1494—Venice, Italy

In a letter written by Giovanni Alvise, a city musician of Venice, Alvise discusses arrangements of motets by Obrecht and Busnois for wind band, specifically mentioning the trombone by name, and other parts by range only: “In these past days we have made instrumental arrangements of certain motets, of which I am sending two to your Lordship. One of these is a work of Obrecht, i.e. for four voices, two sopranos, a tenor and a ‘contra alto.’ And because we are six, I have added two bass parts to be played by trombones” (Polk, German 73, 85).