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BrassBulletin

International Magazine for Brass Players

Equipment

167 articles

No. 58 • 1987 Awaiting digitization

One step for intonation: one giant step for the serpent

By Craig Kridel

Technique Equipment
No. 103 • 1998 Awaiting digitization

Part 2

The role of the (contra)bass trombone in the Vienna sound

By Gerhard Zechmeister

History Equipment
The contrabass trombone Member
No. 22 • 1978 Digitized

Part 1

The contrabass trombone

Picture and sketches, taking particularly into account the construction principles (1973)

From Praetorius to Wagner: Heinrich Thein traces the evolution of the contrabass trombone—revealing how history, acoustics, and design shaped this powerful orchestral voice.

By Heinrich Thein

History Equipment Historical instruments Instrument making Valves
The Trumpet in the USA Free
No. 43 • 1983 Digitized

Part 6

The Trumpet in the USA

Diverse makers

As trumpet makers rethink their standard instruments, Monette, Malone and Blackburn bring leadpipe design into a new dialogue between players and workshops.

By Thomas Stevens

Instrument Makers Equipment Intonation
No. 98 • 1997 Awaiting digitization

ROTAX®

The rotary valve with the ideal tube geometry

By Willi Kurath

Equipment
No. 65 • 1989 Awaiting digitization

The Ferron impedance regulator

By Daniel Bourgue

Equipment
No. 58 • 1987 Awaiting digitization

David Monette

Profile

By Thomas Stevens

Equipment
The untimely demise of the ophicleide Member
No. 43 • 1983 Digitized

The untimely demise of the ophicleide

Once central to French orchestras, the ophicleide lost its place to the tuba—a disappearance shaped as much by institutions and repertoire as by sound.

By Stephen J. Weston

Equipment History Historical instruments Instrument making Orchestral playing
No. 80 • 1992 Awaiting digitization

Wooden instruments in the band of Mühlbach

Special Austria

By Thomas Hochradner

Report Equipment
Natural trumpets, basic techniques Member
No. 51 • 1985 Digitized

Natural trumpets, basic techniques

Natural trumpet playing demands more than historical equipment: Friedemann Immer sets modern technique against Baroque sound, articulation, style and authenticity.

By Friedemann Immer

Technique Equipment Articulation Interpretation Historical instruments
At the Sign of the Serpent Free
No. 43 • 1983 Digitized

At the Sign of the Serpent

All sorts of old, rare and unusual musical instruments bought and sold by Tony Bingham

Behind a Hampstead shopfront, Tony Bingham’s trade in ophicleides, natural horns and cornets kept rare instruments circulating between collectors and players.

By Thomas Aitken

History Equipment Historical instruments
No. 92 • 1995 Awaiting digitization

A visit to instrument manufacturer Franz Straub

By Urban Walser

Equipment
No. 108 • 1999 Awaiting digitization

Paxman Bros Ltd, the force of destiny

By Jeremy Mathez

Equipment
No. 123 • 2003 Awaiting digitization

René Spada - “So why couldn’t it be done better?”

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Equipment
Dr. h.c. Bernoulli (1904-1980) Free
No. 33 • 1981 Digitized

Dr. h.c. Bernoulli (1904-1980)

Necrology of a great collector

From a Swiss castle filled with 700 brass instruments to the Historical Museum Basel, a collector’s life reflects decades of dedication, scholarship and hospitality.

By Emilie Mende

Equipment Encounters Historical instruments Keyed trumpet
No. 60 • 1987 Awaiting digitization

Kalison, Milano

Instrument makers in Europe

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Equipment
No. 67 • 1989 Awaiting digitization

Tom Crown

Mute stories

By Jean-Pierre Mathez

Equipment
No. 89 • 1995 Awaiting digitization

The Hunting Horn "à la Dampierre"

Reconstruction of the most original baroque hunting horn

By Uwe Bartels

History Equipment
No. 89 • 1995 Awaiting digitization

The Bruno Tilz - Super 2000 mouthpiece system

By Bruno Tilz

Equipment
The Trumpets in the Hungarian National Museum in Budapest Free
No. 48 • 1984 Digitized

Special Hungary

The Trumpets in the Hungarian National Museum in Budapest

Four little-known trumpets in Budapest open a window onto Viennese makers, historical construction, pitch and the fragile survival of museum instruments.

By Leo Kappel

Equipment Research Historical instruments Instrument making
The inner acoustics of the horn Member
No. 3 • 1972 Digitized

The inner acoustics of the horn

Study of the horn’s inner acoustics, explaining how its structure and air column influence tone production and intonation.

By Willi Aebi

Equipment Acoustics History Technique Sound Historical instruments Valves
No. 67 • 1989 Awaiting digitization

Early music: A new approach with Bruce Dickey

By Robert Ischer

Technique Equipment
Free
No. 16 • 1976 Digitized

General Brass Catalogue

A special issue for the brass world: the General Catalogue brings together instruments, music, and accessories—offering a unique global overview.

Equipment Repertoire
Steve Lewis, Hornmaker Member
No. 49 • 1985 Digitized

Steve Lewis, Hornmaker

Old World Craftsmanship plus New World Technology

In 1980s Chicago, Steve Lewis joined Old World bench craft to modern precision, building horns one by one around the player, the metal and a distinctive sound.

By Jeffrey Agrell

Equipment Instrument Makers Instrument making Sound
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Questions & Answers

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What does the Digital Edition include?

The Digital Edition brings together the articles already digitized as searchable online texts—not simply as scans or PDF files—along with their original illustrations, notes, authorship, issue information, and available translations. Related-article suggestions currently include only this digitized material.

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We preserve the original text, language, illustrations, captions, footnotes, and editorial context as faithfully as possible. The presentation is adapted for comfortable online reading, and obvious transcription or scanning errors may be corrected. The substance and character of the published article remain unchanged.

Which languages are available?

Brass Bulletin was published in English, French, and German throughout its history. Italian and Spanish translations were added from issue No. 60 onward.

On the Italian and Spanish sites, articles from issues 1–59 are therefore shown in English by default.

How often are new articles added?

New articles are added almost daily, with approximately one complete issue digitized each week. The pace may vary depending on the preparation, image work, and editorial checking required.

Why aren’t all articles available digitally?

The complete Brass Bulletin collection contains 1,246 articles published between 1971 and 2003. The full index is already available online, allowing readers to discover every article in the collection, including those whose complete text has not yet been digitized.

Digitization began in February 2026. Each article is carefully prepared for online reading, checked, and connected to its issue, authors, subjects, and illustrations. At the current pace of digitization, the complete collection is expected to be available online by February 2028.

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