Posted by Marty Neilan on July 05, 2000 at 11:10:19:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Key air demands posted by Leland on July 05, 2000 at 10:51:50:
I think a lot of the trumpets in different keys specified by the composer has to do with changing tone colors. The Haydn takes on a different flavor when played on aan Eb, as oppossed to a Bb trumpet. Also, a lot of orchestral scoring for D trumpet gives a brightness that cuts through a lot better than the standard orchestral C trumpet. Who the composer is will also have to do a lot with the key choice, depending on the availability of valve vs. natural trumpets during their lifetime. If memory serves, Mahler scored for D trumpet in his Symphony 7 (song of the night) and the clarity of the D trumpet in the last movement just adds something that would be otherwise missing, IMHO.