About Euphoniums

The baritone is a musical instrument invented by Adolphe Sax. The euphonium and the alto horn are frequently used in wind-instrument bands and British-style brass bands. There are various theories about their developments, but it is still not clear as to how they developed. Incidentally, the early euphonium was called the 'bass', but after going through a number of developments, it came to be known as the 'euphonium'.

If you go to see the performance of a British-style brass band which consists of only brass instruments, you will notice that there are many instruments that look like a small tuba. Among them, the euphonium is named from the Greek word 'euphonos = pleasant sound', according to one theory. The euphonium is a notch smaller than the tuba, and produces rich, wide-ranging sounds. The euphonium is often in charge of obbligato in wind-instrument music, but is sometimes played in an orchestra as well.

Some euphoniums have three pistons, but lately an increasing number of people choose euphoniums with four pistons, though their fingerings are not much different. The popularity of four piston-models may have to do with the fact that often the fourth piston comes with a system to compensate pitch (called the compensating system).

Other midrange brass instruments include the alto horn and the baritone horn. The alto horn is an E-flat instrument which uses the same fingering as the flugelhorn, featuring a mellow and velvety sound. The baritone is a B-flat instrument which has exactly the same tube length and playing style as the euphonium, and it belongs to the 'saxhorns', a word you may not be familiar with. The saxhorns are the group of musical instruments developed by the inventor Adolphe Sax. The baritone is not as common as the euphonium in wind-instrument music or orchestral music, but it is very popular in the United Kingdom, demonstrating its value as an indispensable musical instrument in a British-style brass band.