Re: wind instrument transposition (was Good work, Keith!)

[address@hidden]

On Oct 4, 2011, at 10:10 PM, Tim Roberts wrote:

> Tim Reeves wrote:
>> 
>> Nothing odd about it at all.
> 
> I disagree, but we'll get to that in a moment.
> 
>> It would be odd if a horn part in C or E, etc. had any key signature at all.
> 
> Why?  Every other instrument has a key signature appropriate to the
> transposition in use at the current time.  Why should horn and trumpet
> be the sole exceptions here?  Certainly in 20th Century music, we expect
> every part to have an appropriate key signature (even horn in F), unless
> the music is not based on a key signature.  The Ninth Symphony does not
> fall into that category.
> 

Often times, in timpani parts of the 18th century, the timpani part is written 
with C and G irrespective of the key of the work (I guess the timpanist was 
supposed to figure out what he or she was supposed to tune to).  Ditto for 
trumpets.  I'm not sure how/where/why this practice was used, but it definitely 
dates way back for certain instruments.

Cheers,
MS