The contrabass bugle, usually shortened to contra, is the lowest-pitched instrument in the drum and bugle corps hornline. It is essentially the drum corps' counterpart to the marching band's sousaphone: the lowest-pitched member of the hornline, and a replacement for the concert tuba on the marching field.
It is different from the other members of the marching band and drum corps hornlines in that it rests on the shoulder of the player, rather than being held in front of the body. Because this orientation can obstruct standard headgear, it is not uncommon for contrabass players to wear a beret instead of whatever else the rest of the ensemble is wearing for headgear. This also gives the players some distinction from the rest of the brass ensemble.
Read more about Contrabass Bugle: History, Construction and Naming, Movement and Visual Effects
Famous quotes containing the word bugle:
“The hounding of a dog pursuing a fox or other animal in the horizon may have first suggested the notes of the hunting-horn to alternate with and relieve the lungs of the dog. This natural bugle long resounded in the woods of the ancient world before the horn was invented.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)