Posted by pitcher on March 05, 2003 at 18:18:58:
In Reply to: "Low" Pitch posted by ??? on March 05, 2003 at 17:48:25:
' mostly manufactured up to sometime in the '30's. ' tuned to about A=438...Many such instruments can be pushed all the way in and played at A=440.
Some instruments (cornets in particular and some tubas, including some Yorks) had low-pitch/high-pitch switch-over loops or alternate slides, neither set-up being friendly to A=440.
"Low pitch" was not in reference to A=440. Rather, it was in reference to "High pitch", which was way above A=440.
Low pitch instruments are far easier to "deal with" today than high pitch, as far as minor alterations to make them playable in today's ensembles.