La Traviata and the Saxhorn

    I was listening to the Italian Brass Band playing Traviata Overture, which was very interesting. When looking into the group and the recording, I learned this piece is from an album the Italian Brass Band made, where they played various Overtures from Giuseppe Verdi’s Operas, but arranged for brass band. For a little synopsis of the opera La Traviata, the story is about Violetta Valéry, who is ill and will die very soon. She is introduced to Alfredo Germont at a party, and we find out that for a long time he has actually been interested in Violetta. She falls in love with Alfredo for various reasons, and Alfredo at the end of this party, confesses his love for her. This leaves Violetta conflicted between her current life and this potential true love. She ultimately chooses a life with Alfredo, and wanting to provide for Violetta, he goes away to Paris to get money. While he is absent, Alfredo's father attempts to convince Violetta to leave Alfredo, and while refusing to do so at the start, ultimately, his father succeeds in convincing her to return to her old life for the remainder of her short existence. Upon Alfredo's return, he takes her leaving as betrayal, antics ensue, but ultimately at the end of the opera in Violetta's final moments, Alfredo is there by her side after learning of the truth.

    To give a little info about the Italian Brass Band, according to their website, they are a band comprised of only brass instruments and percussion and follow the "British-style brass band" formation. The section is comprised of cornets, saxhorns, euphonium, trombone, tuba, and percussion. What stood out to me is their use of saxhorns. On the site, the "Horn section" is labeled as being comprised of soprano and alto saxhorn players. While the "Baritone section" is filled by tenor saxhorns. I have seen a little about saxhorns before, but this got me to look into what saxhorns are. The saxhorn was created by Antoine-Joseph Sax, who is also the inventor of the saxophone. So interestingly enough, this brass instrument is a relative of the saxophone. The saxhorns in their origins are a line of horns that are made exactly the same, but have various sizes ranging from soprano and the saxhorns I mentioned prior, all the way to contrabass. I personally have not interacted with a saxhorn, but it has definitely been added to my to-do list of instruments to try in the future.