Trumpets: New York Bach Model 7, c1929
Conn 22b c1930
Conn Constellation, 1970's
Bach C trumpet,ML, 239 Bell
Cornets: Besson Brevete c1896
Conn quasi-shepherd's crook c1910
Boston Musical instrument co. Eb cornet (on loan from JJ Newberry)
Flugelhorn: Yamaha Rose Brass Bell, 1987

Baroque Trumpet: Andrew Naumann Ehe copy, 1995

Cornetto: High and Low pitch cornettos by John McCann

Recorder: 440 Soprano dreamflute
415 Alto, unknown maker, formerly owned by Steve Hammer
440 Yamaha soprano, alto, tenor
Guitar: Guild Mahogany Dreadnaught, 1979, with fishman ellipse pickup

Cornetto- the cornetto is a lip-vibrated aerophone, meaning that the sound is produced by blowing into it and buzzing your lips. It has a mouthpiece similar to that of a trumpet or horn, but smaller. It's about two feet long, made of wood, then covered in leather. It has a thumb hole and six finger holes, and uses a fingering system similar to the recorder, but a bit skewed due to it's wacky harmonic series. The instrument is also usually curved like a horn or tusk, possibly because it's folk ancestors were actual animal horns. The cornetto was popular throughout the renaissance in Europe, reaching a high point of popularity in the 17th century, when it was considered a virtuosic solo instrument. Towards the end of the 1600's the violin began to share its repertoire, and would eventually take it's spot as the premier virtuoso soprano instrument. The cornetto has a beautiful resonant sound, which has been likened to a ray of sunshine. In addition to its role as a solo instrument it was considered ideal for accompanying voices. It is often found in company with the sackbut, organ, curtal, and violin. Some of the great composers who wrote for cornetto are Monteverdi, Gabrieli, Biber, Schmelzer. Towards the end of its practical life Bach and Haendel also used it, though mainly to double vocal lines. Many earlier composers wrote pieces the cornetto would have been used for, but in the early and middle renaissance it was not standard for composers to indicate specific instruments in their scoring.

Baroque Trumpet- Though trumpets have been used for thousands of years, it was not until the 1800's that the trumpet acquired its valves and the ability to play the full range of chromatic notes throughout all its registers. Prior to the invention of valves the Natural or Baroque trumpet was used. This instrument is basically eight feet of tubing with a mouthpiece on one end and a bell on the other. In order to play different notes the natural trumpeter uses the harmonic series: in the first octave the trumpet plays only one note, the fundamental. In the second octave it plays the an ocatve above the fundamental and the note a fifth above that. In the third octave it plays the note two octaves above the fundamental then a third, fifth, and minor seventh above that. Only in its fourth octave does it get something resembling a scale: a tonic note three octaves above the fundamental, the second and third steps of the scale, something in between the fourth and sharp fourth step, the fifth step, something in between the sixth step and the flat seventh, then the tonic. after that the notes are very close together, but it is extremely difficult to play in that register. The natural trumpet player uses their lip muscles and air stream to change notes, and also to bend the out of tune notes to where they need to be. While this is difficult it is not impossible; this technique reached its peak in the baroque era, as the trumpet parts of composers like Bach and Haendel clearly show. During this era trumpeters were organized into tightly knit guilds, guarding their secrets fiercely. They had enough political clout that they were able to convince many governments to pass laws forbidding non-guild members to play the trumpet.

19th Century cornet- the invention of valves in the 1800's sparked an incredible expansion of the brass family as instrument makers all over Europe began devising new instruments to take advantage of the invention. Valves work on the principle that by depressing a button or lever a valve is opened adding a small stretch of pipe to the overall length of the instrument and therefore lowering the pitch by varying degrees. The cornet was one instrument develpoed during this time; similar in principle to the trumpet, but with a mellower sound due to its conical bore, the cornet became a virtuoso brass instrument by the turn of the century. During this time many solos were composed for cornet and band, and performed by stars like Herbert L Clarke. These solos are still a staple of the concert band repertoire.

Scheitholt- the scheitholt is an instrument that dates back at least to the medieval era, possibly further as a folk instrument. It is thought to be the ancestor of the mountain dulcimer and the many dulcimer-like instruments that are played throughout Europe, such as the Norwegian Langeleik and the Dutch Humle. Apparently it functioned in much the same way as the mountain dulcimer, with one string fretted to play the melody and the others functioning as drones at the octave and fifth. The drawing above and the accompanying information come from Jean Ritchie's publication, "The Dulcimer Book", which also has alot of wonderful pictures of members of the dulcimer family and the folks who play them. The Moravian Museum in Winston-Salem, N.C. has a very nice(and very large) example of a scheitholt on display, and the Mercer Museum in Bucks County, PA has several Pennsylvania Dutch "Zitters" which are very similar, though smaller.