History
In Act III of Berlioz's opera Les Troyens, a group of offstage trumpets plays a distorted-sounding fanfare along with cornets to create an unusual dramatic effect. In Beethoven's overture for Leonore Overture and in Fidelio he used an offstage trumpet call.
In Respighi's The Pines of Rome, he uses an offstage trumpet for "Pines Near a Catacomb"; after the low strings play solemn chords, and the trombones play a simple, ancient-sounding Gregorian chant-style melody, an offstage trumpet introduces the piece's second theme. Richard Strauss used offstage trumpets during a battle scene in Ein Heldenleben ("A Hero's Life"). Aaron Copland's Quiet City used an offstage trumpet. Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 2 uses an offstage brass ensemble of trumpets, French horns, and percussion. While the offstage trumpet's distant sound can create an emotional effect, critic Maurice Brown warned in 1971 that it can become an overused cliché.
Read more about this topic: Offstage Brass And Percussion
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