Trombone: history, video, interesting facts, listen

Musical Instrument: Trombone

Have you ever heard a trombone band play? Demonstrating their power, these tools make a huge impression. Whatever orchestra would not play: symphonic, pop, brass, big band - the brilliant and solemn sound of trombone is always heard.

The name trombone came to us from Italy, where the word "trombone" means "big pipe". The tool is really similar to a pipe, but, unlike it, it has a retractable knee, the slide.

There is no doubt that this instrument is available in dramatic musical works. G. Berlioz in the second part of his “Mourning-Triumphal” Symphony mournful memorial speech entrusted it to the trombone. Today, the symphony orchestra uses three trombones: 1 bass and 2 regular, tenor.

The history of trombone and many interesting facts about this musical instrument, read on our page.

Sound

The greatest composer L.V. Beethoven said that the voice of trombone is the voice of God.

The trombone’s sound coloring is very rich, it can be courageous, bright and formidable, but it can be calm and lyrical, so the instrument was originally used in church works.

Trombone range from the salt of the controcava, to fa of the second octave. Timbre - bright and bright in the upper register; noble and hard - on average; mysterious, gloomy and even sinister - in the bottom. The sound of the trombone is very diverse, it can create a festive and dramatic effect.

The trombone has one advantage over the rest of the instruments of the brass band, it can only slide from one sound to another, all this becomes possible due to the movement of the backstage. The famous beautiful trombone glissando will be performed according to this principle and is a natural touch for the rocker instrument. Earlier in classical music, the use of a glissando was not allowed and was considered a sign of bad taste. The first composers who overcame this statement were A. Glazunov and A. Schoenberg, independently and at about the same time.

For the expansion of expressive means, trombonists are often used as a mute, a pear-shaped nozzle, the purpose of which is to change the strength of the sound and achieve some sound effects.

A photo:

Interesting Facts

• On the excavations of Pompeii, which was attended by the king of England, ancient trombones were found. The Neapolitan king presented them as a gift to the English monarch, since this find was very interesting for the English king.
• One of the first trombone ensembles was the judicial ensemble of the city of Naples, which was also allowed to play at weddings, in churches and on the battlefields.
• The famous masters of the XV-XVI centuries for the manufacture of trombones was the dynasty of Neushel. They ordered trombones of royal families from all over Europe. The founder of the generic business was Hans Neushel, who himself played the instrument very well.
• Sopranic trombone was last used in the 18th century in the Mass of C-dur by V.A. Mozart

• “For frequent use the trombone is too sacred”, - this quote belongs to the great composer F. Mendelssohn.
• The first concert performance of trombone, as a solo instrument, took place in 1468 at the wedding of the Duke of Burgundy.
• In almost all of Wagner's operas, in the climaxes, a group of trombones can be heard.
• The part of the first trombone in Glinka's famous opera, Life for the Tsar, is unanimously recognized as the most difficult for the orchestral part to perform on this instrument.
• The test of professionalism for any trombonist is the performance of a trombone solo in Bolero by M. Ravel. The difficulty of the task lies in the fact that the instrument does not play before this part, that is, it remains “cold”, and the solo has to be performed in a high register.
• At the beginning of the 20th century, trombone began to be widely used in jazz compositions.
• At present, in France, future composers, graduates of the Conservatory, are required to submit a number of compositions during the exam, one of which must be for a wind instrument, including a trombone.
• The French and German schools of trombone most of all in Europe raised talented trombonists.
• One of the oldest trombones that has survived to our days was made in 1551 in Nuremberg by master E. Schnitzer.

• Before using the instrument in jazz, the best were trombonists from Germany and France, but then the leading positions were taken by musicians from the United States.
• Two hundred years ago, a trombone was attempted to accommodate a valve system, such as that of a French horn or pipe. In technical terms, such instruments have become much more agile, but their sound seriously lost, so this idea had to be abandoned.
• The largest ensemble, consisting only of trombones, included 360 performers who performed in 2012 in Washington on the national baseball field.

Design

The trombone is a cylindrical tube bent twice, which in the middle is moved apart by a slide, and at the end it sharply turns into a cone. The length of the tube is 3 meters, diameter - 1.5 cm. The mouthpiece at the trombone is large, in the shape of a rounded cup.

Average trombone weight - 2 kg, with a case - 4 kg.

The difference of the instrument from the rest of the members of the brass band is the presence of a special detail, a retractable backstage. Thanks to its movement, the sounds of the chromatic scale can be reproduced. This function on the pipes, tubes, horns perform valves.

Sometimes a quintwavell or quarteventle is installed on trombones in order to lower the sounds within a quint or quart. Among all the instruments of the "brass wind" group, a trombone can claim the title of "the most permanent", since during its long history this instrument has changed little. There are the following parts:

1. Krona general order.
2. Trumpet.
3. Kulisu.
4. Mouthpiece.
5. The valve for liquid discharge.
6. The first and second racks.
7. Sealing ring.

The instrument has 7 positions with a difference from the previous one in a half tone. Positioning correlate with the position of the scenes. If at the 1st position it is not put forward at all, then at the last 7th its nomination is maximum.

Tool types

A trombone belongs to the group of airphones (wind instruments), which are characterized by the content of air inside, and the sounds are formed as a result of its oscillations.

Today, trombones are produced in various sizes and registers, the classification of trombones is as follows:

1. Normal trombone (tenor).
2. Alto.
3. Bass.
4. Sopranic.
5. Double bass (difference with tenor one octave).

The last two species today are almost not used in practice. The most popular of them is tenor, it is called in everyday life simply the word "trombone".

Works:

ON. Rimsky-Korsakov - Concerto for trombone and brass band (listen)

Henri Tomasi - Concert for trombone and orchestra (listen)

Application and Repertoire

The development of the performing school served to popularize the trombone. Its scope is very extensive: symphonic, pop, brass, big band orchestras, jazz, funk, ska-punk, swing, salsa, meringue and other music genres. The sound of the trombone in the symphony orchestra plays a significant and sometimes paramount role. He is well able to convey a heroic or tragic character, the instrument may sound like a speaker with a speech filled with enthusiasm. Composers initially used his gloomy timbre colors, for example, V. A. Mozart in the opera “Don Juan” and “Requiem” instructed the instrument to depict the depths of hell. An example of the famous use of trombone in symphonic music is found by L. V. Beethoven, in the fourth and final part of the symphony No. 5.

It is worth noting that the composer understood and began to use the ability of trombone to accurately convey the emotional mood only in the era of romanticism. G. Berlioz, G. Mahler, R. Wagner, I. Brahms, admiring the noble and majestic sound, trusted the trombones in their symphonies not only pathetic, but also expressive lyrical moments.

Occupying an important place in the orchestral and ensemble practice, the trombone with great success acts as a solo concert instrument. Composers: I.S. Bach, G. Purcell, L.V. Beethoven, V.A. Mozart, R. Glier, A. Vivaldi, KM Weber, I. Haydn, E. Grieg, F. Schubert, D. Dvarionis, F. Couperin, J. B. Lülli, B. Marcello, M. Glinka, PI Tchaikovsky, S. Rakhmaninov, N.A. Rimsky - Korsakov, D. Kabalevsky, V. Blazhevich, N. Rota and many others created masterpieces of the classical concert repertoire for him.

Prominent trombonists

Having taken a solid place as an actively performing orchestral and ensemble musical instrument, the trombone energetically enters the concert stage as a solo instrument.

Among the prominent virtuoso trombonists, F. Belke, V. Blazhevich, K. Meyer, K. Kweisser, A.G. Dieppo, J.Stampa, A. Folkner, Z. Pulets, K. Bakardzhiev, K. Lindberg, A. Skobelev, V. Nazarov, V. Sumerkin, A. Lihonosova, A. Shipilova.

Famous jazz trombone players: J. Johnson, T. Dorsey, B. Bruckmeyer, F. Lacey, C. Ori, Glen Miller (creator of the famous jazz orchestra), D. Morsalis, K. Herwig, S. Touré, T. Dorsey, L Armstrong, C. Winding, B. Harry, V. Batashev, A. Kozlov, N.S. Korshunov, E.A. Reich, V.A. Sherbinin.

Story

Today it is already impossible to name the exact date of the birth of the first trombone. Historians have found the earliest mention of him in the works of the Roman writers Virgil and Isidore (the first years of the new era or the Roman calendar 570-730 years). During the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD The registry lists this tool.

During the excavations of Pompeii, archaeologists have discovered two well-preserved instruments, which differ little from modern trombones. They were made of copper and decorated with golden mouthpieces. Some researchers, for example, G. Riemann, believe that this tool existed as far back as the 4th century BC.

The main version, according to most scholars, is the assertion that the date of the appearance of the trombone in the form in which we know it XV century AD. It was from this time that the trombone’s history was taken, as it began to be widely used in Europe, individual works and solos were composed for him.

It is believed that the predecessor of the trombone was a rocker tube with a retractable tube, with which the musician could not only perform the chromatic scale, but also create a vibrating sound. This increased the similarity with the human voice, since such pipes were used to enhance the sound of the church choir.

The first trombones, as compared with modern instruments, were smaller and were called Sacboats. They had several types: soprano, alto, tenor and bass in accordance with the height of the singing voice, which was enhanced. In the 17th century, the Sakbuty underwent some constructive changes, which resulted in the appearance of modern tools. The name has also changed, the sakbuty became known as trombones.

In the 19th century, the musical master from Germany, K. Zatler, invented the quarter, through which it became possible to lower the trombone sounds by a quart, and thereby sound the "dead zone", since due to the specific construction on the instrument it was impossible to extract some sounds. Around the same time, the trombone entered the symphonic and brass bands.

From the beginning of the 20th century, the trombone began to develop dynamically, not only as an orchestral instrument, but also as a solo instrument. The manufacturing process was modernized, large trombone factories appeared: in the USA - Conn, Holton, King; in Europe - Zimmerman, Heckel, Courtois, Besson. A greater prevalence of acquired school games, significantly increased the concert literature. Trombone has become an integral part of various musical genres, such as jazz, and in the 80s of the last century, interest in saqubos increased - first-generation trombones that were not used by musicians for a long time.

Over 500 years of existence, the trombone has gained immense popularity and has found widespread use. This wonderful instrument, which has a rich timbre and special virtuosity, can instantly attract the attention of listeners and lift their spirits. It is perfectly combined with other musical instruments and harmoniously complements them, creating an amazingly beautiful musical palette.