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The Development of the Piccolo Trumpet
Emile Meuffels
The Bach Trumpet
During the Romantic era people started to get interested in Baroque music once again. For the trumpet players this was a big challenge: they had to play the hardest and highest trumpet parts of the baroque era on an instrument which wasn't designed to do so. The trumpet players had grown so much apart from the clarin tradition that they even didn't know for which instrument the baroque trumpet parts were written.
For about forty years all kinds of experiments were performed to be able to play the difficult high trumpet parts of Bach. Sometimes they were simply transposed down an octave, sometimes they were played by the woodwinds.
On October 19th, 1871, Julius Kosleck (Berlin, 1835-1905) demonstrated clarin-playing on an old trumpet he discovered in a private collection in Heidelberg.1 This trumpet was supposedly a Medieval Buisine to which an extra tube was added to lower the pitch to D. Apparently he never tried the baroque trumpets from Nuremberg which had to be readily available in Germany.2
Kosleck used a trumpet designed by himself for the Bach-fest in Eisenach (Sept. 1884).3 This trumpet was based on the 1871 Buisine, but fitted with two valves and pitched in Bb/A. The success of this performance was such that he was invited to play Bach's B minor Mass in England. He played first trumpet on the first modern performance of this piece in the original instrumentation, March 21, 1885 in the Royal Albert Hall. Second trumpet-player on this performance was Walter Morrow, third John Solomon, both on normal instruments.4 In 1895 Morrow recalled:
"I had the pleasure of playing the second trumpet part. Herr Kosleck did not speak English or French and I could not speak German, so we did not chatter, and I got no information; but I endeavored to see all I could. I watched him closely, and was not long in finding the dimensions of his trumpet... and some days after I made a drawing of his trumpet, and from that drawing Messrs. Silvani & Smith, of Finsbury, made me a trumpet. But I was for a very long time experimenting with mouthpieces before I found anything satisfactory. I do not think my mouthpiece is like Kosleck's, but it is a good one and produces, I think, a better tone than his. I was delighted with Kosleck's performance and resolved to do my best to imitate him... He [Kosleck] told a friend of mine that it took him six years to practice the first trumpet part of Bach's Mass, and I believe him. All honor to him for his determination culminating in success, for in my opinion he has succeeded in introducing an instrument capable of rendering these parts even better than they were played originally, with equal quality of tone and correct intonation."5
Silvani & Smith (1886): Bach trumpet in A Prevously owned by John Solomon
Boosey & Co., London (1909): Bach trumpet in A
Walter Morrow (1850-1937) and John Solomon (1856-1953) ordered copies of this instrument from Silvani & Smith, although their instruments had the normal proportions of cylindrical and conical and used a normal mouthpiece.6 Morrow used this instrument at the 1886 Leeds Festival.7
The Bach-trumpet was only in use from 1886 to 1892. After that it was pushed away by the high D-trumpet.8 This trumpet was build by the French trumpet-player André Joseph Leclerc (a.k.a. M. Teste, 1840). He build this trumpet for a performance of Handel’s Messiah in Paris, 1874.9 Because of the success of his performance, other trumpet-players, like Merri Franquin (1848-1934) and Walter Morrow, started to play the high D-trumpet. It was even Teste's influence which made the C-trumpet standard in the French Orchestras. This C-trumpet was the same D-trumpet equipped with C-slides.10
In 1885 Teste had Besson build him a high G trumpet for a performance of Bach's Magnificat.11 At this time, Besson also started to manufacture high F trumpets and high E-flat trumpets with a crook to D.12 From 1894 Alexander (Mainz, Germany) also made a high F trumpet, designed specially for the Second Brandenburg Concerto.13
Besson (1885): Trumpet in High G
Mahillon (1892): Trumpet in High D Prevously owned by John Solomon
Early piccolo trumpets (incomplete information)
Adolf Scholz (1823-1884) from Breslau (Germany) played Bach’s trumpet parts from 1850 onwards. First on B-flat trumpet, later on piccolo flugelhorn in F (of unknown origin). He didn't get famous because he never played outside of Breslau.
Millereau build a two-valved piccolo trumpet in B-flat in the 1860's. He called this instrument a sopranino trumpet.14 Unfortunately there is nothing more known about this instrument.
Cervený build a piccolo cornet in B-flat in 1862.15 Also from this instrument, we don't know anything more.
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra owns two rotary-valve piccolo-trumpet in B-flat/A build by Alexander (Mainz) bought around 1910.16 Unfortunately Alexander doesn't have any records from this time.
The Piccolo Saxhorn
Around 1848 Sax added a piccolo saxhorn in high B-flat and C to his collection of saxhorns.17 An instrument of this type, build by Buffet-Crampon, was recently added to the collection of the Bad Säckingen Trumpet Museum.18
Hector Berlioz wrote a parts for this instrument in his La Prise de Troie19 and his Te Deum.20 A composer called Kastner wrote a part for this instrument in his Les Cris de Paris21.
There are two notes in the part of the Te Deum concerning this instrument:
"The part for this instrument is written as for a Cornet-a-pistons in high Bb. The actual sound will accordingly be a seventh higher than the written note."
"Note by the Editors: Where no Saxhorn can be obtained, its place will be best supplied by an Eb Clarinet and an Oboe in unison."22
Piccolo Saxhorn by Buffet-Crampon First page of the Marche pour la presentation des drapeaux by Berlioz, the movement of the Te Deum employing the piccolo Saxhorn
The Mahillon piccolo trumpet
Victor Mahillon (1841-1924) build his first B-flat piccolo trumpet in 1905. 23 It was based on the piccolo Saxhorn. Because of this, Mahillon piccolo trumpets were more like piccolo flugelhorns.
He has build short and long models, both with three and four valves. Unlike the modern piccolo trumpets the fourth valve was sometimes build to lower the pitch a fifth. The three valved long model was also called Goeyens model, after the famous Belgian trumpet-player Alphonse Goeyens (1867-1950). 24
These piccolo trumpets were very popular. The first piccolo trumpet by Vincent Bach was actually based on the Mahillon piccolo trumpet. 25
Drawing of an early Mahillon piccolo trumpet Drawing of an 1908 Mahillion piccolo trumpet Three-valved short model Mahillon piccolo trumpet Four-valved short model Mahillon piccolo trumpet. Silver one with 'perfect fourth' fourth valve, made around 1970.
Lacquered one with 'perfect fifth' fourth valve. Used by Edward Haug (San Francisco Symphony), probably made around 1950. Three-valved long model Mahillon piccolo trumpet, made around 1960. Early Vincent Bach piccolo trumpet, based on the Mahillon piccolo trumpets.
Early Symphonic works employing high pitched trumpets
1848: Berlioz-Te Deum: Piccolo Saxhorn
1857: Kastner-Les Cris de Paris: Piccolo Saxhorn
1892: Rimsky-Korsakov Mlada: trumpet in E-flat and D
1899: Berlioz-La Prise de Troie: Piccolo Saxhorn
1903: Vincent d'Indy Second Symphony: trumpet in E-flat
1905: Vincent d'Indy Jour d'ete a la montagne: trumpet in E-flat and D
1913: Stravinsky Le Sacre du Printemps: trumpet D
1926: Ravel Bolero: trumpet in D
1930: Stravinsky Symphony of Psalms: trumpet in D
Bach Second Brandenburg Concerto
The immense problems which trumpet players faced with the Second Brandenburg Concerto can be evidenced by the many transcriptions of the piece. Best known is the transcription by Felix Mottl. His score calls for 3 flutes, 3 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, violin solo and strings. The original clarino part is divided between the two trumpets who play the highest parts one octave lower. 26
The first performances of the Concerto in the original instrumentation were by Theo Charlier (1868-1944) on high G trumpet in 1898 and Alphonse Goeyens (1867-1950) on high F trumpet in 1902.27 Around 1905 or 1906 Goeyens played this work on the high B-flat trumpet.28 The first recordings were by Paul Spörri with the Edwin Fischer Chamber Orchestra (1932) 29 and by George Eskdale (1897-1960) of the London Symphony Orchestra with the Adolf Bush chamber players (1935).30
The first performance of the Second Brandenburg Concerto with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra took place on September 26, 1912.31 Conductor was Willem Mengelberg, principal trumpet at the time Dirk Speets.32 The orchestra owns two rotary-valve piccolo trumpets in Bb/A from that time build by Alexander (Mainz, Germany).33
It is unclear if Dirk Speets actually performed the solo part. In his booklet on the trumpet he states that the conductor Felix Mottl has simplified the impossible trumpet part.34 Speets also doubts that Bach wrote his clarino parts for the trumpet. After a concert in 1918 with Richard Strauss as conductor, Strauss asked Speets his opinion on Bach's trumpet parts. Strauss thought that they might be written for a brass clarinet of some kind. Speets, on the other hand, was convinced they were written for cornetto.35
The first performance of the Second Brandenburg Concerto in the original instrumentation in the United States was by the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra with Louis Davidson on trumpet in 1943. As piccolo-trumpets were unavailable in the US at that time, he used a H. N. White King "Liberty Model" miniature trumpet pitched in high B-flat. King made these trumpets from 1928 to 1932, probably for promotional or advertising purposes.36, 37
Above: King Liberty Trumpet in B-flat (1928)
Below left: King Liberty Miniature Trumpet in high B-flat (1928)
right: same (1932)
Adolph Scherbaum
Adolph Scherbaum (1909-2000) was from 1939 principal trumpet in Prague with Joseph Keilberth as conductor. Keilberth discovered Scherbaums talent for the high register and encouraged him to specialize in Bach's Second Brandenburg Concerto. Scherbaum has performed this concert over 400 times and recorded it 14 times. Because of him the trumpet once again was accepted as a solo-instrument in serious music (the big cornet-virtuosos were never allowed to play in the big concert halls) and a lot of baroque music was rediscovered, amongst others the music of Telemann.38
Part of Scherbaum's success may be that he played on a piccolo-trumpet. While everyone still played the high baroque parts on D-trumpet (F-trumpet for Bach's 2nd Brandenburg Concerto) Scherbaum had Scherzer build him a piccolo trumpet with a phony tube because of which the trumpet looked like a normal trumpet. The other trumpets (e-flat and piccolo) he owned (build by Leistner from Hamburg, Germany) all had these phony tubes.39
Kurt Scherzer (ca. 1950): Piccolo trumpet in B-flat with phony tubes
The Selmer piccolo trumpet
The first piccolo trumpet which was widely used was the Selmer (Paris) short model piccolo trumpet. The three valved model was developed in 1959 in cooperation with Maurice André, who was the chief tester for Selmer trumpets at this time.
Before 1970 Selmer introduced a four valve model.40, 41 Because of the huge successes of Adolph Scherbaum and Maurice André this piccolo trumpet became very popular.
Maurice André in a Selmer advertisement from 1971
The Scherzer piccolo trumpet
Johannes Scherzer (Markneukirchen, Germany) developed his piccolo trumpet in 1960 for Willy Krug (1925). Krug was first trumpet with the East Berlin Radio Orchestra and soloist. He advised Scherzer on the development of the piccolo trumpet. Scherzer made prototypes with both rotary and perinet valves. His early trumpets had only three valves.
In 1971, after the success of the Selmer four valve piccolo trumpet, Scherzer also developed a four valved version, this time only employing rotary valves. 42
Scherzer: Piccolo trumpet in B-flat/A
The Schilke piccolo trumpet
Schilke (1966) Piccolo trumpet
Renold Schilke build his first piccolo trumpet in September 1966. This piccolo doesn't yet resemble the current models. After a lot of prototypes, the P5-4 was introduced in 1971. 43 This model was a revolution on the field of piccolo-trumpets.
Because of the medium bore (0.450 inch) the Schilke piccolo trumpet is far more free blowing than the piccolo trumpets build in the French tradition, which employ a small bore (about 0.415 inch). Since 1976 Schilke also manufactures a piccolo trumpet in C.
Almost every modern company today has copied the Schilke piccolo trumpet.
Yamaha copy of the Schilke P54
1 P. Bate, The Trumpet and Trombone, (Second Edition, Ernest Benn Limited, 1978), 187-188. 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid., 189. 4 Ibid., 189. 5 K.C. Clark, “Performances of the Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in the US”, ITG journal 1978, 25. 6 Bate, 190. 7 Ibid. 8 Ibid., 190-191. 9 R.P. Birkemeier, “The history and music of the Orchestral Trumpet of the Ninetheenth Century, Part II”, ITG journal, May 1985, 19. 10 Birkemeier, 20-21. 11 Bate, 192. 12 A. Baines, Brass Instruments, (Reprint, Dover Publications Inc., 1993) 239. 13 Ibid. 14 Baines, 239. 15 R.I. Schwartz, “The Cornet Compendium”, http://www.angelfire.com/music2/thecornetcompendium/early_history_4.html 16 F. Grin, De Trompet, 74. 17 G. Cassone, La Tromba, 89. 18 Email from Edward Tarr. 19 T. Charlier, Trente-Six Études Transcendantes, 31. 20 H. Berlioz, Te Deum (Kalmus Miniature Orchestra Scores), 143. 21 D. Hickman, The Piccolo Trumpet Big Book, 2-3. 22 Berlioz. 23 Baines, 239. 24 Email from Ralph Henssen. 25 Ibid. 26 Clark, 25. 27 Cassone, 88. 28 Tarr, Die Trompete, 122. 29 Ibid. 30 Clark, 25. 31 F. Grin, 100 jaar trompettisten van het Concertgebouworkest, 12. 32 Ibid., 35-39. 33 Grin, De Trompet, 74. 34 D. Speets, De Trompet, 32-33. 35 Ibid., 18-19. 36 Clark, 26. 37 Emails from David Roth, Ellis Workman and Thomas Meacham. 38 V. Jakobsen, “Adolph Scherbaum (1909-2000)”, Brass Bulletin 122 (II/2003). 39 Cassone, 98-99. 40 Email from Catherine Fabre-Georgoudis (Henri Selmer, Paris). 41 Herbert Heyde, Das Ventilblasinstrument. 42 Ibid. 43 Jim Donaldson, “The Schilke Loyalist”, http://www.dallasmusic.org/schilke/
List of pictures
1. Silvani and Smith Bach Trumpet, from Bate: "The Trumpet and the Trombone"
2. Boosey & Co. Bach Trumpet, from Edinburgh University Collection of Historic Musical Instruments
3. Besson G-trumpet, from Baines: "Brass Instruments"
4. Mahillon D-trumpet, from Bate: "The Trumpet and the Trombone"
5. Buffet-Crampon Piccolo Saxhorn, from http://www.hermitagemuseum.org/
6. Berlioz: Te Deum
7, 8, 10-12. Pictures of Mahillon Piccolo Trumpets, from Ralph Henssen
9. Mahillon Piccolo Trumpet, from Al Lilly
13. King Miniature Trumpets, from Thomas Meacham
14. Kurt Scherzer Piccolo, from Cassone "La Tromba"
15. Selmer Advertisement with Maurice André, from Luc Decock
16. J. Scherzer Piccolo, from Scherzer website
17. Schilke 1966 Piccolo, from Jim Donaldson 'The Schilke Loyalist'
18. Yamaha Piccolo, from Cassone: "La Tromba"
