Oboe Fingering Chart

This interactive chart lets you explore the fingerings for the first octave of concert pitch oboe. By simply clicking on the note grid, or using the Tab key and Enter/Space on your computer keyboard you are able to interact and see a visual diagram of which fingers need to be used plus hear what each one sound like at the same time.

To begin with, simply tap on one of the note names in the grid at the left-hand side of widget. Every cell is a different pitch from B flat below middle C through to C above middle C. When you’ve tapped on your chosen note it will appear in big display area on the right. The diagram will then show you which finger to use on which keys to play this note.

How to Use the Oboe Fingering Chart

It presents the fingering in a way that reflects your hand position while playing and makes sense to the hand. It’s split into two sections: top for the left-hand and bottom for the right. Keys shaded with filled in circles are those to be covered to produce the desired note. Those shown as open circles is not covered. In this way, it provides visual reinforcement of common fingerings from the Conservatoire system that will help develop muscle memory.

To listen to the pitches, just use the play buttons up in control bar at the top of display. To cycle through all the notes in sequence, hit the Play All button. It will play them one at a time, changing diagrams that show how to finger each note.

Alternatively, if you’re interested in listening to only one pitch at a time then select the pitch in the grid and click the Play Note button. Alternatively, simply click where you are on the current fingering diagram to listen again to what is playing.

To change how loud the instrument plays back, use the volume slider. If you’re using this while around others who might also want to listen to music, you can make sure the volume doesn’t drown out what they’re listening to. The widget is set to a moderately quiet volume by default, so you will probably have to slide it left or right depending on your speakers or headphones.

The Fullscreen button (right beside the title) will expand the chart to fill your whole window. This gives you a clearer image of the note grid and the fingering diagram if you are using a smaller screen. The button changes to Exit fullscreen. Clicking it will return you to your previous state, or you can simply press the Escape key on your keyboard.

If you’d like a refresher on how it functions, there’s also a How to play button at top of interface. This will display a help panel containing quick explanations and tips about all features. It also includes a guide to where pinky keys is for each note, which is handy if you’re unfamiliar with oboe fingering charts or just checking things over.

This tool can also be navigated with your computer’s keyboard. The Tab key will jump between grid cells and other interactive elements, such as buttons. When focus lands on a cell, pressing the Space bar or Enter selects it and plays the note. If you don’t want to click exactly with your mouse or trackpad, this is useful.

Try practicing scales by picking out the notes in order and observing the changes in the fingerings. Observe that as you ascend the scale, each note are played with a slightly different set of fingers. Only one finger is raised at a time to increase the pitch. Pause on each note and examine what key combination it is made up of then continue on to next. The method is slow and careful, which reinforces where the keys are placed physically on the instrument.

Try adding some chromatic notes too (F sharp and C sharp), to hear how your pinky keys engage. In other octaves these sharps can be played different than their natural note equivalents. In the case of the first octave, the tool captures the usual fingering rules for these two notes. Knowing where there is differences now will save developing poor habits later on as you move up to actualy playing an oboe.

Focus on the area where the two diagrams split into right and left hands and run through the Play All sequence a few times. Notice that you can trigger pinky keys without touching any of the primary finger holes. In many ways, this separation defines the technique for playing the oboe, and you can see it clearly drawn out in the key groupings on the diagram.

This is a handy, go-to reference guide that will jog your memory regarding certain fingerings prior to practicing. For those who are new to reading oboe fingering charts, it’s useful; for more seasoned players wanting to check unusual notes, it works nicely too. Both the sound and visual representation of each note make it a solid study aid.

To conclude, select the bottom note in the grid and gradually work your way upwards one finger at a time. Pay close attention as you go, as each finger creates its own shade of tone on the simulated sound of an oboe. Try to allow yourself plenty of time in each position so that you form a mental image of the instrument that corresponds to this visual guide.

You should of tried it earlier.