2009 January

2 More Primary Sources: Digitized Festival Books from British Library

January 19, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Added entries to Trombone History Timeline from 2 new primary sources: 2 festival books from the British Library. The British Library has digitized 253 Renaissance festival books (printed accounts of special occasions, often kept by courts) and made them available online here. If you’re a history buff, this is an intriguing collection to browse! The documents are facsimiles of the original sources.

The specific relevant posts in the Trombone History Timeline are 1536 (the entry of Charles V into Siena, Italy) and 1641 (the entry into London of Charles I on his return from Scotland); both occasions include celebratory music by trombones.

Filed Under: Trombone History, Updates Tagged With: posaune, primary sources, Renaissance, sackbut, sackbut history, Siena Italy, Trombone History

Alto in E-flat: More Primary Sources

January 17, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Added 8 more primary sources to the Alto Trombone Timeline, bringing the total number of primary sources for that timeline to more than 2 dozen. The sources (Gevaert, Riemann, Jadassohn, Saro, Galli, Mayerhoff, Coon, and Corder) are 19th and early 20th century orchestration texts from a wide range of locations (Germany, Italy, Belgium, England, and the United States), all of them clearly indicating a “small” alto trombone in E-flat. The sources leave very little ambiguity in this respect, providing clear diagrams of the alto trombone range and key or alto trombone position charts. This is significant because it adds to the body of evidence suggesting the alto trombone is historically a D or E-flat instrument (on this subject, see also Extant Altos).

Filed Under: Alto Trombone, Trombone History, Updates Tagged With: alto trombone sources, Belgium, Coon, Corder, England, Galli, Germany, Gevaert, Italy, Jadassohn, Mayerhoff, posaune, Riemann, sackbut, sackbut history, Saro, Trombone History, trombone primary sources, When Is an Alto Trombone an Alto Trombone

Note from Conservator at Germanisches Nationalmuseum

January 8, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Just got a kind email about the site from Markus Raquet, Conservator of Musical Instruments at the Germanisches Nationalmuseum and maker of historical brass instruments. The Germanisches Nationalmuseum holds an extensive collection of early trombones (see, for example, the “holders” of the many early alto trombones in my post on extant altos). I also added an entry in the Trombone History Timeline (16th century) based on a recent Historic Brass Society Journal article that Mr. Raquet authored about a newly-rediscovered 1576 trombone. The instrument, a tenor trombone made by Schnitzer of Nuremberg, was initially discovered in 1903 in an organ case being dismantled in a church in Altötting, Germany (southern Bavaria). The trombone was then displayed in the church’s Schatzkammer (treasure chamber), but has since been moved and is on display in Altötting’s Wallfahrt- und Heimatmuseum (Museum of Pilgrimage and Local History), located near the church. According to Mr. Raquet, this Altötting trombone is probably the oldest dated instrument by Schnitzer and the third-earliest signed trombone in existence.

Filed Under: News, Trombone History Tagged With: Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Markus Raquet, posaune, sackbut, sackbut history

ABQ Residency photos

January 6, 2009 By wkimball 1 Comment

American Brass Quintet held a mini-residency at the Brigham Young University School of Music in November, 2008, made possible through a BYU Laycock Foundation Grant and the National Endowment for the Arts. It was a fantastic experience for students, faculty, and community. BYU’s brass and chamber music areas in particular benefited greatly from ABQ’s world-class instruction and performances. Events included a chamber music masterclass, open rehearsal, formal concert, individual lessons, historical performance session, business of music class, and “informance.” Below are a few photos from the residency.