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A History of the Euphonium
by Charley Brighton
Collecting Old Euphoniums
I would like to take this chance to take you back some 100 years or more, to when the instrument was still in its infancy, and when manufacturers were constantly struggling with designs and systems just to get low brass to play in tune !
The sound of the euphonium has changed a great deal (along with most wind instruments) since its early production days. Instruments today have a bore that’s larger than ever before, capable of producing great volume in all registers. In addition, bell sizes and flares have increased as well, the largest euphonium bell today measure some twelve inches across. These ‘improvements’ do have a downside, I feel, in that the sound can be become bland, and players who do not ‘fill’ the instruments properly, produce a tubby or hollow sound, often mistaking volume for tone.
I grew up listening to records of marvellous players using what was then, small & medium bore instruments, and loving the singing sound that sadly seems to be lost today, except for our very best soloists.
The instruments played in my recitals (from my collection of 9) date from 1891 to 1992 and incorporate virtually every change in design that is known of.
It’s All About Compensation
All these designs and changes in configuration have come about for one reason, the problem of very sharp intonation on low brass when using combinations of valves. On small instruments such as Trumpets & Cornets, the problem is small and is solved simply by fitting a trigger or slide ring on the 3rd. valve, and sometimes the 1st. to play low D, C#, G & F#. As we get further down to Baritones, Euphoniums and Tubas, the problem magnifies to the extent that as much as 4 inches of extra tubing is required to play the lowest notes in tune.
The ‘Compensating System’ in use today is almost perfect, but there were many alternatives around at the time of its development, some running alongside Boosey’s instruments long after it was accepted as the answer to all our intonation problems.
The instrument that started off my collection, and the fascination with designs of the Euphonium was the Highams ‘Clearbore’ 5 valve model, built in 1891 at their factory at 127 Strangeways, Manchester. Josef Highams was a leading brand of its day and one of the first to offer top class instruments as prizes in brass band competitions. Highams also supplied the Black Dyke Mills Band with a complete set of brass instruments when John Foster adopted the Queensbury Band.
Without the compensating system, Euphoniums with 4 valves still provided the chromatic scale down to the pedal C (concert B flat) but left many notes still out of tune (sharp). Highams and others offered a 5 valve model, adding another semitone, which gave even more alternative fingerings to get the notes in tune. In fact, in its early days, this was a better system as air was direct through all the tubing and not doubled back as in the compensating system.
The brass band however, was unique in offering easy changes from the smallest to the largest instrument, all with virtually the same fingerings, and almost all reading the same clef, so learning new options with a 5th valve was not very popular. Hence the 5 valve models were mostly used by professional players and well-tutored military bandsmen. Although this instrument is uncomfortable to hold (valves 4&5 are fingered by the left hand) it has a beautiful sound, enhanced by its small bore & bell (a baby instrument compared to today’s ‘mini-tubas’). 
It is finished in raw brass and is in remarkable condition for its age. The instrument retailed at about £11 when new. Silver plate was an extra £8 !
Besson came up with the idea of adapting the system used on the full double French Horns, that of offering two sets of slides for different parts of the range, and my very rare Besson ‘Enharmonic’ Euphonium is the latest addition to the collection. The 3 tuning slides for the middle and upper register notes are at the back of the instrument, and a longer set (for lower notes) are placed on the front.Now here’s the complicated part, the mouth-pipe leads directly into the 3rd valve instead of the 1st. If the 3rd valve is not used, the wind-way goes through into the 1st& 2nd valves in the normal way, and back through the 3rd to the bell, having used the short set of slides. If the 3rd is operated, the wind-way goes through the 1st& 2nd valves by a different route, including a tuning slide, and is directed through separate longer loops of tubing (having used the front set).
The whole range of valve instruments (except the Soprano Cornet) was available in enharmonic form, however, the obvious weight problems when you get to the tubas must have been enormous, which is probably why only 3 valve models were made of the monster double B flat basses. The range was eventually discontinued.
Hawkes & Son came up with yet another variation on their ‘Dictor’ Euphonium which dates from around 1915. This model was only compensated on the 4th valve. The idea being that 
valves 1 & 3 played in tune on those fingerings, and that valve no.4 (with its extra loop of tubing) gives C sharp (treble clef) instead of the usual D. It works well providing you remember those fingerings, in fact, it’s even engraved on the bell to remind you!
The position of the 4th valve leaves the left hand very cramped, and the 4th valve itself is nearly 8 inches in length, stretching across the back of the instrument. The sound once again is different, a little ‘tubby’ but very solid across the whole range. Hawkes euphoniums & tubas were also built like tanks, using a very thick gauge of brass with a heavy coating of silver plate.
A lot of the instruments I see are in a poor condition, especially the Class B & C models.
My French Courtois 4 valve euphonium was made around 1900, certainly no later than 1903, and distributed by Chappell’s of New Bond Street in London. It has no compensating system, relying on the 4th. valve once again to offer alternatives. The instrument has many dents and a badly damaged (and repaired) bell. Dents in instruments can affect tone, response and tuning. The major ones have been removed, but the others would involve complete dismantling of the instrument. Yet when it was offered to me, even in its worse state, the instrument blew beautifully, with a remarkable clear sound, lighter than most, with a very 
free response. One can only imagine what this was like brand new!
The Willson 2900 4 valve compensating Euphonium was made in Flums, Switzerland in 1992 and is, I think, the Rolls-Royce of euphoniums today. Its rarely seen in this country as Boosey & Hawkes and Yamaha have the lion’s share of the market. To me the Willson has the perfect combination of large bore tubing, gradual bell taper and slightly smaller bell flare, retaining the singing qualities of earlier instruments alongside the volume required for today’s music. Willson workmanship is admired throughout the industry. I am also lucky enough to now have the latest 2900 made in December 2004 which has a truly remarkable free blowing top register.
Pitching In
There are many obstacles that exist in performing on these old instruments today. Differences in holding and playing positions that affect the embouchure, notes that don’t ‘speak’ true and short and long ‘travel’ valves. I am lucky enough to have a mouthpiece set-up that enables me to change shanks from small bore, to medium & large. The Doug Elliott screw rim/cup & shank system from the U.S.A. enables me to get the correct shank fitting for all the instruments without changing cups or rims.
The biggest factor however is pitch. At the time the Highams Euphonium was made, back in 1891, brass band instruments (and most woodwind) were made in what was called philharmonic pitch or high pitch, meaning that the tuning note ‘A’ vibrated at 452 vibrations per second. Yet in certain opera houses in Europe as late as the 1920’s, instruments were being built at a pitch of ‘A’= 432. To add further problems, the British Army at Kneller Hall adopted low pitch in 1928, taking ‘A’ as 440.
It was of course impossible to play any of these instruments together and finally in 1963, Boosey & Hawkes and other leading brass instrument manufacturers dropped high-pitched instruments from their catalogues. For the mighty Northern or works backed brass bands it was not a problem, they simply re-equipped with the new range. For the town or village band that could not afford new instruments, conversions could be made to bring the instruments down to pitch. At its best, this proved satisfactory, at its worst, it was disastrous and caused immense tuning problems.
All the instruments used in my recitals (except the modern day Willson) have been converted from high to low pitch, with varying degrees of success. The rewards however, once the instruments have been mastered, are rich, and the Euphonium ‘sound’ that has become so special today, still lives on after almost 100 years of development.
A New Home For The Euphonium.
St. Mary’s Parish Church in Slough has now seen some 19 recitals of music for Euphonium since May, 2001. I team up with my accompanist Malcolm Stowell, about four times a year to display, not only new Euphonium music, but also these old historic instruments to the visiting audiences.
So far I have given 19 recitals, featuring 102 pieces of music by 77 different composers from 12 different countries. With 90 on piano, 12 on organ, featuring 6 duets, and 44 premiers, on 10 different euphonium models, to a total audience of 949 people. You can hear recordings from the recitals on-line at http://www.acidplanet.com/artist.asp?songs=159069&T=779
If you are looking for a place to perform solo or chamber music recitals, the wonderful acoustic at St. Mary’s is ideal, with its impressive architecture and ‘monstrous’ Norman & Beard Organ, dating back to 1912. You can contact Malcolm Stowell on 01628 660651. All the weekly Saturday lunchtime concerts are free and the dates for 2006 are filling up fast! http://www.euph9.freeserve.co.uk/Stmarys.htm
Charley Brighton began his playing career on Euphonium at the age of 11. He played with many championship brass bands including Hanwell in West London and Sun Life Stanshawe in Bristol. In 1996 he embarked on a solo recital programme and a new wind band career in both playing and conducting. He is currently soloist with the B.B.C. Elstree Concert Band based at Maida Vale Studios in London, and the Buckinghamshire Symphonic Winds in High Wycombe. He is also a performing artist for Willson Band Instruments of Switzerland.
In June of this year he performed the Premiere of ‘Summer Celebration’ with the Nonesuch String Orchestra as part of the Proms at St. Jude’s series of concerts in Hampstead, North London. The work is part of The Music of The Seasons suite composed for Charley by Joe Miserendino from the U.S.A.
In July 2006 he will perform the Euphonium Concerto by Josef Horovitz with The Hounslow Symphony Orchestra.