| Select from A-Z |
| Aïda trumpet | a straight valved trumpet made for use on stage | AM 30.8.96 |
| Alphorn | wooden horn used in the Alps and other European regions.
On the larger sizes, 3 - 5 metres long, a series of twelve or more notes can be sounded.
The bore very closely approximates to a section of a cone.
Modern alphorns generally have detachable mouthpieces | AM 30.8.96 |
| Althorn | brasswind instrument of intermediate bore and with profile midway between those of a trumpet and a flugelhorn,
played with a cupped mouthpiece.
The word usually denotes such an instrument built in F or E-flat (a tenor saxhorn) but has also been used for larger instruments | AM 30.8.96 |
| Alto horn | American term for althorn | AM 30.8.96 |
| Antinode | see pressure antinode or velocity antinode | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Backbore, mouthpiece | the backbore of a mouthpiece is the section of the bore from the minimum
bore to the distal end (the end which is inserted into the mouthpiece receiver of the instrument).
The expansion in the backbore can be conical or of curved profile | AM 17.6.03, 13.1.05 |
| Ballad horn | brasswind instrument pitched in 8-ft C of narrower bore than the baritone saxhorn,
intended to facilitate the performance of untransposed vocal parts in domestic music-making with the usual fingering of valved brasswind instruments | AM 30.8.96, 11.12.01 |
| Baritone | the baritone saxhorn, member of the saxhorn family
in 8-ft C or 9-ft B-flat with narrower bore than the bass saxhorn of the
same pitch (euphonium).
In the U.S.A. the term is often used
interchangeably with Euphonium | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04 |
| Bass horn | a bass brasswind instrument usually in 8-ft C,
virtually a serpent made of metal in the form of a letter V with a long curved crook inserted into one branch | AM 30.8.96 |
| Basson Russe | | AM 30.8.96 |
| BB-flat bass | contrabass tuba in 18-ft B-flat | AM 30.8.96 |
| Bell | the end of the air-column furthest from the mouthpiece | AM 30.8.96 |
| Bell rim | see Rim | SK 26.3.01 |
| Berlin valve | Piston valve in which the inlet and outlet for the valve tubing is arranged on the same plane as the main tubing.
See
diagram of the Berlin valve  | SK 23.8.04 |
| Bersag horn | a bugle with (usually) a single valve made in different sizes for band use in Italy, France or Spain | AM 30.8.96 |
| Bezel | see Rim | |
| Bite, mouthpiece | the bite of a mouthpiece is the edge (region of transition) between rim and cup.
When the profile of the bite approximates to the quadrant of a circle,
the degree of curvature can be expressed in terms of the radius of curvature of the bite | AM 13.1.05 |
| Blechblasinstrumente (Ger) | brasswind instruments | AM 30.8.96 |
| Bombardon | a bass tuba, generally in E-flat with three or four valves | AM 30.8.96 |
| Bottom-sprung Périnet valve | Périnet valve in which the spring is placed below the piston.
See
diagram of the Bottom-sprung Périnet Valve  | SK 5.1.05 |
| Bow | a part of the tubing of an instrument of approximately semicircular shape | AM 30.8.96 |
| Bow guard | a sheet of metal covering the outer area of a Bow to provide reinforcement | AM 11.12.01 |
| Branch | a long, straight part of the tubing of an instrument.
An older term is Yard | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04 |
| Brasswind | term generally used for instruments made form any material in which the tone-producing element is a column of air one end of which (the mouthpiece) is placed against the player's lips and the other end of which (the bell) radiates sound | AM 30.8.96 |
| Bugle | a brasswind instrument with approximately conical bore profile,
small enough to be a portable signalling instrument | AM 30.8.96, 11.12.01 |
| Buisine | a term used in the late middle ages for a large horn or trumpet | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Capsule | component of a piston valve: a cylindrical case to contain the spring | AM 24.8.01 |
| Cavalry trumpet | a natural trumpet for signalling | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cimbasso (It) | designation used in the nineteenth century for a contrabass instrument
to the trombone section: at first a Russian bassoon or bass horn, then
sometimes a valve ophicleide, and later a contrabass valve trombone used
by Verdi.
In current usage the word most usually denotes a contrabass
valve trombone | AM 13.1.05 |
| Clapper key | a key on a cornopean (q.v.) covering a tone-hole;p used for trills | AM 30.8.96 |
| Clarino (It) | the upper register of a trumpet in which the partials lie close enough to allow a scale to be played;
a trumpet built to be played in this register | AM 30.8.96 |
| Clarion | imprecise term which has at times been used for various signalling trumpets and bugles | AM 30.8.96 |
| Clavicor or althorn | brasswind instrument of intermediate bore profile at alto or tenor pitch with upwards-directed bell | AM 30.8.96, 11.12.01 |
| Coach horn | British late 19th-century straight horn with almost conical bore profile | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04 |
| Compensating valves | system of constructing brasswind instruments
whereby the air passage for valve combinations including the operation
of a master valve is led through the other of the valve pistons or
rotors twice.
These latter valves are equipped with two sets of valve
loops and tuning slides.
The shorter secondary loops add the extra tube
length required for good intonation when valves are used in combination
This is the principle of the Gautrot's 1858 patent Système
Équitonique, D.J. Blaikley's 1878 patent Compensating
Pistons, and some models of Double horn. | AM 30.8.96, 11.12.01, 23.12.04 |
| Contrabass trombone | trombone in 16-ft C or 18-ft B-flat an octave below the tenor trombone,
usually with a compass descending to E1.
Slide and valve versions have been made,
the former generally with a double slide to give the same slide positions as the tenor | AM 30.8.96 |
| Co-operative regime | the acoustical phenomenon in which a number of the spectral components of a sustained sound on a brass instrument resonate with and are supported by the modes of vibration of the air column inside the tube | AM 30.8.96 |
| Coquilles | the tubing inside piston valves which can form part of the wind way | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cor (Fr) | horn, french horn | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornet | valved posthorn | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornet à pistons (Fr) | cornet | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornett | lip-mouthpiece conical instrument with finger-holes | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornetta (It) | Cornet | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornettino | small cornett, generally pitched a fifth higher than the ordinary cornett | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornetto (It) | Cornett | AM 30.8.96 |
| Corno (It) | horn, french horn | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornopean | English name for early models of cornet | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cornophone | valved brasswind instrument with bore profile intermediate between french horn and saxhorn and played with mouthpiece like that of a french horn,
played with mouthpiece like that of french horn,
patented by Fontaine Besson in 1890 | AM 30.8.96, 11.12.01 |
| Cor-solo | natural french horn with fixed mouthpipe and alternative tuning slides for playing in the keys used for the solo repertoire: G, F, E, E-flat and D | AM 30.8.96 |
| Coupler | loop of tubing inserted between a crook and a instrument such as a french horn for playing in a lower key than that of the crook alone | AM 30.8.96 |
| Crook | loop of tubing for an instrument such as a french horn.
Terminal crooks fit into the instrument (or a coupler) at one end and receive the mouthpiece (or a tuning bit) at the other.
The choice of crook or shank determines the key in which the instrument will play | AM 30.8.96 |
| Crook/coupler receiver taper | of couplers and of the body of an instrument: the measurements
indicating the conicity of the socket | AM 23.12.04 |
| Cuivre (Fr) | brasswind | AM 30.8.96 |
| Cup, mouthpiece | the cup of the mouthpiece is the cavity to which the player places the
lips.
The cup is characterised by cup depth, cup diameter, cup shape,
and cup volume (q.v.) | AM 13.1.05 |
| Cup depth, mouthpiece | for hemispherical and sharp-edged cup shapes,
the cup depth of a mouthpiece is the
distance along the axis from the plane of the furthermost part of the
rim contour to the edge of the bottom of the cup; for cuspoidal and
conical cup shapes, the cup depth is the distance along the axis from
the plane of the furthermost part of the rim contour to the point of
minimum bore; for funnel and intermediate cup shapes, the cup depth is
the distance along the axis from the plane of the furthermost part of
the rim contour to the point of maximum curvature of the bore profile
(point of maximum throat curvature).
In the case of `double-cupped' and other unconventional mouthpieces, individual description id required | AM 13.1.05 |
| Cup diameter, mouthpiece | in cases where the edge between the rim and the cup (the bite) is sharp,
the cup diameter of a mouthpiece is the diameter of this sharp edge;
in cases where the edge between the rim and the cup is rounded,
the cup diameter can most usefully denote the diameter of the cup at a depth from the plane of the
furthermost part of the rim contour of the radius of the bite;
this is usually equivalent to the diameter at the point of maximum curvature of
the bore profile between the rim and the cup,
and corresponds well with the measurements given by manufacturers of mouthpieces | AM 13.1.05 |
| Cup shape, mouthpiece | the cup shape of a mouthpiece can described using one of the following terms:-
cuspoid (a curved profile monotonically decreasing in curvature from rim to distal end, only used in mouthpieces for french horns)
conical
funnel (the profile has a point of inflection, but this not close to the point of minimum bore diameter)
intermediate
edged (the profile has a point of inflection close to the point of minimum bore diameter)
hemispherical (the cup meets the grain or backbore at an angle close to 90o)
See
diagrams of the basic patterns | AM 13.1.05 |
| Cup volume, mouthpiece | measurements of cup volumeof a mouthpiece are necessarily approximate since there is
not necessarily a well-defined surface between the cup and the remaining bore of a mouthpiece.
One methods of measuring mouthpiece cup volume is given in Myers and Parks (2004) | AM 13.1.05 |
Select from A-Z |
| Demilune trumpet | see Trompette demilune | |
|
Disc valve or "Patent Lever Valve" | Valve characterized by the use of two discs facing each other,
one fixed, the other rotating.
The rotating disc either blocks the valve slide (left) or allows free passageway to it (right),
hence increasing the overall tube length of the instrument.
See
diagrams of the disc valve  | SK 23.8.04 |
| Double horn | french horn capable of playing at either of two
basic pitches,
selected by a valve,
usually the 4th (`thumb' or
`change') valve.
In the full double horn the basic three valves are
each equipped with two valve loops and tuning slides of different
lengths and two sets of passages in the rotor or piston.
The 4th valve
determines whether the windway can be directed through the longer or the
shorter loops of the basic three valves.
In the compensating double
horn Compensating valves are used.
The usual tonalities for a double horn are 12-ft F + 9-ft B-flat. | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04, BS 6.1.05 |
| Double-piston valve | The double-piston valve is first recorded in 1821 in connection with a trumpet by Christian Friedrich Sattler of Leipzig.
In this valve type the simultaneous movement of two pistons introduces an additional valve loop.
Double-piston valves come in a great variety of operating and return mechanisms:
long handles with long return springs (mainly in Bavaria and Switzerland)
short handles returned by flat or wire springs (Old Mainz Model)
touch-pieces with long leaf-springs (New Mainz Model)
touch-pieces on rods guided in small tubes enclosing a coil spring (Système belge)
touch-pieces connected with a clock-spring mechanism,
similar to that of a rotary valve (Vienna valve).
The only city in which double-piston valves are still in use today is Vienna.
Therefore, double-piston valves are often called "Vienna Valves."
However, this over-simplifies the great variety of constructions found in the past,
most of which were developed outside of Vienna.
See
diagram of the Double-Piston valve  | SK 26.8.04 |
| Double principle | system of constructing brasswind instruments
whereby two valves (on three-valve instruments) or three valves (on
four-valve instruments) are equipped with two sets of valve loops and
tuning slides in order to give better intonation when valves are used in
combination.
This is the principle of the Double
horn, and Besson's Enharmonic Patent valves;
it was also used
for some small brass instruments by Boosey & Co marked COMPENSATING
PISTONS but not strictly Compensating
valve at all | AM 11.12.01, 5.1.05 |
| Duplex instrument | a valved instrument with an extra valve placed in the windway (after the usual three or four playing valves) which can divert the windway to a completely different bell | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Echo cornet | a duplex instrument (q.v.) with both a normal cornet bell and an alternative bell which gives a muted effect | AM 30.8.96 |
|
Embossed decoration | Decoration in which metal is rearranged with the help of forms by using pressure.
See
diagrams of the most common techniques for decoration (engraving, impressing, embossing) | SK 23.8.04 |
|
Engraved decoration | Decoration in which metal is removed.
See
diagram of engraved rings or lines  | SK 23.8.04 |
| Enharmonic valve | Besson's piston valve (G.B. Patent No 12,849, accepted 12th May 1904) valve on the double principle | AM 11.12.01 |
| Euphonium | tenor tuba or bass saxhorn pitched in 9-ft B-flat (sometimes 8-ft C) with three or four valves, sometimes five;
with wider bore than the baritone saxhorn of the same pitch | AM 30.8.96 |
| External taper | of couplers, crooks and shanks: the measurements indicating the conicity
of the tenon | AM 23.12.04 |
Select from A-Z |
| Factitious note | a privileged note (q.v.) | AM 30.8.96 |
| Fanfare (Ger) | a natural trumpet for signalling and marching band use | AM 30.8.96 |
| Ferrule | a sleeve fitted over the joint between two sections of tubing | AM 30.8.96 |
| Flange | Rib projecting from a bow guard used to further strengthen a bow.
Used
on ophicleides and other large instruments. | AM 23.12.04 |
| Flat trumpet | English slide trumpet of the late 17th century with the slide in the bow nearest to the player | AM 30.8.96 |
| Flicorno | Italian brasswind instrument, the smaller sizes similar to flugelhorns, larger similar to tubas | AM 30.8.96 |
| Flugelhorn | Flügelhorn, valved bugle | AM 30.8.96 |
| Foot | Of a trombone slide: the distal region of the inner and outer slides,
including the stockings and the slide bow. | AM 23.12.04 |
| Foot | The foot is used in the traditional convention used to denote the
nominal sizes of brass instruments and to distinguish between one
instrument and another of the same nominal pitch but of double or half
the tube length.
Common examples the approximate length of the basic
tube are:
21/4-ft B-flat,
21/2-ft A,
21/4-ft G,
3-ft F,
31/4-ft E-flat,
31/2-ft D,
4-ft C,
41/2-ft B-flat,
5-ft A,
51/2-ft G,
6-ft F,
61/2-ft E-flat,
7-ft D,
8-ft C,
9-ft B-flat,
10-ft A,
11-ft G,
12-ft F,
13-ft E-flat,
14-ft D,
16-ft C,
18-ft B-flat.
The actual compass of notes will depend on the particular instrument and
the repertoire.
For instance, a french horn in 12-ft F will often play
a higher lying part than an ophicleide in 8-ft C.
This is a different
conventional use of the word "foot"' from that used in specifying organ
and harpsichord stops,
though both conventions stem from the useful
coincidence that a conical or open-ended cylindrical pipe sounding a
series of resonance mode frequencies approximating to a harmonic series
based on the fundamental C2 has a length of just about 8ft. | AM 23.12.04 |
| Formant | a region of the spectrum where the components are consistently strong regardless of the exact fundamental frequency of the note being sounded | AM 30.8.96 |
| French horn | brasswind instrument;
now often called simply `The Horn';
the old term `french horn' is used to distinguish it from other horns | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Garland | an annular strip of metal fixed to the outside of the bell of some brass instruments at the rim | AM 30.8.96 |
| Garnishing | a decorated ferrule (q.v.) | AM 30.8.96 |
| German silver | white bronze | AM 30.8.96 |
| Grain, mouthpiece | in the case of some mouthpieces, there is a considerable cylindrical
portion of mouthpiece bore at the narrowest part, usually known as the `grain' | AM 13.1.05 |
Select from A-Z |
| Hand horn | a natural horn designed for use with the player's hand placed in the bell and used to `stop' notes as required | AM 30.8.96 |
| Harmonic series | a series of numbers (especially frequencies) which are exact integer multiples of the lowest member (the fundamental);
with brass instruments the frequencies of the components of a sustained sound form a harmonic series | AM 30.8.96 |
| Harmonics | The term is sometimes loosely used for the fundamental frequencies of the series of notes which can be sounded by a player on a brass instrument with a given setting of any slide or valves.
These, however, form only an approximation to a harmonic series | AM 30.8.96 |
| Helicon | form of tuba with the tubing made in a wide coil to go round the player's body and rest on one shoulder | AM 30.8.96 |
| hertz (Hz) | unit of frequency, equivalent to one cycle per second | AM 30.8.96 |
| Historic instruments | surviving specimens of older forms of instrument | AM 30.8.96 |
| Historical instruments | modern instruments copied from or inspired by old models | AM 30.8.96 |
| Horn | in broad classification of lip-vibrated aerophones into horns and trumpets,
the term `horn' is preferred for instruments made from animal horn or tusk,
or with a shape derived from these but in other materials,
and thus of predominantly conical bore profile such as the bugle.
The term is often used without qualification for the french horn | AM 30.8.96 |
| Hz (hertz) | q.v | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
|
Impressed decoration | Decoration in which metal is rearranged.
See
diagrams of impressed rings or lines  | SK 23.8.04 |
| Impression, mouthpiece | the proximal part of the rim contour (i.e.
the circular line on the
mouthpiece rim furthest from the instrument) is termed the impression.
The mouthpiece impression can be placed fairly centrally on the rim
contour, or can be noticeably nearer to the cup or nearer to the
mouthpiece exterior.
Also denoted by some writers as `crosscut' | AM 13.1.05 |
| Internal crooks or tuning-slide crooks | tuning slides of different tube lengths,
used instead of terminal crooks on french horns,
trumpets etc to allow a fixed mouthpipe.
Such an instrument is often known as an Inventionshorn, Inventionstrompete, etc. | SK 17.4.03 |
| Inventionshorn | a french horn with a fixed mouthpipe and a number of internal or tuning-slide crooks,
tuning slides of different tube lengths instead of terminal crook | AM 17.4.03 |
Select from A-Z |
| Jagdhorn | Jägerhorn (Ger)., hunting horn | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Key | in piston valves, a small projection from the side of the piston which runs in a groove or `keyway' on the inside of the valve casing and keeps the piston in the correct alignment | AM 30.8.96 |
| Keyed bugle | conical-bore bugle, most commonly single-wound,
with large key-covered toneholes | AM 21.10.04 |
| Klappe (Ger) | key | AM 30.8.96 |
| Knuckle | a small piece of tubing,
usually angled, connecting the valve casing to other tubing | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Lipping | the technique of adjusting the intonation of notes by modifying lip position and tension | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Maillechort (Fr) | white bronze (german silver) | AM 30.8.96 |
| Mandrel | a piece of steel of the exact shape required for the inside of a part of an instrument on which that part can be worked to bring it into its correct shape | AM 30.8.96 |
| Master crook | one of a small number of terminal crooks which were used on some french horns in conjunction with a larger number of couplers (q.v.) | AM 30.8.96 |
| Mellophone | American, tenor cor or other large-belled alto or tenor instrument of
intermediate bore profile resembling the french horn in shape but with
the valves operated by the right hand | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04 |
| Mellophonium | A special form of the mellophone [link] with straight,
forwards directed bell,
developed by C.G. Conn Ltd in the 1950s and used in the band of Stan Kenton from 1960 to 1963. | SK 23.11.04 |
| Minimum bore, mouthpiece | the minimum bore diameter of a mouthpiece is termed the `throat diameter' by some
authors, however `throat' should be used to refer to the region of
transition from cup to narrowest point | AM 13.1.05 |
| Minimum shank external diameter, mouthpiece | the minimum shank external diameter is the external diameter of the
distal end of a mouthpiece (the end which is inserted into the
mouthpiece receiver of the instrument) | AM 13.1.05 |
| Modèle anglais | Model of Périnet cornet with with the valves positioned between the mouthpipe and the bellpipe | AM 24.8.01 |
| Modèle français | Model of Périnet cornet with the valves positioned to the left of both mouthpipe and bellpipe | AM 24.8.01 |
| Mouthpiece | the part of the brass instrument against which the player's lips are
placed.
The size and shape of the `cup' or mouthpiece cavity are
important determinants of the instrument's intonation, tone quality, and
ease of sound production.
Mouthpieces for all except some signalling
instruments and the mute cornett are detachable and, to some extent,
interchangeable between instruments. See also parts of a typical mouthpiece:
Backbore,
Bite,
Cup,
Grain,
Impression,
Rim,
Shank,
Throat
See also parameters used in measuring mouthpieces:
Cup depth,
Cup diameter,
Cup shape,
Cup volume,
Minimum bore,
Minimum shank external diameter,
Rim curvature,
Rim thickness,
Taper angle,
Taper depth, | AM 30.8.96, 13.1.05 |
| Mouthpiece receiver taper | of crooks and shanks: the measurements indicating the conicity of the socket | AM 23.12.04 |
| Mute | an object placed in the bell of an instrument which affects the radiation of sound from the instrument and modifies its tone quality | AM 30.8.96 |
| Mute cornett | straight wooden cornett with the mouthpiece turned out of the same piece of wood as the body | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Natural horn | a french horn without valves or other mechanical device for altering the tube length while playing | AM 30.8.96 |
| Natural trumpet | a trumpet without slide, keys, valves or other mechanical device for altering the tube length while playing | AM 30.8.96 |
| Neusilber (Ger) | white bronze (german silver) | AM 30.8.96 |
| Node | see pressure node or velocity node | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Omnitonic horn | a natural horn with a mechanism for adjusting the tube length before playing so that it can be played with comparable facility in all keys | AM 30.8.96 |
| Orchestral horn | term sometimes used for the french horn | AM 30.8.96 |
| Ottoni (It) | brasswind instruments | AM 30.8.96 |
| Overtone | A word sometimes used for the spectral components (q.v.) of a sustained sound higher than the fundamental.
Confusion is sometimes introduced by using the term 'overtone' when wishing to identify specific members of the series.
For clarity it is preferable to speak of harmonics - the second harmonic is at twice the frequency of the fundamental,
the third harmonic at three times, etc | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Partial | An ill-defined word sometimes used for the modes of vibration (q.v.) of an air column above the lowest,
sometimes for the spectral components (q.v.) of a sustained sound higher than the fundamental,
and sometimes for the series of notes that can be sounded on a brass instrument with a given setting of any slide or valves (except the pedal note) | AM 30.8.96 |
|
Patent Lever valve | See Disc valve | |
| Pavillon (Fr) | bell | AM 30.8.96 |
| Pedal notes | The pedal note is the lowest of the series of notes that can be sounded on a brass instrument with a given setting of any slide or valves.
The lowest octave of the compass of the serpent and the ophicleide consists of pedal notes (C2to C3for the most common size).
On the B-flat trombone,
the pedals are B-flat1down to E1.
On french horns with shorter tube lengths (such as the B-flat side of the double horn) the pedal notes can be sounded easily;
they are difficult on longer tube lengths such as the horn in 12-ft F.
Pedal notes are frequently used on tubas and euphoniums,
less frequently on trumpets and cornets.
For instruments with a high proportion of cylindrical tubing such as trombones,
the air column does not have a mode of vibration at the correct frequency to support the fundamental (first harmonic) of the pedal note,
which can be sounded only because of a co-operative regime (q.v.) in which its higher harmonics are supported by higher modes of resonance of the tube.
As a result,
these pedal notes have a bright but hollow tone quality | AM 30.8.96 |
| Périnet valve | Piston valve in which the valve loops are arranged in such a way that the inlet tubing is positioned on a different level than the outlet tubing.
See
diagram of the bottom-sprung Périnet Valve
See
diagram of the top-sprung Périnet Valve  | SK 23.8.04 |
|
Piston valve | Valve in which the valve loop is disengaged or engaged by the up-and-down movement of the piston within the casing that aligns the ports either with the main tubing or the valve loop.
See
names of the parts of piston valve | SK 23.8.04 |
| Posaune (Ger) | trombone | AM 30.8.96 |
| Posthorn | a small coiled or straight instrument of bore profile intermediate between conical and cylindrical.
Prefer to `post horn' | AM 30.8.96 |
| Pressure antinode | a point in the air column where there is a local maximum of fluctuation in pressure during the production of a sustained sound.
Pressure antinodes correspond to velocity nodes (q.v.) There is a pressure antinode in the mouthpiece of a brass instrument | AM 30.8.96 |
| Pressure node | a point in the air column where there is no fluctuation in pressure during the production of a sustained sound.
Pressure nodes correspond to velocity antinodes (q.v.) There is a pressure node in the region of the bell of a brass instrument | AM 30.8.96 |
| Privileged note | a note not in the usual series of notes that can be sounded on a brass instrument with a given setting of any slide or valves,
but which can nevertheless be produced by a player through the mechanism of a co-operative regime (q.v.) | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
| Quinticlave | a small ophicleide pitched in 6-ft F or E-flat,
a fifth below the keyed bugle | AM 30.8.96 |
Select from A-Z |
|
Rim | The outermost reinforcement of the edge of the bell.
See
diagrams of the most common basic patterns 
(Nürnberg rim,
Saxon rim,
Dresden rim,
Italian rim,
Bohemian rim,
Mainz rim,
French rim) | SK 23.8.04 |
| Rim, mouthpiece | the rim of the mouthpiece is the surface to which the player places the
lips.
The rim contour can be described using one of the following
terms:
round (i.e.
semi-circular or acorn-cup)
semi-round
medium
semi-flat
flat (i.e.
with a significant flat or conical surface area) | AM 13.1.05 |
| Rim curvature, mouthpiece | when the profile of the rim of a mouthpiece approximates to a section of
a circle, the degree of curvature can be expressed in terms of the
radius of curvature of the rim | AM 13.1.05 |
| Rim thickness, mouthpiece | If the cup diameter (the commonest measurement) and the overall diameter (the easiest measurement) are already known,
the rim thickness of a mouthpiece is usually half of (overall diameter less cup diameter) | AM 13.1.05 |
|
Rotary valve | Valve in additional tubing is added by the turn of a rotor enclosed in an outer casing.
The valve loops and main tubing are soldered to the outer case on the same plane.
The port of the rotor allows free passageway either to the main tubing or to the additional valve tubing.
See
diagram of the Rotary valve  | SK 23.8.04 |
| Rozhok | Russian folk cornett with integral mouthpiece (the word is also used for reed pipes) | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04 |
| Russian bassoon | a form of serpent or bass horn with a U-shaped section of tube fashioned in a single piece of wood like the butt of a bassoon | AM 30.8.96 |
| Russian horn | one of a set of conical-bore natural instruments,
used so that each instrument in the set sounds only one note,
each player contributing this one note as required for the melody and accompaniment played by the band as a whole on the set of horns | AM 30.8.96 |
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| Sackbut | 16th-18th century English name for the trombone;
now often used to denote the earlier trombone models and their modern reproductions | AM 30.8.96 |
| Saxhorn | family of intermediate bore profile brasswind instruments patented by Adolphe Sax in 1843;
the althorn, baritone, tenor horn and euphonium more or less correspond to members of the family | AM 30.8.96 |
| Saxotromba | brasswind instrument patented by Adolphe Sax in 1845 having a bore profile intermediate between the saxhorn and the trumpet or the trombone with upwards-directed bell;
made in a range of sizes similar to those of saxhorns but not as extensively used | AM 30.8.96, 11.12.01 |
| Schallstück (Ger) | bell | AM 30.8.96 |
| Serpent | side-hole lip-reed instrument | AM 30.8.96 |
| Serpent Forveille | variety of the serpent made in the 1830s with brass body and wooden bell | AM 30.8.96 |
| Shank | a straight piece of tubing for an instrument such as a cornet fitting into the instrument at one end and receiving the mouthpiece (or a tuning bit) at the other.
The choice of shank or crook determines the key in which the instrument will play | AM 30.8.96 |
| Shank, mouthpiece | the shank of a mouthpiece is the tenon which is inserted into the
mouthpiece receiver of the instrument.
In most cases the shank is
conical or cylindrical.
It is characterised by minimum shank external
diameter, taper angle, and taper depth | AM 13.1.05 |
| Shield | a name sometimes used for a Bow guard | AM 11.12.01 |
| Side action string-operated rotary valve | Valve with a rotor operated via a string in the manner of a bow-drill rather than entirely mechanical linkage;
side action indicates that the axis of rotation of the rotor is perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the touchpiece | AM/SK 16.5.01 |
| Socket | the component of a shank, crook or tuning-slide into which is inserted a Tenon
when the instrument is assembled | BS 11.11.04 |
| Sousaphone | form of tuba with the tubing made in a wide coil
to go round the player's body and rest on one shoulder and terminating
in a large bell, 600mm or more in diameter directed forwards (but in the
earliest models directed upwards) | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04 |
| Spectral components | When a sustained sound is produced on a brass instrument,
the air inside the instrument vibrate not only at the frequency of vibration of the players' lips,
but also at exact integer multiples of this frequency.
These are the spectral components of the sound,
sometimes called `overtones' | AM 30.8.96 |
| Standing wave | a vibration state where sound waves travelling within the instrument and reflected at each end combine so that at certain positions they cancel to create a pressure node (q.v.),
while at others they add to create a pressure antinode (q.v.).
A sustained sound on a brass instrument requires standing waves | AM 30.8.96 |
| Stay | a component of folded or coiled brass instruments which strengthens their structure by rigidly connecting two parallel or nearly parallel sections of tube | AM 30.8.96 |
| Stem | component of a piston valve: the rod or tube connecting the touchpiece to the piston | AM 24.8.01 |
|
Stölzel valve | Piston valve in which the main tubing enters the piston from below.
See
diagram of the early Stölzel valve 
See
diagram of the later Stölzel valve  | SK 23.8.04 |
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|
Tab seam | Tabs or small notches may be cut into one side of the bell during its construction to strengthen the seam at the flare.
These tabs are alternately bent upwards and downwards and linked to the opposite straight side of the bell's edge.
The tab pattern often remains visible after the bell is soldered and polished;
however, plating usually makes the tabs invisible.
See
example of a tab seam | SK 23.8.04 |
| Taper angle, mouthpiece | the taper angle of a mouthpiece with a conical shank is the solid angle
subtended by the exterior of the shank.
It is often conveniently
expressed by the minimum and the maximum diameters of the external
taper, and the taper depth | AM 13.1.05 |
| Taper depth, mouthpiece | the taper depth of a mouthpiece is the axial length of the external
taper, or the conical part of the external taper of mouthpieces with a
rounded transition from cup exterior to insert | AM 13.1.05 |
| Tenon | the component of a shank,
crook or tuning-slide which is inserted into a Socket
when the instrument is assembled | BS 11.11.04 |
| Tenor cor | tenor horn with large bell, coiled as a french horn;
has been used as a substitute french horn mostly in bands | AM 30.8.96 |
| Tenor horn | the tenor saxhorn, member of the saxhorn family in 6-ft F or 61/2-ft E-flat | AM 30.8.96 |
| Tenorbass Posaune (Ger) | a slide trombone in B-flat with thumb-valve for F capable of playing parts for both tenor and bass trombone | AM 30.8.96 |
| Tenorhorn (Ger) | an instrument of intermediate bore profile in 8-ft C or 9-ft B-flat;
similar to a baritone or bass saxhorn (or euphonium) | AM 30.8.96 |
| Throat, mouthpiece | the throat of a mouthpiece is the edge (region of transition) between
cup and minimum bore.
Throat profiles vary considerably from
sharp-edged to smoothly blended.
When the profile of the throat
approximates to a section of a circle, the degree of curvature can be
expressed in terms of the radius of curvature of the throat.
Some
writers use the term `throat' to mean the region of minimum bore | AM 13.1.05 |
| Top action string-operated rotary valve | Valve with a rotor operated via a string in the manner of a bow-drill rather than entirely mechanical linkage;
top action indicates that the axis of rotation of the rotor is parallel to the axis of rotation of the touchpiece | AM/SK 16.5.01 |
| Top-sprung Périnet valve | Périnet valve in which the spring is placed above the piston.
See
diagram of the top-sprung Périnet valve | SK 5.1.05 |
| Transient | the sound produced at the start, end, or at any point of change in a sustained sound.
Starting transients are particularly important tonal characteristics | AM 30.8.96 |
| Transposing instrument | an instrument for which music is conventionally written at a pitch other than that at which it sounds;
some of the many instruments normally treated as transposing instruments are trumpets, horns and saxhorns | AM 30.8.96 |
| Trombone | brasswind instrument characterised by a high proportion of its tubing being cylindrical;
most commonly of tenor or bass tessitura | AM 30.8.96 |
| Trompete (Ger) | trumpet | AM 30.8.96 |
| Trompette (Fr) | trumpet | AM 30.8.96 |
| Trompette demilune | a natural trumpet made in a crescent shape so that
the player's hand can be placed in the bell to `stop' notes as required | AM 30.8.96 |
| Trumpet | in broad classification of lip-vibrated aerophones into horns and trumpets,
the term `trumpet' is preferred for instruments made from cane or wooden tubing,
or with a shape derived from these but in other materials,
and thus of predominantly cylindrical bore profile such as the trumpet and the trombone | AM 30.8.96 |
| Tuning-slide | an airtight telescopic joint used to vary the length of the instrument and thus alter the pitch of the notes that can be sounded.
Most brass instruments and some others incorporate one or more tuning-slides which is sufficiently stiff not to move in the course of performance.
On some instruments such a slide can not only allow tuning with other instruments but be extended to lower the pitch by one or more semitones,
giving a different tranposition | AM 30.8.96 |
| Tuning-slide crook | see internal or tuning-slide crooks | AM 17.4.03 |
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| Valve | a mechanical device for adding,
virtually instantaneously,
a fixed length of tubing into the windway of an instrument.
Most valves are `descending valves' which add to the air column length when operated;
with the rarer `ascending valve' the air column is longer when the valve is not operated | AM 30.8.96, 11.1.05 |
| Velocity antinode | a point in the air column where there is a local maximum of air movement during the production of a sustained sound.
Velocity antinodes,
also known as displacement antinodes,
correspond to pressure nodes (q.v.) There is a velocity antinode in the region of the bell of a brass instrument | AM 30.8.96 |
| Velocity node | a point in the air column where there is no periodic air movement during the production of a sustained sound.
Velocity nodes, also known as displacement nodes,
correspond to pressure antinodes (q.v.) There is a velocity node in the mouthpiece of a brass instrument | AM 30.8.96 |
| Vent hole | a hole in the wall of a wind instrument.
On brass instruments such as some valveless trumpets used to play parts written for natural trumpet,
small vent holes are closed by the player's fingers,
one at a time being opened to assist the production of certain notes | AM 30.8.96 |
| Ventil (Ger) | valve | AM 30.8.96 |
| Vienna horn | a valved french horn with three Vienna valves sometimes used in Austria for traditional repertoire | AM 30.8.96 |
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| Wagner tuba | an instrument in either 9-ft B-flat or 12-ft F developed to meet Wagner's requirement for a saxhorn-like instrument playable by french horn players with their usual mouthpieces | AM 30.8.96 |
| Waldhorn (Ger) | french horn | AM 30.8.96 |
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| Yard | of trumpets, one of the three long straight component tubes of a natural trumpet.
The modern term is Branch. | AM 30.8.96, 23.12.04 |
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| Zug (Ger) | slide | AM 30.8.96 |
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