If you played for Hans Christian Lumbye at Tivoli Gardens you might have used a 
P.E. Schmidt
Single Valdhorn in F and G



Label on Garland:

Schmidt i Kjöbenhavn
   ♛
1 I B 1859
Model:
single
Serial Number:
none
Date of Manufacture:
1859
Key(s):
F and G
Valves:
3 rotary and 1 rotary tap
Bore:
1.05 cm.
Bell Flare:
single seam, with garland
7.2 cm.
Bell Diameter:
30.9 cm.
Base Metal:
yellow brass with nickel silver trim
Finish:
unlacquered
.
(click on photos for larger view)





This horn by Peter Emanuel Schmidt, Copenhagen, Denmark is is marked with the crown of the monarch (photo top right).  "1 I B" (1. Infanteri Batalion) identifies the indicates the military unit and 1859 is the year of manufacture. It is a single horn pitched in G and switch to F. The key change is achieved by a fourth slide located above the first valve and controlled by a rotary tap (see detail photo of the valve section, below). The valve section itself was fabricated by Daniel Meinl  who flourished in Vienna, Austria from 1849 until after 1873 (see his maker's inscription on the valve plate, bottom right). Note also the decorative bracing and pinky hook in the photos at right.


















Another example of the P.E Schmidt horn is shown above. It is owned by Torben Verner Jensen and is slightly different from the subject horn in this collection. Its main tuning slide has an additional loop and is marked "F" (photo upper right). It is at a different angle from the subject horn. Also, the change tap is marked "G" and "F"  (photo lower, right) where the tap on the subject horn has no markings and lacks the lever for turning,  With this alternate "F" crook installed, however, Mr. Jensen's horn is actually pitched a whole tone lower, in either F or Es depending on the setting of the tap.This is the same configuration as seen in the photo of Christian Marius Dyring, at the bottom of this page.

Peter Emanuel Schmidt (1828 - 1899) was born on April 21, 1828 in Germany. He apprenticed in Copenhagen, Denmark with Jacob Christian Fasting (1814-1884).1 In 1849 he presented a piston cornet at the Industrial Association Exhibition. He was awarded the Dannebrog Medal in 1851 (see below). He became a full partner to J.C. Fasting by 1852 and a trombone was purchased by the Royal Danish Orchestra that year marked Fasting & Schmidt. It appears that Schmidt left the firm in 1855 and was replaced in that year by Josef Karl Gottfried.2  P. E. Schmidt continued independently until 1872, at which time he was succeeded by his son, J. Vilhelm Schmidt.  Peter Emanuel Schmidt married Bertha Schmitz, b. January 16, 1837.  He died on March 20, 1899.

Below is an undated P. Schmidt price list [‘Priis-Courant’], (c. 1860-70), with hand-written addition describing a new invention allowing him to apply a new method of changing of pitch [‘Vexel-Omstemning’] instead of crooks. This is a reference to the pitch changing tap incorporated into this horn. The monatary units are rigsbankdaler (Rbdr). They only valved Waldhorn listed has three valves and apparently includeds crooks for F, E, and E♭ with no mention of the rotary pitch-change tap.




The Danish hand-written sentence on the price list reads:
"Paa ovennævnte Ventil Instrumenter kan jeg nu efter en ny Opfindelse, anbringe en Vexel-Omstemning, der paa hurtigste Maade, kan sætte Instrumenterne i forskjællige Stemninger, som tidligere bleve tilveiebragte ved Hjælp af Bøiler - hvilke nu for Fremtiden kunne bortfalde. "

[To the above mentioned valve instruments it is now possible for me, due to a new invention, to apply a rotary tap which in the quickest way can change the instruments into different tonalities which earlier was achieved by crooks - which in the future could be spared.]

Below left, Dannebrog Grand Cross breast star badge as it appeared in 1850 with the inscription "God and King." When it was  established in 1671 only noble and princely persons were eligible for the Order of Dannebrog. After 1730 it was extended to include high officers of who were not of the noble classes.  In 1808  King Frederik VI, inspired by the French Legion d'Honneur added several degrees and further extended the eligibility beyond the military and civil service. The king stressed that not only military prowess, but also "progress in science and arts, new and successful systems in the country's agriculture, industry, and trade" and general "sacrifices for the king and patriotic citizenship" should be honored.  At  right,  a copy of the Dannebrog Men's Medal.  The medal was an additional award to those who had already received the order Order of Dannebrog.  It also functioned as an independent award, typically given to officers of lower rank, teachers, railway employees, aldermen, postmasters, firemen, etc



Hans Christian Lumbye (1810–1874) was a Danish composer of waltzes, polkas, mazurkas and galops, among other things. From 1843 to 1872, he served as the music director and in-house composer for Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen. Danish horn players in the 1840s included, Niels Henrik Egense (*1826-†1888) who was also a musician in the Royal Guard (1841-47)  P. Jensen, and C. Gyldenspietz, a member of the Regimental Band.  In 1862 Fritz Theodor Braunstein (right) was one of the horn players in Lumbye's Orchestra and was also a musician in the Royal Guard (1866 -)

In the 1870s Vald. Neumann toured with Carl Christian Møller (*1823-†1893) and six other Danish musicians to Sweden.  A few years later he returned to perform horn concertos in Upsala. Møller was a Music director for Kongens Livjægerkorps from 1885-88 (see below).

Another accomplished Danish horn player was  Peter Rasmussen (1838-1913). He was at first a military musician but became a well-known personality in contemporary Copenhagen musical life primarily as an organist, first at Holmen Church (from 1873) then at Garrison Church (from 1883). He was born 15th March 1838 in Hørsholm and was a  student of J.P. Karstensen and Prof. Gebauer.  On September 20, 1872 he married Emma Mathilde Amalie Paustian, born 30 August 1848 in Copenhagen.  Mr. Rasmussen wrote a number of pieces for organ and also taught music theory at various music schools in the city, including the Copenhagen Conservatory. Very few of his compositions were published, however. The best-known is the Quintet for Winds dated March 26, 1896, apparently the first written by a Dane. He also wrote a series of "Instructive Duets for Two Horns" (ca. 1903), ), published by Wilhelm Hansen and 5 etudes (not published) for horn (1896), for his son the hornplayer kgl.  kapelmusikus  Alfred (Musse) Niels Rasmussen (*1878- †1942). He has also composed a quartet for 4 horns in 1905 (not published).
Horn player Alfred Rasmussen  also composed  “Stimmung & Nocturne” op. 11 for horn & piano,  published by Wilhelm Hansen, 8 studies for horn & piano (not published), Resignation for horn & piano (not published

Fritz Braunstein - 1862






Lumbye's Horns (ca. 1848)
(click to see full orchestra caricature, from Odense Corsair)

Photo courtesy of Torben Verner Jensen




Photo courtesy of Torben Verner Jensen
Carl Siegfried Valdemar Wivel (1836-1873) was musician in the Royal Guard (1856 -) and kapelmusikus horn player from 1864 to 1873. He was a great-grandfather to pianist Per Wivel (1920 - ) and poet-writer-publisher Ole Wivel (1921-2004), author of his memoir, Romance for valdhorn og andre erindringsmotiver.


Photo and caption courtesy of Torben Verner Jensen
Christian Marius Dyring (*1852-†1916), waa a horn player in “Kongens Livjæger Korps” from 1887, as well as a  hoboist of  2. class in the Royal Guard 1868-91.  He is shown in the above photo in 1868 holding an F-horn with switch to Es-horn produced by Peter Emanuel Schmidt.





Acknowledgments
Special thanks to Ms. Marie Martens,  Forskningsbibliotekar, Nationalmuseet, (Research Librarian,  The National Museum of Denmark), for providing the photo of Peter Emanuel Schmidt, as well as the pricelist of P.E. Schmidt musical instruments including the transcript and translation of the hand-written notation regarding the rotary tap. Very special thanks also to Torben Verner Jensen for supplying photographs of his Peter Emanuel Schmidt horn, historic photographs, plus numerous emendations and additions to the text.


Notes
1. The Fasting Family was established as brass instrument makers in Copenhagen by Johannes Fasting (1751 - 1816).  He was born in Copenhagen in 1751 and at the age of twenty-four went on a nine-year journey abroad to learn the skills of instrument making. Returning to Denmark  he was granted maker's rights in 1787. In 1791 he was penalized for casting brass candelabras, which was outside of his rights as an instrument maker. The penalty was annulled, however and his rights were extended to include brass castings. Fasting was appointed "Hof-Trompet- og Valdhornmager" to the Court in 1793 and that same year made a couple of Inventionshorns for the Royal Orchestra. He was awarded gold medals for improvements to the keyed bugle (1894) and adapting the horn for military use as a bugle (1803). In 1809 he was decorated with the Silver Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog.  In 1814 Johannes was succeeded by his son, Johan Jacob Fasting (1789-1847).   J. J. Fasting  continued the business, producing a trombone and two trumpets for the Royal Orchestra, plus some horns and keyed bugles.  Later he partnered with Carl Christian Wilde (1794-1853), doing business as Fasting and Wilde from 1835 to 1847. As early as 1835 the new company was making valved instruments including alto and tenor horns, cornets, and percussion instruments as well. J.J. Fasting was succeeded by Jacob Christian Fasting (1814-1884), who was born in Raadvad, north of Copenhagen. J.C. Fasting's relationship to the previous generations has not been established. He was issued a trade license on August 28, 1848 and went into partnership with Carl Christian Wilde, doing business as Fasting and Wilde. In 1852 Peter Emanuel Schmidt, subject of this page, apparently replaced Wilde as Fasting's partner. Fasting & Schmidt continued from that year until 1855, when Schmidt separated to form his own company. The company only bore the name of J.C. Fasting until 1867, at which time the a partneship was formed with  became F.W. Merz. It was known as Fasting and Merz until 1870. Nothing is further is known of F. W. Merz. Finally the company became  known as Fasting & Gottfried, when Josef Karl Gottfrie, who was first associated with J.C. Fasting twenty years earlier,  became a full partner (see next note).
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2. Josef Karl Gottfried was born in Rothau, Austrian town in 1822. He abbreviated his name to I.K. Gottfried. In 1857 Gottfried began working with Jacob Christian Fasting in 1857. That a partnership was established is suggested by instruments from that period marked Fasting & Gottfried, however that name does not appear in the Copenhagen city directory until 1880. Upon the death of J.C. Fasting in 1884, the company was carried on by Gottfried, and still bears his name today.
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References
Copenhagen Stadsarkivs Archive Database

Gottfried, I.K. and Co.; The History of I.K. Gottfried, Copenhagen, ca. 1996

Skjerne, Godtfred; H.C. Lumbye og hans Samtid (H.C. Lumbye and his Contemporaries), J.L.Lybeckers Forlag, København, 1912

Waterhouse, William, The New Langwill Index of Wind Instrument Makers and Inventors, pub.Tony Bingham, London 1993


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