Dr. Jack Burt

Assistant Professor of Trumpet

Jazz Ensemble Director

University of Maine

School of Performing Arts

Division of Music

The following article was originally published in the March 2004 edition of the International Trumpet Guild Journal. It has been substantially revised for reposting on the English language Schagerl website.

The Rotary Trumpet - An Introduction

The standard arsenal of the modern American orchestral trumpeter usually consists of the C trumpet, B flat, D/E flat, A/B flat piccolo and perhaps a cornet. In more and more orchestras, however, another instrument is being seen in rehearsals and concerts; the German rotary trumpet. For many years major American orchestras like the Chicago Symphony and the Cleveland Orchestra have utilized these instruments. But now, trumpet sections in smaller orchestras across the country are also making regular use of them in a substantial range of repertoire. In spite of the growing use of these instruments most trumpeters have a limited knowledge and little exposure to rotary trumpets.

My interest in rotary trumpets began as I stepped into the Baldwin-Wallace College trumpet studio for my first lesson with Cleveland Orchestra member James Darling. I spied a strange trumpet on the corner desk; a type I had never before seen. My curiosity about these trumpets began at that moment. It grew as I grew familiar with the unique qualities of German orchestral trumpet sections. I became particularly taken by the sound of the Berlin Philharmonic and their dual principal players, Konradin Groth and Martin Kretzer, under legendary maestro Herbert Von Karajan. I heard them first on recordings and later live, in early eighties, while I was a student in what was then the divided city of Berlin.

This article will attempt to introduce the rotary trumpet to players not already familiar with them. It will discuss their construction, playing characteristics and advantages and disadvantages, in comparison to the standard piston trumpets. Suggested repertoire, both orchestral and solo, will also be discussed. It is not the author's intention to recommend the use of one trumpet type or maker over another; rather it is solely to provide information on unique, wonderfully crafted instruments, instruments that can provide an opportunity for any trumpeter to expand his or her tonal and artistic palettes, and their craft.

Construction:

There is no shortage of quality rotary trumpets from which to choose. Most German and Austrian makers build each trumpet with a small work force, in limited quantities. Although the different makers produce instruments with different features and characteristics, like our piston instruments they also have similarities, beyond the rotary valve type, that can be generalized as "rotary trumpet characteristics"

Rotary trumpets generally feature a much narrower bore, shorter valve throws, a large bell diameter and broader bell flare than piston instruments. Most have a thinner metal thickness overall, most noticeably in the bell section. Certain makers apply a nickel-silver crown on the bell, which can enhance projection and stability in forte playing. A significant but often overlooked difference is the location of the valve section. On piston trumpets the valve section is placed in the middle of the horn's tubing; after the leadpipe and tuning slide bow, and before the bell section. The valve section of a rotary trumpet is placed after the first eight inches of the tubing (on a B flat trumpet), with the majority of length coming after, including both the tuning slide bow and the bell section. This difference in construction has a great effect on the playing characteristics of the rotary trumpet as opposed to piston trumpets.

Rotary trumpets also have a unique feature; special keys on the main tuning slide which facilitate the production and intonation of certain pitches in the higher register (see photo). The main combination key serves a dual purpose of being the only water key and also a pitch key. All the keys serve to decrease resistance and give greater security to the production of a major triad of higher pitches. The combination key is opened by the small finger of the right hand and is intended for high B flat, D and F. It is standard on all B flat and C rotaries. The "Wiener C Klappe" (Vienna C key) works for A flat, C and E flat. [On either the B flat or C trumpet the effectiveness of these keys can be tested by playing the "Zarathustra call", with and without using the respective key. The combination key would be used on the B flat trumpet to play the octave "D" fanfare, and the Wiener C Klappe would be used on C trumpet.] The less common "A" key works for A, C# and E. None of these keys are necessary to play the instruments effectively, but they can be very useful. B flat trumpets are usually found with only the combination key, while C rotaries can have as many as three additional keys.

Most modern rotary trumpets are equipped with throws for the third valve slide, yet most lack the ability to extend the valve slide further to produce a low "f", as are common on professional quality piston trumpets. First valve throws are available from most rotary makers, but are not standard. Schagerl offers a combination valve throw, activated by the thumb of the left hand, which moves both 1^st and 3^rd slides simultaneously and allows the production of the low “f”.

Playing Characteristics:

Rotaries have distinct playing characteristics, unique unto themselves, that make them very rewarding to play. The tone of most rotary trumpets is broader and less compact than that of piston trumpets. One of their more remarkable traits is that they blend more easily with other brass instruments, and the rest of the orchestra. Response is gentler, and soft playing can be achieved with much greater ease. Contrary to popular belief, rotaries are agile. Flexibility and articulation, especially in light passages, are much easier than on piston trumpets in the same key. (In most German and Austrian orchestras the Pflichtstück, or "required piece" in trumpet auditions is the Haydn Concerto, "to be performed on Deutsche B Trompete", the German B flat trumpet. Almost every difficult passage is made easier by playing the rotary as opposed to piston B flat trumpet.)

Tone Color:

The tonal colors of German trumpets are often described in inaccurate terms. The "dark German sound" is a fallacy. Although rotary makers produce trumpets of differing tonal characteristics, just as piston makers do, the German trumpet tone is often significantly brighter than American or British national tones (if one can say they still exist at all. German trumpets provide a broader, but less clearly defined tonal area than a section of piston trumpets. As a result they may be said to "stick out" less prominently, regardless of volume. Rotary trumpets also are capable of a greater range of tonal colors that piston trumpets. Consistency of tone color is a desirable characteristic in a piston trumpet and a detriment to a rotary trumpet. Most rotary trumpets produce a tone color which, played piano, can seem quite sweet, mellow and velvety. As a rotary is played through piano, to forte to fortissimo, they brighten considerably, becoming "hot", yet when played well, not edgy or spread. What would be a defect in the piston trumpet (variable tonal colors throughout a dynamic spectrum) is considered a desirable attribute in most rotary trumpets.

Many non-rotary players are discouraged to find upon playing a rotary for the first time, that the instrument in forte passages can be more easily overblown than on their piston equivalents. The narrower bore of the rotary trumpet requires that the player make adjustments from how they approach a piston trumpet. The specific physical approach to playing a standard piston trumpet is often found to be ineffective in the playing a rotary trumpet. Rotaries require more control in forte passages, and cannot be forced. Other than the initial lack of familiarity at holding the instrument, this is usually the most important adjustment a player must make. Rotaries can certainly be played loudly, with great effect. In fact, many players have commented that rotaries allow them to play even louder than they might usually be allowed to play, because of the warmer, less direct, broader, less edgy sound they produce.

Initially the rotary can be more difficult to play in the lower register as well, particularly at forte volumes. The narrower bore and the more gradual, less abrupt response of the rotary creates difficulties for the player used to the quicker response of the piston trumpet. In both cases - the "overblowing" of the upper register and the "stuffy" quality of the lower - the player must adjust their approaches to fit the instrument if they want to achieve a desirable musical goal. The most important adjustment should be in the use of air. As a first step, players should work to produce a broader, less compact airstream than they are accustomed to use on their piston trumpet (often referred as "slow, warm air," as opposed to "fast, cooler air").

Articulation:

Articulation is much more rounded and less percussive than on a piston trumpet. The change from note to note, whether slurred or articulated, is smoother. Certainly the approach of the musician is a large determining factor, but nevertheless each trumpet type lends itself to certain playing styles more than others. In the opinion of the author, more than tone color, articulation style should determine the appropriateness of using one trumpet type or another in a particular piece of music.

Flexibility:

The rotary trumpet often surprises one playing it for the first time in the ease of slurring and subsequent agility throughout the range of the instrument. The more effortless response of the rotary allows the player more flexibility in particular during the playing of passages marked “piano”. (To illustrate this, one should play the two opening phrases of Wagner’s Parsifal on the both piston and rotary trumpets.)

Intonation:

The general intonation of a modern professional quality rotary trumpet is equal to any piston trumpet of comparable quality. Lower register notes may be found to need more attention than a piston player is normally accustomed. Conversely, the same player may find that notes above third space "C" are much easier to play in tune than on a piston trumpet.

Mouthpieces:

Rotary trumpets accept all standard piston trumpet mouthpieces. Many American players use their regular mouthpieces on their rotary C and B flat trumpets. Many European trumpeters also use common American trumpet mouthpieces on their rotary trumpets. However, considering the significant playing differences between piston and rotary trumpet, it would be advisable, if practical, to select a mouthpiece that enables the different qualities and characteristics of the rotary trumpet to be produced most easily.  If the desire of the trumpeter is to take advantage of the greater tonal palette that the rotary affords, one should seriously investigate the use of a mouthpiece that fits that type of trumpet best. One would do no less on their piston trumpet. The mouthpiece that one favors for their piston trumpet is not necessarily the best match for a rotary trumpet.

Although there are many types of European mouthpieces intended for rotary trumpets, there are some fairly standard features that can be said to apply to a rotary mouthpiece. The most significant feature is the shape of the rim, which is much rounder overall, and has a softer inner rim, or "bite", than a typical American mouthpiece. This has an enormous effect on the character of articulation and slurring, making both less crisp and abrupt, and therefore smoother and more liquid. The author and others have also found that the use of a European mouthpiece also improves the general intonation. Major European makers include: Karl Breslmair, of Austria; Bruno Tilz and Josef Klier of Germany.

Repertoire:

German orchestral musicians perform almost exclusively on the rotary trumpet, as American players do most of their work on piston trumpets. Major American orchestras have historically performed on rotaries in a strictly defined repertoire: Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms, Wagner and Bruckner - that is, German music from the classical and romantic periods. In America, Strauss and Mahler are more commonly performed on piston trumpets, even though it is the works of these two composers, more than any of the aforementioned, that were most probably written with the modern rotary trumpet in B flat and C in mind. There is however, no "right and wrong" concerning instrument choice. The player and section should choose their instruments based on what they feel will produce the desired musical result, rather than thinking one must play this horn on Brahms and another on Debussy.

In solo literature, the obvious choices of the Hindemith Sonate, the Böhme Konzert in f-moll (the original e-moll) and the concerti of Haydn, Hummel (in E flat) and Neruda are particularly well suited for performances on a rotary B flat. The same can be said for the Höhne Slavische Fantasie, although it was originally written for cornet a pistons. Additionally, the author and others have performed works on rotary trumpet not generally associated with the instrument, with very satisfying results. For example, the Hummel Concerto (in the original key of E major), Stravinsky's L'Histoire du Soldat and the Enesco Legende all work quite successfully on C rotary, and its use can produce musical results not easily achieved on the piston trumpet. As a further illustration, German Brass virtuoso Matthias Höfs recently released a recording of the Jolivet Concertino performed on the rotary C. The same is true for orchestral literature beyond the standard German-Austrian canon.  Major quintets like the Canadian Brass have also recently begun to perform on rotaries in transcribed literature not originally for trumpet. Original literature like the Böhme Sextet and the Ewald Quintets are also quite effective on rotaries. In the end, it is important that each player or section make their instrument choices by choosing the instrument type that best suits their musical goals.

Conclusion: Why invest in a rotary trumpet?

As the musical world has gotten smaller; through the fall of Communism, greater travel and communication between countries, the advent of the internet, etc., one of the regrettable developments in the orchestral world has been the loss of clearly identifiable national orchestral sounds. Increasingly, orchestral brass sections are playing on similar equipment. As a result, orchestras around the world are sounding more and more the same. (This is not only true in the trumpet world, but in all areas of orchestral playing. Compare the solo oboes of various orchestras in the 60’s and 70’s with those of the present day. The trend toward a world-wide homogenized sound is even more pronounced.) As a student in the 1970’2 and 80’s, it was easy to identify one orchestra from another from recordings. The characteristic tonal colors and playing styles of the sections and principal players of Chicago, Boston, Cleveland, Vienna, London, Berlin, and Prague, for example,  were easily discernable. Today it has become much more difficult to recognize the the Chicago Symphony from, say,  the Cleveland Orchestra, or London from New York, for that matter.

Exceptions to this trend are the great orchestras in Berlin and Vienna. One significant reason (but surely not the sole reason) for the retention of their unique characteristic is their use of rotary trumpets. In non-Germanic countries the use of rotary trumpets is growing. One perhaps unspoken reason for this is the simple desire to sound different. Rotary trumpets allow the player to expand their tonal palette, create different colors and approach the orchestral and solo repertoire in new ways. This, in itself, is as good a reason as one might need to play a rotary trumpet. They are a challenge, yet very rewarding.