History and perfection of an old design, Cliff Blackburn’s 5-valve C trumpet is in a league of its own. Armando Ghitalla may have been the first to design the modern 5-valve. His design was made into a prototype by Kenzo Kawasaki of the Yamaha Corporation during the late 1970’s.
The trumpet can perform masterfully in the key of D, Db, C, or B-natural. When only the first three valves are used, the trumpet plays normally as a C trumpet. The overall intonation is exceptional, even without the use of alternate fingerings. The fourth valve lowers the pitch of the instrument a half step. When locked down with the swivel bracket, it becomes a trumpet in B-natural. The fifth (rotor) vale raises the pitch of the instrument a whole step, and allows the instrument to play in D. It also has a small hook bracket that can lock the instrument in D if desired. For demonstrational videos please visit Dave Hickman’s website: https://www.hickmanmusiceditions.com/5-valve-c-trumpet.asp
