althorn Mus.
(ˈælthɔːn)
[G.: cf. alt2.]
A high-pitched instrument of the saxhorn family; an alto or tenor saxhorn.
| 1859 C. Mandel Treat. Instrumentation Milit. Bands 38 The Tenor Horn or Baryton (Alt-Horn in B Flat). 1879 Grove Dict. Mus. I. 57/2 Althorn, an instrument of the Saxhorn family... It is exclusively used in military music. 1939 A. Carse Mus. Wind Instr. xx. 296 Tenor Horn, E Flat Saxhorn... The earliest of these various alto or tenor instruments was probably the German Althorn or Altkornett which appeared in Berlin round about 1830. Ibid. 299 Instruments in C or B flat have also been called ‘althorns’. |