Getzen Eterna Cornet Serial Numbers

[Nathen Paisley]

Sometimesthere are instruments in the ensemble other than those shown above. These are linked to their respective principal instruments with either a "d" if the same player doubles the instrument, or a "+" if an extra player is required. Whenever this occurs, we will separate the first four digits with commas for clarity. Thus a double reed quartet of 2 oboes, english horn and bassoon will look like this:

Thus, the Copland Fanfare shown above is for 3 Trumpets, 4 Horns, 3 Trombones, no Euphonium, 1 Tuba and Tympani. There is no separate number for Bass Trombone, but it can generally be assumed that if there are multiple Trombone parts, the lowest part can/should be performed on Bass Trombone.

These numbers tell you how many of each instrument are in the ensemble. The first number stands for Violin, the second for Viola, the third for Cello, and the fourth for Double Bass. Thus, this string quartet is for 2 Violas and 2 Cellos, rather than the usual 2110. Titles with no bracketed numbers are assumed to use "Standard Instrumentation." The following is considered to be Standard Instrumentation:

The bracketed numbers tell you the precise instrumentation of the ensemble. The system used above is standard in the orchestra music field. The first set of numbers (before the dash) represent the Woodwinds. The set of numbers after the dash represent the Brass. Percussion is abbreviated following the brass. Strings are represented with a series of five digits representing the quantity of each part (first violin, second violin, viola, cello, bass). Other Required and Solo parts follow the strings:

Principal auxilary instruments (piccolo, english horn, bass clarinet, contrabassoon, wagner tuba, cornet & euphonium) are linked to their respective instruments with either a "d" if the same player doubles the auxiliary instrument, or a "+" if an extra player is required. Instruments shown in parenthesis are optional and may be omitted.

The second example is common for a concert band or wind ensemble piece. This ficticious work is for 2 flutes (plus piccolo), 1 oboe, 3 clarinets plus alto and bass clarinets, 2 bassoons, 5 saxes (soprano, 2 altos, tenor & bari), 2 trumpets (plus 2 cornets), 3 trombones, euphonium, tuba, tympani, percussion and double bass. Note the inclusion of the saxes after bassoon for this band work. Note also that the separate euphonium part is attached to trombone with a plus sign. For orchestral music, saxes are at the end (see Saxophones below. It is highly typical of band sets to have multiple copies of parts, especially flute, clarinet, sax, trumpet, trombone & percussion. Multiples, if any, are not shown in this system. The numbers represent only distinct parts, not the number of copies of a part.

Note: This system lists Horn before Trumpet. This is standard orchestral nomenclature. Unless otherwise noted, we will use this system for both orchestra and band works (in most band scores, Trumpet precedes Horn, and sometimes Oboe & Bassoon follow Clarinet). Also, it should be noted that Euphonium can be doubled by either Trombone or Tuba. Typically, orchestra scores have the tuba linked to euphonium, but it does happen where Trombone is the principal instead.

Saxophones, when included in orchestral music (they rarely are) will be shown in the "other instrument" location after strings and before the soloist, if any. However for band music, they are commonly present and therefore will be indicated after bassoon as something similar to "SAATB" where S=soprano, A=alto, T=tenor and B=baritone. Letters that are duplicated (as in A in this example) indicate multiple parts.

I have attempted, rather than to describe in detail thespecifications of each horn, to link where possible this page withthe manufacturer's page for each of the horns. Occasionally the website will not have separate URL's for individual pages but willrequire a search for the specific instruments, sometimes theflugelhorns do not occupy a single page, so one must scroll throughother trumpets or cornets to find the flugelhorns. And then there isYamaha which seems to revise its website completely every twentyminutes and has product URLs with 439 characters, but I'm trying.

I have limited myself to the pro quality flugel market. A fewmanufacturers have "standard" or "student" or "intermediate"flugelhorns. These are generally not worth buying. Their valuedepreciates steeply and immediately; their playability, intonation,and sound are compromised, and they are unsatisfying to own.

A note about pricing: The prices here quoted are thosedrawn from the web sites of the large volume retail discount musicstores such as the Woodwind and theBrasswind, Music 123, andGiardinelli. I have oftenrounded up to the nearest round number. Prices change often butusually not by all that much. Where there are particular retailerswho offer unusually good prices on particular instruments, I havenoted it.

The prices on the high volume mass produced horns are likely to beconsiderably less at these places than at your local music store andI post the mail order price for their relative cost because thealternative--list prices--are even more misleading. There are manyreasons to visit, support, and buy from your local store, but becauseof their more modest volume and higher overhead per unit, it willlikely cost you more even if they discount somewhat from list prices.However, your local music store often provides repair services andsupports local school or youth music and you may find that the higherprice is justified for the intangibles also purchased. And you neverknow when you may need a favor.

An important note about flugel bore sizes: With theexception of the Yamaha YFH 631G and the Lawler, the flugelhornsbelow break clearly into one of two camps, those with small bores(e.g., 0.415 inch) and those with larger more trumpet-like bores(0.457 - 0.460 inch). This is a staggering difference consideringthat trumpets range from medium bores of, say, 0.445 to large boresof about .464, a difference of 0.021, compared to the more thandoubled 0.045 difference between large and small bore flugels.

The small bore flugels play quite differently from the largerbored horns and one should really try one of each, if at allpossible, to see which group feels the better to you. The large borehorns, though still sounding like flugels, play more like trumpets,which may or may not be a good thing. You already have a trumpet.They have less resistance, take more air easily, and are capable ofmore volume, though I am not sure how important volume is in aflugelhorn. The smaller bore horns tend to play easily but can getstuffy when pushed and can be easily overblown. They do tend to forceyou to play the flugel differently and maybe more flugel-like. Thereis a reason that the most popular instruments are the small boreflugels in the French tradition.

Few folks seem inclined to spend the kind of money (or the kind oftrouble) on a flugel that they spend on a trumpet--and for goodreason. The consensus, courtesy of Chase Sanborn'sBrass Tactics, seems to bethat

As a result, the market for less expensive pro flugelhorns isprobably dominated by Yamaha. They make high quality productsthat are priced reasonably and benefit from the market saturation ofYamaha dealers (i.e., they are easy to find, try and buy). TheYFH631G, has a 0.433 inch bore, a gold brass bell, and is availablein clear lacquer and silver plate. Its introduction (with a rosebrass bell) dates back to the days when Yamaha product numbers hadonly three digits and 6xx meant lacquer and 7xx meant silver plated.The YFH 631G (in lacquer) lists for $1,939, but is priced around$1335 at Brasswind. Yamaha describes the horn as having "a 6 inchgold brass bell [that] produces a soft, mellow tone characteristic ofthe flugelhorn." TheYFH631GS (listed on the Yamaha website as discontinued, but alsolisted as 'current'--I give up) lists at $2094, but is street pricedat around $1455. The silver finish, Yamaha says, "produces a soft,rich tone ideal for subtle musical nuances and expression." You haveto love these descriptions.

The predecessors to these horns, the YFH 631 and YFH 731(identical horns except the 731 had a yellow, as opposed to red,brass bell and was silver plated) were in Yamaha's catalog fordecades and thousands of these horns are around. They would make goodsolid used horn buys.

The Yamaha 0.433 bore is a nice compromise between the two moreextreme bore sizes and still is restrictive enough that it encouragesquiet reflective playing while maintaining enough openness that itdoesn't feel like the air is backing up.

Most of the Yamaha pro model brasses are made in Japan though acouple of models are made in the United States, including theYFH-631G flugelhorn. You can tell what is made in the US by theserial number. If the number has an "A" following it, the horn wasmade in Grand Rapids. No "A" would indicate it was made in Japan.

The best alternatives to Yamaha at about that same price are fromthe House of Kanstul, including theKanstulChicago 1025 theKanstulCustom Class 925 with each having a 0.415 bore and 6 inch bell.The CCF 925 has top sprung valves, like a trumpet, and a uniquedirect airflow design through the valve casings. The Chicago model,another Couesnon copy, has Monel bottom sprung pistons resulting in alittle shorter valve casing (a little more compact feeling in yourhand) and the traditional staggered valve port design.

Once upon a time, Kanstul made two F. Besson flugelhornsfor Boosey & Hawkes. The small bore Brevette was nearly identicalto the Custom Class 925 with the exception of the traditional ratherthan amato water keys and the more traditional French taper of thetuning bit. Recently Boosey & Hawkes has spun off or at leastreorganized its instrument production division and has terminatedsome of its older contracts, so I don't know exactly what the statusof these horns or F. Besson are today. It is still in the Bessoncatalog, but I don't know who makes it. If you can find new old stockor a used one from the 1990s, go for it, they are great horns..

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