A309909 Chromatic scale on a tenor trombone with each term being the lowest trombone position to sound the correct frequency starting on E1.

7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 4, 3, 2, 1, 3, 2, 1, 3, 2, 3, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, 3, 2, 3, 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1

Offset: 1

Author

Max Lacoma, Aug 22 2019

Keywords

• nonn

Comments

A way to visualize the harmonic series in open pipes.

From Alonso del Arte, Apr 25 2020: (Start)

Like with the horn, the trumpet, the bass trombone and the tuba, a musician makes sound on the tenor trombone by blowing air through the instrument's metal tubing, obtaining different notes by adjusting embouchure (how the lips are pressed against the mouthpiece) and/or changing the length of the tubing.

With the other brass instruments except the bass trombone, the length of the air column can be changed by pressing valves which then open or close off portions of the tubing. But for regular tenor trombones, the only way to change the length of the tubing is by changing the position of the slide.

There are seven positions on the trombone's slide. First position has the instrument's slide drawn all the way in. The lowest note that can be played in first position is the B-flat a ninth below middle C. Seventh position has the slide fully extended. The lowest seventh position note is the next E-natural below the first position B-flat (E2).

Some of the lowest notes of the trombone's range can only be played in one position. For example, the B-natural just above the first position B-flat (B2) can only be played in seventh position (the embouchure is adjusted so as to obtain the next higher note in the harmonic series). Therefore a smooth transition from B-flat (B-flat2) to B-natural (B2) is not possible without a pause or a strange glissando to slide from first position to seventh.

Since the notes of the harmonic series get closer together for the higher pitches, there is some flexibility for the higher notes. For example, the B-natural just below middle C (B3) can be played as the fifth note of the harmonic series in seventh position or as the fourth note of the harmonic series in fourth position. The choice of position generally depends on the melodic context.

The Bewley chart (see Links) lists low notes considered by Kennan (1952) to be of too poor tone quality for practical use. Those notes should probably be assigned to the bass trombone or the tuba instead.

Bass trombones today usually have one or two "triggers," which, by my understanding, are not as agile as valves on a trumpet, but do allow more flexibility of slide position than is possible on the tenor trombone. (End).

References

• Kent Wheeler Kennan, The Technique of Orchestration. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey (1952): Prentice-Hall, pages 136 to 141.

Links

• Norman Bewley, Trombone Slide Position Chart.

Formula

For n > 49 a(n) = 1.