The Preservation of Historical Brass Instruments. Developing Guidelines for Their Preventive Conservation

Brass instruments have a relatively short lifespan, mainly due to corrosion, and so wear out and have to be replaced after several decades (or even after several years). In con- sequence, it is mostly impermissible to play historical brass instruments belonging to collections or museums. As part of our cultural heritage, these instruments have to be preserved in the best possible way. But by playing them, we can gain more information on the instruments and on their historical and musical background. This information itself enriches our cultural heritage, it can help us to understand other aspects of histo- rically informed performance practice, and might also help us to produce replicas. Thus, the fundamental dilemma ‘to play versus to display’ of historical instruments emerges.