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This lavishly engraved, silver-plated brass cornet dates from the turn of the 20th century. A label on the instrument shows a patent date of April 11, 1899 and indicates that it is a “duplex” model, which means it can be set for the keys of both A and B flat.
Cornets are part of the brass family of instruments and are very similar to trumpets. Both rely on the player blowing air through the mouthpiece, using the tongue and lips to modify the vibration of the air through the tube, and using the fingers to manipulate three piston valves to divert the air into an additional, looping section of tubing (and thus change the notes) before it rejoins the main tube and is emitted as sound through the bell-shaped opening. The essential differences between the two instruments are in the size of the mouthpiece (the cornet’s shank is shorter and narrower) and in the tubing that leads to the bell (conical for the cornet and cylindrical for the trumpet). The cornet’s shape is more compact, and its center of gravity is closer to the player.
MOAH’s instrument is a short-model traditional cornet. The tube from the mouthpiece is bent slightly, the apparent result of some unknown mishap. The cornet’s shape, which is known as “Shepherd’s Crook,” is responsible for sound described as warm, rich, and mellow and less penetrating than that of a trumpet. The cornet was made by Chicago company Lyon & Healy, which was founded in 1864 and is still in business (although it is now known primarily for its harps).
