Throughout art history, you can occasionally find multiple versions of the same image. Sometimes the versions are from the same artist (e.g., preparatory sketches), sometimes they are by other artists in other media (e.g., from a painting to an engraving),…
I just added the below entry and images to the Trombone History Timeline (16th century). Both are somewhat curious images that are likely to be an artist’s best attempt at a relatively new instrument (an instrument that is rather difficult to depict…
I just added the below image and caption to the Trombone History Timeline (17th century—2nd half). Elsewhere I have posted numerous examples of trombonists perched on organ pipes, but I believe this is the first picture I’ve added with a…
In 1609 a Bolognese artist by the name of Guido Reni painted a version of what is typically called an “angel concert” in one of the chapels of Rome’s San Gregorio Magno. I have already posted several black and white views…
I recently came across two humorous ophicleide images from 19th century France (1847 and 1862, below) while doing some trombone history research. The ophicleide, by the way, is a fellow low brass instrument—a 19th century invention that is considered a…
The slide is one of the most identifiable visual characteristics of the trombone in artwork. However, when a slide turns up without a bell, it can be problematic. Could it still be a trombone? Are we trying too hard to…