Brass band
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A brass band is a musical group consisting mostly or entirely of brass instruments, often with a percussion section. In some traditions an ensemble including woodwind instruments would be termed a brass band, though in other traditions these would instead be termed concert bands, military bands or wind bands.
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[edit] History
While brass instruments had long been used together in various contexts, the first modern bands were developed early in the 19th century in Prussia, when all military and government bands were issued the new technology of rotary valve instruments and instructed to use standard tuning. This allowed musicians to much more easily play with other bands and for smaller bands to be combined into large bands. A separate tradition also emerged in the United Kingdom, mainly due to the importing of the new Belgian instruments, the saxhorns, invented by Adolphe Sax.
[edit] Derivations
[edit] English-style
Main article: Brass band (British style)
A brass band in the English tradition with a full compliment of players generally comprises 8-10 cornets (including 1 soprano), 1 flugelhorn, 3 tenor horns, 2 baritones, 2 euphoniums, 3 trombones (2 tenors and 1 bass), 4 tubas (2 E♭ and 2 BB♭) and percussion. There is a long tradition of competition between brass bands, often based around local industry and communities.
This form of brass band is the most common in Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand and is also widespread throughout parts of North America and continental Europe.
The Salvation Army, part of the Christian church, has deployed brass bands since 1878 and they continue to be an integral part of that organisation. The most proficient Salvation Army brass band is The International Staff Band which is based in London.
[edit] New Orleans
The tradition of brass bands in New Orleans, Louisiana dates to the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Traditionally, New Orleans brass bands could feature various instrumentations, often including trumpets, trombones, saxophones, sousaphones and percussion. The music played by these groups was often a fusion between European-styled military band music and African folk music brought to the Americas by west African slaves and the idiom played a significant role in the development of traditional Jazz.
A well-known use of these bands is for the New Orleans jazz funeral.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the New Orleans brass band tradition experienced a renaissance, with bands breaking away from traditional stylings and adding elements of funk, hip hop, and bop to their repertoires. Some notable exponents of this style of brass band include the Rebirth Brass Band, the Soul Rebels Brass Band, and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, though a number of groups outside the United States have begun playing this style of music.
[edit] Polynesia
Founded in 1836 by King Kamahameha III, the Royal Hawaiian Band is the second oldest and only full-time municipal band in the United States. In recent generations, unique brass band traditions have also developed in Tonga, Samoa, and other parts of Polynesia, as well as among the Māori of New Zealand. Some recordings are now available and these styles are beginning to be researched and promoted abroad through band tours.
[edit] See also
- Brass quintet
- Music of Tonga
- Music of Samoa
- Māori music
- Buraban
- Maidenhead Citadel Band of the Salvation Army
- International Staff Band of the Salvation Army
- Chalk Farm Band of the Salvation Army
