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The Tenor horn (
British English British English is the set of Variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United Kingdom, especially Great Britain. More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in England, or, more broadly, to ...
; Alto horn in
American English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the Languages of the United States, most widely spoken lang ...
, Althorn in
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
; occasionally referred to as E horn) is a
brass instrument A brass instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by Sympathetic resonance, sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips. The term ''labrosone'', from Latin elements meani ...
in the saxhorn family and is usually pitched in E. It has a bore that is mostly conical, like the
flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet, but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B♭, though ...
and
euphonium The euphonium ( ; ; ) is a tenor- and baritone-voiced valved brass instrument. The euphonium is a member of the large family of valved bugles, along with the tuba and flugelhorn, characterised by a wide conical bore. Most instruments have thr ...
, and normally uses a deep, cornet-like mouthpiece. It is most commonly used in British brass bands, and Mexican banda music whereas the
French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most o ...
tends to take the corresponding parts in
concert band A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind instrument, woodwind, brass ...
s and
orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
s. However, the tenor horn has occasionally been used as an alternative to the French horn in concert bands.


Description

The tenor horn is a valved brass instrument (in E) which has a predominantly conical bore like that of the
euphonium The euphonium ( ; ; ) is a tenor- and baritone-voiced valved brass instrument. The euphonium is a member of the large family of valved bugles, along with the tuba and flugelhorn, characterised by a wide conical bore. Most instruments have thr ...
and
flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet, but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B♭, though ...
. It uses a deep funnel- or cup-shaped mouthpiece. The tenor horn's conical bore and deep mouthpiece produce a mellow, rounded tone that is often used as a middle voice, supporting the melodies of the
trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...
s, cornets, or
flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet, but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B♭, though ...
s, and fills the gap above the lower tenor and bass instruments (the
trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the Standing wave, air c ...
, baritone horn, euphonium, and
tuba The tuba (; ) is the largest and lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece (brass), mouthpiece. It first appeared in th ...
). Its valves are typically, though not exclusively, piston valves. The tenor horn has been made and is made in various shapes: the most common in the United States and the UK, and in most other parts of the world, is a sort of mini-
tuba The tuba (; ) is the largest and lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece (brass), mouthpiece. It first appeared in th ...
shape, with the
bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...
pointing upward, which may help the voice blend before reaching the audience. In contrast, the solo horn (found mainly in Europe) looks like (and indeed effectively ''is'') an enlarged flugelhorn, with the
bell A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...
pointing forward, projecting more toward the audience. Another older and lesser-known variant has the bell facing backward (for military
marching band A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who play while marching. Historically they were used in armed forces and many marching bands remain military bands. Others are still associated with military units or emulate a military sty ...
s that preceded the soldiers, thus helping them hear better and keep better time in marching). Still another variant has a detachable bell, easily rotated to point in the direction of the player's choice. The standard bell-up horn comes in two basic shapes - one with the beginning of the bell looping over the top of the valves and the other looping below the valves. These types are the most frequently encountered in the United States and UK. Only the standard upright instrument is seen in UK brass bands. Within the British brass band, the tenor horn section usually plays part of the alto and tenor lines in the middle of the band, with the Solo Horn player having occasional solo passages. Historically, the tenor horn has gained little recognition as a solo instrument in its own right, but in recent years this has been gradually changing. The instrument's timbre, with a relatively soft attack and mellow sound, aids it in its ability to blend into the overall band sound, along with the other members of the saxhorn family. Modern tenor horn manufacturers aim to create instruments with improved power and projection, whilst preserving their characteristic mellow tone. Among these, models made by Besson, Yamaha, and Geneva have been particularly successful. Tenor horns with rotary valves also exist, notably in Europe. The German Tenorhorn (described as a different instrument than the Althorn) is pitched in B with 3 to 4 rotary valves and a distinctive oval shape. It differs from a rotary baritone mostly in its smaller bore and bell size and is traditionally used in Blasmusik and German folk music. Miraphone is a successful manufacturer. This style of horn is similar to some older Soviet tenor and alto horns.


Range

The nominal range of the tenor horn (expressed in concert pitch) is from the A an
octave In music, an octave (: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is an interval between two notes, one having twice the frequency of vibration of the other. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referr ...
and a
minor third In music theory, a minor third is a interval (music), musical interval that encompasses three half steps, or semitones. Staff notation represents the minor third as encompassing three staff positions (see: interval (music)#Number, interval numb ...
below
middle C C or Do is the first note of the C major scale, the third note of the A minor scale (the relative minor of C major), and the fourth note (G, A, B, C) of the Guidonian hand, commonly pitched around 261.63  Hz. The actual frequency has d ...
to the E an octave and a minor third above middle C (A2 to E5 in
scientific pitch notation Scientific pitch notation (SPN), also known as American standard pitch notation (ASPN) and international pitch notation (IPN), is a method of specifying musical Pitch (music), pitch by combining a musical Note (music), note name (with accidental ( ...
). Experienced players can reach at least a
major third In music theory, a third is a Interval (music), musical interval encompassing three staff positions (see Interval (music)#Number, Interval number for more details), and the major third () is a third spanning four Semitone, half steps or two ...
higher than this. Additionally, as the tenor horn is a whole-bore brass instrument, most players can play some
pedal tone Pedal tones (or pedals) are special low notes in the harmonic series of brass instruments. A pedal tone has the pitch of its harmonic series' fundamental tone. Its name comes from the foot pedal keyboard pedals of a pipe organ, which are used ...
s, the fundamentals (first partials) of (at least) the shorter tubing lengths.


Notation

Tenor horn parts are written in the treble clef. The tenor horn is an E
transposing instrument A transposing instrument is a musical instrument for which music notation is not written at concert pitch (concert pitch is the pitch on a non-transposing instrument such as the piano). For example, playing a written middle C on a transposing ...
written a
major sixth In music theory, a sixth is a musical interval encompassing six note letter names or staff positions (see Interval number for more details), and the major sixth is one of two commonly occurring sixths. It is qualified as ''major'' because it ...
above concert pitch: the tenor horn notation for
middle C C or Do is the first note of the C major scale, the third note of the A minor scale (the relative minor of C major), and the fourth note (G, A, B, C) of the Guidonian hand, commonly pitched around 261.63  Hz. The actual frequency has d ...
represents the E below middle C in concert pitch (E3 in scientific pitch notation).


History

The instrument known today as the tenor/alto horn was developed in the 1840s by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax who, among other instrument design activities, designed two similar families of valved brass instruments, the saxhorn and the saxotromba. The surviving E alto instruments by Sax all have inner diameters described in the saxotromba patent. In this patent the soprano voice (descant) is tuned in E and thence descending through B (contralto) to E (alto). The next family member below the alto saxotromba was described as a baritone in B. Ascending from baritone, logically the next E family member above it is a tenor. The inconsistency spread across multiple descriptions and patents over decades apparently is the source of confusion as regards the names ''tenor'' vs. ''alto'' horn. The modern instrument has a larger diameter and now resembles Sax's specification of the saxhorn more than it does that of the saxotromba. A great deal of interesting historical technical information on the saxhorn is found in the "Saxhorn" entry o
Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Vol. 4 (1909)
In the 1970s, King Musical Instruments produced a variation on the tenor/alto horn, called the "altonium". This instrument was keyed in F, and it utilized the same mouthpiece as the French horn. From their 1971 catalog, King Instruments produced two models of the altonium: numbers 1147 and 1148. The 1147 was a straight model, and the 1148 was a bell forward model. In the US, the alto horn is colloquially known as the "peck horn", supposedly because these instruments were employed in band music to "peck away at" the off-beats.A Tenor Horn/Alto Horn FAQ
by John Ericson

article by Linda Buchwald (archive from 20 February 2012). This name is mentioned in ''
The Music Man ''The Music Man'' is a musical theatre, musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns a confidence trick, con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and ...
'', and a French horn-patterned peck horn can be seen in the scene where Professor Hill is explaining the Think System as applied to Beethoven's Minuet in G and a small boy asks him how to play it.


Repertoire

The tenor horn is very rarely included in the
symphony orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
, where its place is taken by the
French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most o ...
. Instead, it is a fixture of British brass bands, where it often plays a role similar to that of the orchestral horn in the symphony orchestra. The tenor horn has also been used in
concert band A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind instrument, woodwind, brass ...
s as a replacement for the French horn. In the past, many publishers included parts in both Eb (for the tenor horn) and F (for the French horn). These parts were the same, just transposed into the pitch of the given instrument. Some publishers still follow this practice. Although
Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic music, Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and ...
orchestrated his Seventh Symphony to include one "tenorhorn in B", that is the German instrument mentioned above, more akin to the baritone horn which is a fourth lower. Partial list of solo repertoire: * Sonata for Alto Horn and Piano (1943)—
Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith ( ; ; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German and American composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advo ...
. * Sonata for E Horn and Piano, Op. 75— John Golland * ''September Fantasy'' (1977)— Eric Ball * ''Masquerade'' for Tenor Horn and Brass Band (1985)— Philip Sparke * ''A Hornting We Will Go'' for Tenor Horn and Piano, Op. 151 (1997)— Derek Bourgeois * Concerto for E Tenor Horn and Brass Band, Op. 194 (2003)—Derek Bourgeois * ''Aria'' for Tenor Horn and Brass Band (2003)—Philip Sparke * ''Capricorno'' for Tenor Horn and Brass Band (2009)—Philip Sparke * Sonata for Tenor Horn and Piano, Op. 304 (2011)—Derek Bourgeois * ''Rajaz'' – concerto for tenor horn and chamber ensemble (2013)— Idin Samimi Mofakham * ''Sunday in the Park'' for Tenor Horn and Brass Band (2016)—Philip Sparke * Concertino for Tenor Horn (1989)— Gareth Wood * Rhapsody for Eb Tenor Horn and Piano opus 76 (2007, dedicated to Eb Tenor Horn Virtuoso Tim De Maeseneer, music available with Hofmeister Musikverlag, FH 3622)-Geert Callaert


References


External links


International Alto/Tenor Horn ProjectTenor Horn.comAl's Tenor Horn page
{{Authority control Brass instruments E-flat instruments Horns Concert band instruments