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Re: treble clef for all

To: brass-band@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: treble clef for all
From: Adrian Drover <saxhorn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1998 10:52:13 +0100
In-reply-to: <v04003a00b1dfaa483216@[207.168.181.191]>
Priority: low
Reply-to: brass-band@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

On 25 Jul, Ed Carroll <musicmkr@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> My question though, is why the exception for the bass trombone player?
> Most of them that I've met could probably handle the other clef if they
> got the proper help. ;-)

My thoughts on this are:

All the trombones were once written in concert. The two tenors in tenor
clef and the bass in bass. I guess the 2 Bb tenors were brought into line
with the euphs and baris. The bass trombone was a different case. If it
had been treble-clef-ized it would have been transposed up an octave and a
perfect 4th, as the bass 'bone at that time was pitched in G. There was no
point in doing this as it was unlikely that anyone in the band would be
switching from valves to slide. Further, it was probably easier for the
orchestrators of the period to liken this instrument to the Eb bass.
Unison notes for these two instruments sit in the same place on the stave.
Only the key and some accidentals are different.

I think the choices of clef for the 'bones was purely a convenience for
the method of teaching brass band writers of that period. It was the usual
practice when transcribing piano/organ and orchestral music, to use the
same concert key for the Bb instruments, thereby causing it to sound a
tone lower (well almost, brass bands were tuned to high pitch then). Then
only one transposition was necessary, for the Eb instruments.

Adrian

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References:
- treble clef for all
  - From: Ed Carroll

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