Brass – Page 3 – Simple Instrumental

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mC9L_UhqPo The bugle is an instrument originally made from animal horns, shaped like a coil and now used as a brass instrument commonly used in the military. The Bugle (with valves and/or keys) is an English instrument designed in the 19th century by Joseph Halliday when he patented it as the “Royal Kent Bugle”1. Also named Pronounced “Byoo.-gl”, from the Latin meaning “castrated bull” and called bugle in Spanish, clairon in french, and cornetim in Portuguese. A person that plays it's called a bugler. What’s the difference? You may hear about it with other names like horn or post horn but they are not the same. The difference with a horn is that horns are usually made of animal bones but modern bugles are made of brass. The difference with a post horn is the shape, post horns are circular like a french horn and bugles are oblong circles like a trumpet. So you can say bugles are just keyless trumpets or keyless cornets and keyed bugles are just trumpets and cornets with less range. Category The Brass family meaning it makes sound from a vibration on the metal when you blow air. Variants The types are determined by pitch: Soprano Bugle: Between C4 and C6.Alto Bugle: Between F3 to F5Baritone Bugle: Between A2 to A4.Contrabass Bugle: Between C2 to C4. Remember bugles are by default keyless, versions with keys and valves exist, making them more similar to a trumpet and extending the range, so the list or ranges may not be true for those variants. Another more advanced way to look for them is based on their history, here are some examples2: British Duty Bugle: Bb.Civil War Clairon: Bb / C.M1892 Bugle: G.M1894 Bugle: Bb. The best for you For a beginner we suggest a modern keyless brass Bb bugle since it is the most common and accessible version, you can do all military calls with them if that’s what you’re looking for.. For kids a civil war era keyless brass bugle in any pitch will do, because the size is smaller and is right for smaller hands, also for them is a plastic trumpet, not only do they cost less and are lighter, but they also have a bigger range of notes and once they master them, they can easily go for a regular bugle or a brass trumpet, flugelhorn or cornet. Although there are no famous players the military uses models called regulation bugles or regiment bugles so if you want to be 100% sure you don’t have any excuse with one of those. Lastly for the disable we need to mention that the bugle can be played with just one hand, it doesn’t matter if you use the right or left hand and you can buy plastic bugles to decrease the weight as well. Don’t worry about brands and don’t worry too much about models and series. What matters is the store you buy them from, just be careful with old models specially on antique stores, because the correct sound may be lost with time and it increases the chances that the instrument or the mouthpiece is damaged or broken. Getting it another way So far we have talked only about the physical instruments, but there are more options than that. You can get an app for android or ios called virtual trumpet 2, if you want to play for free, right now, but of course it’s no bugle and it doesn’t have all variants, but it will get you started. If you are on a computer you can try “ecarddesignanimation trumpet online” on any browser, the website is old and the instrument is not that responsible, but it’s also free and it has preloaded songs that you can auto play and then try to play yourself with your computer keyboard. You can also replicate it using a synthesizer / midi keyboard and you can also get a plugin/vst for your music production software . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z65DSP5jw8k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pWcH6UxVk8And don’t forget that you may have enough materials to make yourself one, here’s the tutorial. Prices VariantLowest priceHighest priceBrass$25 USD$110 USDPlastic$35 USD$45 USDBb$35 USD$60 USDG or F$80 USD$110 USDCivil War Era$40 USD$60 USD For example, the cheapest brass we found was handmade with no specification on the pitch and the most expensive was a Regiment brass in G. G and F or even C bugles are rare and cost double compared to the Bb. Plastic starts at around the same price as brass so the savings in money is not that big. Sizes VariantsSmallestBiggestBrass / Plastic / Any pitch6 x 5 x 5 In (15 x 13 x 13 Cm)15 x 10 x 5 In (38 x 33 x 33 Cm)Civil War Era12 x 6 x 4.5 In (30 x 15 x 11 Cm)13 x 6 x 5 In (33 x 15 x 12 Cm) Weights VariantsLightestHeaviestBrass10 Oz (280 g)2.5 Lbs (1.1 Kg)Civil War Era Brass14 Oz (400 g)1.25 Lbs (560g)Plastic8.5 Oz (240g)1.25 Lbs (560g) Materials Brass (copper with zinc) and it might have a lacquer (layer) of gold, silver or steel with some additional painted color on top of it, there are also plastic versions. Material has no effect in sound but it does in price and durability. How to play - first lesson The Bugle is easy and fast to learn. Once you have your instrument, you should start learning the notes, to learn the notes you need just a little of music theory, but once you have it, you can learn to play all the calls listed in the common questions section. We recommend learning to read sheet music or any of the different notations, (options for learning). Don’t forget all the details that combined make a big difference like the way you hold it, efficient warmups. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSlkjcTmZ4Q Courses & Sheets This section is in process. We are compiling music sheets of the best songs for this instrument and we are going to make a course too, stay tuned. If you want to help complete this section please email us at acroecommerce@gmail.com, thank you for your understanding. Common questions & trivia What is a bugle boy? Bugle Boy Inc was a clothing company known for denim jeans during the 80s. What is bugle remembrance day? On November 11 people pay respects to members of the army from World War 1 with a moment of silence and songs like the Last Post call that it’s played before the silence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McCDWYgVyps What is a bugle call? A song played on the bugle that announces events on the military, here’s a list of calls and when they are used First Call - Courtesy signal before reveille Reveille - Wake up and get up Assembly - Assemble at this placeMess Call - Meal timeSick Call - Need of medical attentionDrill Call - Prepare for a drill (exercise)First Sergeant’s Call - The first sergeant is going to form the companyOfficer’s Call - Assemble officer at this placeRecall - End of drillsMail Call - Assemble to distribute mailGuard Mounting - The guard is assembled for guard mountAdjutant’s Call - Ford the guard or brigadeRetreat - Play at the end of the dayTo the Color - Honor to the nationTattoo - Switch of the lightsCall to quarters - Return usually for the nightTaps - Funerals Here you can listen to the songs and see the partitures What is the boogie woogie bugle boy? Is a song from The Andrews Sisters about a bugler from Chicago that plays better than anyone else. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8of3uhG1tCI What is a drum and bugle corps? Is a marching band that uses brass instruments, percussion and synthesizers. The size of a marching unit is about +150 people. “Bring the good old bugle, boys! We'll sing another song. Sing it with a spirit that will start the world along.Sing it as we used to sing it, fifty thousand strong, While we were marching through Georgia.” - Henry Clay Work References WikipediaTaps BuglerVirtual Trumpet 2