Brass Band Instruments
Brass Band Instruments Fast Facts
As their name suggests, the principal brass instruments, such as the trumpet, trombone, horn, and tuba, actually are made of brass, usually lacquered or silver-plated for ease of cleaning. But they have their origin in natural instruments such as conch shells, hollowed branches, and animal horns. In fact, any tube that can be sounded with the lips qualifies as a brass instrument, regardless of its material. Tubes are ideal for fanfares and hunting calls, but they can sound only a limited number of notes. In the attempt to extend the musical range of tubes, inventors came up with some bizarre instruments, including the aptly named serpent.
A Brief History on Brass Band Instruments
The Brass section consists of the following instruments:
horn, trumpet, trombone (tenor and bass) and tuba. The cornet is also
sometimes called for. Brass instruments produce their notes when the player
presses his lips against a cup-shaped mouthpiece, forces air through them,
and causes them to vibrate. These vibrations are taken up and modified
by the column of air enclosed inside the metal tube that forms the body
of the instrument. The player’s lips act, in other words, like reeds in
woodwind instruments. Unlike the woodwind, however, the brass does not
produce their full range of notes by opening sound holes in the body of
the instrument, thus reducing its sounding length. They achieve their
different sounding lengths by adding extra tubing.
Without the possibility of such additions the brass could only produce
the harmonics appropriate to the length of their basic tubes. For example,
a tube 8 feet 9244cm) long will produce the notes of the harmonic series
of an 8 foot C.
By varying the pressure of his breath and the tension of his lips, the player can pick out most of these notes with ease. A simple instrument such as the bugle, which cannot change the length of its tube, is played exactly in this way. But its tunes are limited to the notes of the harmonic series its length produces. This is why army bugle calls revolve (often very ingeniously) round a few notes.
Although it is relatively easy for the player to pick out the lower harmonics in the series, the upper harmonics are more difficult to pinpoint. Help comes from the shape of the mouthpiece being used. A shallow cup, such as you find in a trumpet mouthpiece, aids the search for upper harmonics. The shape of the cup also influences the quality of the instrument’s voice: the shallow trumpet cup invokes a brilliant sound, whereas the gently tapering horn mouthpiece adds warmth and mellowness.
The only way a brass instrument can produce notes
outside its basic harmonic series is by adding a new length of tubing
and so making available a new harmonic series. For example, if we add
a further 1 feet 2.5 inches 936.8 cm) to the 8 foot tube the harmonic
series of B flat would emerge. This gives us notes not in the 8 foot (C)
series. The whole history of brass instruments has been concerned with
ways of changing the tube lengths quickly and efficiently.
Until the 19th century horn players had to rely on crooks to change the
harmonic series. These were changed whenever necessary during performances.
However, they were inconvenient to use, and so valves were introduced
to replace them. These enabled the player to switch to a different harmonic
series without having to stop playing. The mouthpiece of the horn has
become more cup-like over the years. Those of traditional instruments
are more funnel-shaped. As early as 1639 Cavalli wrote a part for a horn
in a hunting scene in one of his operas, and Lully followed his example
in 1664.
Modern brass instruments in full cry, especially row after row of trumpets
and trombones, can create a blaze of sound. This is not just because of
the effort that goes into blowing them, although purple faces may well
go along with a thrilling fanfare. The brilliant sound is due to the narrow
metal tube, cylinder-shaped bore, and wide, flared bell. Brilliance of
tone, however, is only half the story, Blowing softly produces a mellow
sound; using a mute gives the music a hint of different moods that can
be created by the trumpeter an trombone, paling them with great individuality
to create exciting solos.
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