Sociology

Brass Players in Rome

Behind Rome’s musical prestige, RAI brass players describe shrinking salaries, insecure orchestral careers and the compromises required simply to remain musicians.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Part 2

Music in an American Frontier Communal Society

Aurora Colony

Music shaped daily life in Aurora’s communal colony, from civic ceremonies and political events to touring brass bands that carried its identity across the American West.

By Deborah M. Olsen

Part 1

Music in an American Frontier Communal Society

Aurora Colony

In a German communal settlement on the Oregon frontier, bands, choirs and original compositions shaped daily life as strongly as faith, work and education.

By Deborah M. Olsen

Editorial

International Competitions - Time, a perishable commodity...

From competition juries to the accelerating pace of modern life, Jean-Pierre Mathez questions the judgments and pressures shaping musicians and their careers

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Part 1

Cesare Bendinelli (1542-1617)

Biography

Cesare Bendinelli (1542–1617), imperial trumpeter and teacher, shaped a tradition and wrote the first trumpet method — a key document of Renaissance brass playing.

By Edward H. Tarr

Yamaha, an ambitious giant

Behind the rise of a future industrial giant lies an unexpected lesson in craftsmanship, cultural exchange and the discipline that reshaped wind instrument making.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

The Fellowship of the Minstrels

Exploration of the medieval minstrel’s world, from marginalization and suspicion to the creation of fellowships that offered protection and structure.

By J. E. Spruit

Reflections on the brass player

Why do brass players so often resist new music? Vinko Globokar dismantles schools, routines, and traditions—and calls for a freer musical mindset.

By Vinko Globokar

Part 2

Classical music: Why bother?

By Joshua Fineberg

Special Finland

Brass achieves academic respectability

Once treated as marginal, Finland’s brass septet tradition entered academic research, challenging where folk practice ends and music history begins.

By Kauko Karjalainen

Part 1

Herbert L. Clarke (1867-1945)

Boyhood Years

From forbidden beginnings to cornet legend: Herbert L. Clarke’s early years reveal a path shaped by setbacks, persistence, and decisive discoveries.

By David Hickman

What is a Brass Band?

Barrie Perrins traces the 19th-century origins, instrumentation and social role of the brass band—from industrial roots to international musical life.

By Barrie Perrins

Editorial

Is sound something you control—or something you become? Jean-Pierre Mathez challenges technique, fashion, and pedagogy: sonority is a lifelong conquest of freedom.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Editorial

10 Years of Brass Bulletin

Ten years after its launch, a small specialist publication reaches readers in more than sixty countries, reflecting how a shared artistic community took shape across borders.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Early trumpet music in Schwerin

Hidden sources revealed: Stephen Glover uncovers early trumpet music in Schwerin—offering new insights into wind bands, performance practice, and the evolution of brass.

By Stephen L. Glover

The brass septet tradition in Finland

A hidden tradition revealed: over 200 Finnish brass septets shaped regional music life—blending military roots, festivals, and composers like Sibelius into a living legacy.

By Kauko Karjalainen

Part 2

Zen and the Art of Horn playing

Beyond technique: Jeffrey Agrell explores the clash between intellect and intuition—arguing that true musical expression begins where analysis ends.

By Jeffrey Agrell

Women and brass: 3 Portraits

Barbara Stone, Betty Anderson, Kate Kaminga

Three British and Dutch conductors moved from brass band performance to leadership roles, confronting a scene still largely shaped by male traditions.

By Markus S. Bach

Part 2

My contacts with the United States

About horns and how to play them

Double horn, descant, natural horn — which path? This article explores American vs German approaches and what it means to train a complete horn player.

By Michael Höltzel

Editorial

As music becomes increasingly industrialized, Jean-Pierre Mathez argues for restoring local musical communities where composers, performers and audiences shape a shared identity.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Montreux 1976 - First international brass congress

Montreux 1976: beyond the spectacle. Between virtuosity, ego, and isolation, Alfred Willener questions the very meaning of the brass world.

By Alfred Willener

Editorial

A warning from the machine: Jean-Pierre Mathez reflects on Kaufmann’s robot—questioning whether technology is shaping music… or slowly replacing the human artist.

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Dynamics in the 80's

From Reykjavik to the Hollywood Bowl, rising concert hall scale and amplified culture reshape orchestral sound, leaving acoustic limits exposed.

By Roger Bobo

Comments on the First International Brass Congress

Montreux 1976

National styles or personal voice? Roger Bobo finds in Montreux that individuality prevails—yet notes the absence of key traditions.

By Roger Bobo