Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 2, No. 11 (1928-08)

398 The Phonograph Monthly Review August, 1928 within the compass of the instrument can be ob- tained and the player has to judge for himself the distance the slide must travel to produce a certain note just as a violinist has to decide for himself the exact position of the string on which to place his finger to produce the desired note. Staves for three varieties of trombones, alto, tenor and bass, will be found in some of the older scores but the alto instrument is rarely used now- adays, its part being played by the tenor trom- bone. The only differences between the tenor and bass trombones are that the latter is larger and deeper toned, and that a handle is attached to the slide to enable the player to extend it to the utmost limit. The trombones are enormously powerful instruments and can dominate the whole orchestra when required as at the end of “Tannhauser” Overture and when they play in octaves the melody first given to the horns at the opening of Schubert’s C Major Symphony. The prototype of the double-bass in the string family and double-bassoon in the wood-wind group is the Bass Tuba. . This instrument is of aldermanic proportions and consists of a very long tube terminating in a huge bell. The tube is wound into an approximately oval shape to enable it to be clasped in the arms of the player. The method of playing and the mechanism are similar to those of the horn and trumpet but the tuba is often provided with a fourth valve and piston to enable the lowest notes to be reached. As is to be expected, the tones produced are very heavy and ponderous and possess a “woolly” quality which is very well reproduced in the “In- struments of the Orchestra” records. The Tuba has only been introduced into the orchestra in recent times but is used very largely by Tschai- kowsky in his symphonies and Wagner in his music-dramas. The latter even uses a whole family of tubas known as Wagnerian Tubas, a quartet of which play one of the themes near the beginning of “Siegfried’s Funeral March.” The Percussion The sounds produced by the various members of this group are very diverse in character but are caused in all cases by the striking of one body against another. In an orchestra it is usual to have two players in charge of the “battery”, or “kitchen”, as the whole group is often called, but their numbers are reinforced when necessary. The principal members of the group are the Kettle Drums which consist of parchment stretched across the open end of large copper or brass bowls of varying size. By means of screws the tension of the parchment can be regu- lated which enables the drum to be tuned to definite pitches. The kettle-drums are used in pairs usually, though modern composers sometimes require more, and these are tuned to the tonic and domin- ant below the tonic of the key in which the com- position is written. Other tunings are prescribed sometimes, an example of which is contained in the Scherzo of Beethoven’s “Choral” Symphony (Phil, score, Columbia and Victor records) where they are tuned an octave apart. ' * The drum sticks are made of pliant wood and the heads are covered with felt or leather, though occasionally the bare wood is used and sometimes sticks with sponge covered heads are used. With a single stroke of the stick a resonant “pinging” note is produced while the familiar purring roll is produced by striking the drum with each stick in rapid alternation. A good example of the roll occurs about one third of the way through Wagner’s “Flying Dutchman” Overture. This starts softly and gradually gets louder and louder. The other members of the drum family are quite indefinite in pitch and are used in the orchestra much less frequently. The Side Drum is small and resembles the drum so popular in the nursery. It is used mainly for its dry, rattl- ing roll, the production of which is materially helped by some strands of gut (called “snares”) stretched across the lower face. The well-known Bass Drum of huge proportions merely produces a loud but dull booming noise. The Cymbals are usually associated with the bass drum and in fact one of the pair is some- times fastened to the drum itself so as to enable the player to hold its partner in one hand and a drum-stick in the other. The cymbals are made of very fine quality brass and the action when striking one against the other must be partly sideways so that the vibrations are not deadened. Another method of use is to suspend one cymbal by its loop and either strike it single blows or play rolls on it with the drum-sticks. Both methods of use are illustrated in the “In- struments of the Orchestra” records. An instrument which is related both to the Arum family and the cymbal is the Tambourine. This is a miniature drum with only one parch- ment face and with a number of small cymbals fixed into the side in such a manner that they can jingle against one another. The tambourine is used very effectively in “Roman Carnival” Over- ture by Berlioz, and in many compositions in which local colour is desired. The Castanets are also used to give local colour and the locality in- tended to be depicted in the instance is usually Spain. The Castanets are merely pieces of hard wood which are clapped together. The remainder of the instruments in the per- cussion group give sounds of a bell-like character. That with the most refined tone and capable of the greatest agility is the Celesta. This is like a dwarf piano with a compass of about four octaves and in which steel plates take the place of strings. These are struck by hammers manipul- ated by a key board also like that of a piano. The tone is delicate and shimmering, particularly in the higher notes. The celesta was introduced into the orchestra by Tschaikowsky in the “Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy”, one of numbers in the “Casse Noisette” Suite. The Glockenspiel is an earlier form of celesta in which the steel bars are struck by hammers held in the hands of the player. The tone is simi- lar to that of the celesta but smaller and more tinkling, and it therefore still keeps its position as a regular member of the orchestra. Consider-