Trumscheit
The trumscheit (also Marie trumpet , nuns violin , nuns trumpet , trumpet violin , Eng .: trumpet marine , Ital .: tromba marina , French .: trompette marine ) is a string instrument .
Early illustrations from France date from the 12th to 14th centuries and show an instrument plucked with the fingers. After the further development to the Tromba marina in the 17th century, this was widespread until the first half of the 19th century and a number of compositions were created for the instrument, which only had the basic construction in common with the Trumscheit, but was characterized by a number of Resonance strings differed from the original form of the instrument. The French Jean-Baptiste Prin , who wrote the textbook Traité sur la trompette marine in 1742, was considered a virtuoso on this instrument, which after him de facto came out of use .
The name tromba marina could be a copying error: In the history of ships , the instrument is said to have been used as a signal transmitter or played by seafarers; No evidence can be found for this. What was meant was probably tromba mariana , the Mary's trumpet.
In contrast to other common string instruments, the approx. 2 meter long Trumscheit is covered with only one gut string . As with a monochord, the tones are generated by dividing the string harmoniously (cf. partials and flageolet ); the clay material therefore corresponds to the natural tone series .
The shoe-shaped bridge creates a snarling sound ( Schnarrsteg ) when playing by striking the sound box, making the timbre reminiscent of a trumpet , which is why the Trumscheit could be used as a trumpet substitute. (The trumpet was often given privileges that limited its use for certain professional groups.) The advantage over a trumpet is that it is easier and less strenuous to play.
The names nun's violin and nun's trumpet are explained by the fact that the Trumscheit was often used by nuns in German-speaking countries, as it was forbidden for them to play real wind instruments for a while - almost half of the 200 preserved historical instruments were found in their monasteries.
Similar instruments
literature
- Cecil Adkins: Trumpet marine . In: New Grove Online .
- The Trumpet Marine In: Sibyl Marcuse : A Survey of Musical Instruments. Harper & Row, New York 1975, pp. 202-209
