This online virtual euphonium lets you play warm brass melodies right in your browser. It’s a virtual version of a B♭ Euphonium. It has three top valves and one side valve. There is also a 3D modelled version of an actual euphonium sitting on the screen.
It includes recorded samples of the euphonium for each note so no basic electronic tones is used. There is no installation or download required and you can play using your computer keyboard, your fingers on a tablet or phone or even a mouse. No start button here. As soon as you press the first note, the sound turns on.
How to Use the Virtual Euphonium
When the recordings are ready, the message at the bottom of the widget will change from Tap, hold, or use your keyboard to Recorded instrument sound. Clicking on the question mark in the top corner also bring up the brief How to play guide along with the sound credits.
Beneath the model are 25 note pads that span from F2 to F4, covering each semitone to make playing as fast as possible. Tap one of the pads for a brief note or hold it down to sustain the note. If you do this for a note between B♭2 and B♭3, the 3D euphoniums valves will depress as you do. This demonstrates a fingering for that note. This allows you to see how the notes align with the valves.
The 25 notes is played in sequence from the letter A on a computer keyboard. Each note is a semi-tone above the previous one until we reach the comma which is at the top of the range playing an F4, with the low F2 played by A. All the pads displays their letter and the Euphonium is set out on its own frame on the page. Click inside it first then play from the keyboard.
Alternatively, you can use the valves like a brass player would do. There are four buttons labelled with numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4 in the row called VALVES. A menu selects the note played when no valves are pressed: B♭2, F3, B♭3, D4 or F4. At the beginning it is set to B♭3.
When you push a valve, the sound of the euphonium happens immediately. Holding down more than one valve combines their effect. Valve 1 drops the open note by two semitones, valve 2 by one, valve 3 by three, and valve 4 by five. If the open note is B♭3 (as above) then valve 2 produces an A3, valve 1 an A♭3 and both together a G3. Keeping your finger on the number keys 1-4 makes them function as the valves. You can even press the valves on the 3D model, which will go down as you play.
PLAYING is the word shown next to the note you just played in the bar below. To play this note (or any other) press the Space bar (or the Blow button), hold it down and release when finished. The Keep air button makes the breath continue by itself. As long as the air is on, or while holding Space, you can change the note by tapping a pad once, and move from one note to another by pressing and releasing each valve while the sound continues. Release all the valves, and you return to the open note. Everything stops together if you use the Esc key or ■ Stop button.
There’s an Expression slider (from 10-100) which controls how hard you blow on it, and will alter any note currently being played. There are three presets that determine overall character. Default is Natural. Gentle plays more softly with more room and a mellower tone. Concert plays with a big echo and strong breath. All these move the sliders for you. There is also the Room slider (0-50), which adds room echo, and the Volume slider in the lower corner, which sets the overall level.
You pull up the PLAY A LITTLE menu and select one of three tunes (Morning walk; Twinkle, Twinkle; Ode to Joy). Click on ▶ Listen and the euphonium plays the tune along with its rhythm. Clicking again stops it early. The tempo is changed using the Tempo slider (40-180).
This is a game mode you can tap to play yourself. Tap the green note. The next note goes green on the pads. Boxes appear labelled with the letter of each note. THEN, NEXT, and play now show what’s coming up. As soon as you play the correct note, game mode waits for you and then continues. The valves count too, so you can practise a tune with real valve combinations. Progress is tracked by a progress bar and counter, and when finished the game asks Beautiful. Play it again? It includes a ↻ Again button.
● The Record button records what you play directly from the instrument (no mic required). During recording, it says ■ Finish take. Click that when done and a Save take link appears for downloading your recording.
On the online virtual euphonium, you can click ↻ Rotate 3D then look around in 3D. While doing so, you can still zoom (scroll/pinch). You can turn the model by dragging the background. The valves continue to work. Click the ⌂ button to return to the front view. You can also switch Rotate 3D off to return to the front view.
A beginner’s guide is also available if you’re new to playing the euphonium: just hit the menu button and then set it to B♭3. Each note sounds when you press the valves one by one, then you can try playing them together. After that, you can play along with Twinkle, Twinkle at a slow pace. You will find this in Game mode. You can play using the letter keys or the pads.
