Buccin
French trombone with serpent-like bell
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Key Takeaways
- The buccin , or buccin à tête de serpent , is a visually distinctive trombone popularized in military bands in France between 1810 and 1845 which subsequently faded into obscurity.
- In the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians , Arnold Myers devotes but two sentences to this type of buccin: "A form of trombone with a bell terminating in a stylized serpent's or dragon's head, often with a metal tongue, free to flap, protruding.
- " The exact date of the invention of the buccin has not been documented and apart from Berlioz's Messe , there is little in the way of surviving music for it.
- Parades, outdoor festivals and civic celebrations were an important part of French cultural life from the time of the Revolution (1789) through most of the 19th century.
The buccin, or buccin à tête de serpent, is a visually distinctive trombone popularized in military bands in France between 1810 and 1845 which subsequently faded into obscurity. It should not be confused with another instrument also called "buccin", revived in France in 1791 and modeled after the ancient Roman buccina which could deliver only four distinct notes.
In the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Arnold Myers devotes but two sentences to this type of buccin: "A form of trombone with a bell terminating in a stylized serpent's or dragon's head, often with a metal tongue, free to flap, protruding. Berlioz scored for buccin in the Kyrie and 'Resurrexit' of his Messe solennelle of 1824."
The exact date of the invention of the buccin has not been documented and apart from Berlioz's Messe, there is little in the way of surviving music for it. Yet we do know that the buccin was popularized in military bands in France between 1810 and 1845. Parades, outdoor festivals and civic celebrations were an important part of French cultural life from the time of the Revolution (1789) through most of the 19th century. The visual appeal of band members in uniform playing instruments with zoomorphic heads (in addition to the buccin, serpents, bass horns, bassoons and Russian bassoons—a form of upright serpent—all were made with decorative bells) was indisputable and manufacturers were quick to supply more and more exotic designs. The buccin bell was often vividly painted red, green and gold and the protruding metal tongue included by many makers would flap while marching and playing.
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