Article: If you're simply transposing the music to make it easier for the musician to play on their instrument, the transposition process is the same as if you were transposing the music for a vocalist.  Some songs are easier to play on some instruments in one key than in another. Beginner musicians often can play more complex songs if they are transposed to an easier key. If you are playing with a musician who plays a "transposing instrument," however, the process is a little bit different. Transposing instruments are those such as the clarinet, for which a C would sound like a B-flat when played. If you're transposing a song for a transposing instrument, the key of the instrument will tell you how many steps up or down you need to transpose the song. Your interval is the number of steps between the original key of the song and the key of the transposing instrument.  For example, if you have a song written in C that you need to transpose for a B-flat clarinet, you would need to move all the notes up a whole step, since B-flat is a whole step down from C. You also can use a transposition chart, that will tell you exactly what transposition you need if you want the song to sound right on transposing instruments. Now that you know the interval you need, all the notes in the song must be moved the same interval. Mark any sharps or flats not part of the key signature so you can come back to them. Move accidentals up or down from the same tone the note would have had in the original key signature. For example, if the song has a C-sharp and C is normally natural in that song's original key, you want to transpose from natural C. With all the notes moved and no accidentals, you should be able to work out what key the song is now in. If you're not strong on your keys yet, there are charts available online that will tell you. If you're working on sheet music, you'll want to note your key signature at the beginning of the song. Now that the entire song is transposed in the new key, you'll need to also move up any sharps or flats that appeared in the song and weren't part of the key signature.  Go back to the original song and find the accidentals. Work out how far the accidental moved the note from where it normally would be in the original key signature. For example, if your song has a C-sharp and C is normally natural in that song's original key, the accidental has moved the note a half-step. Find that note on your transposed song and move it up a half-step as well, marking the accidental accordingly. If you've transposed the song correctly, when it is played on the transposing instrument it will sound exactly the same as when it is played on a different instrument.
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Determine the reason to transpose the music. Identify the instrument's key. Move the notes up or down. Find the new key for the song. Fix your accidentals. Listen to the song played on the transposing instrument.