Trent Hamilton indeed. It makes many transpositions a bit less of a pain. I had a trumpet professor in college who used a C essentially all the time, even though his students were using B-flats 99% of the time.
SekretAgentMans orchestras are really the only place you'll see C trumpets used on a regular basis. Although orchestral players will usually also use them if they play in a brass quintet. I believe French orchestras also use C trumpets, but German and English orchestras primarily use B-flats.
I’m an American master’s student in trumpet/play professionally and I just wanted to weigh in a bit. The C trumpet is played on almost all orchestral pieces in US orchestras. It is used more for that than anything else. We actually play most orchestral parts written for Bb trumpet on C trumpet and transpose. The reason is “tradition”, but I think it’s probably because C has a slightly brighter sound than Bb and cuts through the orchestra a little better. The transposition is often easier, but that is a poor reason to play one instrument over another since a competent US classical trumpet player does his/her homework and is quick at most transpositions. The C trumpet is actually often a poor choice for baroque music. They didn’t have C trumpets or even valves at the time. We typically play that music, like Handel’s Messiah for example, on piccolo trumpet. C and Bb trumpet slot a little differently in terms of pitch and general feel since C trumpets usually have a larger bore than Bb. Most American classical players have a preference between Bb and C but are expected to play both well. I definitely feel slightly more comfortable on C lol. As far as buying a C trumpet goes, personally, I recommend not buying a $150 C trumpet. The only reason you need a C is if you are someone who wants to be a professional or a very solid amateur. Even if you are an American playing in community orchestras, playing your Bb is totally okay. It only becomes an issue when you are an aspiring pro or being paid to play with pros. Then you want a C partly just to match other people. I know Trent said there are no major tuning issues on that C, but normally that isn’t the case. Not even on a nice instrument. C trumpet is a squirrelly beast and requires some alternate fingerings to play in tune. If you want a C trumpet just to have, great. If you want one to play in a community level orchestra, maybe consider working on sounding great on your Bb and use your $150 spending money on something else.
I disagree in one aspect. Generally, it is accepted practice to use the Bb trumpet in the community orchestra for all orchestral literature. I would like to change that standard as follows; (1) I hate when 2nd tpt players use student model instruments of any make, Chinese, Getzen 300, Bach Bundy or Mercedes, etc. (I would happily replace the musician or loan them one of my own if I could trust them not to ruin mine (which I can't)). Of course I don't have that authority- just another grunt here. Owning such nonserious instruments demonstrates a complacent attitude and disrespect for a minimum standard of quality and those who want to do their best, particularly for those who don't have chops - sufficient to compensate for a substandard instrument - in the first place and can afford a professional model. (2) Community orchestra players who can afford a professional model orchestral instrument (C trumpet) should buy just that if they can afford it. If they cannot afford it, fine, they should do their best. In orchestra, a profi C tpt matches the sound and pitch of another profi C tpt much better, particularly when the right C trumpet is selected. If done well, it becomes orchestral hegemony, whether paid or not, particularly with the right personnel. Doing to the contrary is frustrating for those doing their best and want the music to sound it's best. It creates a silent friction for the better musicians, forcing them into a choice of leaving the community Orchestra, bitching, or drinking heavily to put up with substandard section sound. I have had section players quit when I bring this up. They feel it is unfair at the community level. No offense to anybody, from a self appointed expert in orchestral trumpeting with a background in classical music and having studied classical trumpet performance. That is just the reality of orchestral trumpet playing.
Well yeah. In most cases, having everyone in the section play professional C trumpets would be ideal. Some orchestras don't do that all the time. I know Mike Sachs in Cleveland often likes having his 2nd player play Bb because it has a darker and wider sound. But my point really is that if the player doesn't have the money to buy a nice C trumpet, I'd rather they just played their Bb presuming that it is halfway decent. If he/she only has $150, it would be a FAR better use of money and it'd be more beneficial to the section overall to use part of that money on getting a matching straight mute. I find that trying to get a section playing a hodgepodge of different straight mutes more difficult to match than a section where people are playing on different instruments.
I think its time for another car-runover-the-trumpet scene. And it's things just like what you say nastytrumpet, different mutes, when I would happily loan mine rather than the alternative - ex. have the 2nd player use his untuned stonelined mute to match my tuned metal mute. We're saying the same thing man! There is one thing I will never buy from China, and that's a trumpet - with exception of the anti-smoking commercial where they were thrown out the window. Electronics maybe! By the way, I shudder to think where some mutes are now made! Thank you.
@@jonathanj.4800 I am a pro trombone player. I play on a Conn 88 series bass trombone and a Bach pro model. I was curious and purchased a Chinese (JinBoa) bass trombone. I must of gotten one of the better ones. I paid only $600 for it and it sounds much better than my Bach. Who would of thought!
Having a C trumpet also has the advantage of transposing to other keys like D, Eb, Bb or A (in these last two case you would like to play with a Bb trumpet but you can still play it with a C one). Also, there is a lot of music that is written for the C trumpet
4:37 You're supposed to press the valves down when you move the valve slides out. When you don't, it creates pressure on the inside of the trumpet, and will damage the horn in the long run.
You really think a $150 instrument has enough compression in the valves to cause mechanical failure? I don't. I don't think pulling slides will "damage the horn" on a better set of valves either, but it _can_ make the pull require excessive force, which has its own set of risks. Those risks are more related to banging into other things when the vacuum is broken, or chewing up the end of one of the tubes the slide goes into because it comes out crooked, than to the vacuum pressure itself. It's like trying to cut with a dull knife. It is not, in and of itself, dangerous. But since it requires considerably more force, the chances of slipping are a lot higher.
Yesterday I took delivery of a new Coppergate/Gear4music C trumpet, costing about UK £150 delivered from eBay. Extremely pleased with it both cosmetically and musically. I bought this for the non-transposing orchestral score reason mentioned here.
I've played professionally in the Los Angeles, Hollywood and Orange county areas for about 25 years. My forte', and the most fun was sight reading most gigs, whether combo's, orchestras, big bands, concert bands, etc. Before that, 3 1/2 years lead/ jazz trpt with the U.S. Marine Band when I was 17, and didn't realize it, but I had developed " relative pitch" (in Bb only). I had a gig at a church with an opera diva from Europe and her pianist. The piece was "Let the Bright Seraphim" and I decided to borrow a "C" trpt from Bill Bing, who gave me a quick lesson in baroque trpt. How hard could it be?? However, I quickly discovered at the rehearsal just before the gig, that I couldn't coordinate my ears with the higher pitch of the horn. Knowing that I couldn't transpose that well, especially on the gig, I had to play the thing "mechanically". They mailed me the recording, which sounded better than I thought, but it was the most frustrating gig I've ever done.........and that was the end of the "C" trpt for me!!!
When Adolph Herseth (arguably the greatest symphonic trumpet player in our time and principle of the Chicago Symphony for 53 years!) arrived at Chicago he was already playing a C trumpet when most weren't. The trumpet section starting switching to C trumpets for most playing. In 1955 Bach made six C trumpets for the Chicago symphony. Herseth had first choice, the second trumpet second choice, and so on for four trumpets. The fifth and sixth trumpet were sold and lot to history apparently. These trumpets remain the property of the symphony. Not many years back Bach started manufacturing the "Chicago C Trumpet" patterned after those provided the Chicago Symphony in 1955 (Bach model C180SL229CC). I have one and it is definitely a superb instrument. But they do cost just little more than the Chinese one described in the review.
@@MultiTrumpetman Actually, I might not be amazed. One of my trumpets is a Stomvi Elite E Flat/D. It is a superb trumpet and, in my opinion, not a dime's worth of difference between it and the Schilke, except, of course, for the number of dimes required to buy it. I bought it used but in new condition except it came in some other manufacturer's double trumpet case. I contacted Stomvi direct and bought their correct case. I've not played on any other Stomvi, but there sure are a lot of people who sing their praises. Some top players use Stomvi. Here is Pacho Flores demonstrating a number of their instruments: ua-cam.com/video/Belq9wlRSj8/v-deo.html
C trumpet the standard trumpet used in professional orchestras and it is instrument most contemporary composers write for actually. Band and Jazz use Bb, but orchestra tends to prefer the C. C tends to sound brighter than the Bb. One of the other reasons that contemporary (modern composers in the late twentieth and twenty-first century) is that trumpet players can choose whatever trumpet they want to play, since it is easiest to transpose from C. I have been given this advice from many different professional (classical) players. They say, "write in C, then if I want, I can use C, Bb, Eb, or even piccolo if I want."
I have what I believe is essentially the same horn except in silver from eBay - paid $289 with shipping. Where mine differs is the valves which are superb - fast and buttery smooth. Don't notice the threading issue you mention. I have the same issue with the main tuning slide. What I've done to deal with it is build up a thin coat of solder on both sides of the slide. This requires having some facility with solder. The big issue I ran into is I had to have the main slide in all the way to have it close to in tune. When I checked the mouthpiece gap it was over half an inch. Obviously the gap should be a lot less than that - i.e. the horn was too long. I desoldered the receiver and brace and when I looked at the inside of the receiver there's a stop the leadpipe is supposed to butt up against but when I measured it obviously wasn't coming anywhere near the end of the leadpipe. I went through a tedious process of reaming out the inside of the receiver with 100 grit carbide paper wrapped around the tail of a drill bit that just fit inside, holding it and turning by hand holding the bit with a folded over paper towel and the receiver with a rubber jar opening grip helper. I also drilled the stop inside the receiver to move it back with a drill bit that just fit and catches the stop. Took quite a bit of doing to get the gap down to about 2.5 mm when using a Bach 1 C or Stork Custom Vacchiano. The gap is a tad smaller with a Bobby Shew Lead but that's not a mouthpiece you'd typically use with a C trumpet. Now I have some leeway with the main tuning slide, it's in tune with the slide pulled out.
@@TrentHamilton - thanks. Did you find the pitch to be off on yours? Did you check it? I imagine with these Chinese stencil horns the QC is pretty hit and miss. But it sounds pretty decent given that it's a fraction of the cost of a boutique horn. I hear a lot of complaints about the valves on Chinese horns but apparently I've been fortunate. Besides this C I've had a couple of Chinese stencilhorn flugels and the valves on both were great.
Thank you for clarifying what I have been wanted to find out about C Trumpet. Now you confirmed that C trumpet can do away the transposing challenges we use to face when playing with Concert key players. Now when you mention the issue about blowing C trumpet we will hear a different pitch as we play Bb Trumpet. That is the same as we play Tenor vs Alto and Soprano even we play with the same fingering isn't it ? Thank you for the clarification.
No, it’s pouring outside. I can’t believe that many people will notice that a random note ‘doesn’t wound right’ on a C trumpet. If i ask you to hum E4 how close will you be if you are not one of those with absolute perfect pitch? Doesn’t sound horrible for $150. Can you fix the loose slide with more grease?
Love your videos. As a low brass and vocalist musician, I CANNOT wrap my head around trumpet music. Harmonics on a Bb trumpet are Bb, F, Bb, D, F, Ab, Bb. I can't see that as C, G, etc. A few years back I was asked to play Xmas music on Euphonium, but they only had "tenor clef" baritone music. It was impossible for me to play. I saw "C" and pressed the 1st valve... Anyhow, I happened upon your videos by chance, and appreciate everything you do.
Idea: Do a multitrack recording featuring your C trumpet and at least one of your G bugles. Being separated by a fourth, they should (in theory) blend together in a manner similar to that of B♭ and E♭ instruments.
PokéMon Master7342 I personally dont need special mouthpieces for different genres of course thats just me. I just naturally have a very jazzy tone for whatever reason
I'm not sure what "concert band in an orchestra" means. In band music, a B flat trumpet is the dominant instrument. But if you want a C trumpet, you probably need to think about what makes sense for your budget and skill level. Beginner or intermediate players with money to waste might buy a professional level instrument, but that sort of wastes money and wastes a fine instrument to a degree. A top of the line Bach or Yamaha C trumpet will list at three to four thousand dollars new. If you search online for "inexpensive C trumpet" you should find some trumpet forums like "trumpetmaster.com" and "trumpetherald.com" that discuss it. There seems to be comments suggesting a good way to go is to find a used Bach for $1,000 or so. If you are at a pretty high skill level, you will want to be able to try out a horn first. If not very skilled, that isn't as important other than to make sure everything is good and tight mechanically, good valve sealing, no broken braces, not too dented up, things like that. You can also shop at big online music vendors like Musician's Friend, but about the lowest cost retail one I saw there was about $1,600. And plenty of models for 2,3, or 4 thousand.
Question: What happens if I read music in concert pitch treble clef and I pick up a C trumpet and try to play a trumpet player's Bb treble clef as if I'm reading concert pitch treble clef?
Ah I figured it out! If you play Bb treble clef music with C fingerings on an Ab trumpet, it will sound as if it was a Bb trumpet playing normal fingerings on Bb treble clef music.
I would love to purchase this! Do you have a link or a recommendation on where I should get one? (I do have a higher budget than 150 of you have any other recommendations)
Paint the tops of the valve buttons in nail polish. Clear is fine if you don't want to see it. The unevenness of brush painting will make it feel a little bit more like mother of pearl.
Nice idea, sounds like it'd work. (Personally I don't care, if anything I prefer without pearls... And some of the best trumpets in the world come with buttons that don't have pearls - Smith-Watkins, Eclipse, etc)
I had an idea for a theoretical instrument, and I want to know what you think. Is it the worst idea you've ever heard? How would it sound? My idea is a trumpet with a bore diameter equivalent to the leadpipe on a French Horn.
Key difference being that the frumpet is, to put it in your own words, "Dramatically conical" whereas the instrument I'm imagining would fit more comfortably into the Trumpet family my merit of having a Cylindrical Bore. I imagine that would give it a very squeaky timbre; Excessively direct and forceful compared to a standard trumpet.
When I was young, c's were common, following French practice. My last teacher was thrilled when Edo deWaart asked the trumpets to pick up their German Bflat horns and put the c's away. I always thought the c's were a bit tinny and shrill in comparison to 'real' Bflats.
Trent do you know how to finger a high E above the staff on a B-flat trumpet? I tried playing it open and it registers as an E-flat. I need to know for my trumpet solo thanks?
In my opinion, once you get that high, fingerings don't matter as much as the breath support and the speed of your air. Hear the note before you play it and really work on pushing your air through the horn. If fingering 1 2 helps you hear the note, then go ahead and finger it, but fingerings don't really matter when you're that high.
Try any valve you like. They'll all work to one degree or another. But it could be your mouthpiece or instrument that's making that note out of tune. What are you playing on?
@@TrentHamilton, I was just wondering. Thanks for the interesting videos about exotic brass instruments. My son started playing French Horn this year, and we both enjoy your videos. Thanks.
If you pull the slides all the way out you'll only go down by about .7 of a half step. That means that your trumpet will sound like it's in the key of B natural but 15 cents sharp, which isn't good lol
Do you think it would be ok/better for someone to start off playing trumpet with a C one? Coming from other concert pitch instruments I mean. I fear having to sight transpose would be a skill on itself to learn, just in order to play the instrument seems like unnescessary trouble.
Trent, I was always thinking that when I saw Melissa Venema or Tine Thing Helseth playing curious looking trumpets I was assuming that higher keyed horns made it easier to hit the high notes. Am I confused about this? If we wish to play Ennio Morricone's work for the Spaghetti Westerns we have to hit D3 on the Bb trumpet. (Concert E) and you run the risk of your brains bleeding out of your ears. Is it easier to hit D3 and E3 on the higher pitched trumpets or no ?
Selmer does that, actually it was quite common for a french built horn in the 60's to be C to Bflat convertible, i think besson did that too. I have found a Selmer sabarich which play amazingly good in both keys, will soon be my main trumpet out of restoration.
I’ve got a Berkeley Winds C/B/Bb/A trumpet with two different tuning slides and an extension to allow you to play in each key. Would not recommend it by any means. The horn plays tolerably in the higher keys, but the craftsmanship is quite poor and the valves/slides are not up to my standards.
I toyed with the idea of getting a cheap (Gear4music) C trumpet but I actually thought I'd go with something more markedly different, a used low G trumpet. If truth be told, I would probably most want to get a decent quality D trumpet, because Händel. Back in my schooldays our principal trumpeter had a D, and it was quite simply out of this world. Maybe one day....
As I understand it the trend among symphony orchestras everywhere is towards the C. Simply because it is more agile, brighter and easier to play. You lack the Bb:s low F sharp (concert E), but it's seldom needed and if it is you just bring along your Bb horn. The last time I saw Haydn's trumpet concerto live the soloist played the fast movements on his C but switched to his Bb for the slow movement, presumeably because he wanted its warmer sound. I doubt if ease of transposition has anything to do with it, the pros all transpose anything from any key to any other, just like the horn players. Often the trumpet parts are written "in F", and the players perform them on any of their many trumpets and nobody cares.
Don’t buy a Berkeley Winds trumpet. They really aren’t very good. I picked up a Bb/C trumpet from that very company and it’s hard to play, out of tune, and doesn’t have a very good tone.
Good evening, where did you buy it? I am looking for something just like this, a simple, beginner's instrument, but Amazon I think only carries PLASTIC ones in that price range, or "B" trumpets. And real music stores in my area tend to specialize in higher end instruments. Thanks for the video and introduction!
Seeing this made me curious if there is a brass instrument with interchangeable tuning slides instead of another set of tubing like in double french horn (ex. shorter one for C, longer one for Bb, and a longer curly one for F)
I'm just an interloping string player, but my understanding is that a hundred years ago and more it was pretty common for some instruments to be adjustable to neighboring keys, typically including cornet in B flat convertible to A and (single) horn in F convertible to E flat. The player could insert or exchange a crook to change the basic length of the instrument, and then pull out the valve slides when using the lower key. (The slides might have markings for the correct -- or at least approximately correct -- positions. I think sometimes there may have been a second set of slides.) Adding a smidge over twelve percent to the length of both main bore and each valve slide lowers the pitch of the instrument by an equal-tempered whole tone.
It depends on the length of the tuning slide. My c trumpet has an extremely short tuning slide that is only an inch long, so it won't play in B. However, some of the older c trumpets came with a tuning slide extension to put the C trumpet in Bb. Also, no trumpet music is written in B natural; the German music that says trumpet in B really means Bb.
Look up the five valve trumpet demoed by David Hickman. There are situations where the fingerings are tricky in C, so he engages the other two valves to put the instrument in D, Db, or B.
for orchestral (symphonies and all that) stuff, you could tend towards a C trumpet; everything else a Bb is probably better. unless you want to do your own stuff, in which case it doesn't matter too much.
Why are Bb trumpets written in Bb to begin with? Why not write their music in concert pitch like trombones and tubas? (I.E. Open-Bb, 123-B, 13-C, 23-Db, 12-D, 1-Eb etc.)
This is why, in my opinion, all instruments should be written in concert pitch. Tubas come in Bb, C, Eb, and F, but all of the music (excluding British brass bands, because for some reason y'all give your tubas treble clef parts) is written in concert pitch. I suppose one could consider what tuba players do transposing, but we usually just call it learning new fingerings.
Trent (though I can't stop other commenters), I have a couple questions. I'm a tubist, I've only ever had the chance to play a variety of BBb horns (well, and that one old contra in G with two valves that I only played for about a month), and I'm considering starting college and becoming a music major (focusing composition/arrangement, but of course I will be doing much more tuba playing regardless). I've been thinking about getting a bass tuba, for smaller ensembles and solo work. I've heard you mention repeatedly that a piccolo trumpet does not make the higher register any easier, just more in tune. Is that true as well between bass and contrabass tubas? Surely at some point there's enough difference where a range is easier, is the piccolo trumpet the exception or the rule? Like, does a (modern) bass trombone help play lower in any way other than a second trigger? I've always had a quite weak high register for people who have been playing as long as I have, and have always been looking for ways to "cheat", like smaller mouthpieces, abrupt embourchure changes, etc. Also, have you ever played an F tuba? I'd probably prefer to go with a compensating Eb over an F, so many valves. *insert that picture from the video on your granddad's G Bass, with a tuba with like 30 valves* My BBb has 5 valves and I played a concert today, I used it for a grand total of two notes. Also, I love wessex but they do not sell one so have you ever seen a compensating tuba with the fourth valve played by right hand pinky instead of left hand? I've seen a euphonium like that but never a tuba. I can barely handle moving my slides occasionally, let alone my left hand having its own valve to worry about. Sorry for rambling. I'm still high on adrenaline and my brain is only now getting normal levels of oxygen back into it. Tubachristmas was today in my area and we have the concert an hour after we finish our single rehearsal. I tend to come to you with questions because I don't have a tutor I can ask, or any friends that play music, and I never have time to talk shop with my community band director. You always seem so knowledgeable. Any plans for a christmas multitrack video this year? If you want, I did a quartet version of Dance Of The Sugar Plum fairy I could rearrange for trombones, or whatever else you want to play. Your multitrack stuff has been amazing lately!
Hi, thanks for your comment. The first major hurdle with a tuba in a different pitch (at least if you read concert pitch music in the bass clef) you'll have to learn new fingering for it. If you can handle that, then go for it. Regarding the rest of your comment, I don't profess to be an expert, however, I've played both Eb and Bb tubas, and find that the Eb has a much nicer tone, much more agile across the range, but doesn't quite have the same depth. As for F or CC tubas, I can't comment. I've never seen a compensating tuba with four upright valves. I've just spent the last few hours editing a multi-track Christmas video, so you'll see that up in a few days. You're welcome to send me other sheet music too (preferably in music XML or Sibelius format so I can modify it if/where needed), but there's no promises that I'll end up recording it.
Tuba player here (British, brass band & concert band, 9 years experience). I've only ever played 3+1 compensating instruments (i.e. 3 top action pistons, plus one on the side, the preferred British design), Eb and Bb but I might be able to help. To answer your questions: I have a similar range on Eb and Bb. I don't have any extra high notes on Eb but they are easier, particularly in the mid-high register - the notes on the staff in bass clef (admittedly, my high register is not my strongest). The instrument-independent limit actually applies to the lowest register: my lowest note on both Eb tuba and Bb tuba is pedal F (yes really, F0) but on Eb it sounds like a helicopter (utter garbage), on the Bb it only sounds like a strained pedal note :P. My advice for high register is counter-intuitive: practice extreme low register (pedal notes, 4th valve notes and the like). This will develop your embouchure and strengthen muscles you don't normally use, leaving you better equipped for the high register. The same is also true in reverse: practicing extreme high register can help your low register too. The bass trombone's a different story altogether. I've never heard of the old G instruments playing in the trigger or pedal register - they were from an era where all instruments had narrower bores and sweet tone was valued higher than a powerful sound. I can't really say - perhaps a trombone player would have more to say. DON'T MESS AROUND WITH MOUTHPIECES! I had a workshop with an expert soprano cornet player (Kevin Crockford) last month and he advised categorically against 'mouthpiece hunting' (constantly changing in search of the 'perfect mouthpiece') - you should just try a few, pick your favourite and learn how to use it properly. This squares up with my experiences: I played a Denis Wick 2 on Bb for 6 years, bought a Bach 24AW for my Eb, struggled with stamina and stability, bought a Denis Wick 3 and all my problems went away. I would advise that you use a smaller mouthpiece for bass tuba and a larger one for contrabass, though: no trumpet/cornet player worth their salt would use the same mouthpiece on picc as they would on Bb trumpet or the same on sop as they would on cornet. I've never played an F tuba :P I've never seen a compensating instrument where the 4th is played with the right hand little finger but they probably exist somewhere (sidenote: Wessex are apparently developing a 3+1 comp F tuba). Playing the 4th valve with the left hand is really not a problem, you just need to get used to it. I've never not played 4th with my left hand but I did decide when moving to Eb that I'd rather used my middle finger than my index - it took me a couple of months to get used to and now I don't even think about it, even when changing back and forth between Eb and Bb. Right, compensating vs non-compensating (with the proviso that I've never played a non-comp and only know them by reputation). In short, neither is superior and both have quirks you need to get used to over the timescale of years. On non-compensating the tuning has to be adjusted manually - in the extreme cases, with slide pulling for every note. It takes time to learn - you have to listen and train your pulling muscle memory. At the start it will be less in tune than a compensating but, in the hands of an expert, it will end up more in tune.The compensating system covers you nicely, particularly in the lower register, but it's still not perfect and doesn't help with the upper register, particularly because your left hand is occupied and can't pull slides (you have to use alternate fingerings). In some ensembles (read: the British Brass Band) this doesn't matter too much - you can all be out of tune together - but for an orchestra or concert band, it might be more of an issue. Perhaps a more pertinent issue, though, is resistance and 'stuffiness'. A non-comp tuba has reasonably consistent resistance across its range but a compensating gets exponentially more difficult to blow as you add tubing, to the point where 134 can feel like blowing a golf ball down a garden hose. Compensating Bb tubas are horrible on bottom concert D and, depending on the instrument, borderline unplayable on concert C above the pedal. The Eb tubas are nowhere near as bad but, if you've never played a compensating instrument before, the bottom F will take some serious getting used to. The final consideration: bass tubas are more agile and easier to play, without a doubt. They lack the power and depth of tone that a contrabass has but the notes speak easier, they need less air and they can cover a wider pitch range. Here in the UK, the 3+1 Eb is the standard tuba: you see it from community bands to professional groups, in brass bands, concert bands and orchestras. It's a very, very flexible instrument and it would be my first pick for concert band and orchestra playing, even though I have 7 more years experience on Bb. It's the only instrument that makes sense for quintet and 10-piece playing too - the Bb would swamp the sound. If you're serious about studying music (playing solos, quintets, ensembles etc.), a bass tuba would probably be a good investment. Wessex do good intermediate/advanced instruments but consider buying second-hand or refurbished too - a good tuba will last you a decade or longer, but there's no point spending >$6000 on an instrument that might be gathering dust in 5 years. And, of course, always remember that no amount of money will get around the fact that you need to spend time with an instrument, practice and become familiar with it.
Thanks a lot for getting back to me. No pressure to play anything, of course, but having more music available to you is always good, yes? Change it however you like, and no need to even mention me if you do anything with it. Here it is as it was played: www.dropbox.com/s/3r0d2wt22lbtmly/Dance%20Of%20The%20Sugar%20Plum%20Fairy%20A.xml?dl=0 Here it is forcibly squeezed into treble-clef brass band instruments; I'm not happy with this but it might be a better starting point for your own instrumentation choices: www.dropbox.com/s/8uh6n3uea4dwkl8/Dance%20Of%20The%20Sugar%20Plum%20Fairy%20B.xml?dl=0
stumbled across this. fwiw, another pro to C is the upper range. Bb must play 1 note higher to reach a concert pitch. this means a concert high C must be played as a high D on a Bb horn. for many players, this is too difficult on a Bb horn, resulting in great strain and a sound that begins to resemble a buzzing bee for the not-so-strong players. this is why most ensembles today perform Copeland's Fanfare on C trumpets, though it was scored originally for Bb horns. the players of old were better than today on average!
If the part is written for a Bb horn they have to transpose it down a whole tone in order to play it on a C. Orchestral instruments are pitched randomly for historical reasons. If you could build an orchestra to-day from scratch you'd do it differently.
If anyone is in need of a good C trumpet for any reasonable purpose, they should NEVER think about buying the trumpet from the same seller you did. So I thought you spent too much time in this video talking about the problems with your $150 horn that no one should really be considering, instead of talking about the difference in quality on better C trumpets (bach, yamaha, monette) and the importance and influence they have in the orchestra.
I thought the rain was people clapping after he played
As did I.
😂
Same
SAME! I was like "long applause"
It was
Oh yes just what I've been looking for:
*"Lecture about the C trumpet from a New Zealander while rain pours outside ASMR"*
honestly same
You left out the fact that C trumpets are the standard main horn in American orchestras.
Are they really? I didn't now that.
Trent Hamilton indeed. It makes many transpositions a bit less of a pain. I had a trumpet professor in college who used a C essentially all the time, even though his students were using B-flats 99% of the time.
SekretAgentMans orchestras are really the only place you'll see C trumpets used on a regular basis. Although orchestral players will usually also use them if they play in a brass quintet. I believe French orchestras also use C trumpets, but German and English orchestras primarily use B-flats.
they only use Bb mainly in orchestras in Britain, Australia, New Zealand...
Gunnar Kristinn Óskarsson I stand corrected, then. I could've sworn the Germans used B-flats.
I wish it was raining like that here
That's got to be a tin roof.
quentin tarantino minecraft class
Lmfao
I’m an American master’s student in trumpet/play professionally and I just wanted to weigh in a bit. The C trumpet is played on almost all orchestral pieces in US orchestras. It is used more for that than anything else. We actually play most orchestral parts written for Bb trumpet on C trumpet and transpose. The reason is “tradition”, but I think it’s probably because C has a slightly brighter sound than Bb and cuts through the orchestra a little better. The transposition is often easier, but that is a poor reason to play one instrument over another since a competent US classical trumpet player does his/her homework and is quick at most transpositions. The C trumpet is actually often a poor choice for baroque music. They didn’t have C trumpets or even valves at the time. We typically play that music, like Handel’s Messiah for example, on piccolo trumpet. C and Bb trumpet slot a little differently in terms of pitch and general feel since C trumpets usually have a larger bore than Bb. Most American classical players have a preference between Bb and C but are expected to play both well. I definitely feel slightly more comfortable on C lol. As far as buying a C trumpet goes, personally, I recommend not buying a $150 C trumpet. The only reason you need a C is if you are someone who wants to be a professional or a very solid amateur. Even if you are an American playing in community
orchestras, playing your Bb is totally okay. It only becomes an issue when you are an aspiring pro or being paid to play with pros. Then you want a C partly just to match other people. I know Trent said there are no major tuning issues on that C, but normally that isn’t the case. Not even on a nice instrument. C trumpet is a squirrelly beast and requires some alternate fingerings to play in tune. If you want a C trumpet just to have, great. If you want one to play in a community level orchestra, maybe consider working on sounding great on your Bb and use your $150 spending money on something else.
Thanks heaps for your insight, most appreciated :)
I disagree in one aspect. Generally, it is accepted practice to use the Bb trumpet in the community orchestra for all orchestral literature. I would like to change that standard as follows; (1) I hate when 2nd tpt players use student model instruments of any make, Chinese, Getzen 300, Bach Bundy or Mercedes, etc. (I would happily replace the musician or loan them one of my own if I could trust them not to ruin mine (which I can't)). Of course I don't have that authority- just another grunt here. Owning such nonserious instruments demonstrates a complacent attitude and disrespect for a minimum standard of quality and those who want to do their best, particularly for those who don't have chops - sufficient to compensate for a substandard instrument - in the first place and can afford a professional model. (2) Community orchestra players who can afford a professional model orchestral instrument (C trumpet) should buy just that if they can afford it. If they cannot afford it, fine, they should do their best. In orchestra, a profi C tpt matches the sound and pitch of another profi C tpt much better, particularly when the right C trumpet is selected. If done well, it becomes orchestral hegemony, whether paid or not, particularly with the right personnel.
Doing to the contrary is frustrating for those doing their best and want the music to sound it's best. It creates a silent friction for the better musicians, forcing them into a choice of leaving the community Orchestra, bitching, or drinking heavily to put up with substandard section sound.
I have had section players quit when I bring this up. They feel it is unfair at the community level. No offense to anybody, from a self appointed expert in orchestral trumpeting with a background in classical music and having studied classical trumpet performance. That is just the reality of orchestral trumpet playing.
Well yeah. In most cases, having everyone in the section play professional C trumpets would be ideal. Some orchestras don't do that all the time. I know Mike Sachs in Cleveland often likes having his 2nd player play Bb because it has a darker and wider sound. But my point really is that if the player doesn't have the money to buy a nice C trumpet, I'd rather they just played their Bb presuming that it is halfway decent. If he/she only has $150, it would be a FAR better use of money and it'd be more beneficial to the section overall to use part of that money on getting a matching straight mute. I find that trying to get a section playing a hodgepodge of different straight mutes more difficult to match than a section where people are playing on different instruments.
I think its time for another car-runover-the-trumpet scene. And it's things just like what you say nastytrumpet, different mutes, when I would happily loan mine rather than the alternative - ex. have the 2nd player use his untuned stonelined mute to match my tuned metal mute. We're saying the same thing man! There is one thing I will never buy from China, and that's a trumpet - with exception of the anti-smoking commercial where they were thrown out the window. Electronics maybe! By the way, I shudder to think where some mutes are now made! Thank you.
@@jonathanj.4800 I am a pro trombone player. I play on a Conn 88 series bass trombone and a Bach pro model. I was curious and purchased a Chinese (JinBoa) bass trombone. I must of gotten one of the better ones. I paid only $600 for it and it sounds much better than my Bach. Who would of thought!
Having a C trumpet also has the advantage of transposing to other keys like D, Eb, Bb or A (in these last two case you would like to play with a Bb trumpet but you can still play it with a C one). Also, there is a lot of music that is written for the C trumpet
You sound better on a C trumpet than a Bb Trumpet somehow...
Disappointed Child much better in my opinion, but maybe he's just been practicing?
Disappointed Child | I notice your profile picture is of the political compass test
@@mr.starfish4965 i think the placement is where the name "disappointed child" comes from
4:37 You're supposed to press the valves down when you move the valve slides out. When you don't, it creates pressure on the inside of the trumpet, and will damage the horn in the long run.
How much of a vacuum is created that you think will damage the valve?
You really think a $150 instrument has enough compression in the valves to cause mechanical failure? I don't.
I don't think pulling slides will "damage the horn" on a better set of valves either, but it _can_ make the pull require excessive force, which has its own set of risks. Those risks are more related to banging into other things when the vacuum is broken, or chewing up the end of one of the tubes the slide goes into because it comes out crooked, than to the vacuum pressure itself.
It's like trying to cut with a dull knife. It is not, in and of itself, dangerous. But since it requires considerably more force, the chances of slipping are a lot higher.
It won’t damage the horn that’s a myth but it would still prob make more sense to press the valves when testing the slides
That actually scared me since I play tuba and I should never do anything like that
“Chineseium” -Trent Hamilton😂
" rain blaring and 9000 decibels" "its raining if you cant tell"
Never thought about playing bride of rhe waves on C. I ended my G2 trumpet recital with that piece and it totally kicked my butt.
That's a lot of popcorn
I love the crumpling paper in the background
Yesterday I took delivery of a new Coppergate/Gear4music C trumpet, costing about UK £150 delivered from eBay. Extremely pleased with it both cosmetically and musically. I bought this for the non-transposing orchestral score reason mentioned here.
I've played professionally in the Los Angeles, Hollywood and Orange county areas for about 25 years. My forte', and the most fun was sight
reading most gigs, whether combo's, orchestras, big bands, concert bands, etc. Before that, 3 1/2 years lead/ jazz trpt with the U.S. Marine Band when I was 17, and didn't realize it, but I had developed " relative pitch" (in Bb only). I had a gig at a church with an opera diva from Europe and her pianist. The piece was "Let the Bright Seraphim" and I decided to borrow a "C" trpt from Bill Bing, who gave me a quick lesson in baroque trpt. How hard could it be?? However, I quickly discovered at the rehearsal just before the gig, that I couldn't coordinate my ears with the higher pitch of the horn. Knowing that I couldn't transpose that well, especially on the gig, I had to play the thing "mechanically". They mailed me the recording, which sounded better than I thought, but it was the most frustrating gig I've ever done.........and that was the end of the "C" trpt for me!!!
When Adolph Herseth (arguably the greatest symphonic trumpet player in our time and principle of the Chicago Symphony for 53 years!) arrived at Chicago he was already playing a C trumpet when most weren't. The trumpet section starting switching to C trumpets for most playing. In 1955 Bach made six C trumpets for the Chicago symphony. Herseth had first choice, the second trumpet second choice, and so on for four trumpets. The fifth and sixth trumpet were sold and lot to history apparently. These trumpets remain the property of the symphony. Not many years back Bach started manufacturing the "Chicago C Trumpet" patterned after those provided the Chicago Symphony in 1955 (Bach model C180SL229CC). I have one and it is definitely a superb instrument. But they do cost just little more than the Chinese one described in the review.
Look for Stomvi Forte C trumpet. You can be amazed.
@@MultiTrumpetman Actually, I might not be amazed. One of my trumpets is a Stomvi Elite E Flat/D. It is a superb trumpet and, in my opinion, not a dime's worth of difference between it and the Schilke, except, of course, for the number of dimes required to buy it. I bought it used but in new condition except it came in some other manufacturer's double trumpet case. I contacted Stomvi direct and bought their correct case. I've not played on any other Stomvi, but there sure are a lot of people who sing their praises. Some top players use Stomvi. Here is Pacho Flores demonstrating a number of their instruments: ua-cam.com/video/Belq9wlRSj8/v-deo.html
You can put a harmon mute in it and play the oboe parts if you don't have an oboe player, been there, done that. Was kinda fun.
C trumpet the standard trumpet used in professional orchestras and it is instrument most contemporary composers write for actually. Band and Jazz use Bb, but orchestra tends to prefer the C. C tends to sound brighter than the Bb. One of the other reasons that contemporary (modern composers in the late twentieth and twenty-first century) is that trumpet players can choose whatever trumpet they want to play, since it is easiest to transpose from C. I have been given this advice from many different professional (classical) players. They say, "write in C, then if I want, I can use C, Bb, Eb, or even piccolo if I want."
I have what I believe is essentially the same horn except in silver from eBay - paid $289 with shipping. Where mine differs is the valves which are superb - fast and buttery smooth. Don't notice the threading issue you mention. I have the same issue with the main tuning slide. What I've done to deal with it is build up a thin coat of solder on both sides of the slide. This requires having some facility with solder.
The big issue I ran into is I had to have the main slide in all the way to have it close to in tune. When I checked the mouthpiece gap it was over half an inch. Obviously the gap should be a lot less than that - i.e. the horn was too long.
I desoldered the receiver and brace and when I looked at the inside of the receiver there's a stop the leadpipe is supposed to butt up against but when I measured it obviously wasn't coming anywhere near the end of the leadpipe. I went through a tedious process of reaming out the inside of the receiver with 100 grit carbide paper wrapped around the tail of a drill bit that just fit inside, holding it and turning by hand holding the bit with a folded over paper towel and the receiver with a rubber jar opening grip helper. I also drilled the stop inside the receiver to move it back with a drill bit that just fit and catches the stop. Took quite a bit of doing to get the gap down to about 2.5 mm when using a Bach 1 C or Stork Custom Vacchiano. The gap is a tad smaller with a Bobby Shew Lead but that's not a mouthpiece you'd typically use with a C trumpet.
Now I have some leeway with the main tuning slide, it's in tune with the slide pulled out.
Nice work!
@@TrentHamilton - thanks. Did you find the pitch to be off on yours? Did you check it? I imagine with these Chinese stencil horns the QC is pretty hit and miss. But it sounds pretty decent given that it's a fraction of the cost of a boutique horn. I hear a lot of complaints about the valves on Chinese horns but apparently I've been fortunate. Besides this C I've had a couple of Chinese stencilhorn flugels and the valves on both were great.
Check out the insect percussion section practising on the roof..
Great sounding snares..
Thank you for clarifying what I have been wanted to find out about C Trumpet. Now you confirmed that C trumpet can do away the transposing challenges we use to face when playing with Concert key players. Now when you mention the issue about blowing C trumpet we will hear a different pitch as we play Bb Trumpet. That is the same as we play Tenor vs Alto and Soprano even we play with the same fingering isn't it ? Thank you for the clarification.
thanks for the info here. im a multi-instrumentalist about to purchase a trumpet and this helped me make my decision.
Dougal McGuire Plz tell me u did not get the trumpet shown in this video
No, it’s pouring outside.
I can’t believe that many people will notice that a random note ‘doesn’t wound right’ on a C trumpet. If i ask you to hum E4 how close will you be if you are not one of those with absolute perfect pitch?
Doesn’t sound horrible for $150. Can you fix the loose slide with more grease?
I think that Bb trumpeters usually double on C trumpets in orchestral repertoire. The same goes with Bb and A clarinet and piccolo and concert flute.
Love your videos. As a low brass and vocalist musician, I CANNOT wrap my head around trumpet music.
Harmonics on a Bb trumpet are Bb, F, Bb, D, F, Ab, Bb.
I can't see that as C, G, etc. A few years back I was asked to play Xmas music on Euphonium, but they only had "tenor clef" baritone music. It was impossible for me to play. I saw "C" and pressed the 1st valve...
Anyhow, I happened upon your videos by chance, and appreciate everything you do.
Idea: Do a multitrack recording featuring your C trumpet and at least one of your G bugles. Being separated by a fourth, they should (in theory) blend together in a manner similar to that of B♭ and E♭ instruments.
Also, Trent, what mouthpiece would you recommend for jazz bass trombone?
I like a bach megatones 1.5G for bass
How much is a 0AL?
I'm currently using a Bach 1 1/2AL. And while it gives me a good range, it gives more of an orchestrial tone. Not really jazzy.
PokéMon Master7342 I personally dont need special mouthpieces for different genres of course thats just me. I just naturally have a very jazzy tone for whatever reason
On most mouthpieces, i sound very warm and dark. I want a cool, bright sound for jazz
He can play anything
Where do you think is the best place to get a C trumpet from? I would very much lke to get one, well before watching this video.
Which c trumpet do u reccomend.. im gonna start doing concert band in an orchastra
TheTXSavage494 Chicago Bach strad C trumpet is the best c trumpet in my opinion but it’s pretty expensive
I'm not sure what "concert band in an orchestra" means. In band music, a B flat trumpet is the dominant instrument. But if you want a C trumpet, you probably need to think about what makes sense for your budget and skill level. Beginner or intermediate players with money to waste might buy a professional level instrument, but that sort of wastes money and wastes a fine instrument to a degree. A top of the line Bach or Yamaha C trumpet will list at three to four thousand dollars new. If you search online for "inexpensive C trumpet" you should find some trumpet forums like "trumpetmaster.com" and "trumpetherald.com" that discuss it. There seems to be comments suggesting a good way to go is to find a used Bach for $1,000 or so. If you are at a pretty high skill level, you will want to be able to try out a horn first. If not very skilled, that isn't as important other than to make sure everything is good and tight mechanically, good valve sealing, no broken braces, not too dented up, things like that. You can also shop at big online music vendors like Musician's Friend, but about the lowest cost retail one I saw there was about $1,600. And plenty of models for 2,3, or 4 thousand.
Bach (preferably a 25H leadpipe and 229 Bell)or a Yamaha is a good bet. Usually you could find a used Bach for relatively cheap
Bach, Yamaha, Shilke HD's, S.E. Shires...all great choices.
Stephen Cook I use a Chicago series Bach and I hate it more than any of my trumpets even tho I use a Jupiter picc lol
Question: What happens if I read music in concert pitch treble clef and I pick up a C trumpet and try to play a trumpet player's Bb treble clef as if I'm reading concert pitch treble clef?
If you read concert pitch music on a C trumpet and play it with normal fingering, then it'll be in concert pitch.
Ah I figured it out! If you play Bb treble clef music with C fingerings on an Ab trumpet, it will sound as if it was a Bb trumpet playing normal fingerings on Bb treble clef music.
I would love to purchase this! Do you have a link or a recommendation on where I should get one? (I do have a higher budget than 150 of you have any other recommendations)
How to contact the same person you got it from to buy one as well? If he is not available, who do you recommend for student C trumpet?
When are you going to talk about the E flat alto trombone?
Dana Hench he already has
Sounds like it's raining heavy in New Zealand
Bride of the waves nice touch to the beginning
Paint the tops of the valve buttons in nail polish. Clear is fine if you don't want to see it. The unevenness of brush painting will make it feel a little bit more like mother of pearl.
Nice idea, sounds like it'd work.
(Personally I don't care, if anything I prefer without pearls... And some of the best trumpets in the world come with buttons that don't have pearls - Smith-Watkins, Eclipse, etc)
That's one hell of a rainstorm even by local standards here in Brittylandia...
Chopin Nocturne in Eb? Very nice.... showing the lack of transposition from concert pitch instruments and sounding good.
Michael Thomas first piece he played was bride of the waves, idk if he plays anything else after I'm only like a minute into the video right now
Its at the end
Still pussing down in NZ! The land of the long white cloud
Gotta love the bride of the waves intro
I had an idea for a theoretical instrument, and I want to know what you think. Is it the worst idea you've ever heard? How would it sound?
My idea is a trumpet with a bore diameter equivalent to the leadpipe on a French Horn.
That kind of instrument almost exists with the Getzen frumpet, except that it's in the key of F instead of Bb.
Key difference being that the frumpet is, to put it in your own words, "Dramatically conical" whereas the instrument I'm imagining would fit more comfortably into the Trumpet family my merit of having a Cylindrical Bore. I imagine that would give it a very squeaky timbre; Excessively direct and forceful compared to a standard trumpet.
8:04 Chopin. Very nice :)
Now you need a CC tuba! lol
When I was young, c's were common, following French practice. My last teacher was thrilled when Edo deWaart asked the trumpets to pick up their German Bflat horns and put the c's away. I always thought the c's were a bit tinny and shrill in comparison to 'real' Bflats.
Is the fingering the same as on the B flat trumpet? Thanks
C4 or c5 are great notes tbh
The piece he played in beginning is called The Bride of the waves
Slavkogo Yup except in the wrong key cuz he couldn’t be bothered to learn anything written for C trumpet lmao
I think your experience makes the instrument sound much better than it actually is .
Great job! Keep up the great content.
When's that video on the mouthpiece that plays into two trumpets you were talking about?
Trent do you know how to finger a high E above the staff on a B-flat trumpet? I tried playing it open and it registers as an E-flat. I need to know for my trumpet solo thanks?
The Elite Class give it more air or play it 12
In my opinion, once you get that high, fingerings don't matter as much as the breath support and the speed of your air. Hear the note before you play it and really work on pushing your air through the horn. If fingering 1 2 helps you hear the note, then go ahead and finger it, but fingerings don't really matter when you're that high.
Try any valve you like. They'll all work to one degree or another. But it could be your mouthpiece or instrument that's making that note out of tune. What are you playing on?
Trent Hamilton a standard accent trumpet with a 5c mouthpiece.
E above the staff doesn’t lock in well on an open fingering on my horn. I tend to use either 12 or 3
Does anyone think he should review a cimbasso?
Ooh, rain? Isn't it nearly summer in NZ?
Partly because Bill Frisell plays jazz on a telecaster I believe a c trumpet can deliver the goods playing classical. Some classical, anyways.
Can you tune a C trumpet down to Bb by pulling the tuning slides almost all the way out? Are the slides long enough to accomplish this?
Not really.
@@TrentHamilton,
I was just wondering. Thanks for the interesting videos about exotic brass instruments. My son started playing French Horn this year, and we both enjoy your videos. Thanks.
If you pull the slides all the way out you'll only go down by about .7 of a half step. That means that your trumpet will sound like it's in the key of B natural but 15 cents sharp, which isn't good lol
What's the name of the piece played? it sounds very familiar.
The last piece he played was Nocturne in E-Flat Major op.9 no.2 by Chopin.
The first thing was from The Bride of the Waves
Do you think it would be ok/better for someone to start off playing trumpet with a C one? Coming from other concert pitch instruments I mean.
I fear having to sight transpose would be a skill on itself to learn, just in order to play the instrument seems like unnescessary trouble.
Trent, I was always thinking that when I saw Melissa Venema or Tine Thing Helseth playing curious looking trumpets I was assuming that higher keyed horns made it easier to hit the high notes. Am I confused about this? If we wish to play Ennio Morricone's work for the Spaghetti Westerns we have to hit D3 on the Bb trumpet. (Concert E) and you run the risk of your brains bleeding out of your ears. Is it easier to hit D3 and E3 on the higher pitched trumpets or no ?
Has any company produced a C trumpet, with an extended main tuning slide, for converting it to Bb?
I've got a HN White C cornet with a rotary valve that puts it in Bb. It's awaiting restoration though
Selmer does that, actually it was quite common for a french built horn in the 60's to be C to Bflat convertible, i think besson did that too.
I have found a Selmer sabarich which play amazingly good in both keys, will soon be my main trumpet out of restoration.
I’ve got a Berkeley Winds C/B/Bb/A trumpet with two different tuning slides and an extension to allow you to play in each key. Would not recommend it by any means. The horn plays tolerably in the higher keys, but the craftsmanship is quite poor and the valves/slides are not up to my standards.
I'm looking for a C trumpet exactly in that price range. Do you have any recommendations?
I toyed with the idea of getting a cheap (Gear4music) C trumpet but I actually thought I'd go with something more markedly different, a used low G trumpet. If truth be told, I would probably most want to get a decent quality D trumpet, because Händel. Back in my schooldays our principal trumpeter had a D, and it was quite simply out of this world. Maybe one day....
Trent you are awesome
I had to get used to the difference in pitch when I switched from clarinet (Bb) to alto saxophone (Eb)
As I understand it the trend among symphony orchestras everywhere is towards the C. Simply because it is more agile, brighter and easier to play. You lack the Bb:s low F sharp (concert E), but it's seldom needed and if it is you just bring along your Bb horn. The last time I saw Haydn's trumpet concerto live the soloist played the fast movements on his C but switched to his Bb for the slow movement, presumeably because he wanted its warmer sound. I doubt if ease of transposition has anything to do with it, the pros all transpose anything from any key to any other, just like the horn players. Often the trumpet parts are written "in F", and the players perform them on any of their many trumpets and nobody cares.
Have you heard of Berkeley Winds Trumpets? They have a monette clone.
Don’t buy a Berkeley Winds trumpet. They really aren’t very good. I picked up a Bb/C trumpet from that very company and it’s hard to play, out of tune, and doesn’t have a very good tone.
Hey Trent, I was wondering if there was anywhere I could get some of the sheet music you have used during your solos and multitracks.
Good evening, where did you buy it? I am looking for something just like this, a simple, beginner's instrument, but Amazon I think only carries PLASTIC ones in that price range, or "B" trumpets. And real music stores in my area tend to specialize in higher end instruments. Thanks for the video and introduction!
Do cornets & flugelhorns also come in C.
Rarely for cornet, never for flügelhorn
Seeing this made me curious if there is a brass instrument with interchangeable tuning slides instead of another set of tubing like in double french horn (ex. shorter one for C, longer one for Bb, and a longer curly one for F)
I'm just an interloping string player, but my understanding is that a hundred years ago and more it was pretty common for some instruments to be adjustable to neighboring keys, typically including cornet in B flat convertible to A and (single) horn in F convertible to E flat. The player could insert or exchange a crook to change the basic length of the instrument, and then pull out the valve slides when using the lower key. (The slides might have markings for the correct -- or at least approximately correct -- positions. I think sometimes there may have been a second set of slides.) Adding a smidge over twelve percent to the length of both main bore and each valve slide lowers the pitch of the instrument by an equal-tempered whole tone.
Is the fingering the same as the B flat trumpet? Someone please answer!
If you are reading music written for C trumpet yes. Otherwise you will have to transpose.
Just curious, can you pull out all of the slides to make it play in B natural? I've always wondered if this would work.
Probably, but why would you want to?
It depends on the length of the tuning slide. My c trumpet has an extremely short tuning slide that is only an inch long, so it won't play in B. However, some of the older c trumpets came with a tuning slide extension to put the C trumpet in Bb. Also, no trumpet music is written in B natural; the German music that says trumpet in B really means Bb.
Look up the five valve trumpet demoed by David Hickman. There are situations where the fingerings are tricky in C, so he engages the other two valves to put the instrument in D, Db, or B.
Hi I am a Bassist/ keyboardist and i want to try out the trumpet seriously. Should i go for the Bb or the C trumpet? Thanx
for orchestral (symphonies and all that) stuff, you could tend towards a C trumpet; everything else a Bb is probably better.
unless you want to do your own stuff, in which case it doesn't matter too much.
@@indieWellie Thank you. I am more into Blues and Jazz so would probably go with the Bb than.
I came for the trumpet, almost left cause of that very heavy rain! 😖
Why are Bb trumpets written in Bb to begin with? Why not write their music in concert pitch like trombones and tubas? (I.E. Open-Bb, 123-B, 13-C, 23-Db, 12-D, 1-Eb etc.)
It rained today here too
have you looked at their "professional" C trumpets? Can be found on ebay. US$685
This is why, in my opinion, all instruments should be written in concert pitch. Tubas come in Bb, C, Eb, and F, but all of the music (excluding British brass bands, because for some reason y'all give your tubas treble clef parts) is written in concert pitch. I suppose one could consider what tuba players do transposing, but we usually just call it learning new fingerings.
This would be a nightmare for woodwinds - we rely on fingerings not changing from instrument to instrument
Trent (though I can't stop other commenters), I have a couple questions. I'm a tubist, I've only ever had the chance to play a variety of BBb horns (well, and that one old contra in G with two valves that I only played for about a month), and I'm considering starting college and becoming a music major (focusing composition/arrangement, but of course I will be doing much more tuba playing regardless). I've been thinking about getting a bass tuba, for smaller ensembles and solo work. I've heard you mention repeatedly that a piccolo trumpet does not make the higher register any easier, just more in tune. Is that true as well between bass and contrabass tubas? Surely at some point there's enough difference where a range is easier, is the piccolo trumpet the exception or the rule? Like, does a (modern) bass trombone help play lower in any way other than a second trigger? I've always had a quite weak high register for people who have been playing as long as I have, and have always been looking for ways to "cheat", like smaller mouthpieces, abrupt embourchure changes, etc. Also, have you ever played an F tuba? I'd probably prefer to go with a compensating Eb over an F, so many valves. *insert that picture from the video on your granddad's G Bass, with a tuba with like 30 valves* My BBb has 5 valves and I played a concert today, I used it for a grand total of two notes. Also, I love wessex but they do not sell one so have you ever seen a compensating tuba with the fourth valve played by right hand pinky instead of left hand? I've seen a euphonium like that but never a tuba. I can barely handle moving my slides occasionally, let alone my left hand having its own valve to worry about.
Sorry for rambling. I'm still high on adrenaline and my brain is only now getting normal levels of oxygen back into it. Tubachristmas was today in my area and we have the concert an hour after we finish our single rehearsal. I tend to come to you with questions because I don't have a tutor I can ask, or any friends that play music, and I never have time to talk shop with my community band director. You always seem so knowledgeable.
Any plans for a christmas multitrack video this year? If you want, I did a quartet version of Dance Of The Sugar Plum fairy I could rearrange for trombones, or whatever else you want to play. Your multitrack stuff has been amazing lately!
Hi, thanks for your comment. The first major hurdle with a tuba in a different pitch (at least if you read concert pitch music in the bass clef) you'll have to learn new fingering for it. If you can handle that, then go for it. Regarding the rest of your comment, I don't profess to be an expert, however, I've played both Eb and Bb tubas, and find that the Eb has a much nicer tone, much more agile across the range, but doesn't quite have the same depth. As for F or CC tubas, I can't comment.
I've never seen a compensating tuba with four upright valves.
I've just spent the last few hours editing a multi-track Christmas video, so you'll see that up in a few days. You're welcome to send me other sheet music too (preferably in music XML or Sibelius format so I can modify it if/where needed), but there's no promises that I'll end up recording it.
Tuba player here (British, brass band & concert band, 9 years experience). I've only ever played 3+1 compensating instruments (i.e. 3 top action pistons, plus one on the side, the preferred British design), Eb and Bb but I might be able to help. To answer your questions:
I have a similar range on Eb and Bb. I don't have any extra high notes on Eb but they are easier, particularly in the mid-high register - the notes on the staff in bass clef (admittedly, my high register is not my strongest). The instrument-independent limit actually applies to the lowest register: my lowest note on both Eb tuba and Bb tuba is pedal F (yes really, F0) but on Eb it sounds like a helicopter (utter garbage), on the Bb it only sounds like a strained pedal note :P. My advice for high register is counter-intuitive: practice extreme low register (pedal notes, 4th valve notes and the like). This will develop your embouchure and strengthen muscles you don't normally use, leaving you better equipped for the high register. The same is also true in reverse: practicing extreme high register can help your low register too.
The bass trombone's a different story altogether. I've never heard of the old G instruments playing in the trigger or pedal register - they were from an era where all instruments had narrower bores and sweet tone was valued higher than a powerful sound. I can't really say - perhaps a trombone player would have more to say.
DON'T MESS AROUND WITH MOUTHPIECES! I had a workshop with an expert soprano cornet player (Kevin Crockford) last month and he advised categorically against 'mouthpiece hunting' (constantly changing in search of the 'perfect mouthpiece') - you should just try a few, pick your favourite and learn how to use it properly. This squares up with my experiences: I played a Denis Wick 2 on Bb for 6 years, bought a Bach 24AW for my Eb, struggled with stamina and stability, bought a Denis Wick 3 and all my problems went away. I would advise that you use a smaller mouthpiece for bass tuba and a larger one for contrabass, though: no trumpet/cornet player worth their salt would use the same mouthpiece on picc as they would on Bb trumpet or the same on sop as they would on cornet.
I've never played an F tuba :P
I've never seen a compensating instrument where the 4th is played with the right hand little finger but they probably exist somewhere (sidenote: Wessex are apparently developing a 3+1 comp F tuba). Playing the 4th valve with the left hand is really not a problem, you just need to get used to it. I've never not played 4th with my left hand but I did decide when moving to Eb that I'd rather used my middle finger than my index - it took me a couple of months to get used to and now I don't even think about it, even when changing back and forth between Eb and Bb.
Right, compensating vs non-compensating (with the proviso that I've never played a non-comp and only know them by reputation). In short, neither is superior and both have quirks you need to get used to over the timescale of years. On non-compensating the tuning has to be adjusted manually - in the extreme cases, with slide pulling for every note. It takes time to learn - you have to listen and train your pulling muscle memory. At the start it will be less in tune than a compensating but, in the hands of an expert, it will end up more in tune.The compensating system covers you nicely, particularly in the lower register, but it's still not perfect and doesn't help with the upper register, particularly because your left hand is occupied and can't pull slides (you have to use alternate fingerings). In some ensembles (read: the British Brass Band) this doesn't matter too much - you can all be out of tune together - but for an orchestra or concert band, it might be more of an issue. Perhaps a more pertinent issue, though, is resistance and 'stuffiness'. A non-comp tuba has reasonably consistent resistance across its range but a compensating gets exponentially more difficult to blow as you add tubing, to the point where 134 can feel like blowing a golf ball down a garden hose. Compensating Bb tubas are horrible on bottom concert D and, depending on the instrument, borderline unplayable on concert C above the pedal. The Eb tubas are nowhere near as bad but, if you've never played a compensating instrument before, the bottom F will take some serious getting used to.
The final consideration: bass tubas are more agile and easier to play, without a doubt. They lack the power and depth of tone that a contrabass has but the notes speak easier, they need less air and they can cover a wider pitch range. Here in the UK, the 3+1 Eb is the standard tuba: you see it from community bands to professional groups, in brass bands, concert bands and orchestras. It's a very, very flexible instrument and it would be my first pick for concert band and orchestra playing, even though I have 7 more years experience on Bb. It's the only instrument that makes sense for quintet and 10-piece playing too - the Bb would swamp the sound.
If you're serious about studying music (playing solos, quintets, ensembles etc.), a bass tuba would probably be a good investment. Wessex do good intermediate/advanced instruments but consider buying second-hand or refurbished too - a good tuba will last you a decade or longer, but there's no point spending >$6000 on an instrument that might be gathering dust in 5 years. And, of course, always remember that no amount of money will get around the fact that you need to spend time with an instrument, practice and become familiar with it.
Thanks a lot for getting back to me. No pressure to play anything, of course, but having more music available to you is always good, yes? Change it however you like, and no need to even mention me if you do anything with it.
Here it is as it was played: www.dropbox.com/s/3r0d2wt22lbtmly/Dance%20Of%20The%20Sugar%20Plum%20Fairy%20A.xml?dl=0
Here it is forcibly squeezed into treble-clef brass band instruments; I'm not happy with this but it might be a better starting point for your own instrumentation choices: www.dropbox.com/s/8uh6n3uea4dwkl8/Dance%20Of%20The%20Sugar%20Plum%20Fairy%20B.xml?dl=0
You should do the eb trumpet. they look rad
It's on my plan for next year, as I have one!
i would love to see one used for a dci solo
stumbled across this. fwiw, another pro to C is the upper range. Bb must play 1 note higher to reach a concert pitch. this means a concert high C must be played as a high D on a Bb horn. for many players, this is too difficult on a Bb horn, resulting in great strain and a sound that begins to resemble a buzzing bee for the not-so-strong players. this is why most ensembles today perform Copeland's Fanfare on C trumpets, though it was scored originally for Bb horns. the players of old were better than today on average!
8:05 damn that some good ass stuff 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥💯
1:52 10/12 you mean?
Why can't trumpets all be in concert pitch? Why do they have to play a C as a Bb?
If the part is written for a Bb horn they have to transpose it down a whole tone in order to play it on a C. Orchestral instruments are pitched randomly for historical reasons. If you could build an orchestra to-day from scratch you'd do it differently.
Hello Trent what's up dude
Turn to page 394
*doesn't turn to page 394*
PokéMon Master7342 Detention
Any link to this horn?
Woah did you left the camera out in the rain? ahha
Great video anyway!
Just how hard is it raining?
Have you got the crazy mouthpiece printed yet?
I've gone on holiday for a week, so don't have any access to a 3D printer for the next little while.
Your C trumpet shop are all over $1000. Any cheap ones?
Just keep in mind that when it comes to instruments you usually get what you pay for.
What is that in the background holy shiz
It's rain.
So it’s in the key of C?
If anyone is in need of a good C trumpet for any reasonable purpose, they should NEVER think about buying the trumpet from the same seller you did. So I thought you spent too much time in this video talking about the problems with your $150 horn that no one should really be considering, instead of talking about the difference in quality on better C trumpets (bach, yamaha, monette) and the importance and influence they have in the orchestra.
You can also play bass clef trombone music an octave higher!
Loads of background noise! Maybe wait until monsoon season is over to film?
marigoldml Then people would complain about the lack of videos, there's no winning haha
I thought that sound was static so it was confusing me until he said it was raining
Maybe you should rerecord this, you’re sending out important info to people who need to know about c trumpets but the rain is hard
Dang that tone at the beginning could cut stone