Jean-Baptiste Arban

He is best known for his instruction manual, Arban's Complete Conservatory Method for Trumpet, which has been updated over the years, and is still widely used.

Arban was born one year before the successful creation of the piston-valved cornet. He worked with determination to give this new instrument stature in music. His efforts succeeded when the cornet became "the most popular brass instrument of the 19th century".

Life

Arban was born in Lyon, France, one of ten children of Simon Arban, artificier. An older brother was the balloonist Francisque Arban.

He studied trumpet with François Dauverné at the Paris Conservatoire from 1841 to 1845. After graduating from the conservatory with honors, Arban began to master the cornet. He was appointed professor of saxhorn at the École Militaire in 1857, and became professor of cornet at the Paris Conservatoire in 1869, where Merri Franquin was among his students.

In 1864, he published his influential Grande méthode complète pour cornet à pistons et de saxhorn. The title of the updated English language translation is, Arban’s Complete Conservatory Method for Trumpet.

In 1876, at the invitation of Alexander II, Arban conducted some concerts in Pavlovsk.

Arban apparently made a phonograph cylinder recording for the Edison Company shortly before his death. In the Finnish newspaper Hufvudstadsbladet (no. 96, of 11 April 1890, page 2), Arban's recording is mentioned: "Among the phonograms a particular one must be mentioned: solo on cornet à piston, played by the famous French virtuoso monsieur Arban called 'Fanfare d'Edison'."

Arban died in Paris.