[78-L] Brass Band keys

[David Lennick]

Playing the Dvorak in F Minor would mean a consistent speed adjustment with the 
Leroy Anderson and other pieces, namely 3% down (or so). This is odd for 
recordings made as late as 1954 and 1955, and while I've had it happen on other 
recordings, it was always with European tapes played back incorrectly on US 
tape decks and issued by small labels like Remington. But let's see how they sound.

Hmm..I know a trumpet playing orchestra leader in Buffalo (classical) who's an 
expert on concert band repertoire. He may know this repertoire.

dl

Valerie Langfield wrote:
> Because playing in B major is a really really odd thing to do. The B 
> flat instruments would play in D flat - 2 semitones above the B, but 
> that's actually a diminished 3rd rather than a major 2nd, (rather than C 
> sharp major); the E flat instruments in A flat major (but should really 
> be G sharp major, the minor 3rd below B) and the poor bass trombone, the 
> only one to play in concert pitch, would play in B - oh, it may well be 
> that in those days, the other trombones were still playing in concert 
> (it changed). It would give even Harry M a headache, since his score 
> would make him blink a bit with such a variety of odd-looking keys.
> 
> But I'm re-thinking the Dvorak. It would be fine for that to be in 
> concert F (yes, a full tone below the original), so people would play in 
> G major, D major, and trombones in F; that's still sufficiently 
> sympathetic key-wise. How would that pan out with your pitch variance? 
> (I'm making enquiries to try to confirm that.)
> 
> Valerie
> 
>> Okay (he said, avoiding the phrase "playing devil's advocate 
>> here")..since this
>> recording was made by an all-star brass band, conducted by Harry 
>> Mortimer, what
>> if it WAS arranged and played in B so they could show off? From the same
>> sessions, Sleigh Ride and Bolero Brillante (Henry Geehl) also play in B unless
>> I slow the discs down more than 3 percent, and Welsh Fantasy (Maldwyn Price)
>> plays in C# (or D Flat..I told you I don't know anything about brass 
>> instruments).
>>
>> dl
>>
>> Jeff Sultanof wrote:
>>> >From an arranger's standpoint, what you say is correct, Valerie. Brass
>>> instruments are generally pitched in Bb, so flat keys are far more common
>>> for concert and brass band repertoire.
>>>
>>> Which is why such a big deal was made about Fletcher Henderson writing in
>>> sharp keys - musicians playing sax, trumpet and trombone were not as versed
>>> in such keys, and they used to have to woodshed these arrangements to make
>>> them sound properly.
>>>