A B♭ baritone horn weighs about five and a half pounds — 2.5 kg. Two makers publish a figure for one, they were measured independently, and they land within fifty grams of each other. That number holds whether the bell points up or forward, and it does not change much between a student horn and a professional one. What does change, dramatically, is whether the instrument in your hands is actually a baritone.
5 to 6 pounds — 2.3 to 2.8 kg — and a marching baritone is the same
Besson lists its three-valve Sovereign baritone at 5 lb 8 oz and its four-valve Prestige at 5 lb 15 oz. Wessex, measuring its own instruments, gives 5.4 lb for a three-valve compensated baritone and 6 lb for a four-valve one. John Packer gives 5 lb 1 oz for its three-valve student horn, and Yamaha puts its marching baritone at 2.5 kg, which is 5.5 lb. Six figures from four makers, the whole spread fifteen ounces. If yours weighs ten pounds, it is a euphonium.
What the makers actually publish
Most brass makers publish a full specification — bore to three decimals, bell flare, valve count, leadpipe alloy, the mouthpiece in the box — and no weight at all. Conn-Selmer publishes none for any of its Conn, King or Holton baritones. Neither does Yamaha for its concert YBH-301, nor Jupiter. Three companies do publish — Besson, Wessex and John Packer, the last of which gives a separate weight with and without the case — and between them they cover the whole tenor family, so the ladder below is comparable rather than assembled from guesses.
| Instrument | Model | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| E♭ tenor (alto) horn | Besson Prestige BE2050 | 4 lb 10 oz · 2,100 g |
| B♭ baritone, 3 valve | John Packer JP173 | 5 lb 1 oz · 2.30 kg |
| B♭ baritone, 3 valve | Wessex BR140 | 5.4 lb · 2.45 kg |
| B♭ baritone, 3 valve | Besson Sovereign BE955 | 5 lb 8 oz · 2,500 g |
| Marching baritone | Yamaha YBH-301M | 5.5 lb · 2.5 kg |
| Marching baritone | Wessex BR112 | 5.7 lb · 2.5 kg |
| B♭ baritone, 4 valve | Besson Prestige BE2056 | 5 lb 15 oz · 2,800 g |
| B♭ baritone, 4 valve | Wessex BR144P | 6 lb · 2.8 kg |
| Kaiser baritone (.59″ bore) | Wessex ER120 | 7.8 lb · 3.53 kg |
| Marching euphonium | Wessex ME12 | 7.5 lb · 3.4 kg |
| Euphonium, compensating | Besson Prestige BE2051 | 10 lb 8 oz · 4,700 g |
| BB♭ tuba | Wessex TB210 / TB692P | 23.1 lb · 29 lb 12 oz |
Read down that column and the baritone sits in a narrow band while everything around it spreads out. A tenor horn is a pound lighter, a euphonium is nearly twice as heavy, and a tuba is four to five times. The baritone is the one instrument in the family whose weight barely moves.
The fourth valve costs about 300 grams
The two makers agree twice, and the second time they agree to the gram. Besson’s three-valve Sovereign is 2,500 g and Wessex’s three-valve compensated horn is 2.45 kg — fifty grams apart. Besson’s four-valve Prestige is 2,800 g and Wessex’s four-valve British baritone is 2.8 kg. Identical.
So the step from three valves to four, together with the heavier build that comes with it, is worth roughly 300 g — eleven ounces. That is a rare thing to have: a maker putting a number on what a feature costs you to carry, confirmed by a second maker who measured separately.
What those eleven ounces buy is the bottom of the range. Wessex describes its four-valve loop as aiding the low register and giving alternative fingerings higher up, which is what the fourth valve does on any horn in this family; Yamaha, writing about its own three-piston euphoniums, notes that part of the low register played 1–3 or 1–2–3 tends to sound sharp. Whatever you decide about that, eleven ounces should not be the thing that decides it.
The marching baritone is not the heavy one
This is the part that runs against expectation, and the figures are unambiguous. Yamaha gives 2.5 kg for the YBH-301M. Wessex gives 2.5 kg for the BR112. Set those against 2.45 kg for a three-valve concert horn and 2.8 kg for a four-valve one, and the marching instrument sits in the middle of the concert range rather than above it.
What changes on the field is not how much there is but how long you hold it and in what position. A concert player carries the weight in the lap with the left arm steadying it, sitting down, for a rehearsal. A marching player carries the same weight out in front of the body, standing, moving, for a two-hour show — and holds the instrument up rather than resting it on anything. That is a different physical job done with an identical number of pounds.
If your baritone weighs ten pounds, it is a euphonium
Yamaha states the problem plainly in its own instrument guide: in the United States, a euphonium with the bell and pistons facing forward may be called a baritone to distinguish it from a true euphonium. The word covers two instruments here, and they are not close in weight. Besson’s baritone is 5 lb 15 oz and Besson’s euphonium is 10 lb 8 oz — same company, same top tier, same key, and one is nearly double the other.
The bell settles it faster than a scale does. Among the makers who build the instrument to its British pattern, a baritone flares to somewhere between eight and nine and a half inches: Conn’s CBH301 is bored .503″ behind an 8.25″ bell, Yamaha’s YBH-301 is .504″ behind 8⅜″, Besson’s Sovereign is .543″ behind 9.25″. A euphonium flares to eleven or twelve. Then there is King’s Diplomat 625, labeled a baritone and bored .562″ behind an eleven-inch bell — euphonium proportions with a baritone name on them. Our euphonium vs. baritone comparison walks through three ways to tell which one you have been handed.
Here is the honest limit of what can be said about that middle ground. No American maker publishes a weight for any of these horns, so there is no figure to quote for a King Diplomat or a Holton Collegiate. The nearest published number for an instrument of those dimensions is Wessex’s Kaiser baritone, bored .59″ behind a 10.24″ bell, at 7.8 lb. A large-bore American school “baritone” will land somewhere between that and the five and a half pounds at the top of this page, and anyone who gives you a decimal is inventing it.
Where five and a half pounds actually lands
For a seated player in a concert band, it lands on one thigh and one forearm, and for most people that is genuinely a non-issue for the length of a rehearsal. It is worth saying so before anything else on this page is read as a warning. The baritone is the low brass instrument a small twelve-year-old can carry without help, which is most of why band directors reach for it.
The part that is not obvious is what happens when the horn is not properly supported. If the instrument is balanced partly against your face, some of those five and a half pounds is being carried by your embouchure — and an embouchure holding the horn up is not an embouchure making a sound. Neotech, which builds the straps players buy to fix this, describes the effect exactly: its sling removes the need to use the lips as a balancing point. That is a tone problem wearing the costume of a comfort problem, and it is the one reason a five-pound instrument is worth thinking about at all.
The other one is what you grab when you pick it up. Yamaha’s guidance for the tuba is that if you take hold of the instrument by its slides, they will bend under its own weight, and that you should grip the thick outer tubing instead, over as wide an area as you can. That advice matters more on a baritone, not less: a tuba is heavy enough that nobody lifts it casually, while a baritone is light enough to be swung out of a chair one-handed by whatever tube is nearest. Same tubing, same bending, less caution. Yamaha’s other line is worth repeating too — set the instrument on a chair or a desk rather than the floor, where it can be knocked over.
One figure nobody publishes: the case. Besson, Wessex, Yamaha and Conn-Selmer all name the case that ships with each horn — molded ABS, latched, on nearly every student model — and not one of them gives its weight, and no dedicated case maker checked publishes one for a baritone either. So the number you actually carry to school, horn plus case, cannot be sourced. What can be said is that if you march, the instrument travels in a case built for a forward-bell horn rather than a concert one, and Protec’s PRO PAC marching baritone case is the model made for that shape, at around $175.
What actually helps, and who needs it
Four things, and only two of them apply to most readers. A seated concert player in a school band needs a stand and nothing else. A marcher, a standing player, or anyone whose “baritone” turned out to be a ten-pound euphonium is the person the straps are for.
If you play standing or marching
Neotech Holster Harness, 10″ Baritone/Euphonium
- 10″ holster — the size Neotech names for the baritone
- Padded ballistic nylon cradle for the bottom bow
- Neoprene two-shoulder harness, ambidextrous
- Upper strap fastens to the horn so it cannot tip forward
- ~$90
Neotech builds this holster in four sizes and labels them by instrument: 18″ tuba, 14″ small tuba, 12″ euphonium, 10″ baritone/euphonium. That last one is the size for a baritone, and it is the detail worth getting right, because the tuba sizes look near enough on paper and a bow that rattles around in an oversized cradle defeats the point of buying one.
The bottom bow drops into the holster and the load goes across both shoulders rather than onto your neck, arms or lips. It is the difference between holding the instrument and simply playing it, which on a two-hour show is not a small difference. It is also the answer if the horn you were handed is a forward-bell euphonium rather than a baritone, where the same five and a half pounds becomes ten and a half.
- Sized specifically for a baritone rather than a tuba
- Spreads the load across both shoulders, not the neck
- Frees the left hand and takes the horn off your embouchure
- Works seated, standing or marching
- The most expensive answer to the problem by some distance
- Complete overkill for a seated player at a rehearsal
- A harness to put on and take off at every call
Neotech Brass Sling
- Padded neoprene sling, single strap
- Rated by Neotech for tuba, baritone and euphonium
- Made in the USA
- ~$30
The sling does the same job as the holster with a single loop rather than a cradle and a harness. Neotech’s own claim is that it cuts the felt weight of the instrument by up to half and, more usefully, that it removes the need to use the lips as a balancing point. That second effect is the one you notice: the horn stops resting any part of itself on your face, and the sound settles.
It is the sensible first purchase for a student who finds the horn awkward but is not marching in it. If thirty dollars fixes the problem there is no reason to spend ninety, and if it does not fix it you will know within a rehearsal exactly what the harness is for.
- Cheap enough to try before committing to a harness
- Solves the embouchure-as-a-shelf problem, which is the one that costs you tone
- Packs into a case pocket
- A single strap, so the load sits on one shoulder
- Less stable than a holster on the move
- Does not stop the instrument tipping forward
Somewhere to put it down
This is the one that applies to everybody, and which stand you want depends on which way the bell points. Note that the tuba and euphonium stands sold alongside these do not go low enough for a baritone — Hercules specifies its low-brass stand for euphonium and tuba and gives its shortest setting as 36″, which is taller than the instrument.
K&M 14985 Trombone Stand
- König & Meyer specifies it for trombones and marching baritones
- Height 23.6″ to 38.2″
- 2.6 lb, folds into two pieces
- Fiberglass-reinforced base, non-marring rubber support
- ~$50
A marching baritone points its bell forward, which means it will sit on a peg the way a trombone does, and K&M says so on the product itself rather than leaving you to guess. That is worth insisting on: most stands that turn up under a search for a baritone are built for a baritone saxophone, which is a completely different instrument and a completely different cradle.
At two and a half pounds and folding to the size of a music stand, it is also the one accessory here you will actually carry to a rehearsal rather than leave at home.
- The maker names the marching baritone explicitly
- Cheapest thing on this page and the most used
- Light and folds flat
- Doubles as a trombone stand if the section shares one
- No use at all for an upright-bell concert baritone
- A peg-in-the-bell design, so the horn is only as stable as the floor
K&M 149/2 Tenor Horn and Baritone Stand
- König & Meyer specifies it for baritone, B♭ tenor horn and E♭ alto horn
- Height 24.4″ to 41.3″ — low enough for the instrument
- 4.5 lb, steel, folds in two
- Integrated mouthpiece holder
- ~$160
An upright-bell baritone cannot sit on a trombone peg, and the tuba stands are built for something a foot taller. This is the one made for the instrument, and its 24.4″ minimum is the number that matters — that is what lets the horn sit on a cradle at its own height rather than perched on a post.
It is expensive for what it is, and there is no way around that. K&M publishes no list price for it, so there is nothing to measure the asking price against either. If your horn lives in its case between rehearsals, skip it. If it lives on a chair, weigh the cost against a bent slide and a horn that will not tune.
- Actually specified for a baritone rather than adapted to one
- Adjusts low enough for the instrument and wide enough for the body
- Holds the mouthpiece too, which is the part that rolls off chairs
- Steel, and built to outlast the student
- Three times the price of the trombone stand
- Four and a half pounds — nearly as heavy as the horn
- Overkill if the instrument goes back in its case every night
Where the baritone sits in the low brass row
Weight is most of the reason a beginner is put on one instrument rather than another, so it is worth seeing the row in order. A tenor horn is 4 lb 10 oz, a baritone 5 to 6 lb, a euphonium 10½ lb, a BB♭ tuba 23 to 26 lb, and a brass sousaphone 12.5 kg — about 27 lb — carried on one shoulder. Apart from the trombone, which is about three pounds, the baritone is the lightest instrument in the section that plays the tenor line — and it is the lightest of the ones that rest against the body, which is why it is the one handed to a twelve-year-old who wants the low part.
If you are weighing the baritone against something else, tuba vs. baritone covers the octave below it and mellophone vs. baritone covers the other horn a marching band is likely to offer you. Our guide to brass instruments puts the whole family in order.
FAQs
How much does a baritone horn weigh?
About five to six pounds, or 2.3 to 2.8 kg. Besson lists 5 lb 8 oz for its three-valve Sovereign and 5 lb 15 oz for its four-valve Prestige; Wessex gives 5.4 lb and 6 lb for the equivalent instruments; Yamaha gives 2.5 kg for its marching model. Most makers publish no weight at all, so these are the figures that exist.
Is a marching baritone heavier than a concert baritone?
No. Yamaha lists the YBH-301M marching baritone at 2.5 kg and Wessex lists its marching model at the same 2.5 kg, which sits inside the concert range of 2.3 to 2.8 kg rather than above it. What changes on the field is that you carry the same weight standing, moving and unsupported for a two-hour show instead of resting it in your lap for a rehearsal.
Why does my school baritone feel much heavier than five pounds?
It may not be a baritone. Yamaha notes that in the United States a euphonium with the bell and pistons facing forward is often called a baritone, and a euphonium is close to twice the weight — Besson publishes 10 lb 8 oz for its own. Measure the bell: eight to nine and a half inches is a baritone, eleven or twelve is a euphonium.
How much does a baritone weigh compared with a euphonium?
Roughly half. Besson publishes weights for both of its top instruments: the Sovereign baritone at 5 lb 8 oz and the Prestige euphonium at 10 lb 8 oz. Wessex’s marching euphonium is 7.5 lb against 5.7 lb for its marching baritone. Same maker, same scales, and the euphonium is the heavier instrument every time.
Does a four-valve baritone weigh more than a three-valve one?
By about 300 grams, or eleven ounces. Besson goes from 2,500 g on the three-valve Sovereign to 2,800 g on the four-valve Prestige, and Wessex goes from 2.45 kg to 2.8 kg across the same step. The fourth valve extends the low register and adds alternative fingerings above it; eleven ounces is not a reason to avoid it.
Can a beginner handle the weight of a baritone?
Yes. At five and a half pounds it is among the lightest instruments in the low brass row — only a trombone, at about three pounds, is lighter — and it rests in the lap when seated, which is why band directors reach for it before the euphonium or the tuba. The thing to check is not strength but support: if a student is steadying the horn against their face, the weight is landing on their embouchure and the tone will suffer before the arms do.
How do I pick up a baritone without damaging it?
By the thick outer tubing, gripping as wide an area as you can, never by a tuning slide. Yamaha’s own guidance for low brass is that slides bend under the instrument’s own weight if you lift by them. A baritone is light enough to grab one-handed by whatever tube is nearest, which is exactly why it happens to baritones. Set it on a chair, a desk or a stand rather than the floor.