In this video series from musical instrument manufacturer Conn-Selmer, we see how a Bach Stradivarius trumpet is made. The mouthpiece above is shaped to the tune of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee. The Bach promotional videos below, filmed in their Elkhart, Indiana factory, showcase the work put into crafting the other parts of the instrument.
A mouthpiece isn’t long enough to create a standing wave on its own. For that, you need to slide your mouthpiece into a length of tubing called the leadpipe.
The heart of the trumpet. Think of the valves — pistons, valves, and casings — as the crucial organ that regulates the flow of the instrument’s lifeblood, that moving column of air.
The bell on a Bach Stradivarius trumpet is made from a single piece of brass. We put a flat, rolled piece of brass in a hydroform machine to start giving it the classic bell shape. This important one-piece construction allows the bell to vibrate without restriction.
Buffing, testing, lacquering, and more: steps that put the shine on a Bach trumpet.
Related: How Vienna-born Vincent Shrotenbach came to the U.S. and started a company.
Next: More trumpets! Plus: This may be The World’s Largest Tuba, How to make a carrot clarinet, How a saxophone is made, and The making of a Steinway Grand Piano from start to finish.h/t The Awesomer.
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