[Trombone-l] alto or tenor of first trombone

[BGuttman]

Keith, there was a discussion on The Trombone Forum with a lot of input
from Ed Solomon.

Go to http://tromboneforum.org and look in the section "History of the
Trombone" and search there about Alto Trombone (I can't remember the exact
thread and I don't have the Forum open at this time).  I think there may
have been another discussion in the Performance section.

Some interesting tidbits:

1.  Berlioz wanted an alto trombone in "Symphony Fantastique", but the
orchestra at the time was 3 tenors and so he had to settle.

2.  In spite of all the alto clef writing, most Russian orchestras had two
tenors and a bass.

3.  Even Beethoven might have used 2 tenors and a "bass" (larger bore Bb
instrument).

Makes you stop and think sometimes...

Bruce Guttman
Moderator, The Trombone Forum
Section Leader, Merrimack Valley Philharmonic Orchestra
Solo Trombone, Hollis (NH) Town Band