The First Recorded Trombone Quartet

As Julie Andrews says in the Sound of Music, lets start at the very beginning, it's a very good place to start!  I've wondered when the start of the modern trombone quartet was.  Surly there were sackbut quartets and ensembles dating from the 14th and 15th centuries and there are pieces written for trombone quartet such as Beethoven's Drei Equali, but there are no real documented cases of professional trombone quartet ensembles before the 20th century.  However, in 1906 the Victor recording label released a series of recordings of the "Boston Symphony Trombone Quartet" playing arrangements of dance tunes and hymns.  This was not only one of the first documented instances of professionals performing trombone quartets, but also the first recording of one and the first recording of a Boston Symphony chamber ensemble.

Here is a recording of the quartet playing Kerry Dance.  The picture in the video is of the three members of the Boston Symphony trombone section at the time: Leroy Kenfield, August Mausebach, and Carl Hampe.  Interestingly, They are all playing old-style German "Kruspe" trombones by the look of the photograph.  According to Douglas Yeo's website, Carl and August were originally from Germany, while Leroy, the bass trombonist, was from America.    Carl and August's German background might explain the use of German instruments in the American orchestra, but Douglas Yeo's website also includes their faces on an advertisement for Holton trombones, an american brand.  Maybe American instrument makers were making instruments closer to the German tradition at the time?  Wouldn't be surprising if the craftsman for these companies were first generation German immigrants.  In any case, enjoy Kerry Dance performed by the 1906 Boston Symphony Trombone Quartet.