WILL KIMBALL» percussion images

3 Rear-Facing Trombones and a Buccin

wkimball — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 15:54:25 +0000

I recently added the below images and captions to the Trombone History Timeline. In addition to the 3 rear-facing trombones and the buccin (dragon-bell trombone), low brass players may be interested in the 2 serpents and the ophicleide in these pictures. For more information, see the HubPages article Backward Advances: Rear-Facing Trombones Throughout History, and the blog post Serpent & Ophicleide: History and Images.

c. 1800—Germany: A print of military musicians entitled Turkische Musick der K. Baierischen Grendier Garde, now held in the German National Museum, includes a rear-facing trombone (see below detail; public domain).

c. 1800—Frankfurt am Main, Germany: Philipp Jakob Döring publishes a sheet of cut-outs of military musicians that includes a rear-facing trombone (see below detail; public domain) (German National Museum).

1800s—France: A print entitled Macédoines—Jongleurs—Tours de force et d’adresse features a row of musicians, including a dragon-bell trombone (see below detail; public domain) (Paris, Musée des Civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée).

1856-1900—The Netherlands: The publisher Glenisson and Sons publishes a print of military musicians that includes 2 rear-facing trombones (see below detail; public domain) (Catchpenny Prints of Royal Dutch Library).

3 Military Serpents

wkimball — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 18:55:53 +0000

I just added the following 3 images to the post Serpent & Ophicleide: History and Images, bringing the total number of images in that post to 90. Enjoy!

c. 1800—Nuremberg, Germany: An image depicting Nuremberg military musicians includes a serpent player (see below image; public domain) (Nuremberg, German National Museum).

1828—Great Britain: A military image features a British serpent player in full military garb (see below image; public domain) (New York Public Library Digital Gallery).

1830—France: Garde Imperiale: Regiments des Grenadiers a pieds, an image created by G. David in 1830 but meant to depict 1804, includes a military serpent player (see below image; public domain).

Two Trombone Prints from 19C France

wkimball — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 03:00:33 +0000

Just added the following two images and their captions to the 19th Century Timeline (first half and second half). The first one, Musique d’Amateurs, has also been added to the post Serpent & Ophicleide: History and Images. The second one, The Elections in England, will also be added to the article Backward Advances: Rear-Facing Trombones Throughout History.

1840—Epinal, France: An engraving entitled Musique d’Amateurs, published by Pellerin, features 3 trombones among 27 figures with various musical instruments. One of the trombones is a buccin, or dragon-bell instrument (see below image; click picture for larger version; public domain).

1852—Paris, France: A print by Janet-Lange entitled The Elections in England includes a rear-facing trombone (see detail below; public domain) (L’Illustration, July 17, 1852, p. 33).

Two Bones and a Serpent

wkimball — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 19:27:00 +0000

I just added the below entry and image to the 19th century timeline (2nd half) and to the blog post, Serpent & Ophicleide: History and Images.

1865-1916—Netherlands: A painting by artist Willem Constantijn Staring (1847-1916) depicts bandsmen of the 9th Regiment Infantry, including a pair of trombonists and a musician playing a green-colored serpent (see below image; public domain).

Two Renaissance Trombones

wkimball — Thu, 26 May 2011 04:58:23 +0000

Just added the below image and caption to the Trombone History Timeline (16th century). It’s a little like playing “Where’s Waldo,” but if you look closely, you’ll see two trombones there (be sure to click on the picture for a larger version).

c. 1550—A leaf of various studies by artist Solis Virgit (1514-62) includes 2 trombones (see upper-right and lower-middle of below image—click for larger version; public domain) (Louvre).

London Street Band, 1839

wkimball — Sun, 22 May 2011 17:29:42 +0000

Just added this image and caption to the 19th century timeline (first half). Reproductions of the picture are available here.

1839—London, England: A lithograph by George Scharf (the elder) entitled London Street Band includes a trombone (see below image; public domain).

Trombone in Stained Glass

wkimball — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 05:13:00 +0000

Several months ago I posted Canvas, Paper, Silver, and Glass: St. Cecilia Trombone Image in Many Forms, which included a trombone image in painted glass. Trombone images of this type seem to be relatively rare, but last week I added a stained-glass image from the small English village of Booton (Norfolk) to the Trombone History Timeline (19th century). Here it is, below, along with the timeline entry and a more detailed image of the trombone.

1891—Booton, Norfolk, England: The rebuild of St. Michael and All Angels church is completed. One of the nave windows, completed by Alex Booker, includes a depiction of angels playing cymbals and trombone (see detail and full image below; public domain) (Wilson, North East Norfolk and Norwich: Norfolk 1, 409).

One Man Bands

wkimball — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 04:19:31 +0000

Over the weekend I posted a just-for-fun article on HubPages—One Man Bands: The Ultimate Multi-Taskers. There isn’t a lot that’s trombone-related, although a couple of the images include low brass, both predecessors to the tuba: one picture with an ophicleide and another with a serpent. There are also several videos that are kind of entertaining. Check it out here.

Trombone History: A Soldier I Will Be, Part 2

wkimball — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 22:21:00 +0000

I’m told that more and more musicians in the job market are turning toward military bands as symphony orchestras struggle in the current financial climate. Interestingly enough, the history of the trombone in military bands actually goes back farther than it does in the traditional symphony orchestra. I also find it interesting that among the musicians in the earliest military bands were non-enlisted professionals who were hired for their services.

Last April I made a post titled A Soldier I Will Be, highlighting several related additions I had made to the Trombone History Timeline. I have just finished adding several more military-related trombone images, so here they are, grouped together as Part 2 (you can find them in context in the Timeline in the 19th century (1st half), 19th century (2nd half), and 20th century). The common theme, besides trombone, is that they are all military bands of the British Empire. You may notice that a couple of the images also involve trombones on horseback, another theme I’ve highlighted before on this site.

1811—An illustration of the Duke of Gloucester’s Band, an ensemble associated with the 3rd regiment of the Scots Guards, includes a trombone (see bottom left of below image; public domain).

c. 1845—An illustration by M.A. Hayes depicting the 8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars, a cavalry regiment of the British Army, includes 2 trombonists on horseback (see below image; public domain).

1851—An illustration of a British infantry band by Ebsworth includes a trombonist (the player in the back facing outward, evidently having lost interest in the proceedings) (see below image; public domain).1859—A sketch by Aldershot of musicians of the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards, a cavalry regiment in the British Army, shows a trombonist among a number of military musicians riding on horseback (see upper-middle of below image; public domain).1898—A trombonist from The King’s Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster), an infantry regiment of the line of the British Army, is shown in military regalia (see below image; public domain).

1914—England: An illustration shows a trombonist from the British Royal Artillery in full military uniform (see below image; public domain).

Look Ma, No Hands! Trombones in Two Cycling Bands

wkimball — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 04:20:30 +0000

Look Ma, no hands! Well, almost. I added the below photo from New Zealand to the Trombone History Timeline (19th century, first half). It looks like at least one of the trombones is a valve trombone–I don’t know how anyone would play a slide trombone in such circumstances, although it’s probably been done! The Christchurch band claimed to be unique, but there were apparently similar acts at near the same time (see bottom image, below, of Klein Family unicycle band, from the 20th century Timeline). Historical oddities, yes, but they could be seen as offshoots of the brass band and circus traditions. (Plus, they’re kind of amusing to look at.)

1898—Christchurch, New Zealand: A photo of the Christchurch Cycling Brass Band published in the New Zealand Wheelman includes 2 trombones (see below image; public domain) (supplement, May 18, 1898).

1902—The Klein Family, a famous unicycle circus troupe, includes a trombonist. A 1902 poster advertising “Troupe Klein” is one of several showing a member of the group playing trombone (see below detail; public domain).