The Natural Trumpet in 2026: Why Historically Informed Performance Is Growing

Walk into a major early music festival today and you will hear something that was nearly extinct fifty years ago: the sound of the natural trumpet. Without valves, without vent holes, playing in the clarino register as Bach and Handel intended. The historically informed performance (HIP) movement has transformed how we hear Baroque music, and the trumpet has been one of its most dramatic beneficiaries.

The Instrument

A natural trumpet is deceptively simple: a long tube of brass, folded once or twice, with a flared bell and a mouthpiece. No valves, no keys, no holes. The player produces different pitches entirely through changes in embouchure and air speed, accessing the overtone series of the tube's fundamental note. The instrument is typically in D, the key Bach and Handel wrote in most frequently.

What makes it so challenging is the same thing that makes it beautiful: its untempered sound. The natural trumpet does not play in equal temperament. Its intervals are pure — perfect fifths are actually perfect, major thirds are narrower than piano thirds. This gives Baroque trumpet music a distinctive brightness and ring that modern instruments, for all their advantages, cannot fully replicate.

Why Now?

Several factors have converged to make 2026 a golden age for natural trumpet performance. Leading Baroque orchestras like the English Baroque Soloists, Freiburger Barockorchester, and Tafelmusik have established that audiences expect period instruments. Recording technology has made reference recordings widely available for study. And a new generation of teachers — many trained by pioneers like Friedemann Immer and Jean-François Madeuf — are establishing programs at conservatories worldwide.

Getting Started

If you are interested in exploring natural trumpet, begin with a modern instrument built in the Baroque style with vent holes (makers like Egger, Münkwitz, and Bauer offer excellent instruments). These allow you to learn the technique while having a safety net for intonation. Study with a specialist if possible — the embouchure approach differs significantly from modern playing. And listen extensively to recordings by Don Smithers, Niklas Eklund, and Madeuf to internalize the style.

The natural trumpet is not a step backward. It is a different instrument with its own voice, its own challenges, and its own rewards. For players seeking a deeper connection to the music of Bach, Handel, and Telemann, it offers something no modern instrument can.