Technology is developing in every time in our lives. And this is inevitable that in every part of our lives we are getting addicted to technology. In musical approach also technology added some simplicity to players and more flexible possibility for composers.
In the past composers used brasses for basso continue parts. They had just a few solo section or solo pieces. Because technologically brass instruments had a few notes or it was too hard to play, composer did not have a chance to show the tone colors of them.
Horn had not any valve and even tonality. When time passed, they needed dissonance notes and also scales. So, this thinking pushed people to invent tonality pipes. So a horn player could have played 12 tonalities. Unfortunately, all tonalities could not be used in the same piece or players needed time to shift the pipes. So it shows still horn (what we call ‘natural horn’) was primitive. After ages, compositions got complex and difficult for brasses; less possibility and much expectation. Virtuoso playing trend was spread all over the world. So they should invent some simplicity to help brasses. The time was the valves were invented. Horn had two valves plus pipes, trumpet had one valve and trombone had none. So till in the early 19th century brass players were used as fill in the blank instruments.
Today brasses are being used in every piece and bar. Because technology has improved so much more easy ways were found. Valves, Pipes, shapes, material, mouthpieces and the much modified the technique of playing. Shapes are still investigating by some brands. Pipes are useful. Material is so altered any player can choose own material because there are much more option then the past. (So the tone color chanced player to player). And the technique is the trickiest one to play the today’s composition. The usage in the past was only defined notes and long and did not have much risk. But new compositions have many solos and needed to use any ability of the instrument even knocking to the instrument. Technically a player should be more flexible; a player should player lower note F, for example and should player higher F in the same bar. And many categories were occurred based on the revolution.
Brass instruments have large tone color so instruments that we are using still sometimes could not satisfy us. Searching is still continuing.