Cimbasso

Common card · No. 273219

The cimbasso (English: chim-BAH-soh; Italian: [tʃimˈbaso]) is a low brass instrument that covers the same range as a tuba or contrabass trombone. First appearing in Italy in the early 19th century as an upright serpent, the term cimbasso came to denote several instruments that could play the lowest brass part in 19th century Italian opera orchestras. The modern cimbasso design, first appearing as the trombone basso Verdi in the 1880s, has four to six rotary valves (or occasionally piston valves), a forward-facing bell, and a predominantly cylindrical bore. These features lend its sound to the bass of the trombone family rather than the tuba, and its valves allow for more agility than a contrabass trombone. Like the modern contrabass trombone, it is most often pitched in F, although models are occasionally made in E♭ and low C or B♭. In the modern orchestra, cimbasso parts are usually played by tuba players as a doubling instrument. Although most commonly used for performances of late Romantic...

Read on Wikipedia · Image Jonathanischoice, CC BY 4.0