John March Ian Do

8/8/2019 John March Ian Do

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John Marchiando

Music History 564

History of Musical Instruments

Professor Haefer

Final Project


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The Slide TrumpetI. The Renaissance Slide Trumpet

The Renaissance brought new developments to both the construction and use of the trumpet. The busine

style trumpet, a long, straight trumpet, had been the most widely used instrument until around 1400. New

techniques in metal smithing made it possible to bend the tubing to create different shapes. Trumpets now

began to appear in an S-shape and in the folded form that is more recognizable in todays moderntrumpets. This bending process allowed for the transformation of the awkward busine in to a more compact

and easily transported instrument for military campaigns and ceremonial events.

The slide trumpet started to develop at almost the same time as these new techniques. The slide trumpet of

the Renaissance was different from modern U-slide instruments in that the slide mechanism was a singleslide in the first extension of tubing from the mouthpiece. The body of the trumpet itself was moved along

the slide in a telescopic action. The instrument was held with the right hand moving the body of the

instrument over the slide and the left hand stabilizing the mouthpiece to the embouchure. Though there are

no surviving instruments of this type available to study now, modern reproductions based on artists

renderings from period art show four possible slide positions. When fully extended to the fourth position,

the instrument was lowered by four semi-tones. Measurements taken on a trumpet pitched in D show the

first position to be a distance of just over 5 inches, with the fourth position obviously being around 15

inches. If the horn was held in the manner explained before, a players arm would be fully extended at the

fourth position.Translating this information to the natural overtone series of the trumpet, it appears that the slide trumpet of

this type could play a nearly complete chromatic scale of two and a half octaves. The charts in illustration 1

show the available notes and positions for an eight-foot trumpet pitched in C. The top chart shows

harmonics and the notes achieved with each movement of the slide, while the bottom gives the full range of

the instrument; the white notes indicating the harmonics in first position; the black notes the tones in the

extended positions. Brackets indicate the gaps that occur in the scale, the most serious being between the

second harmonic and the fourth position tone of the third harmonic, a major third. Another gap occursbetween the third harmonic and the fourth position of the fourth harmonic, but is easily remedied by lipping

down the higher of the two notes.


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illustration 1: slide trumpet rangesThe slide trumpet began to distinguish itself from the natural trumpet shortly after its development. The

natural trumpet continued to be used in the court and in battle and was called trompette des guerre. The

slide trumpet began to appear in the shawm bands, or alta cappella, and was called trompette desmenestrels. This created new musical ideas, for now the trumpet was not only confined to the playing of a

drone. The alta ensemble consisted of shawms, bombardes and slide trumpets and was the source of

entertainment at court celebrations. These ensembles became more and more popular and soon were found

throughout Europe. Burgundian records list for the first time the trompette des menestrals in the court of

Philip the Good in 1422, and for many years after. Duties of these ensembles were to march at the head of

processions, play at dinner and provide music for court dances. One of the favorite dances of the day wasthe bassedanse. This music was constructed from a cantus-firmus tenor, usually a slow line played by the

tenor bombarde, a florid and active treble part played by the shawm, and then the contra-tenor part, played

by the slide trumpet. This contra-tenor part was often written after the first two and filled out the harmony.

Employing many passing tones, this part was most easily played by a slide trumpet. These ensembles did

have limited use in sacred settings. Civic alta bands had duties of playing in special Masses. A record from

the city of Leiden shows that the civic ensemble accompanied a Mass in 1412.Another popular use for the slide trumpet was in the city towers. The thurnerhorn(towerhorn) was used by

the watchmen of these towers to not only perform the signaling duties of time or danger, but to also play

tower music (abblasen). The city of Basel provides some excellent documentation as to what the duties of

the tower musicians were. They were to play in two-part harmony every evening and every morning.

Music played from the tower consisted of chorales or similar music, most of which would have been much

more easily played on a slide trumpet. It is possible that the tower musicians played a slide trumpet for adifferent reason. Don L. Smithers suggests that they played the slide trumpets to avoid difficulties with the

knightly trumpet guilds. The trumpet guilds of Germany were very strong organizations of trumpet players

that were protected asKammeradshaft, or lower nobility by the courts. The members of these guilds lookeddown upon any trumpeter that was not a member of these guilds. With the natural trumpet being theinstrument of choice of the guilds, it is quite possible that the tower musicians played a slide trumpet to

avoid being accused of acting like a guild trumpeter.

As mentioned before, there are no surviving examples of slide trumpets from the Renaissance. A strong

argument for its existence can be made from examining some of the surviving manuscripts of the time.

From the late 1400s there are surviving works by Arnold de Lantins, Johannes Franchoys, Henricus deLivero Castro, Guillaume Dufay, and many others which refer to parts with names such as

contratenortrompette, trumpettaintroitus, orad modumtubae. Church records from the time which list

payments to trumpeters may indicate that these parts were meant to be played by trumpets. The examples in

illustration 2 indicate the ranges and notes required of the instrument to play the trumpet parts. With theexception of the Dufay, every part would have required a chromatic instrument. As explained before, some

of the notes in the parts that fall in the gaps, most notably d, may have been lowered by the process oflipping. It should also be noted that some of these works may have been intended to be transposed up a

fourth of fifth.


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illustration 2: required ranges of some music for renaissance trumpetIconography is also an important source of information in proving the existence of the slide trumpet in the

Renaissance. Because the trumpet was highly regarded as a social and musical instrument, there are severalexamples of paintings, carvings, woodcuts, instructions in treatises and court inventories that survive today

to provide information in the absence of an actual extant instrument. Many artists used the trumpet as the

subject to show power and magnificence in their portrayals of celebrations or religious settings.One such painting is The Adoration of the Magi, attributed to Antonio Vivarini (illustration 3). Preserved in

the Staatliche MuseenGemldegalerie collection at Berlin-Dahlem, this 15th century painting depicts,

among others, a long, busine trumpet with the mouthpiece not inserted into the instrument. The mouthpiece

is, however joined to a long piece of tubing which appears to be meant for insertion into the instrument.

The tubing is long enough to function as the telescopic slide that was described earlier. Curt Sachs, whowas the first to suggest the existence of a slide trumpet in the Renaissance, also notes an interesting and

significant detail in the painting. One of the other trumpets portrayed in the work is being held over the

shoulder of the player, with the bell in the air. His left hand holds on to the mouthpiece end of the

instrument, grasping the mouthpiece and pipe. It is possible that he is holding those parts to keep them from


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falling out of the trumpet as he holds it in this manner. A group of angels with trumpets near the top of the

painting provide more proof. The manner in which they hold their instruments is consistent with the

positions that were described earlier, one hand holding the mouthpiece to the mouth, the other holding the

horn. It would be easy to move the slide back and forth to alter its pitch with the horn held in this way. This

depiction of the playing position is also consistent with many other works of the time.Hans Memlings triptych (illustration 4), completed in 1480, also suggests that variable-pitch trumpets

were in existence before 1500. This famous triptych, which once decorated the organ in the Benedictine

church at Najera and is now in the Royal Museum in Antwerp, depicts Christ surrounded by a group of

singers in the center panel. Of interest, though, are the left and right panels, which portray a large group of

musicians. A shawm, a twice-folded trumpet, a lute, a tromba marina and a psaltery are the five

instrumentalists on the left panel, while a long, straight trumpet, a folded trumpet, an organetto, a harp anda rebec play on the right panel. Again, the playing position for the trumpets is the same, left hand securing

the mouthpiece to the embouchure, the right hand extended and holding the instrument. The length that the

arms are extended on the two folding trumpets is different, however. This suggests that the instruments

were meant to slide to and fro over the mouthpipe. Another curiosity in this work is the playing position of

the straight trumpet. This instrument is being held in the same manner as the folded slide trumpets. Theplayer holds the instrument to his mouth in the left hand, and the right hand holds the instrument, fully

extended. Medieval illustrations of this type of trumpet show the instrument being held with both hands

near the balance point in the center. Perhaps this straight trumpet is also meant to be moved along the slide

to change the pitch. Or course, to list all the works that provide solid proof of the existence of a variable-

pitched trumpet would be beyond the scope of this paper.The slide trumpet appears in court records as early as 1386. Records from the Burgundian courts of

Brussels and Lille for the years 1422-1462 list a trompette des menestrals(slide trumpet) as a distinctly

separate position from the trompette des guerre (natural trumpet). In 1418, Charles VI of France employed

the services of a trompette pour menestrier. The term also appeared in documents from courts in Savoy(1420 and 1418), from Aragon (1423 and 1418), Holland (1410) and St. Pol (1403). In the city of Mechelen

in 1433, payments were made to stede pipers met haerentrompette; or the city shawms and their trumpet.Payments were made to similar ensembles in Leiden (1412), Aelst (1410), Ghent (1409), Audenaarde(1408) and Utrecht (1402). In his famous treatise,Musicagetutscht, Sebastian Virdung lists and provides a

drawing (illustration 5) of the thurnerhorn.

Despite all the apparent evidence to support the claim to the existence of the slide trumpet in the

Renaissance, there are still those who dispute the proof. Peter Downeys article "The Renaissance slidetrumpet: Fact or fiction?" inEarly Music Vol. XII/1 (February, 1984) is the strongest attack to date on the

reality of the slide trumpet in the Renaissance. He argues that iconography cannot support the existence ofa slide trumpet. Downeys interpretation of the Memling triptych is quite different from that of many other

musicologists. He concludes that because the busine style trumpet is being held in the same manner as the

folded trumpets, that none of the three can be a slide instrument. He claims that trumpets from as early the2nd millennium have been held in the special manner in which they are being held in the triptych.

Unless all the instruments from that early time were slide instruments, then the way the instrument is held

can not prove the existence of a slide trumpet. His second argument addresses the trumpeten parts of the

music composed in the era. Downey concludes that these parts were not actually meant to be performed on

a trumpet, but sung in the military trumpet style. And if they were played on trumpet, they could be

performed on the natural claret trumpet. His final argument is based on modern reproductions of slidetrumpets. Based on those tests, he makes three claims; only half of the trumpeten parts would have been

playable on a slide trumpet, the actual performance would have been different due to the inertia caused by

moving an entire trumpet along a slide and that the only slide trumpet that could have played the parts

would have had to have been pitched in C, the earliest known of those not appearing until the late 15

th

century.Rebuttals to this viewpoint are many. Ross W. Duffin argues that the way in which the instruments are heldin the Memling painting is indeed significant in determining if the trumpets are variable-pitch. He points

out that one of the trumpets is being held in a slightly different manner that the other two.

"The left hand of the player does not hold the mouthpiece against the lipscigarette style with the palm facing inward, as with the other two, but

rather grasps it dart style with the palm at a 90 degree angle to the

body. This position alone affords protection to the players lips from

the compression of the mouthpiece as the instrument is drawn inward


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along a stockingless slide, while still allowing the mouthpiece to be

held against the lips as the instrument is pushed outwards."Duffin deduces that the two trumpets in the right panel are actually fanfare trumpets and dont need to be

held in a special manner since they are of fixed length, while the trumpet on the left panel is a slide trumpetand, logically, is paired with a shawm. Addressing Downeys second argument, Duffin states that it is valid

that the parts were probably meant to be sung and were modeled after the military trumpet style. He

criticizes Downey, though, for not considering that the melodic motion of these parts could have been taken

from the slide trumpet, which made use of the same harmonic series in addition to a few other notes. Duffin

dismissed the claim that inertia was a problem as hearsay, claiming personal experience with reproductions

produced no problems. He discounts Downeys argument on the pitch of the instrument by discussing the

sounding pitch of the shawm bands. He states that the standard pitches of the shawms of the 15th centuryaltacapella were dfor the treble shawm andgfor the bombarde, and that a standard upward transposition

of a fifth due to unplayable low notes on those instruments was common. Therefore, the slide trumpet in D

or in G would have worked well with this ensemble.Herbert W. Myers also finds some holes in Downeys argument. Myers finds fault with Downeys use of

the Memling triptych as the basis for his argument. While agreeing with Downey on the fact that the waythe horns are held in this particular painting might not actually be solid proof, he finds faults with the artists

renditions of the instruments. Minute details in the work are found to be at fault, such as the frets of the lute

and fiddle are not in the right place, the shawm lacks a flared bell and a pirouette and that the stringing of

the psaltery is not correct. Noting this lack of detail in the other instruments, is it any wonder that under

close scrutiny, that there is no hint of any telescoping tubing on the trumpets? Myers claims that this workis not suitable to support either argument and for Downey to base his claims on this unreliable illustration is

questionable. He does state, however, that there are many other works that do give consistent portrayals of

a slide instrument. Myers agrees also with Downey on the issue of the trumpetenparts, but feels that the

existence of the slide trumpet and performance of the trumpeten parts on it are two separate issues.Whether or not the slide trumpet played these parts should not be an argument against its existence. Myers

criticizes Downey for ignoring some important possibilities, such as the thurnerhorn described in SebastianVirdungsMusicagetutscht(see figure 5 for drawing from treatise)and for not addressing the question ofwhy the trompette des menestrelswas distinguished from the trompette des guerre. He claims that Downey

provides an oversimplified view and fails to prove that the slide trumpet did not exist.


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illlustration 3: detail from Adoration of the Magi by Antonio Vivarini, c. 1444.


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illustration4: detail from Hans Memlings triptych

illustration 5: drawing from Virdungs treatise, thurnerhorn is depicted on bottom

II. The Baroque Slide TrumpetThe slide trumpet in the baroque is somewhat easier to define as there is an actual existing instrument from

the 17th-century to examine. The instrument made by Huns Veit of Naumberg, Saxony, and is dated from1651. It was listed in the inventory of the Wenzelskirche from 1658 as 2 Zugtrompete, ganzneu, or 2 brand

new Zugtrompetes. The instrument is very similar to the slide trumpet of the Renaissance. It was held and

played in the same manner as its Renaissance predecessor. The mouthpiece pipe is about 11.5 cm long with


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a bore of 10.6 mm. It fits into a pipe of 12.7 mm in outside diameter. Pitched in E-flat, it was built in the

twice-folded shape, and allowed for a change in pitch of two tones.This instrument was not widely used by the trumpeter of the noble trumpet guilds. Like in the Renaissance,

it was the preferred instrument of the tower watchmen in the city towers. Johann Ernst Altenburg wrote in

his famous treatise:The slide trumpet, which is commonly used by tower watchmen (Thrmer) and by city

musicians (Kunstpfeifer) for playing chorales (geistliche Lieder), is constructed almost

like a small alto trombone because it is pulled back and forth during playing, wherby [the

player] can easily bring forth the missing tones [of the harmonic series].It is possible that the slide trumpet did have other uses in Leipzig. Gottfried Reiche was one of Leipzigs

Stadtpfeifers, and as part of the job description would have been proficient on theZugtrompete. He was

also active as a church musician and was the favorite trumpeter of J.S Bach. Bach wrote many of his most

challenging works for Reiche. It is known that a slide trumpet was in the possession of Reiche at his death

in 1734. Bach wrote many works for the trombadatirarsi, which is believed to be the Italian equivalent to

theZugtrompete. Perhaps Reiche performed these difficult parts on a slide trumpet.An interesting controversy has been brought to light in recent years regarding Bachs use of the

trombadatirarsi. Two prominent brass historians, Thomas G. MacCracken and Donald L. Smithers, offer

differing views on the viability of this instrument. Smithers notes that the major organological treatises of

the time do not mention a slide trumpet. Again we must rely on iconographical sources, as with the

Renaissance slide trumpet. He questions whether or not the Veit instrument listed before was originally

intended to be a slide trumpet and if it is actually the instrument that was listed in the Naumberginventories. MacCraken simply accepts the Veit instrument as the trombadatirarsithat was available to

Bach and his contemporaries. Both historians list works that may be meant for performance on a slidetrumpet. MacCraken lists six works: BWV 5, 20,46, 67, 77 and 162, noting that some of the parts may have

had the phrase datirarsiadded later. Smithers adds to that list BWV 124, but stresses that all the qualifying

phrases ofdatirarsi were added later and is suspicious of Bachs autography.

Both men offer clashing views on how the non-harmonic pitches of these works were achieved.

MacCracken explains that when Bach used these notes, the parts may be viewed as unidentified parts for

slide trumpet. That the parts may not have originally be designated for the slide trumpet has to do with the

possibilities of oral instruction and/or the players reading of the context. Basically, it was up to themusician as to whether or not they should use a slide trumpet. The practice of lipping or tone bending was

quite common during the Baroque. But MacCracken feels that Bach left it to the musician to decide which

method to use to achieve the notes outside the natural harmonic compass of the trumpet. Smithers feels that

the non-harmonic pitches were meant to be lipped in to place. The fact that so few examples of actuallabeled datirarsi parts exist indicates that there was an large gap of time between the original copying andthe designation of these parts for slide trumpet. This delayed assigning of the parts to slide trumpet might

indicate a change in the ability of Bachs trumpeters. Reiche may have lipped the notes in question, being a

virtuoso player. Later players, though, might have been less proficient at lipping and therefore would have

needed an instrument of variable pitch.

III. The Flatt Trumpet

The flat trumpet may actually have its roots in the Renaissance. A drawing from France by JaquesCellier,

c.1585, depicts an instrument with a double slide (illustration 6g). In the shape of a trumpet, it has a stay a

little distance from the rear bow. The stay suggests that the rear bow was meant to move and may have


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altered the pitch. One hundred years later, a set of drawings by Nicholas Yeates for Francis

SandfordsHistory of the Coronation of James II, provides evidence for the existence of the flat trumpet

(illustration 7a). One of the drawings portrays a cornetto player and two trumpeters playing twice-folded

instruments. Even though the text of the drawing labels the trumpets assackbuts, these instruments areprobably slide trumpets and may be prototypes for the flat trumpet. It is believed that the termsackbutwas

a generic term of the time for any slide instrument. Many other drawings and depictions of trumpets of thistype are labeled assackbuts. Illustrations 7b, c and d all depict ensembles using the double slide trumpetwith cornetto. 7b is a woodcut celebrating the coronation of Queen Anne in 1702, 7c is from the coronation

of William and Mary in 1689 and 7d (1679) celebrated the anniversary of the ascension of Elizabeth.

This type of trumpet was called the flat trumpet for its ability to play in the flat or minor keys, opposed to

the sharp or major keys that the natural trumpet was confined to. Like the slide trumpet of theRenaissance, there are no extant flat trumpets. There are however many musical and documentary

examples that provide information and evidence of the flat trumpet. A manuscript by James Talbot, a

professor at Trinity College in Cambridge from 1689 to 1704, provides descriptions and measurements of

many instruments including the flat trumpet. He writes of the flat trumpet:

In a Flat Trumpet the mouthpiece stands oblique towards right. 2d Crook [bow] placenear left Ear & by it you draw out the Inward yards, whereof one reaches to the Boss of

the Pavillion, the other to the 1st crook: its size with the yards shutt the same with the

common trumpet.

What Talbot describes is a double slide instrument where the rear bow is drawn backward toward the head

of the player.Examples of music written for the flat trumpet are numerous. Gottfried Finger composed some Tafelmusik

for the St. Cecilias Day celebration of 1691 that contained one part for flat trumpet. It, in fact may havebeen one of the first works to include the flat trumpet, as a review in the Gentlemans Journal, about the

festival wrote:Whilst the company is at table the hautboys and trumpets play successively. Mr. Showers [Shore] hath

taught the latter of late years to sound with all the softness imaginable; they plaid us some flat tunes made

by Mr. Finger with general applause, it being a thing formerly thought impossible upon an instrument

designed for a sharp key.Henry Purcell wrote for the flat trumpet in his incidental music for the play The Libertine (1692), and his

Funeral Music for Queen Mary in 1695, which was coincidentally played at his own funeral later the same

year. Finger wroteFarewell forHenry Purcellin 1696, and it included flat trumpets. Daniel Purcells

music from the play The Island Princess included a movement entitled "Symphony of Flat Trumpets"

(1699).Why the flat trumpet evolved is a wonder. Crispian Steele-Perkins states:An alto trombone is less cumbersome and plays fully chromatically, at speed. I should add that if tenor

oboes and flutes were employed for only a few bars of an opera, the same apparently applied to the flat

trumpet.The flat trumpet probably never had a role bigger than that of a specialty instrument. The lack of physical

evidence and the limited musical and documentary evidence seems to support this idea. It probably helped

pave the way, though, for what was to become the most widely used of slide trumpets, the English Slide

Trumpet.


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illustration 6: double slide flatt trumpets illustration 7: flatt trumpets

illustration 8: modern reproduction of a flatt trumpet

IV. The English Slide TrumpetThe date of conception of the slide trumpet in England is not known. Its origin is probably in the late 18th-

century, when John Hyde, an English trumpeter, proclaimed himself the inventor. The instrument, which is

actually the Baroque flat trumpet with a mechanized slide return, underwent many design modificationsthroughout the 19th-century and enjoyed strong popularity until the early years of the 20th.Most of the first slide trumpets developed were natural trumpets that were converted to slide trumpets. The

slide was added to the rear bow, the parts telescoping inside the bell and the middle yards. Stabilizing the

instrument were three stays that connected the lengths of tubing together. A long, hollow tube is connected

to the three stays, which contains either gut string, a coiled spring or and elastic cord attached to a clock

spring. With a finger pull attached to the central tube, the player pulls the slide backward with the right

hand. The string, spring or chord would pull on the clock spring to create tension and the slide would return

the slide to its original position when the tension was released. The standard slide trumpet was a six-foot


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instrument pitched in F. Included were crooks that would lower the pitch to E, E-flat, D, and C.

Combinations of the crooks would lower the pitch even further, but those combinations were not used

frequently. Also, the instrument came with tuning bits, small pieces of tubing that would be inserted

between the mouthpiece and the shank to alter the pitch of the instrument for fine tuning in the absence of

tuning slides.Many examples of English slide trumpets still exist today. One of the earliest surviving models is the

Rodenbostal/Woodham instrument, now in the possession of Brian Galpin. Made around 1790, the horn has

a length of 70 7/8 inches, a bore of 7/16",

illustration 9: clock spring mechanism

a bell diameter of 4 1/2 inches and a maximum slide length of 3 3/4 inches. It had two clock springs,housed in a figure eight shaped box. The mechanism functioned as explained earlier. This horn also had a

tuning mechanism on the central tube (illustration 11). It consisted of a movable metal sleeve with a

channel cut into it and notched with teeth. The movement of the slide was regulated by inserting the teeth

into brass lugs fixed onto the tube in which the sleeve encircled. This device was not used much on other

instruments for it shortened the amount of tubing made available for slide movement.

An inscription on the cover plate of the clock spring mechanism reads "Woodham, Inventor & Maker,Exeter Court, Strand London." Richard Woodham was a clock maker in Exeter Court from 1764 to 1789.

He was given the unfinished horn by George Henry Rodenbostel to fit it with a slide mechanism before

Rodenbostel would finish it in his Piccadilly shop. This inscription contradicts the claim by John Hyde to

be the inventor of this type of slide trumpet. In his trumpet tutorA New and Compleat Preceptor for the

Trumpet and Bugle Horn, he wrote that the slide trumpet was "invented by J. Hyde and made by

Woodham. It is probable that Hyde suggested the idea to Woodham, who then created the design.


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illustration 10: the Woodham-Rodenbastel slide trumpet

illustration 11: tuning device

A slide trumpet currently housed in the Smithsonian provides another example of the clock spring slide

mechanism (illustration 12). It is made of a copper alloy and brass with silver garnishes. It is unsigned andundated, but is a believed to be once owned by John T. Norton, a trumpeter with the London at the Drury

Lane Theatre and the Italian Opera. It is pitched in F, with an extra copper crook for playing in E-flat. The

additional crooks for C, D and E are lost along with the original mouthpiece. It has a total length of 71 7/8",

a bore of 7/16" and has a maximum slide extension of 3 7/8". Like the Woodham/Rodenbostel model it hasa tuning device for the minor intonation adjustments instead of tuning bits. The two clock springs on this

instrument are strung in a slightly different manner than other slide trumpets. Instead of being strung so that

both gut strings are knotted through a hole in the side of the central tube near the upper cross bar, only oneis strung in this manner. The other is threaded through a small opening at the top of the spring case and

attached to the finger cross-bar. This second spring is meant to serve as a reserve in the case that the first

spring malfunctions.Many other examples of clock spring slide trumpets exist. The Boston Museum of Fine Arts has an

instrument with a double spring box, The Brussells Conservatoire collection has two. The Adam Carse

collection at the Horniman Museum contains two examples and the Paris Conservatoire collection has one.Many private English collections, most notably those of Eric Halfpenny, Jeremy Montagu and Reginald

Morley-Pegge contain slide trumpets.

illustration 12: the Smithsonium slide trumpet

As the slide trumpet began to gain popularity in England, many manufacturers started to make design

improvements over the older conversion models. Problems existed with the operation of the slide. Therewas not sufficient room for between the bell-boss and the finger pull. This would cause many players to

have their fingers jammed against the boss. This problem was fixed by moving the boss closer to the bell.


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Another improvement was the use of the tuning bits instead of the aforementioned tuning mechanism. This

allowed for further extension of the slide and added a full-tone shift in the high range. These modifications

were first made by Clementi and Co., a company founded by composer MuzioClementi. Made in

collaboration with Thomas Harper Sr., a leading trumpet player in England, these instruments bore the titleof "Harpers Improved" inscribed on the bell. One of the first of this type of slide trumpet is housed in the

Bate Collection. In 1833, brass instrument maker John Khler signed a contract with Harper to make anddistribute the "Harpers Improved" models. Other makers of clock spring slide trumpets were Goodison,

Pace and Power.

The compression spring was the next development in the improvement of the slide trumpet. Makers started

to see that the clock spring was not only difficult to assemble and service, but also was expensive to make.

The compression spring model used a spiral spring enclosed in a cylinder between the stays on the bell andbow. A rod with a disc on the end would compress the spring when pulled against it. While an

improvement on the clock spring, the disassembly of the spring mechanism required the difficult task of

taking apart the soldered finger pull. For this reason, not many slide trumpets with the compression spring

were manufactured. The Shrine to Music Museum in Vermillion, South Dakota houses two compression

spring models made by the Charles Pace company and a short model horn, a slide trumpet folded four times

instead of two, made by William Grayson.The final and simplest of the slide mechanisms, the expansion spring or elastic chord, started to appear in

the middle of the 19th century. A spring or elastic chord was place inside the hollow center tube and was

stretched as the slide was pulled out and would then contract to bring the slide back into position. The Bate

Collection in Oxford has a Khler "T. Harpers Improved" model, which is believed to be one of theearliest examples of this type of slide trumpet. Several other Khler instruments are housed in collections in

the Horniman Museum, the Royal College of Music, Edinburgh University, The Metropolitan Museum of

Art and the Shrine to Music.Other designs continued to be developed throughout the century. William Wyatt patented the first fullychromatic slide trumpet in 1890. This instrument was folded four times and had two double slides that were

connected to one another. The advantages of this system were that the slide movement needed was half that

of the previous models, allowing for larger shifts along the slide. It used a spring expansion mechanism to

return the heavy double slide to the original position. Wyatts trumpet also had tuning slides in the crooks,

one of the first to do so. Despite the advantages of this horn, it never gained much popularity. The slide

functioned uncomfortably, and the smaller position changes were difficult to adjust to for those players

used to earlier slide trumpets. Another design patented late in the century was the "Ortho-Chromatic SlideTrumpet" by Boosey and Co (illustration 13). This instrument was really nothing more that an alto

trombone with a trumpet bore and bell. It had a forward moving slide with no return mechanism. Again, itwas not popular and not many were made. Frenchman Francois Georges AugusteDauvern also created a

slide trumpet with a forward moving slide. It did not have a return mechanism but had a slide lock that

could hold the slide at any position as an alternative to crook changes. Michael Saurle developed a trumpetwith a tuning slide and pitch slide, and a curious trumpet with a slide crook, the crook itself had the slide

mechanism, was apparently developed by Khler. Most of these later developments never gained

popularity due to the growing popularity of the valve. Many did not have the complete facility of the valve

trumpet and no major advantages over the conventional slide trumpet. As composers began to write more

rapid music for the trumpet, the valve gradually began to take the place of the slide.


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illustration 13: the Ortho-Chromatic slide trumpet by Boosey and Co.The technique of the slide instrument was similar to that of the natural trumpet. All players interested in

learning the slide trumpet were encouraged to learn how to play the natural trumpet first. Many method

books began to appear for teaching of the techniques that are unique to the slide trumpet. The first to wasthe aforementioned method written by John Hyde. H. Legram wrote the earliest tutor to appear in France in

1821. John Thomas Norton and H. Schiltz&Dauverne also wrote methods that were published. But the

most influential of the tutors written were those of Thomas Harper and his son Thomas Harper Jr.The playing position of the slide trumpet depended on where the return mechanism was located. In his

method book, Harper Sr. writes on how to hold the horn:[The trumpet] is held horizontally in the right hand, with the Mouthpiece and Crook to

the left side of the performer. The second and third fingers are placed on the lower end of

the small cross in the middle of the trumpet to move the slide up when required. The

thumb is on the upper part of the middle cross (or stay). The first and fourth fingers are

place nearly opposite each other on the outside of the trumpet but are not to move. [Thefingers of the left hand should be] placed on any part of the trumpet most convenient, the

thumb resting on the side of the mouthpiece, so as to keep the trumpet in a steady

position.Harper Jr. gives a slightly different description of how to hold the horn, with more of the support and

balance being given with the left hand. This was probably due to the fact that Harper Jr. played the

expansion spring model as opposed to his fathers clock spring model. The right hand played a more

important role in the holding of the clock spring models as the return mechanism was provided more a joltthan the later models.The slide movement was used to correct certain partials and to achieve half-step downward shifts from all

partials. A slide movement of about a half an inch was used to correct the out of tune partials. To lower the

pitch a half-step depended on which keys the instrument was played in. In the higher keys of F, E, E-flat,

and D the slide was pulled out half way. The lower keys of D-flat, C, B, B-flat, A and A-flat required the

slide to be moved two-thirds of the way out to achieve a half-step. Whole tone shifts were sometimes

obtained by pulling the slide out fully, but they were often very sharp and were only used as passing notes.Articulation on the slide trumpet was unique. The player articulated between the teeth, with the tip of the

tongue just touching the upper lip. This method taught by Harper was different from the techniques

introduced by Altenburg and GirolamoFantini (Modo per imparare a sonareditromba) that were so widely

used throughout Europe. It is possible that because English music was written without the florid, high parts

that the ti-ri-ti-ri style of articulation was not necessary. The larger mouthpiece that was used on the slide

trumpet was also a factor. Legato passages were played as modern trombone players play them today, witha soft legato tongue. It should be noted that the later Hawkes and Son tutor teaches the more familiar

approach to articulation, the tongue used in the manner of saying the letter T.

The slide trumpet began to appear in the orchestras of the concert hall and opera houses in the early part of

the 19th century. The use of the instrument was not exclusive. Players of the time were expected to be

versatile enough to play all the instruments available, in needed. This included the natural trumpet, the slide

trumpet, keyed bugle, or valved cornet and trumpet. Solo literature for the slide trumpet was abundant.Many of the famous players of the time-James Sarjant, Hyde, The Harpers and Walter Morrow-played most

of their solo repertoire on the slide trumpet. Most of this solo literature was unpublished and therefore did

not survive. The two outstanding trumpet concerti of the day by Haydn and Hummel were written for the

keyed trumpet. If these were ever performed on the slide trumpet is not known. Harper Sr. was known tohave performed "The Trumpet Shall Sound" and "Let the Bright Seraphim" on his slide trumpet. But,

again, as the valve trumpet gained popularity and composers wrote increasingly more difficult music for

trumpet, the slide trumpet began to lose its dominance and slowly began to disappear.


16/19

illustration 14: Thomas Harper Sr., a pioneer of the English slide trumpet

Today, the slide trumpet is no longer the dominant instrument it once was. It did play, however, an

important part in the development of the modern valved instrument. The slide trumpet inspired new

compositional techniques for the instrument, which led to the ensuing search for technical advancements toachieve a fully chromatic instrument. The slide trumpet played a very active role the musical life of the

Renaissance, Baroque and even the Classical eras.

Annotated Bibliography

Altenburg, Johann Ernst.Essay on an Introduction to the Heroic and MusicalTrumpeters and Kettledrummers Art, for the Sake of a Wider Acceptance of the same,

DescribedHistorically, Theoretically, and Practically and Illustrated with examples,

trans. Edward H. Tarr (Nashville: The Brass Press, 1974).

ASU Call #MT 440 .A613A historically important look at the art of trumpet playing from the Baroque era. Alsodescribes the process of becoming a member of the knightly trumpet guilds as well as

providing music for performance.Anzenberger, Freidrich. "Method books for slide trumpet: An annotated bibliography."

Historic Brass Society JournalVol. 8 (1996): 102-114.

Personal Copy

An informative article that lists method books for the 19th-century slide trumpet in

England and France. Includes specific information provided by each book, charts,

drawings and a brief history of the slide trumpet.Barton, Peter. "The Woodham-Rodenbostel slide trumpet and others employing the

clock-spring mechanism." The Galpin Society JournalVol. 42 (August 1989): 112-120.

ASU Call #ML5 .626

This is an excellent, description of a slide trumpet from England. Gives very detailedspecifications as to how the horn was made and how it works. Also has many fine

pictures and drawings.

Bate, Philip. The Trumpet andTrombone: An Outline of theirHistory, Development and

Construction. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1972.

ASU Call #ML 960 .B38


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Provides an in-depth look at the history of the trumpet and trombone, from as early as the

Sumarians to the contemporary orchestral and jazz instruments. Includes an excellent

chapter on the acoustics of brass instruments and many clear pictures showing the

multitudes of trumpets and trombones throughout the ages.Baines, Anthony.Brass Instrument: TheirHistory and Development. New York: Charles

Scribners and Sons, 1976.

ASU Call #ML 930 .B28

An excellent account of the history of brass instruments. Includes many excellent

photographs, charts, drawings and music examples.Brownlow, Art. The LastTrumpet: A History of the English Slide Trumpet. Stuyvesant,

New York: Pendragon Press, 1996.

ASU Call #960 .B76A very detailed look at the slide trumpet in England. Contains information on the types of

trumpets made and used, literature written for slide trumpet and important players in the

history of the instrument, as well as much more. Considered the definitive work on the

English slide trumpet.

Downey, Peter. "The Renaissance slide trumpet: Fact or fiction?"Early Music Vol. XII/1

(February 1984): 26-33.

ASU Call #ML5 .E18An article presenting an interesting view as to whether or not the slide trumpet existed in

the Renaissance era. Provides an excellent account of the trumpet in the Renaissance andmakes a strong argument for the idea that the slide trumpet did not exist until the

Baroque.Duffin, Ross W. "The trompette des menestrals in the 15th-century altacapella."Early

Music, Vol. 17, Issue 3 (1989): 397-402.

ASU Call #Ml5 .E18

A fine argument for the existence of the slide trumpet in the Renaissance.Griffith, Janet Entwisle. The slide trumpet in the early Renaissance.(DMA document,

University of Cincinnati, 1992).

Aquired through interlibrary loan

A fine paper on the slide trumpet in the Renaissance. Provide solid evidence for the

existence of the instrument in that era.Hoover, Cynthia Adams. "The slide trumpet of the nineteenth century."Brass Quarterly

VI, No. 4 (Summer, 1963): 159-178.ASU Call #ML1 .B7A very detailed look at the slide trumpet. Provides very specific measurements of horns

as well as an in-depth look at the history of this interesting instrument of the 19th-century.

Myers, Herbert W. "Slide trumpet madness: Fact of fiction?"Early Music Vol. 17, Issue

3 (August, 1989): 383-389.

ASU Call # ML5 .E18An article promoting the belief that the slide trumpet did indeed exist in the Renaissanceera. A fine argument to the article "The Renaissance slide trumpet: Fact of fiction?" by

Peter Downey.Plank, Steven Eric. "Knowledge in the making: Recent discourse on Bach and the slide

trumpet." Historic Brass Society JournalVol. 8 (1996): 1-5.

Personal Copy

It is an interesting composition presenting the differing views as to whether or not thetrombadatirarsiwas actually meant to be the instrument used in some of the works by J.S.

Bach.Polk, Keith. "The trombone, the slide trumpet and the ensemble tradition of the early

Renaissance."Early Music Vol. 17, Issue 3 (August 1989): 389-397.

ASU Call # ML5 .E18

This article provides a detailed look at the ensemble usage of the predecessors to modern

brass instruments in the Renaissance. A strong statement for the existence of the slide

trumpet in that era.


18/19

Smithers, Don L.The Music andHistory of the Baroque Trumpet before 1721. London:

J.M. Dent & Sons, Ltd., 1973.ASU Call #ML 960 .S63

A fine work that gives a precise look at the trumpet in the Baroque era. Considered to be

one of the finest presentations on the subject.

Tarr, Edward. The Trumpet. Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press, 1988.

ASU Call #ML 960 .T3713Widely thought to be one of the best sources of information on the trumpet, this work

details the history of the trumpet from before the fall of Rome to the modern day.

Virdung, Sebastian.Musicagetutscht. New York: Broude Brothers, 1966.

ASU Call #M2 G39 1966 Bd.11

An important treatise listing and describing musical instruments of the Renaissance era.

Webb, John. "The English slide trumpet." Historic Brass Society JournalVol. 5 (1993):

262-279.

Personal CopyThis essay takes an excellent look at many surviving slide trumpets from 19

th-century

England. It presents many of the different makers and styles of instruments available to

the trumpeter of this era.________. "The flat trumpet in perspective." The Galpin Society JournalVol. 46 (March,

1993): 154-160.

ASU Call #ML5 .626An article that takes a closer look at the double slide flatt trumpet.

Illustration Acknowledgments

Illustrations 1-3: Smithers,Music andHistory of the Baroque Trumpet before 1721.

Illustration 4: Tarr, The Trumpet.Illustration 5: Downey, "The Renaissance slide trumpet. Fact or fiction?"Early MusicVol

XII/1 February, 1984.Illustrations 6, 7, 13: Webb, "The Flat trumpet in Perspective." The Galpin Society

Journal, Vol. 46 (March 1993).Illustrations 8-10: Barton, "The Woodham-Rodenbostal slide trumpet and others

employing the clock-spring mechanism." The Galpin Society JournalVol. 42 (August

1989).Illustrations 11, 12, 14: Hoover, "The slide trumpet of the nineteenth century."Brass

Quarterly, IV, No. 4 (Summer, 1963).

Edward H. Tarr, The Trumpet, trans. S.E. Plank and Edward Tarr (Portland: Amadeus Press, 1988), 53.

Tarr, Trumpet, 54.Don L. Smithers, The Music andHistory of the Baroque Trumpet before 1721, (London: J.M. Dent & Sons,

Ltd., 1973), 44.

Smithers,Baroque Trumpet, 45.

Tarr, The Trumpet, 57,58.Anthony Baines,Brass Instruments: TheirHistory and Development, (New York: Charles Scribners and

Sons, 1976), 100-103.

Janet Entwisle Griffith, The slide trumpet in the early Renaissance, (DMA document, 1992), 34-35.Tarr, The Trumpet, 60-62.

Smithers,Baroque Trumpet, 28.

Smithers,Baroque Trumpet, 36-37.

Keith Polk, "The Trombone, the Slide Trumpet and the Ensemble Tradition of the early Renaissance,"

Early Music 17 (1989): 389-397.

Baines,Brass Instruments, 95.

Polk, "Ensemble Tradition", 393

Sebastian Virdung,Musicagetutscht, (Broude Brothers, New York, 1966).


19/19

Ross W. Duffin, "The trompette des menestrelsin the 15th-century altacapella,"Early Music, Vol. 17, Issue

3 (1989): 397-402.Herbert W. Myers, "Slide trumpet madness: fact or fiction?",Early Music, Vol. 17, Issue 3 (1989): 383-389.

Baines,Brass Instruments, 178.Johann Ernst Altenburg,Essay on an Introduction to the Heroic and MusicalTrumpeters and

Kettledrummers Art, for the Sake of a Wider Acceptance of the same, DescribedHistorically,

Theoretically, and Practically and Illustrated with examples, trans. Edward H. Tarr (Nashville: The Brass

Press, 1974), 14.Art Brownlow, The LastTrumpet: A History of the English Slide Trumpet, (Stuyvesant, New York,

Pendragon Press, 1996), 8.Steven E. Plank, Knowledge in the making: Recent discourse on Bach and the slide trumpet, Historical

Brass Society Journal, Vol. 8 (1996), 1-5.

Baines,Brass Instruments, 180.

Brownlow,LastTrumpet, 10-11.

Ibid, 11.

Brownlow,LastTrumpet, 13.


Ibid, 27-31.Cynthia Adams Hoover, "The slide trumpet of the nineteenth century",Brass Quarterly IV, No. 4

(Summer, 1963), 159-178.

John Webb, "The English slide trumpet", Historic Brass Society Journal, Vol.5 (1993), 262-279.Hoover,Slide Trumpet, 164.Ibid, 161.

Ibid, 163-164.


Webb, "Slide Trumpet", 270.

Brownlow,LastTrumpet, 59-62.Webb, "Slide Trumpet", 268.



Edward Tarr, "Slide Trumpet",New Grove Dictionary of Musical Instruments

Webb, "Slide Trumpet", 267.

FreidrichAnzenberger, "Method Books for slide trumpet: An annotated bibliography", Historic Brass

Society Journal, Vol. 8 (1996), 102-114.Brownlow,LastTrumpet, 81.

Ibid, 85.

Hoover, "Slide Trumpet", 170.


Ibid, 89-91.

Ibid.

Documents

John March Ian Do