Valve Trombone
The valve trombone has been built in every size from alto to contrabass, though it is the tenor valve trombone which has seen the most widespread use. They are built in either short or long form.
The valve trombone enjoyed its greatest popularity in the 19th century when the technology of rotary valve and piston valve instruments was developing rapidly. By the end of the 19th century, mass production of reliable, higher quality slide trombones led to a return of its popularity. Despite the continuing popularity of the slide trombone, valve trombones have remained popular in, for example, Austria, Italy, Bohemia, Moravia, Slovakia, Spain, Portugal, South America and India, almost to the exclusion of the slide trombone.
A bass or contrabass version of the valve trombone is the cimbasso and is used mainly in operatic works by Giuseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini.
Some passages, particularly fast musical figures, are easier to execute on a valve trombone than on a slide trombone. Many players consider the tone of a valve trombone to be stuffier and less open, therefore it is not common in orchestral settings, though Giuseppe Verdi in particular made extensive use of the ability of the valve trombone to negotiate its way through fast passages. As the B♭ tenor valve trombone uses the same fingering as the B♭ trumpet, it is occasionally a doubling instrument for jazz trumpeters. Notable jazz musicians who play the B♭ tenor valve trombone include Maynard Ferguson, Bob Brookmeyer, Juan Tizol of the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Rob McConnell and Bob Enevoldsen.
A valve trombone made by Adolphe Sax has a different system from that which is normally used. Instead of three valves in the style of the trumpet, it has one for each position on the trombone slide.
Read more about this topic: Types Of Trombone