History of the Euphonium
The word "euphonium" translates to mean "beautiful sound," but how did the instrument we know today transform over time from a primitive bass brass instrument into the technologically advanced tenor-voiced instrument we know today? The following is a brief history of the evolution from the earliest brass instruments to the euphonium we know and love today.
The Serpent - 1743 (possibly 1590)
The serpent is one of the oldest brass instruments on record. Evolving as a type of bass cornetto, we begin to see it used in military bands and orchestras in the 18th century. Though it is rumored to have been invented as far back as 1590, the first patent for the serpent doesn't appear until 1743. Named for its curved serpentine appearance, the serpent had a cupped mouthpiece, very similar to today's trombone or euphonium mouthpieces. Its conical design gives it a mellow tone quality, much like the French horn or euphonium, but this proved to be an issue with regard to changing pitches. The slide of the sackbut, like the modern trombone, forces the instrument to be cylindrical, producing a brighter sound. To keep its conical shape and mellow tone, the serpent had to be fitted with holes and keys, similar to most woodwind instruments we see today. For those wishing to know more, there are organizations and even instrument makers keeping the tradition of the serpent alive today.
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The Ophicleide - 1821
The ophecleid was invented in 1817 by Jean Hilaire Aste as a bass voice of the keyed bugle family. It was designed as a replacement for the serpent, which was increasingly being seen as an outdated instrument, and was also the predecessor to the tuba. Using a mouthpiece similar to a trombone or euphonium mouthpiece, the ophicleide had keys similar to that of a clarinet or bassoon, though the keys worked in a very different way. Most woodwind instruments operate with the tone holes open until keys are depressed or fingers used to cover the tone holes. On the ophicleide, all the tone holes are closed until keys are pressed except for one, which is used to lower the pitch of the instrument by one half step. This helped with playing more chromatically, but the ophicleide still had many pitch problems. As the invention of valved brass instruments began to revolutionize the world of wind instruments, instrument makers like Ferdinand Sommer, Carl Moritz, and Adolphe Sax would help create the soprano to bass voiced valved brass family of instruments that would evolve into the brass instruments of today.
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The Euphonion - 1843
The euphonium as we know it today can be traced back to the mid 19th century. In 1815, the first piston valve was patented by Heinrich Stolzel and Freidrich Blumel. In 1823 the Tenorbasshorn was created by William Wieprecht, and in 1838 Carl Moritz made a similar instrument called the tenor tuba. It wasn't until 1843 that the euphonium was finally born, when Ferdinand Sommer designed a tenor voice, piston valved instrument called the "euphonion." Named from the Greek word "euphonos", meaning "sweet-voiced", this instrument is widely considered to be the true ancestor of the euphonium. While the euphonium, ophicleide, and serpent all coexisted for many years, the ease of production, better quality of sound, and playability of the euphonium would all contribute to it eventually replacing the other two tenor ranged brass instruments. The next major advent to the euphonium would be in 1874, when Dr. David Blaikley of Boosey and Co. London invented a compensating valve design that improved the intonation of the euphonium. Since then there have been slight changes made to the euphonium, but for the most part it has remained the same instrument to this day.
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