Musical Instrument Pitch Range

In general, the human ear perceives pitch within a frequency range of 20 Hz (vibrations per second) to 20,000 Hz.

The musical instrument with the widest pitch range is the piano, which can produce pitches from 27.5 Hz to 4,186 Hz.

These slides show the full pitch range of the piano, as well as many other musical instruments. The larger instruments within a family will have a lower pitch range than the smaller instruments.

For example, a string bass (with its longer and thicker strings) will have a lower pitch range than a violin (which has shorter and thinner strings).

• A tuba (with its longer and wider column of air) will have a lower pitch range than a trumpet (with its shorter and narrower column of air).
• The pitch range of the guitar falls within the midrange of the piano.

The overall pitch range for vocalists is determined by the natural length of the vocal folds (or vocal cords):

• The longer the vocal folds, the lower the overall range of pitch.
• The shorter the vocal folds, the higher the overall range of pitch.