Alto Saxhorn (Saxotromba)

In his 1845 patent, Sax defined the saxotromba as an alto or baritone-sized instrument with an upright bell.  They were originally designed for use by cavalry musicians, to help them avoid hitting the heads of their horses with the bells of their instruments.  Conceived of as a family of instruments, both the narrow-bore saxotrombas and the large-bore saxhorns were mant to be played together.  Eventually all instruments with upright bells, regardless of their bore size, became commonly known as saxhorns, both in Europe and in the United States.  Allen Dodworth, for example, illustrates a whole family of bell-up brass instruments in his 'Brass Band School' (New York, 1853), referring to them all as saxhorns.