Euphonium

The distant ancestor of the euphonium, like many other bass wind instruments, is serpent .

In 1821, the French master Elari patented a group of brass horns with valves, including a bass horn, which was called officleid . It was more powerful and accurate than the serpent, and resembled modern bassoon and baritone saxophone. But mastering this instrument still required the presence of excellent hearing for pure play. Ophicleids were produced in several systems and sizes and began to be widely used in brass and symphony orchestras of the 19th century. Finally, this instrument disappeared from military orchestras only in the first third of the 20th century, still being sold in France in 1922.

During the second and third decades of the XIX century, the pump mechanism was invented, becoming a real revolution in the design and manufacture of wind instruments.

It is believed that the euphonium was invented by the Weimar master Sommer in 1843, eight years after the appearance of the tuba, and differs from it in a wider scope , which, of course, directly affects the sound and technical capabilities of the instrument.

In 1842, Adolf Sachs opened a wind instrument factory in Paris , which was produced mainly for military orchestras. He developed a whole range of brass instruments with a pump mechanism that are still used, for example, in the famous English wind ensembles.

Composers began to use these tools in their work after their wide distribution. Richard Wagner introduced two tenors, one bass and one double-bass group in the score of the Nibelungen Rings. The tenor tuba has become widely used in the works of other composers - Gustav Holst , Maurice Ravel , etc. The similarity of the tone with the tenor saxhorn used in military ensembles, in particular, contributed to the wide distribution.

Many new varieties of copper tools only confused. The English tenor was the same as the German althorn and alto (E-flat) in France. In England and France, the German tenor was considered a baritone. Baritone in Germany on English soil became an euphonium, and in France it became a bass (B-flat). Despite the difference in the designs, all these instruments had a similar timbre and the same range. Due to the influence of the English military tradition, we today use the terms euphonium and baritone to describe these instruments.

In Russia, traditionally used tubes of different ranks, which led to frequent criticism of the disorderly game of military orchestras. This led to the fact that in the 1870s, a reform was carried out and instruments were supplied to military orchestras only in the structure of E ♭ and B. Nikolai Andreevich Rimsky- Korsakov .

The title song of the musical “The ” brought great fame to the euphonium. The instrument mentioned in this song existed at the beginning of the twentieth century. It was created by adding a small bell to the basic design of the euphonium, which was used to produce effects in the trombone style and was driven by an additional lever.

Adding a fourth valve to the euphonium was very desirable because it expanded the range of the instrument and made it possible to improve the intonation and ease the passages. When pressed, the fourth valve lowers the overall order from B (B flat) to F (fa). When using this valve in combination with the other three, the performance of notes under the bass clef is facilitated and there is a positive effect on intonation in the lower and upper registers.

In the English tradition, two different instruments are used in military and brass ensembles. The baritone there is somewhat smaller than the euphonium; it has a smaller stem, a lighter sound and a build B (B-flat). The euphonium, on the contrary, due to its thicker trunk, has a more powerful and rich tone.

American manufacturers went to the rapprochement of these two instruments, trying to optimally combine the best qualities of both instruments. The result was an average baritone, widespread in school orchestras. This instrument, although satisfactory for many cases, does not sound as full and full as the euphonium with its wide trunk. In American tradition, baritone, like a copper pipe, and euphonium have become interchangeable concepts, regardless of what instrument is used.

For the euphonium created a lot of solo works, mainly in the accompaniment of a brass band. One of the first compositions in this genre is the Concerto Amilcar Ponchielli , written in 1872. Concerts for the euphonium also belong to Joseph Horowitz and Vladimir Kosma . Modern composers use the euphonium in a variety of chamber compositions , and also write compositions for this instrument without accompaniment.

Among the most famous soloists on the euphonium are Simone Mantia (1873―1951), the orchestra soloist JF Susa , Trevor Groom, the first performer of many works by contemporary composers, Brian Bowman, who gave the first ever solo concert at euphonium in Carnegie Hall , Stephen Mead and others.

Euphonium is sometimes used in a symphony orchestra . Most often he is entrusted with batches of a kindred instrument — tubas — written in a register that is too high for her. Thus, the euphonium usually performs a solo from the play “Cattle” from the series “ Pictures from the exhibition ” by Mussorgsky orchestrated by Ravel , and at the premiere of the symphonic poem by R. Strauss “ The Hero 's Life ”, initiated by Ernst von Schuch, the euphonium was successfully replaced by the composer’s notes Wagnerian tube . Some authors, however, entrust an euphonium with an independent part with a special timbre for this instrument. The English composer Havergal Brian included two euphoniums and two tubas at once in the score of his First Symphony and often used them in later works. Dmitri Shostakovich entrusted the euphonium (designated in the score as “baritone”) to a difficult part in the ballet “ Golden Age ”.

Some musicians practice performing at the euphonium in jazz , among them - Rich Matteson and Maynard Ferguson.

The main field of application of the euphonium is a brass band , where this instrument performs a wide variety of functions: both accompanying and counterpoint, and solo.

Sometimes the public is misled by the “baritone soloist” program, confusing voice-baritone with the instrument baritone. In order to avoid misunderstanding, the “soloist at the euphonium” should be indicated. ^{[ significance of fact? ]}

• Baritone // Musical Encyclopedia. - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1973. - T. 1. - p. 327-328. - 1072 s.
• Chernykh A.V. Baritone in B-flat ( fr. Euphonium , German Euphonium ) // Soviet spiritual instrumental art: a Handbook. - M .: Soviet composer, 1989. - P. 109-110. - 320 s.
• Brian Bowman I play the euphonium - what, what? / Translation from English by Alexey Charykov