Today’s trumpet is similar to its ancestors EXCEPT that

Today’s trumpet is one of the world’s oldest instruments. It is the result of many centuries of development. Although it looks nothing like its ancestors, there are many similarities. All trumpets are hollow tubes. They are all blown. And they all use the players’ lips to produce the basic sound. The trumpet developed as players and makers worked to improve its design, size, shape, material, and method of construction. They wanted to create an instrument that would produce a beautiful and attractive tone, enable the performer to play all the notes of the scale, extend the range higher and lower, make it possible to play more difficult music, and, in general, be easier to play well. The remarkable way in which the modern trumpet achieves these goals is a measure of the success of all those who struggle to perfect this glorious instrument. The trumpet is actually the leading member of an entire family of related instruments. These are trumpets of several different sizes, and in several different keys. There are cornets, bugles, flue horns, and a number of others that are all similar to the trumpet in the way they are made and played.