Course:Phys341 2020/Trumpet
Trumpet
A trumpet is a brass instrument that is largely used in classical and jazz ensembles. It constitutes the larger part of the brass family.
History
The trumpet was mainly used for military purposes, as a signaling device in times of war and hunting as far back as 1500BC[2]. Trumpets were only regarded as a musical instrument in the fourteenth to fifteenth century. Over time, it was used in art styles of music such as concerts, orchestras, and jazz ensembles, appearing in modern day music.
Types
The trumpet comes in many forms and variations, each serving a different purpose.[3]
| Type | Description |
| Bb Trumpet | Invented in the early 1900’s in France, the Bb Trumpet is the most common type of brass instrument. Beginners are advised to start with this trumpet due to its mainstream price range and level of skill. |
| C Trumpet | Introduced in 1874 in Paris, the C Trumpet became a popular choice as it pairs well with the Bb Trumpet, pitched a step higher, producing a slightly brighter sound. |
| Bb Pocket Trumpet | This is the pocket version of the Bb Trumpet. Priced much higher, this unique instrument has tubing tighter than the usual. This compressed structure allows for a more particular and refined sound. |
| Flugelhorn | Created in the early 19th century, this German instrument is a B-flat instrument that has a smaller bore and a larger-throated bell than the standard trumpet, displaying a soft, dark tone intermediate of that and a French Horn.
Popular among contemporary jazz, this internationally renowned instrument is known for resembling the C and Bb trumpets while producing a distinctive sound that delivers both bass and soprano tones easily. |
| pTrumpet | This distinct instrument from the Trumpet family is fully plastic, differing in almost every aspect. Having revolutionized the way, the music industry perceives trumpets and brass instruments, this instrument is not to be underestimated as it is durable and light without compensating for sound quality. |
| D Trumpet | Introduced in 1861, this instrument has a sole purpose to serve as a note-addition to other traditional brass instruments. This is due to its special piercing sound that distinguishes it from the rest, attracting a narrower audience, largely from Baroque music. |
| Piccolo | This trumpet has the highest register, making it easy to perform clean, light trills as they provide advanced agility and security. Therefore, these small instruments are popular in baroque compositions by Bach, Handel, Telemann and their contemporaries, playing the high natural trumpet parts. |
| Bugle | The heightened practicality of this #1 preferred military trumpet is valveless, solely depending on the player’s embouchure for pitch control and strength of sound. |
Structure
The modern trumpet has a simple structure, typically made of brass tubing, bent twice into a rounded rectangular. While the trumpet is composed of many parts, the mouthpiece, bell and valves of the instrument play crucial roles in producing the full and rich sound.[5]
Mouthpiece
The mouthpiece has many functions, including providing a place for “buzzing” to occur as well as bringing down certain resonant frequencies to obtain the full harmonic series.
A closed cylindrical air column produces standing waves at the fundamental frequency at odd harmonics. The mouthpiece is specifically engineered so that the increase in length of the tube lowers down higher resonant frequencies towards a harmonic sequence.
This is called the mouthpiece effect and lower resonances are not affected. The shape and length of different mouthpieces modifies the sound it produces.
Bell
The bell can be found on the other end of the trumpet, ending with a flare. This flaring reduces the length of the instrument on the other side, allowing for two effects to take place.
1) Similar yet different to the mouthpiece effect, the bell effect raises lower resonance frequencies up towards the harmonic series.
2) The reduction in length allows higher resonances to radiate more, which causes them to sound louder than lower resonances.
Furthermore, the bell introduces a pedal tone, which can be defined as the fundamental frequency of the harmonic sequence of the trumpet. This differs from the resonant frequency of the air column, as the lowest resonance is not used. When a player vibrates at the fundamental frequency, other harmonics are thus able to create a fundamental pitch.
Valves
Before valves were introduced, trumpets have a fixed tubing length. Modern trumpets now have about three or four valves, allowing for the increase in length, and thus, the pitch of the instrument.
As having three valves will generate eight combinations, there are seven tubing lengths, with the third valve sometimes used as an alternative fingering equivalent to the 1-2 combination. Working together with the bell and mouthpiece, a full harmonic scale is achieved.
There are also variations of valves, mainly the piston and rotary-type. While trumpets with valves of the piston-types are common, trumpets with the rotary-type valves are especially popular in German and German-styled orchestras.
Sound Properties
Valves & Air Pathways
The valves play an important role in pitch control as the length of the tube can be increased by engaging the valves.
When a valve is disengaged, the air is able to simply pass through. However, when it is engaged, a different pathway is opened up, adding a section of tubing.
This increase in length lowers the pitch:
| Valve Engaged | Increased length of tube | Decrease in Pitch |
| First | 160mm | Whole Tone |
| Second | 70mm | Semitone |
| Third | 270mm | Minor Third |
The increase in length is calculated by making use of the inversely proportional relationship between the frequency of an air column and the length.
Buzzing
Trumpets are played by blowing air through nearly-closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound that starts a standing wave vibration in the air column inside the instrument.
It is in fact the metallic mouthpiece that produces the sound. There are various different mouthpiece shapes-a mouthpiece with a deep cup will produce a mellower sound, while a mouthpiece with a shallower cup will produce a bright, piercing sound.
Mouthpieces are made of brass or silver (among other materials), and trumpeters choose a mouthpiece according to their personal preference. An individual trumpeter may use a number of different mouthpieces, according to the key of the piece or the particular timbre he wishes to produce.[7]
Physics
Once the wave is produced, it travels down the length of the tube until it reaches the bell. The flared bell of the trumpet harnesses the wave produced by buzzing, and serves as a node of the wave. The flaring at the end leads to a sudden drop in resistance, which causes the wave to travel back to the lips changing their shape so that they match the pitch of the trumpet. A standing wave is formed, and because of the way the trumpet is shaped, some energy in the form of sound is released. This excess energy is the sound we hear the trumpet producing. [5]
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The Harmonic Series
The harmonic series is crucial when playing any instrument. The trumpet is a closed tube when the mouth is placed. This produces odd harmonies, obtaining anti-nodes at the ends instead of nodes. These frequencies have to be modified in order to achieve the desired resonant points. The valves, bell effect and mouthpiece effect contribute to the adjustment of these frequencies, in order to produce the full harmonic sequence.[8] This explains why earlier trumpets without valves are relatively longer, allowing for a wider range of notes to be played.
Trumpet Resonance Curve
The resonance curve produced by the trumpet suggests that the instrument exhibits natural resonant frequencies which closely follows a harmonic sequence the tenth harmonic. The bell and mouthpiece effect allow for this harmonic sequence to be obtained, including the pedal tone which serves as the fundamental frequency. [9]
References
Notes
- ↑ "Trumpet_1". Wikipedia.
- ↑ "History of the Trumpet (According to The New Harvard Dictionary of Music)". petrouska.com. 2014. Archived from the original on 2008-08-08.
- ↑ tonestro (2019). "Types of Trumpets". tonestro.com.
- ↑ Freediving-beava (2010). "Bb trumpet in parts". WikiCommons.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Stamey, Mackenzie (2013). "The Physics of Trumpet".
- ↑ Jacobson, Bob (2017). "Trumpet mouthpiece diagram". WikiCommons.
- ↑ "The Structure Of The Trumpet: How Does The Trumpet Generate Sound?". Yamaha. 2018.
- ↑ Stamey, Mackenzie (2013). "The Harmonic Series".
- ↑ Nave, R (2017). "Trumpet Resonance Curve". HyperPhysics.
Bibliography
Nave, R., 2017. Trumpet. [online] HyperPhysics. Available at: <http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Music/trumpet.html#c4> .
Stamey, M., 2013. The Physics Of Trumpet. [online] Ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu. Available at: <http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/211_fall2013.web.dir/Mackenzie_stamey/1Physics-of-Trumpet.htm>.
tonestro, 2019. Types of Trumpets. Available at: <https://www.tonestro.com/types-of-trumpets/> .
Web.archive.org. 2020. History Of The Trumpet (According To The New Harvard Dictionary Of Music). [online] Available at: <https://web.archive.org/web/20080608095025/http://www.petrouska.com/historyofthetrumpet.htm>.
Yamaha.com. 2020. The Structure Of The Trumpet:How Does The Trumpet Generate Sound? - Musical Instrument Guide - Yamaha Corporation. [online] Available at: <https://www.yamaha.com/en/musical_instrument_guide/trumpet/mechanism/mechanism002.html>.