"Basset-horn, nominal pitch: F"

Basset-horn, nominal pitch: F | Strobach | Circa 1800

Makers experimented with a number of shapes for the basset horn, in order for the instrument to function at maximum efficiency and to make it more comfortable for the player to hold. Very little is known about Strohbach, but a number of well crafted basset horns of distinctive design survive by this maker. The rounded bell lends a muted quality to the lower notes of the instrument. C.H. Brackenbury Memorial Collection

Basset horn

Instrument Data

Instrument Information

Title

Basset-horn, nominal pitch: F

Accession Number

0969

Collection

C.H. Brackenbury Memorial Collection; MIMEd

Date Information

Date Made

Circa 1800

Period

18th century; 19th century; 1790s; 1800s

Gallery Information

Gallery

Wolfson Gallery

Case

Woodwind case 1

Maker Information

Maker Name

Strobach

Made In

Country

Germany

Description

Technical Description

Technical description: Boxwood, stained dark; horn ferrules, half-round; brass keywork. Five pieces: mouthpiece with integral barrel, upper section, middle section, lower section, bell. Mouthpiece/barrel of lighter wood (less stain?), stepped in three diameters, 21.5 overall diameter at base of mouthpiece proper, 23.7 overall diameter at middle part, 31.2 overall diameter at bottom; mouthpiece proper narrow and tapered. Upper section straight, with narrow finger-holes (c 4mm). Keys mounted in rings of rectangular section. Speaker liner projects into centre of bore. Middle section has integral elbow-joint. Elbow-joint is angled c 110°; it has two horn ferrules. Lower section has E♭ key to the right of C♮,not in its usual place to the left. Bell globular, with boss and tenon; plug and ivory stopper opposite tenon; aperture at top, 32.1 by 29.4; two horn ferrules. L0: T; speaker. L1: T; A♮. L2: T. L3: T. L4: E/B♮ bascule; F♯/C♯. R0: Basset D♮; basset C♮. R1: T. R2: T. R3: T. R4: F/C♮ bascule; G♯/E♭. Keymount type: keys all carried in turned rings except bascules of basset keys which are in blocks; the key pivot-pins all have neat spherical heads; SATK. Keyhead type: flat and bevelled, trapezoidal. Overall size: Slant length (mouthpiece to bell) c 960. Bore: Upper section 13.8; lower section 14.2 at bottom. Usable pitch: A⁴ = 435-445 Hz. Upper section stamped "STROBACH / CARLSBAD / * * "; middle section stamped " * * "; lower section stamped "STROBACH / * * ". Specific literature references: Galpin 1927, lot 1755; G.S. (1958) No. 34; G.S. (1968) No. 193. Illustration references: Vol. 1 p.100; Rendall 1954, Plate VI; Follan 1987b, p.39.

Provenance

ex- Van Raalte Collection; failed to sell at the 1927 auction; subsequently purchased by H.I.|Brackenbury from Sir Arthur Wheeler, 9|December|1929, for £3/0/0.; Government allocation to the University, 1991.

Classification