trumpet images

Trombone Image: 20th Century Sculpture Inspired by 16th Century Print

November 29, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Added the following to the 20th Century Trombone History Timeline:

1989—Soest, Germany: Sculptor Kord Winter fashions a trio of musicians in honor of one of the city’s most famous residents, 16th century artist Heinrich Aldegrever. The sculpture makes reference to Aldegrever’s Die Posaunisten from the series The Great Wedding Dances of 1538 (see 16th century timeline) (see above image; public domain) (source: wikimedia commons; see also www.kordwinter.de/objekte/Brunnen/brunnen.html).

Below is the image by Aldegrever from the 16th century, along with its entry from the timeline. Notice that Winter retains some interesting details from Aldegrever’s print, including the trombonist’s left-handed playing position, his slide grip, and the banner attached to the slide.

1538—Germany: Heinrich Aldegrever portrays a trio of trombone and 2 trumpets in a woodcut titled The Brass Players (Die Posaunisten) from the series The Great Wedding Dances (see facing image; public domain) (Duffin, Trompette des Menestrels).

Filed Under: Trombone History, Trombone Images, Updates Tagged With: Die Posaunisten, Heinrich Aldegrever, Kord Winter, music iconography, music in art, Renaissance, sackbut, sackbut history, sackbut images, sackbut pictures, Soest Germany, Stadtpfeifer, The Great Wedding Dances, trombone iconography, trombone in art, trumpet iconography, trumpet images

Trombone History: Two Curious Images

November 21, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Hans Dürer, Dances in the Open Air

Recently I came across an interesting image from the early 16th century that features an instrument bearing something of a resemblance to a trombone. Titled Dances in the Open Air, the painting, by Hans Dürer (brother of the more famous Albrecht Dürer) is a detail of a frieze located in the Hall of the Envoys of the Royal Castle at Wawel (Cracow, Poland). It dates from 1532 (see above image; public domain) (Suchodolski pl. 428).

Giorgio Vasari, Muse for Genealogy of the Gods

That image brought to mind another from the 16th century, this one featuring what Edmund Bowles labels an alto trombone. If it is indeed a trombone, it is a somewhat awkwardly-rendered depiction. The image, dated from 1566, is by Giorgio Vasari. It is associated with a performance of The Genealogy of the Gods for the wedding festivities of Prince Francesco de’ Medici and Johanna of Austria (see facing image; public domain) (Bowles, Musical Ensembles 55).

Both of the images could be proto-trombones: instruments marking the evolution of trumpet into what we know as trombone. They could also simply be awkwardly-rendered trombones by artists not overly concerned with being literal. Or they could be separate instruments entirely. The images do call to mind some descriptions that scholars suspect may refer to very early trombones:

1407—Siena, Italy: German musician Angelo d’Arrigo joins the Palace trumpeters as a player of tuba grossa. There is speculation that this term, tuba grossa (Latin: large trumpet), could be a clerk’s best effort at describing a trombone, which would have been a very new instrument at the time (D’Accone, Civic Muse 443, 517).

1445—Florence, Italy: An account describes the trombone as “trombon grosso…che e tromba torta” (a “large trombone…that is a twisted trumpet” (Polk, Foreign 326; Polk, Archival Documents).

1518—The betrothal of Princess Mary, daughter of Henry VIII, to François, eldest son of François I, King of France, takes place in Greenwich, with a repeat performance in Paris. Festivities include a dance performed by a wind band that probably consists of 3 shawms and 2 trombones (“two brass which were bent back”) (Shaw).

Filed Under: Alto Trombone, Trombone History, Trombone Images Tagged With: Cracow Poland, dance iconography, dance images, Dances in the Open Air, drum images, Francesco de' Medici, Genealogy of the Gods, Giorgio Vasari, Hall of the Envoys, Hans Dürer, Henry VIII, history of the trombone, Johanna of Austria, Medieval, music iconography, music in art, palace trumpeter, percussion iconography, percussion images, Princess Mary, Renaissance, Royal Castle Wawel, sackbut, sackbut history, sackbut images, sackbut pictures, Siena, Trombone History, trombone iconography, Trombone Images, trombone in art, trumpet iconography, trumpet images

Trombone History: Six Early 17th Century Images from Antwerp

November 16, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

The first 2 images below are paintings I just added to the Early 17th Century Timeline. One thing that has become apparent is that there is a grouping of several similar paintings from this era by a small handful of artists based in Antwerp (see also the images below the first 2 paintings in this post; for more information on individual images, see Timeline). A few things stand out about this set of images. First, many of the paintings are collaborative, a practice that was relatively common (Haeften 8). Second, it is evident that all of the works are allegorical (or mythological) in nature. Third, in every case, the trombone is pictured in the foreground resting on the ground instead of being played. Finally, as mentioned elsewhere, many of the depictions of the trombone seem to be quite similar, almost as if they were stock images.

c. 1617—Antwerp, Belgium: Hendrick van Balen and Jan Brueghel collaborate on a painting called An Allegory of the Five Senses, which includes a trombone among several instruments in the foreground (see facing detail; public domain) (Haeften, pl. 8). For other depictions of the trombone by the same painter, see c. 1610 (Banquet of the Gods), c. 1615 (Minerva among the Muses), and c. 1625 (Allegory of Music).

c. 1640—Antwerp, Belgium: Jan van Kessel’s Allegory of Hearing depicts a room with numerous instruments, including a trombone leaning against a stool (see facing detail; public domain). The image is similar to a painting on which the artist collaborated with Hendrik van Balen and Jan Brueghel (see c. 1625, above).

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Additional paintings from Early 16th Century Antwerp that include trombone:

Van Balen, Banquet of the Gods

Van Balen, Minerva among the Muses

Brueghel and Rubens, Allegory of Music

Van Kessel, Van Balen, and Brueghel, Allegory of Music

Filed Under: Trombone History, Trombone Images, Updates Tagged With: Allegory of Hearing, Allegory of the Five Senses, Antwerp school, Banquet of the Gods, Baroque, Belgium, cornetto iconography, cornetto images, dulcian iconography, dulcian images, Hendrick van Balen, history of the trombone, Jan Brueghel, Jan van Kessel, keyboard iconography, keyboard images, Low Countries, lute iconography, lute images, Minerva among the muses, music in art, Peter Paul Rubens, posaune, sackbut, sackbut history, sackbut images, sackbut pictures, Trombone History, trombone iconography, Trombone Images, trombone in art, trumpet iconography, trumpet images, viol iconography, viol images

Trombone History: Early Rear-facing Trombones

November 12, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Found the below Italian fresco that features a rear-facing (or over-the-shoulder) trombone and added it to the early 17th century timeline. I know of only one other pre-19th century image that clearly shows such an instrument; I’ve included that image in this post as well (1578). Also included at the end of the post (since the entries are in reverse-chronological order) is what is perhaps a proto-rear-facing trombone from c. 1405. The fresco from c. 1615 is also of interest because it has only recently been restored (and, indeed, at the base of the photograph you can see what appear to be some restoration materials left in the picture). Also noteworthy in the painting is the trombone’s bell flare, which is more prominent than usual for this early date. Finally, as I have mentioned several times, it is quite arresting just how many trombone images originate from the 50-year period of 1601-1650.

c. 1615—Cislago, Italy: The Church of Santa Maria della Neve contains an anonymous fresco lunette featuring several angel musicians, including a trombonist. The trombone is particularly noteworthy because it is a rear-facing (sometimes called “over-the-shoulder”) instrument, an unusual configuration for this early date (see below image; public domain) (Morandi; Farioli). For another early rear-facing instrument, see 1578 in the 16th century timeline, where a cherub-trombonist is featured. In later centuries, particularly the 19th century, rear-facing trombones become much more common; the 19th century timeline includes at least 9 such images.

1578—Antwerp, Belgium: A set of masses by George de La Hele includes an image–an initial D in front of a group of cherub musicians–that features a rear-facing trombone being played by a cherub (also rear-facing) (see below image; public domain; Wangermée vol. 1 167).c. 1405—Paris, France: A grotesque from the Hours of Charles the Noble plays what is perhaps a proto-rear-facing trombone; there is no slide, but the similarity in general shape is obvious (see below image; public domain) (RIdIM/RCMI Inventory No. 8, p. 21).

Filed Under: Trombone History, Trombone Images, Updates Tagged With: angel concert, angel iconography, angel musicians, angeli musicanti, Baroque, cherub, Cislago Italy, concert of angels, cornetto iconography, cornetto images, engelskonzert, flute iconography, flute images, George de La Hele, harp images, history of the trombone, music iconography, music in art, organ iconography, organ images, over the shoulder trombone, posaune, putti, rear-facing trombone, Renaissance, sackbut, sackbut history, sackbut images, sackbut paintings, sackbut pictures, Santa Maria della Neve, shawm iconography, shawm images, Trombone History, trombone iconography, Trombone Images, trombone in art, trombone paintings, trumpet iconography, trumpet images

Trombone History: Two Very Different Images

November 9, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Added the following images, quite a bit different in character, to the 17th Century (first half) and 19th Century (2nd half) timelines, respectively. The similarity, of course, is that they both include a trombone.

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c. 1610—Antwerp, Belgium: Hendrick van Balen’s painting, The Banquet of the Gods, includes a trombone resting on the ground among several other instruments (see bottom right of facing detail; public domain image). For other paintings by the same artist that include trombone, see c. 1615 and c. 1625.

1858—London, England: An illustration of the band of the French National Guard published in London’s Illustrated Times includes trombone (see facing image; public domain).

Filed Under: Trombone History, Trombone Images, Updates Tagged With: Antwerp, Banquet of the Gods, Baroque, Belgium, cornetto iconography, cornetto images, England, flute iconography, flute images, French National Guard, Hendrick van Balen, history of the trombone, horn iconography, horn images, London, Low Countries, lute iconography, lute images, military band images, music iconography, music in art, posaune, Romantic, sackbut, sackbut history, sackbut images, sackbut paintings, sackbut pictures, Trombone History, trombone iconography, Trombone Images, trombone in art, trombone military, trombone paintings, trombone pictures, trumpet iconography, trumpet images, viol iconography, viol images

Trombone History: Trombone in Mixed Consort

September 16, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

Added the below image and caption to the 16th Century Timeline. One never knows how literal these depictions are, but the artist groups together an interesting combination of instruments. Another consort performs at a table in the background.

c. 1585—Italy: An engraving by Antonio Tempesta entitled The Concert features a trombone performing with a mixed consort of strings, winds, and keyboard (see facing image; public domain).

Filed Under: Trombone History, Trombone Images, Updates Tagged With: Antonio Tempesta, cornetto iconography, cornetto images, harp iconography, harp images, lute iconography, lute images, music iconography, music images, music in art, posaune, Renaissance consort, Renaissance music, renaissance trombone, sackbut, sackbut history, sackbut images, sackbut pictures, The Concert, trombone iconography, trombone in art, trombone pictures, trumpet iconography, trumpet images, viol iconography, viol images

Trombone History: Trombone Among the Angels

August 7, 2009 By wkimball Leave a Comment

A few months ago I added the following painting and entry to the Trombone History Timeline (18th century):

1704—Tönning, Germany: A painted ceiling by Barthold Conrath at the Church of St. Lawrence depicts a group of angels playing wind instruments and percussion, including a jubilant angel-trombonist on the far left (see above image; public domain) (Bowles, The Timpani 167).

Since then I have also come across this wikimedia image (public domain) showing a wider view of the interior of the church. The group of musicians pictured originally in the black and white detail is directly above the organ (but not suspended in the clouds). Click on the picture for a larger image.

What’s a little surprising about the painting, in my opinion, is its relatively late date (1704). The majority of similar visual depictions of trombonists among angel musicians–at least those I have been able to locate–originate from the previous two centuries. See 16th Century and 17th Century.

Filed Under: Trombone History, Trombone Images, Updates Tagged With: angel concert, angel iconography, angel musicians, angeli musicanti, Baroque, concert of angels, cornetto, cornetto iconography, cornetto images, Germany, music iconography, music images, music in art, natural trumpet, posaune, sackbut, sackbut history, sackbut images, sackbut paintings, sackbut pictures, timpani, timpani images, Tönning, trombone iconography, trombone in art, trombone paintings, trombone pictures, trumpet iconography, trumpet images

Trombone Image: 20th Century Sculpture Inspired by 16th Century Print

Trombone History: Two Curious Images

Trombone History: Six Early 17th Century Images from Antwerp

Trombone History: Early Rear-facing Trombones

Trombone History: Two Very Different Images

Trombone History: Trombone in Mixed Consort

Trombone History: Trombone Among the Angels

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