the treble staff. C5 is written C in the third space. G3 sits below middle C; G4 sits on the second staff line.

I’d learn those landmarks first. A letter without its register leaves too much room for guesswork.

Standard fingerings from low F♯ to C5

This trumpet valve chart covers the normal lowest written note through third-space C. These are standard fingerings, not alternate combinations.

Names joined by a slash are enharmonic spellings: the same nominal pitch, written differently for the musical context.

| Written note | Valves | |---|---| | F♯3 / G♭3 | 1–2–3 | | G3 | 1–3 | | G♯3 / A♭3 | 2–3 | | A3 | 1–2 | | A♯3 / B♭3 | 1 | | B3 | 2 | | C4 | 0 | | C♯4 / D♭4 | 1–2–3 | | D4 | 1–3 | | D♯4 / E♭4 | 2–3 | | E4 | 1–2 | | F4 | 1 | | F♯4 / G♭4 | 2 | | G4 | 0 | | G♯4 / A♭4 | 2–3 | | A4 | 1–2 | | A♯4 / B♭4 | 1 | | B4 | 2 | | C5 | 0 |

Notice the two F♯ fingerings. Low F♯3 takes all three valves. F♯4, in the first space, takes only the second valve. Same letter name, different octave, different fingering.

The reverse matters too: identical valve combinations can produce different notes in different registers. C4, G4, and C5 are all open. The valves alone don’t select the pitch.

Low C♯4 and D4 commonly run sharp. You’ll usually need some third-valve slide extension, adjusted by ear or with a tuner. No single slide distance suits every horn and player.

Why one valve combination gives several notes

With open valves, the tubing stays the same length. Your air and embouchure help select different resonances in that tube.

That’s why you can aim for C5 and land on G4. Your fingers did their job. The pitch target needs attention.

I sing the target first, then play at a comfortable volume. If it doesn’t speak, I pause instead of adding mouthpiece pressure. Try approaching it from a nearby note that feels secure.

Keep your fingertips close to the buttons. Press fully and release cleanly. Halfway down is not a useful compromise here.

Three short drills that make the chart useful

Start with quarter notes at 60 beats per minute, or slower if needed. I listen for clean beginnings before adding speed.

1. Connect three neighboring notes

Play written E4–F4–F♯4–F4–E4.

Use 1–2, 1, 2, 1, 1–2. On F4–F♯4, your first finger rises as your second falls. I listen for an unwanted note between them. That little gap tells me the fingers aren’t moving together.

Tongue each note, then slur. Keep the rhythm steady.

Practice This In JazzValve: Open the practice hub, then use this five-note pattern as your warm-up.

2. Separate fingering from register

Play written C4–E4–G4–E4–C4.

Use 0, 1–2, 0, 1–2, 0. Listen to the two open pitches. Hear G4 before leaving E4; don’t ask your fingers to find it.

Practice This In JazzValve: Continue with C major triad practice. Check whether the display uses written or concert pitch before matching notes to this chart.

3. Put the awkward move into a blues phrase

Play written C4–E♭4–F4–F♯4–G4, then reverse the sequence.

Use 0, 2–3, 1, 2, 0 ascending. The F♯ is where this phrase lives or dies. Give it time instead of rushing toward G.

Practice This In JazzValve: Try the C blues scale screen. Keep the written-versus-concert distinction in view there, too.

Keep the chart nearby, then look away

I use a trumpet valve chart to check one uncertain note. Then I look away and repeat the phrase.

Finish with two bars and some space. Listen to Miles Davis on “So What” for how clearly a short idea can speak. Leave yourself room to hear the next note.

Where to go next

• Trumpet Fingering Chart: Written Notes and Jazz Practice
• Trumpet Fingering Guide: Notes, Valves, and Clean Changes