Flugelhorn

Flugelhorn

A standard 3-valved B♭ flugelhorn
Brass instrument
Classification	Wind Brass Aerophone
Hornbostel–Sachs classification	423.232 (valved aerophone sounded by lip vibration)
Developed	Early 19th century
Playing range
Written range: (lower and higher notes are possible)
Related instruments
Saxhorns Alto horn Baritone horn Trumpet Cornet Flumpet Mellophone

The flugelhorn (/ˈfluːɡəlhɔːrn/), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore.^[1] Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B♭, though some are in C.^[2] It is a type of valved bugle, developed in Germany in the early 19th century from a traditional English valveless bugle. The first version of a valved bugle was sold by Heinrich Stölzel in Berlin in 1828.^[3] The valved bugle provided Adolphe Sax (creator of the saxophone) with the inspiration for his B♭ soprano (contralto) saxhorns, on which the modern-day flugelhorn is modelled.^[4][5]

Etymology

The German word Flügel means wing or flank in English. In early 18th century Germany, a ducal hunt leader known as a Flügelmeister blew the Flügelhorn, a large semicircular brass or silver valveless horn, to direct the wings of the hunt. Military use dates from the Seven Years' War, where this instrument was employed as a predecessor of the bugle.^[4]

Structure and variants

The flugelhorn is generally pitched in B♭, like most trumpets and cornets. It usually has three piston valves and employs the same fingering system as other brass instruments, although four-valve versions and rotary-valve versions also exist. It can therefore be played by trumpet and cornet players, although it has different playing characteristics. The flugelhorn's mouthpiece is more deeply conical than either trumpet or cornet mouthpieces, but not as conical as a French horn mouthpiece.

Some modern flugelhorns feature a fourth valve that lowers the pitch by a

A compact version of the rotary valve flugelhorn is the oval shaped kuhlohorn in B♭. It was developed for the German protestant trombone choirs.

A pair of bass flugelhorns in C, called fiscorns, are played in the Catalan cobla bands which provide music for sardana dancers.

Timbre

The tone is fatter and usually regarded as more mellow and dark than the trumpet or cornet. The sound of the flugelhorn has been described as halfway between a trumpet and a French horn, whereas the cornet's sound is halfway between a trumpet and a flugelhorn.^[6] The flugelhorn is as agile as the cornet but more difficult to control in the high register (from approximately written G₅), where in general it locks onto notes less easily.

Use and performances

The flugelhorn is a standard member of the

Another use of the flugelhorn is found in the Dutch and Belgian "Fanfareorkesten" or fanfare orchestras. In these orchestras the flugelhorns, often between 10 and 20 in number, have a significant role, forming the base of the orchestra. They are pitched in B♭, with sporadically an E♭ soloist. Due to poor intonation, these E♭ flugelhorns are mostly replaced by the E♭ trumpet or cornet.

The 1996 film

Notable players

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Feels So Good". Mangione, in an interview on ABC during the 1980 Winter Olympics, for which he wrote the theme "Give It All You Got", referred to the flugelhorn as "the right baseball glove".^{[citation needed}

]

Pop flugelhorn players include

Gap Band, Rick Braun, Mic Gillette, Jeff Oster, Zach Condon of the band Beirut, Scott Spillane of the band Neutral Milk Hotel, Terry Kirkman of the band The Association, and Rashawn Ross of the band Dave Matthews Band. Marvin Stamm played the flugelhorn solo on "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" by Paul and Linda McCartney.^[14]

Classical flugelhorn players include Sergei Nakariakov and Kirill Soldatov.^[15]

Footnotes

References

• Dudgeon, Ralph T.; Streitwieser, Franz X. (2004). The Fluegelhorn (in English and German) (Bochinsky ed.). Bergkirchen.
  ISBN 3-932275-83-7
  .
• Sadie, Stanley; Tyrrell, John, eds. (2001). "Flugelhorn". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2nd ed.). London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
• Kernfeld, Barry, ed. (2002). "Flugelhorn". The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz (2nd ed.). London.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Flugelhorns.

• An overview and brief history of the flugelhorn, including a short sound clip
• How to play a flugelhorn at TheTrumpetBlog.com