Trumpet in C

Brief description


  • Name: Trumpet
  • Spelling
    • German: Trompete
    • French: trompette
    • Italian: tromba
  • Classification: Aerophone, brass wind instrument
  • Material: Brass (tubing), gold brass (leadpipe)
  • Mouthpiece: Small cup-shaped mouthpiece
  • Tubing: Length 65-72 cm, predominantly cylindrical; coiled form "A" tube (transposition to A)
  • Bore: Narrow, inner diameter 10.4-11 mm
  • Valves: Three valves, PĂ©rinet system
  • Bell: Rim diameter 9.4-10 cm

The trumpet in C consists of the trumpet tube and bell, the mouthpipe with detachable mouthpiece, three valves and the tuning slide, with which the overall tuning of the instrument can be altered. The tuning slide has a water key. In many cases, all three valves have valve slides which can be pulled out with a trigger to correct the intonation of individual notes.

A number of models can be retuned from C to Bb by means of an extended tuning slide or an additional piece of tubing.

The above shown C trumpet is a German model, i.e., it has rotary valves and was made in the Viennese style:

  • the tube walls are slightly thinner
  • one extensible valve slide for tuning adjustment (for C#4 and D4)
  • two additional keys which facilitate the playing of the notes A5 and C6.

The German concert trumpet is used mainly in German, Austrian and eastern European orchestras. In the rest of the world the French model with the Perinet system of piston valves and a narrower bore is far more common; indeed, in France and America it is practically the only model used. The French model has also been widely accepted in jazz.

Tuning slide

Also: main slide. An extendible, usually U-shaped additional piece of tubing for the correction of brass instruments' tuning. It was first used in 1781 on the Waldhorn. Today, an improved version of the slide is found on valve instruments.
By extruding the tuning slide the tuning of trumpets can be lowered up to a half tone. (With PĂ©rinet valve systems the main slide is situated before the valves, with rotary valve systems behind them.) The trombone`s fundamental is lowered by a diminished fifth (from Bb2 to E2) when the tuning slide is completely extruded.

Valves

Valve

A mechanism for increasing the tube length of brass instruments which has been used since 1814 on the horn and 1820 on the trumpet. By activating a valve the air flow is redirected into an additional piece of tubing. Valved brass instruments (horn, trumpet, cornet, tuba, cimbasso) generally have three valves which lengthen the instrument`s tube and thus make it possible to lower the pitch (by 1, 0.5, 1.5 notes). The valves therefore fill the gaps in the natural harmonic series and a full chromatic scale can be played. Lower-pitched instruments, on which the fundamental (1st harmonic) speaks well and is used, have a fourth valve, which lowers the fundamental by 2.5 notes to compensate for the gap between the 1st and 2nd harmonics.

Rotary valve

This valve was developed in Vienna by Joseph Riedl in 1835 and is now the most commonly used valve on brass instruments along with the PĂ©rinet or piston valve. Today, along with the PĂ©rinet or pump valve, it is the most commonly used system for brass instruments worldwide.

Since the cylinder system is mainly used in German-speaking countries, it is often referred to as the German system. The PĂ©rinet system is preferred above all in France, England, the USA, Belgium and the Netherlands.

PĂ©rinet system

A valve system for brass instruments based on the Périnet valves patented by François Périnet in Paris in 1838. With the rotary valve unit it is the most commonly used system world-wide. Whereas the rotary valve unit is preferred in German-speaking countries, the Périnet system is used in France, England, the USA, Belgium and the Netherlands.
PĂ©rinet valves are also favored by jazz musicians.

PĂ©rinet valve

Also: piston valve. Patented in Paris in 1838 by François Périnet as a further development of the piston valve that was first presented by Heinrich Stölzel in Berlin in 1814. Along with the rotary valve, this is the most widely used brass instrument valve today.

History 1 - early to baroque

The Middle Ages - from the straight trumpet to the coiled form

The beginnings of the modern trumpet in Europe can be traced back to the 11th century. It was then that the forerunner of all modern brass instruments first emerged: the busine (from the Roman bucina). The busine first appeared in southern Italy, in two different forms: one had a conical, curved tube, the other a straight, cylindrical one. The former instrument led to the development of horns, the latter to that of trumpets.

From 1400 onward the straight tube began to change, first to an S-shape and then to the double coiled form which is still found today. This development took place over a matter of decades and was achieved by the use of semi-circular pieces of tubing. The detachable bell was originally nothing more than a slightly conical funnel. In the late Middle Ages the trumpet still only had a range of four notes, namely the naturals 1-4 in the low register.


Slide trumpet, Geert Jan van der Heide, Netherlands; copy in 15th century style (Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

In the 15th century a slide trumpet was also already in use: its tube length could be increased by extending the mouthpipe, which made it possible to pay several notes outside the natural harmonic series.

When from 1250 onward the trombone began to establish itself as the member of the trumpet family best suited for tenor and bass parts, the trumpet’s range increased and rose in pitch. This was achieved by overblowing to higher and higher naturals (partials).

Renaissance and Baroque - the golden age of clarino playing


Pretzel-shaped trumpet in D, John Webb, London 1989. Reproduction of a trumpet by A. Schnitzer (Nuremberg 1581) of the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien (Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

As the Middle Ages drew to a close the trumpet, which had hitherto served as a signaling instrument in battle, began to gain importance as a symbol of authority as well. In Renaissance and Baroque times decrees were passed to govern the use of trumpeters - in fact, the employment of trumpeters remained the privilege of princes and favorites of the emperor right up until the 18th century! The Court and Field Trumpeters’ guild, which enjoyed great privileges, was a jealous guardian of the secret art of trumpet-playing and passed it on only to carefully selected young men of high honor and unimpeachable reputation.

The trainee court and field trumpeters had to serve an apprenticeship of several years before they were able to take an examination which was a most exacting test of their musical prowess. If they passed this test and were taken on at court they received the title of court trumpeter. If they had been into battle, they could call themselves field or military trumpeter.

At the imperial court in Vienna in around 1550 six trumpeters (and a drummer) were in the emperor’s employ. By 1721 these numbers had doubled to sixteen trumpeters and two drummers, a development that was mirrored at other courts too. Although a field trumpeter enjoyed many privileges - his status was equal to that of an officer - he was also subject to a number of obligations and restrictions: the trumpet was only to be played in the field and at official secular ceremonies. Later, however, it was also permitted at certain church ceremonies, but only at religious solemnities and not at joyful occasions such as weddings and baptisms.

In the 16th century the trumpet’s range increased up to the 13th natural. This now quite considerable range led trumpeters to specialize in a particular register within the instrument’s compass. The highest register from the 8th partial upward was called clarino. Trumpets which were used solely for playing the clarino register - the clarino trumpets - were fitted with a special clarino mouthpiece, a narrow-bore cup-shaped mouthpiece with a sharp-angled rim.

Since the Middle Ages a wide variety of names had been used in Europe for the trumpet, such as tuba, tromba or trombetta, trummet, tarantara, clarino or clareta etc. The modern word “trumpet” is derived from trombetta.

At the same time that trumpeters were splitting into the two groups of “high and “low” players, a division between court and field trumpeters was also taking place. During the 17th century the performance of the lowest register was increasingly associated with the field trumpeters, while the softer style of clarino playing became the province of soloists at court.


Trumpet in D, Webb, London (reproduction; Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

At the beginning of the 17th century the trumpet became an established part of art music - half a century earlier than the horn. One reason for this was undoubtedly the fact that the trumpet with its cylindrical tubes was relatively easy to make compared to the conical and coiled horn. From 1610 court composers began integrating trumpet parts into vocal compositions, mainly masses (messe con trombe). From 1620 the trumpet gained increasing popularity as an orchestral instrument (in 1675 it appeared in an opera orchestra for the first time in Legrenzi’s opera Eteocle e Polinice. But up until the 19th century the role of the trumpet in opera was still confined mainly to the evocation of majestic and solemn moods). The use of the trumpet in art music led to a fundamental change in the players’ performance practice. They now had to familiarize themselves with the rules of art music and, above all, they had to learn to read music.

In the 17th century many trumpeters were not yet familiar with written musical notation. As a rule there were several trumpet parts, played by between five and seven trumpeters, two of whom could read music. The others played their parts by ear. But this does not mean that trumpeters of that time were less proficient - on the contrary, the demands made on them were extremely high, because a trumpeter was expected to be able to embrace the latest style and include the most popular pieces of the time in his repertoire.

The first printed trumpet method (Modo per imperare a sonare di tromba...) was written by G. Fantini, probably the most famous trumpeter of his time, and appeared in 1638.


Bach trumpet in F, Mainz, Germany, brothers Alexander, perhaps 1952. Specially developed in 1934 for performances of J.S. Bach’s music (Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

In the 17th and 18th centuries clarino playing evolved into a technique of exceptional virtuosity. Clarino players reached higher and higher clarino pitches, leading composers to call for ever higher notes in the natural harmonic series. The best known composers of baroque clarino parts for trumpet are Bach and Handel.

Vienna was regarded as the home of baroque trumpet playing; there, and in other major centers such as Leipzig, Dresden, Kromeriz, Bologna and London countless concertos for clarino trumpeters were written. The most famous baroque trumpeter of all was probably Johann Heinisch, who was engaged at the court in Vienna from 1727 to 1750. Especially for him and the bevy of trumpeters that flocked around him concertos were written that required the 24th (!) natural as the highest note.

The highest note ever written in a trumpet concerto is a concert A6 in the 1st trumpet concerto in D major by Michael Haydn, Joseph Haydn’s younger brother; on the baroque D trumpet this was the 24th natural. Michael Haydn’s 2nd trumpet concerto in C major is regarded as the most difficult trumpet piece ever written: it goes up to the 20th natural.

In comparison, the compass of the modern trumpet goes as far as the 8th natural. This, in fact, sounds at the same pitch as the baroque natural trumpet’s 16th natural, because the shorter tube length of today’s instrument means it is pitched an octave higher.

The high standing enjoyed by the clarino trumpet was due principally to the fact that baroque musicians were very strongly influenced by the human voice. The way that sound is produced on wind instruments resembles the singing voice far more strongly than sound production on stringed instruments, and for this reason the former were more popular than the latter.

Beside pieces for the clarino register, countless orchestral works were also written during the Baroque period which only required the naturals 2 to 12 (written C3-G5). For baroque music, trumpets pitched in low Bb, C and D were most often required. For the Bb and D tunings the corresponding natural trumpets in Bb and D were used, while the C tuning was achieved by lowering the pitch of the natural trumpet in D by means of a crook. In addition, trumpets in low F and low G were made in the second half of the 18th century. These could be lowered to E, Eb, D, C and Bb by using crooks.

History 2 - classical to modern

The trumpet in classical music - restrained use and attempts at chromaticization

In the middle of the 18th century the clarinet was introduced into the orchestra. This instrument initially sounded so much like a trumpet with its hard, powerful sound that it replaced the clarino. That is how the instrument got its name: clarinette, the little clarino. The days of clarino playing were effectively over.

Early classical taste favored less ostentatious virtuosity and more the softer sounds of violins combined with woodwinds. Trumpet concertos went right out of fashion.


“Crescent” trumpet in F, John Webb, London 1989 (reproduction, Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

The classical style of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven still incorporated pairs of trumpets which worked together with the timpani. In symphonic works their role was limited to that of a ripieno instrument. They were used for the performance of sustained notes and signal notes, and had the special task of intensifying the tonal effect in particular places (e.g. for fanfares or fanfare-like chords).


Valve trumpet in G, Meinl & Lauber, Geretsried, Germany, 1968. Reproduction of an original built by A. Doke in Linz (Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

In around 1770, efforts were being made to increase the range of the natural trumpet so that it could be used as a melody instrument particularly in the middle and low registers (the upper naturals were so close together that they formed a kind of scale). To this end, the technique of hand stopping, hitherto used only on the horn, was applied to the trumpet. To make this possible the trumpet was either curved so that the hand could be placed in the bell, or was made crescent-shaped (the French trompette-demilune). Apart from the stop-trumpet, a hand-trumpet with a U-shaped slide crook (the so-called Inventionstrompete) was being used. In England the trumpeter John Hyde developed a slide trumpet which was fitted with a U-shaped slide similar to the trombone’s, with the difference that his trumpet-slide was extended upward. An improved version of the slide trumpet was played in England during the whole of the 19th century. In 1790 the Austrian trumpeter Anton Weidinger made a keyed trumpet, for which Haydn and Hummel wrote their concertos.

The keyed trumpet had three keys which remained closed when the instrument was not in use. Opening the keys raised the pitch by a half note, a whole note and one and a half notes successively. This technique made it possible to bridge the gap between the 2nd and 3rd naturals. Subsequently instruments with four keys (raising pitch by a major third) and more were developed.

Romantic period - the rise of the valve trumpet

When valves were fitted to the trumpet for the first time in 1820 it became possible to play a full chromatic scale on the instrument. The valve trumpet was quickly accepted in military bands and popular music. Orchestral musicians greeted this innovation with great skepticism initially, because the sound of the first valve trumpets was nowhere near as homogeneous and full as that of the natural trumpet. But the instrument’s obvious advantages meant that it soon found acceptance. In the orchestra it also faced competition from the more easily playable cornet, which remained more popular especially in France and the USA until the turn of the 20th century.


Stoelzel valve trumpet in F (high tuning), Chas Paice, London. Valves with exchangeable tubes for E, Eb, D, and C are presumably original (Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

From the middle of the 19th century the trend was toward the use of high Bb and high C trumpets only, which are the trumpets most commonly used today. The demands on the players’ technique had become so great that trumpeters switched to these shorter instruments. The new trumpet’s tube was only half as long, which not only raised its fundamental pitch by an octave but also made it considerably easier to play. In addition, the bore became narrower. It goes without saying that these developments also had an effect on the intensity of the instrument’s sound; whereas the long trumpets had a particularly mighty and dominant sound which overshadowed the entire orchestra, the modern valve trumpet is far more unobtrusive and elegant.

The emergence of the valve trumpet brought about a radical change in the instrument’s role in the orchestra. It was increasingly given thematic tasks to perform. Today the most widely used trumpets are those in Bb and C, together with the piccolo trumpet and very seldom the bass trumpet. Between two and four trumpets are usually called for in orchestral works.

Notation

Modern notation

Music for modern trumpets is written in treble clef (for the bass trumpet too!).

The trumpet in C is a non-transposing instrument, i.e. the sound is as written.

The other two standard trumpets sound lower than written: the trumpet in Bb sounds a major second lower, the trumpet in A a minor third lower.

All the other modern trumpets, that means the higher-pitched piccolo trumpets in D, Eb, E, F, G, Ab and high Bb sound higher than written - the trumpet in D sounds a major second higher, the trumpet in high Bb a minor seventh.

This notation was also customary for the natural and long valve trumpets of the Classical and Romantic periods.

No key signature at the beginning of the score

Unlike other transposing instruments such as the clarinet, the trumpet part - like that of the horns and timpani - has always been written without key signature at the beginning of the staff. This tradition dates back to the very beginnings of orchestral music and is still maintained today.

Performing older trumpet parts

In 19th century scores the modern trumpeter often finds himself confronted with parts written for the long valve trumpets usual at the time (in A, Bb, C, D, Eb, E, F, G and Ab). Nowadays, these parts are played by the modern trumpet, since modern instruments have much the same compass as the old ones did.

Although the tubing of the old trumpets was twice as long as that of today’s instruments, the playable range was more or less the same because the two deepest naturals did not speak and the wider bore enabled overblowing to the 16th natural. However, the sound of the old valve and natural trumpets was extremely powerful and full.

If the instrument playing the part (which is usually a trumpet in Bb or C) is in a different key from the notation the modern trumpeter must transpose accordingly. In 19th century scores the F trumpet is very often called for on account of its particularly pleasing timbre. If a part written for a trumpet in F is to be played on a trumpet in C the musician must transpose to C.

Range

Range of the trumpet in C: F#3 - C6 (occasionally F6)

Lower register F#3 - F4

Middle register (F#4, G4) A#4 - G5

Upper register G#5 - C6 (F6)

As a rule the scale goes up to C6. Trumpet virtuosos also reach notes up to F6 and higher. The piercing quality of notes at this pitch is very rarely called for in orchestral literature, but very popular in jazz.

Sound production

The fundamental (1st natural) is not used on the C trumpet. It speaks on lower trumpets, albeit unsatisfactorily.

The natural harmonic series which is actually playable therefore begins with the 2nd natural (C4) and rises to the 8th natural (C6). Highly proficient trumpeters can reach the 11th natural (F6), but this note is not called for in orchestral compositions. Particularly in jazz there are no limits as to how high the regular scales can go - many jazz trumpeters try to produce ever higher notes on the instrument and even to reach the heights of the fourth octave above middle C.

With the valves the trumpet’s range of naturals can be lowered by a total of six half tones to F#3.

Fingering

Seven different fingerings are used on the trumpet, each of which lowers the harmonic series by a half tone:

The operation of the valves (fingering) lengthens the trumpet’s tube, which in turn results in a lowering of the instrument’s fundamental pitch. The 2nd fingering (operation of the second valve) lowers the trumpet’s pitch to B3, and overblowing produces the series of partials of a trumpet in B and so on. The valve tones are therefore nothing more than the partials of the lower-pitched instrument.

Thus F#3 is the C trumpet’s lowest note. When F#3 is played the tube length increases by about 60 cm from 130 cm to 190 cm. By way of comparison, the horn’s tubing is lengthened from about 386 cm to 550 cm at its lowest pitch. Of course this also means that a column of air has to be vibrated that is 550 cm long. So the trumpet has a relatively consistent tone quality in all registers, whereas the lower register on the horn is harder to play and sounds duller.

By using the tuning slide the trumpet’s range can be further lowered by a half tone, to F3. This note can only be played in exceptional circumstances, however, because the musician needs time to position the slide and return it to its original position before playing the next note, which would otherwise sound out of tune.

Playing Techniques

General

Thanks to the ease of its playability the trumpet possesses remarkable technical agility. Extemporaneous playing of the highest notes is possible, as are large legato and staccato leaps.

Single Tonguing

Can be played with great precision at the fastest tempi, and at extreme dynamic levels and with dynamic changes in accidentals.

Vibrato

Sforzato

Sforzando

Forced, short attack followed by a rapid reduction in tone intensity.

Sforzandissimo

Forced, short attack with continuance of tone intensity.

Fortepiano

Rapid dynamic reduction from forte to piano.

Double tonguing

Can be played with great precision at the fastest tempi, and at extreme dynamic levels and with dynamic changes in accidentals.

Triple tonguing

Can be played with great precision at the fastest tempi, and at extreme dynamic levels and with dynamic changes in accidentals.

Flutter tonguing

While playing the musician flutters his tongue between his lips. This technique is most effective in the middle register. It is rarely used, since it produces a piercing and overstated sound, particularly when played with a mute.

Trills

Valve trill

On the trumpet the trill is one of the less refined techniques and is therefore rarely used. The arrangement of the valves does not allow the use of the major trill on all notes, only on C#4, D4, E4, F4, F#4, G4, A4, Bb4, C5, C#5 and D5.

The minor trill can be performed on the notes B3, C#4, D#4, E4, F#4, G#4, A4, Bb4, B4, C5, C#5, D#5 and E5.

Lip trills

Cannot be played on the trumpet because the naturals are too far apart, also in the upper register.

Mute

Lends the tone more intensity.

piano: very gentle, glassy and subtle; mezzoforte: enigmatic, eerie; fortissimo: shrill, piercing, cutting.

Runs

Thanks to the agility of the trumpet runs can be produced very easily.

Phrases

Sound characteristics

The trumpet’s sound is metallic, bright (but also dark in the lower register), intense, brilliant, powerful and stately. It projects best between G3 and G5.

If we draw a direct comparison between the C and Bb trumpets, which are the two most commonly used today, the C trumpet sounds brighter, more reserved and more sober while the Bb has a softer and more rounded sound.

Differences in the registers are relatively hard to locate and depend on the individual instrument and the mouthpiece used. Transitions between individual registers are smooth and tone color variations between them are not great.

Lower register
F#3 - F#4

Metallic, dark, substantial, heroic. Not as rich in overtones as the upper register. Played forte, notes in this register are sonorous and rounded.

In its low register the trumpet is well-suited as a metallic, dark, precise and agile middle voice in the orchestra and as such offers an effective contrast to the soft horns in the same register. The lowest notes down to C4 are prominent, assertive, dark (though not weighty as on the trombone), eerie and portentous. These effects are often used for battle scenes in dramatic works.

Middle register
G4 - F#5

It is here that the instrument’s sound comes into its own: brilliant, full, rounded, magnificent. A metallic brilliance that pervades the entire orchestra and cannot be achieved by any other instrument.

The ease of its playability makes it ideally suited for thematic tasks and solos, even when played piano, which is still clearly audible even in tutti passages.

Upper register
G5 - C6

Bright, shrill, penetrating, vivid.

Up to C6: A homogeneous continuation of the middle register, although no longer so prominent.

The notes above this sound piercing and develop a particular quality appreciated especially by jazz musicians.

Sound Combinations

Trumpet + brass instruments

Trumpet + trumpet

Two trumpets played an octave apart sound completely homogeneous as do a trumpet and a bass trumpet.

Trumpet + horn

Played in octaves with the horns beneath the trumpet sounds softer while remaining dominant.

Trumpets and horns played in unison are used generally to make the sound massive, the soft sound of the horns blending with the metallic ring of the trumpets. In the middle register the trumpet’s sound is so predominant that its dynamic level equals that of four horns.

Trumpet + trombone

Homogeneous sound combination with the trombone in the lower octave. The trombone intensifies the trumpet’s sound and lends it fullness. In chords the trumpet complements the similar-sounding trombone to produce the typical brass sound.

Trumpet + woodwinds

In this sound combination particular attention must be paid to the dynamic relationships. Balanced dynamic levels are achieved for instance by muted trumpets + woodwinds, or trumpets + forced woodwinds in the upper register.

Trumpet + oboe

The oboe tempers the metallic side of the trumpet’s sound. Especially in tutti passages the trumpet can be used for octave doubling with the high woodwinds (flute, oboe, clarinet).

Trumpet + clarinet

In unison, trumpets and clarinets produce a clearer, brighter sound than any other combination; for octave combinations the piccolo clarinet is best suited.

Trumpet + bass clarinet, bassoon

The combination with bass clarinet and bassoons is used to produce a massive sound.

Trumpet + stringed instruments

Dynamics are important here too. The trumpet’s brilliance is emphasized when it is played in unison with the strings, a tonal blend is achieved only with the viola. In addition the combination of trumpets played staccato or marcato with strings using the “col legno” and “at the frog” articulation is very effective.

Trumpet + percussion

Trumpet + xylophone

In unison with the xylophone: trumpet fortissimo-marcato, xylophone fortissimo.

Symbolism


Aida trumpet in Bb (high tuning), Barcelona, Spain. Francisco Montserrat, ca. 1900/20 (Musikinstrumentenmuseum Schloss Kremsegg, Austria, Streitwieser collection)

The trumpet has always been used for cults and rituals, in the Occident as well as in the Orient, to pass messages from our world to the spirit world. The sounds produced by the trumpet were said to possess magical powers which enabled them to bridge the divide between the two worlds and summon a god, rouse the spirits of the forest, drive out demons and so on.

In addition, the trumpet is more closely associated with power than any other instrument. This power symbolism is particularly closely related to wars and rulers.

The sound of the trumpet has always denoted military strength, whether this was as a signaling instrument in battle or in a military band. There are countless examples in orchestral works which evoke an aura of heroism, power, strength, domination, triumph and noble sentiments which refer to male characters, rulers and nations.

The image of the trumpet as a symbol of authority and social standing goes hand in hand with its association with warfare. Celebrations and ceremonies at court, parades and coronations are inextricably linked to fanfares and other majestic trumpet sounds. It was toward the end of the Middle Ages that this symbolism gained the enormous significance which it still maintains today.

Repertoire (selection)

Operas

  • Gioacchino Rossini

    • Various operas (for valve trumpet)
  • Giacomo Meyerbeer:

    • Various operas (for valve trumpet)
  • Richard Wagner:

    • Rienzi (1837-1840, for valve and natural trumpets)
    • Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman, 1840/41, valve and natural trumpets)
    • Die Meistersinger von NĂĽrnberg (The Meistersingers of Nuremberg, 1861-1867)
    • Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung, 1853-1874)
    • Parsifal (1882)
  • Giuseppe Verdi

    • Aida (1870)
    • Otello (1887)
  • Georges Bizet

    • Carmen (1875)
  • Richard Strauss

    • Salome (1905)
    • Elektra (1908)
    • Der Rosenkavalier (1911)
  • Karlheinz Stockhausen

    • Licht (1983)

Symphonic works

  • Wolfgang A. Mozart

    • Symphony in C ("Jupiter") (1788)
  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    • Symphonies no. 1 (1800), 5 (1808), 6 (1808)
    • Leonore overture (1806)
  • Richard Wagner

    • Symphony in C major (1832)
  • Piotr I. Tchaikovsky

    • Fantasy-Overture Romeo and Juliet (1869/80)
    • Capriccio Italien (1880)
    • Symphonies
  • Leoš Janáček

    • Sinfonietta (9 trumpets) (1925)
  • Gustav Mahler

    • 5th symphony (1st movement: trumpet fanfare; "funeral march") (1902)
  • Claude Debussy

    • Nocturnes (1901)
  • Richard Strauss

    • Don Juan (1889)
    • Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche (1895)
    • Ein Heldenleben (1898)
  • BĂ©la BartĂłk

    • Concerto for Orchestra (1943/45)
  • Igor Stravinsky

    • Symphony in C (1940)
  • Alban Berg

    • Violin concerto (1935)
  • Aaron Copland

    • 3rd symphony
  • Dmitri Shostakovich

    • Symphonies no. 1 (1925) and 5 (1937)
    • 1st piano concerto (1933)
  • Elliott Carter

    • A Symphony of Three Orchestras (1976)
  • Witold LutosĹ‚awski

    • 1st symphony (1947)
  • Hans Werner Henze

    • Requiem (1990-92)

Trumpet and orchestra

  • Joseph Haydn

    • Trumpet concerto in E-flat major (1796) (for valve trumpet)
  • Johann N. Hummel

    • Trumpet concerto in E major (1803) (for valve trumpet)
  • Michele Puccini

    • Concerto for flute, clarinet, valve trumpet, horn and orchestra (1838)
  • Paul Hindemith

    • Concerto for trumpet, bassoon and strings (1949/52)

Trumpet ensemble / solo trumpet

  • Jean Françaix

    • Sonatas, duets
  • Harald Genzmer

    • Sonatas, duets
  • Hans Werner Henze

    • Sonatina for 8 brass instruments (1983)
    • Sonatina (1974)
  • Karlheinz Stockhausen

    • Aris (1977/80)
  • Mauricio Kagel

    • Fanfaren for 4 trumpets (1993)

Further composers of recent repertoire

  • Georges Enescu
  • Bohuslav MartinĹŻ
  • Arthur Honegger
  • H. Tomasi
  • AndrĂ© Jolivet
  • Yves Baudrier
  • Bernd Alois Zimmermann
  • Vinko Globokar