Should we expand this website in other directions?

Here is your chance to help us take this website in the direction you would like to see.

Gordon, Kenton, and I would like to do a podcast on keyed brasses, and we would like to have a participant who actually has played or now plays a keyed brass instrument.

Gordon is our computor geek and Kenton would do the interview. I am just a goober when it comes to keyed brasses and will be on the sidelines to listen. If you would like to discuss your interest in keyed brasses and your playing experience, we would enjoy having you participate.

Other things we are considering on the antiquehorns.com website are:

A  Q&A section where folks can ask a question about an instrument and get a reasonable, easy to understand answer.

A buy & sell section where folks can list instruments for sale and buyers can request and list what they are interested in purchasing.

Here is your chance to let us know what you would like.

Stoelzel or Bluhmel Who invented this valve system?

Although Stoelzels name is generally connected to this valve system, some think it was a joint effort of the two “craftsmen” Stoelzel and Bluhmel , working together as a team in Berlin in the first quarter of the 19th century.

Stoelzel was a Saxon and Bluhmel was a Schlesien. The exclusive patent rights to this valve system was ultimately given to or purchased by Stoelzel and to this day it bears his name. The interesting question is, why did the valve system not gain popularity in the German speaking principalities where it was invented, but accepted to a larger extent in Great Britain and France where it was applied as seen here on a Cornopean.

This instrument bears a British makers mark “an Irish harp” and was imported into the U.S. by John Howard Foote, probably before the Civil War. Interesting about this horn is the original tarred wooden case to make it waterproof, and the pigtail and straight crooks which pitch the instrument to ” Bb, Ab, FA, LA, and SOL”.  There is also a screw in Lyre and a bubble glass painting of the period, of a musician holding this horn. Notice that the “SOL” crook is in the upright position in the painting.

This horn was found in Fond du Lac Wisconsin at an estate sale in early 1970.

The OVER THE SHOULDER craze

As the recreated Civil War band interest continues, the search for over the shoulder instruments has increased at a fever pitch, driving the prices higher and higher. I know one collector who rates his OTS horns on playability, using a scale of one to ten. Not a bad idea really as it allows him to use his best sounding instruments in performance and his band performances are superior to most other bands.

Of course, not many bands are afforded the luxury of a surplus of OTS horns. They have to use what they have and what they find out there on the market is few and far between.

There was a time shortly after the Civil Was when OTS instruments were a glut on the market and makers scrambled to unload their stock,offering horns at bargain prices and options like converting the horns from OTS to bell up and bell forward configurations.

The OTS horn is truely unique, but more plentiful than other configurations. But for now, the OTS reigns!

Collecting, why do we do it?

Have you ever asked yourself, Why am I doing this?

Why do we collect antique musical instruments? Is it the feeling of actually touching musical history or events.  I mentioned in another article the satisfaction one member of the 1st Brigade band had of actually playing an instrument that Lincoln and Douglas also heard playing in Freeport Illinois during their historic debates?

In the case of the weapons collector, that the musket, pistol, sword was used during a battle like Gettysburg? I take great pride in the fact that my great grandfather fought in that battle and actually stood on Cemetary hill and watched and waited as Pickett charged their position.

So, why do we collect? The answer, I believe is to touch history, not to relive it. For almost every item you can think of, there is a collector. From the largest items to the smallest matchbox or cigar band, you will find someone who collects it.

In the case of musical instruments, you have the added satisfaction of hearing what people back in history heard and enjoyed, and to hear it played on the original instruments is an added kick!

Add to all of that that you get to meet some great folks and travel to some very interesting places. You also learn about the history of your country in a very unique way.

There is one other thing that I want to add to this subject. During a time when the band visited Springfield Illinois and played at Lincolns Tomb, I experienced something I will never forget. It was a sultry hot summer day and our band approached the tomb. The snare drummers had black cloths draped over the drums as they played the slow roll.  As we got closer to the tomb, one woman in the audience became very emotional and as we began to play “Lincolns funeral March” she began to weep. She was obviously transported back in time to 1865 and was mourning the loss of Lincoln in a different way. She felt she was actually there.

That is one of the reasons why we collect!

Abraham Lincoln and the Brodhead Brass Band

2009 will be a very special time in American history. It will be the bicentennial year of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. We know that Lincoln loved music, that he was a terrible dancer, and that he was fond of the ladies. We can picture the ungainly Lincoln on the dance floor, all arms and legs attempting a polka or waltz and the very tall Lincoln and the very short Mary Todd together on the dance floor.

Of all of the bands that Lincoln must have heard, only the 1st Brigade Band remains active today.  It existed before the Civil War as the Brodhead Brass Band and during Lincoln’s debates with Douglas, the small brass band from Brodhead, Wisconsin, traveled south across the Illinois border to play at the debates. The Brodhead band became the 3rd Wisconsin Infantry Band and then the 1st Brigade Band. Undoubtedly, Lincoln heard it play several times. We know that he heard it as the Brodhead Band at the debates with Douglas.

It may astound some people that the present day band actually has at least two horns that Lincoln heard play. One is an E flat alto that was used at the debates. The other is an OTS baritone used by the 1st Brigade Band during several troop reviews that Lincoln attended.

During the upcoming bicentennial celebration year of Lincoln’s birth, the band will undoubtedly be busy with concerts, balls, and historic presentations. Make plans now to engage the band for your Lincoln celebration in 2009. They have programs for all sorts of occasions. See their promotional film clip on this website and contact Dave Woolpert or Ed Pierce for more information.

Keyed Brasses, the first brass bands

Not much is written any more about the first brass bands that developed just after the invention of the keyed bugle and ophicleide.  The Serpent, which is not actually a brass instrument but a leather and wood concoction with a brass or ivory mouthpiece added the bass element to the band and an occasional trombone or sackbutt and a flute rounded out the earliest brass bands from 1810 up until the mid 1840s when the invention of valves on brasses changed the picture forever.

Keyed brass bands had their own soloists of the day. Edward “Ned” Kendall and the mysterious Francis Johnson, an African American of much renoun provided the solo line and actually “dueled” with valved brass soloists to display the proficiency of the instruments and the talent of the soloist.

Keyed brass bands soon faded and are not heard from except in the U.K. and eastern seaboard of the United States where there is only one such band remaining.

Keyed brass return us to the earliest brass bands. I remember hearing the 1st Brigades Bill Burdick performing “Gentle Annie” on the ophicleide. It is something I will always treasure.

Civil War Composers, who was the best? Who is your favorite?

This is a subject I always wanted to comment, so here goes.

My candidate for the best composer of music for Civil War bands is Claudio S Grafulla. For those out there who hav’nt heard his name, he composed “Washington Grays” I always theorized that his lady love was stolen away by an Eb cornet player and he found this way of retaliating. The music for an Eb cornet player on the march in Washington Grays is brutal. Add to that that the typical Civil Was band had only 1 or perhaps 2  Eb cornets and you can appreciate that when playing Washington Grays on the march, the Eb cornet player was a very busy guy!

I can remember as a H.S. bandsman in the 50s, when in a band competition, the judges always trotted out Washington Grays as a “sight reading” test, and it always evoked groans of pain from the cornet section.

Some non musician types think John Phillip Sousa composed during the Civil War. NOT TRUE! John Phillip was a lad of 4yrs at the time and can be seen on pictures of the U.S. Marine Band at the side of his father, who played Trombone.  John Phillip continued in the path started by Claudio S Grafulla.

Any other examples out there of Civil War Band composers?

Valved Trombones, their faded glory

 

I think the reasons we no longer see them is that they outlived their usefulness They came in many sizes and with different valve systems and at one time were very popular. I have my own theory on this subject and I actually played an Eb tenor valved trombone in the 1970s for a period of about 5 years. I acquired it in Kiel Wisconsin at an antique store. It was a refugee from an estate sale that did’nt sell and was consigned to languish away in an obscure corner of the shop. Mine came with its original coffin case, a lyre and original mouthpiece. There was also a crook to put it in the key of C. All things considered, it played rather well and research indicated that it belonged to a William Voss of Kiel Wisconsin. It has string action rotary valves that appear to have been made in New York or the New England states shortly after the Civil War.

Now, to my theory of why valved trombones are no longer used. I think they were used in lieu of slide trombones when the regimental bands were in vogue. They were much more durable than slide trombones and took the rough handling of a field band. Add to that the number of regimental bands that were mounted on horseback and required the musician to hold reins in one hand and play with the other, and you have the answer! European Bands still have bands mounted on horseback, and I would wager that some of them, especially British bands may occasionally still use a valved trombone rather than a Bb tenor horn.

Is there anybody out there that has another view of the valved trombones exit from todays brass bands?

Is it really what you think it is?

Like most collectors of antique horns, I have been guilty of not doing my homework on identifying exactly what kind of horn, valve type, maker, etc I have. The sources for this kind of identification are there, but often the novice collector does not know where to look Two good starting points are Langwills Index and Heydes works. Other sources are Eliasons works and other collectors in different countries.

I had been making this mistake for years, until just recently, I made the acquaintance of  German collector Udo Koehne. Udo has a very interesting and a good sized collection of brass instruments. In addition, Udo is a professional brass musician (trumpet) in a Bonn Germany orchestra, so when he talks about brass instruments and valve systems, you can learn a lot.

I had been in error for years in identifying one of my horns as having Vienna Valves. Udo informed me that the instrument was in fact known as “Neumainzer” and had what was known as “Klinkerdrucker” and explained that was the reason the Graves/Boston horn on Ebay sold for over $14000.

Udo was kind enough to share this information and even told me where to look to find examples of this type of valve. Just another example of how important it is to the novice collector to contact the right sources and persons for information. Thanks Udo!

Calling all restorers

Restoration experts are hard to find if you are an antique horn collector. Looking at it from the perspective of the restorer, he/she wants do make a profit from their skills and the more they can do in a day, the more money they can earn. The time spent in making parts for instruments made over a century ago can take time and skill, and the ability to do research before attempting restoration. If you know collectors like I do, they want the instrument to play like they were new and the cost of repair to be minimal.

Most museums have their own in house restoration expert, a situation the private small collector does not enjoy. So, where does the little guy go when a restoration is needed? Most music stores will laugh you right out the door and consider you a waste of their time. I think European collectors have a better chance of finding a skilled restorer and linking up with them. Sending your horn across the waters to be restored can be risky business.

There is, in the United States the problem of finding an “instrument repair person” why wants to restore your instrument to “like new condition” and actually overdo a restoration with polish and lacquer.

This is that spot between a rock and a hard place that the American collector finds himself in.

Any ideas out there?

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