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Thread: Euphonium Construction and Sound

  1. Euphonium Construction and Sound

    I've thought about this for some time, but now I want to pose these questions to those who know the euphonium.

    What would you say the differences in sound are between a euphonium with a wide throat (Miraphone, Meinl Weston, Hirsbrunner, Wessex Sinfonico) and one with a smaller throat and more bell flare? (Besson, Wilson, etc).

    Also, do you think there's any difference in sound between leadpipes angled a certain way? Sterling's leadpipe seems to make a sharp upturn after leaving the valve block and some Bessons, Cervenys, etc. seem to not go so high up, but more out to the side. Miraphones seem to have a long leadpipe that looks stretched out.

    These are just things I was curious about and hope to learn some new things! Thank you all.
    Last edited by ivanhouston; 04-12-2023 at 01:56 PM. Reason: Needing to include examples of different horns

  2. #2
    I've only spent quiet time with one of the euphs with a wide throat that you mention, namely the Miraphone 1258 - I got one of these on trial in the early 2000s from the Brasswind. It was a wonderful horn with great intonation. It had a huge dark sound, and if you ever wanted an instrument to steer you away from every possible element of cylindrical instruments, this was the horn. The issue I had with it was it didn't blend well with the Willson 2900s and King euphoniums I was playing with at the time in brass band and wind ensemble - they were much more focused sounding instruments and the huge wide Miraphone stuck out big time. Because of that, I sent it back. Now, I've only played the Miraphone 5050 in the elephant room at the Army conference, but this model seems like it would blend much better - it still has a wonderful, dark sound, but it seemed to have slightly more focus than the 1258 I had on trial. I tried a couple of the Hirsbrunners in the early 2000s when you could still regularly find them at the Army conference - I know there were a couple of different designs of these, but the ones I tried reminded me of a slightly nicer Yamaha pre-Neo 642. I've never played a Sinfonico so I can't comment on that one.

    The old Meinl Weston 451 reminded me a lot of the Besson 967 - wonderful tone - and the intonation was even worse, if you can believe it. I didn't know this was a wide throat model.

    Speaking of Meinl Weston, it doesn't look like they are making euphoniums anymore - they are still making oval baritones, etc., but no euphoniums - don't know when that happened.

    Tubas - Melton Meinl Weston (melton-meinl-weston.com)

    I've never paid attention to leadpipe angle and any impact on tone - the only thing that matters to me is whether it is positioned on the bell to where I can comfortably rest it on my lap (Yamaha Neo, JP274, Besson, Sterling, etc.) while playing and not require a pillow or lifting it up (e.g., Willson, Yamaha 842). I've never played a Shires, but it looks like it might require a pillow or lifting up the instrument while seated.
    Last edited by euphdude; 04-12-2023 at 03:59 PM. Reason: forgot to add something
    - Scott

    Euphoniums: Dillon 967, Monzani MZEP-1150S, Dillon 1067 (kid’s horn)
    Bass Trombones: Greenhoe GB5-3G, Getzen 1052FDR, JP232
    King Jiggs P-bone

  3. Thank you so much, Sir, for that info. I appreciate it! I'm not sure myself about the Meinl Weston 451, but I believe the 551 had the big throat.

  4. Lots of other considerations on materials used, thickness/density/type even how that weight is distributed, are just some of the things that effect how euphoniums sound, how they all work together in unison is the deciding factor.

    Medium shank euphoniums like the imperial or new standard, being smaller shank and bore, required less air to play, and had less intonation issues (same issues as current but smaller amount of sharpness on the 6th partial) but lacked dynamic range on the loud side… and were a brighter more focused sound, helpful for articulations, had a couple of Imperials when I was younger, so I might of some very good examples of other members haven’t had that experience with them.

    All modern instruments (post 1974ish) are considered large shank, and the result is they need more air, articulations need more work to be clear, you can get louder but quieter is more difficult, overall the sound is darker/warmer.


    The lead pipe angle will affect resistance and ease of blowing as that changes air direction as it enters the instrument, but I imagine the it’s mostly ergonomics designed around the people they use to test the designs…

    The much more subtle differences in Bore and Shank sizes in the models you have suggested will amplify or reduce the air requirements for ease of blowing, inherent intonation issues etc.
    Materials and build quality will have a bigger difference IMO.

    You need to judge the instrument as a whole really, because I am sure that knowledgeable people could technically throw these generalisations out of the window will clever designs.

  5. #5
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    In terms of leadpipe, I would imagine that overall length and tapering matters more than the shape

  6. It absolutely makes sense that ALL these factors combined contribute the most to how a horn sounds rather than just one single aspect.

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