<P> Another factor in the greater use of mellophones is its ease of use as compared to the difficulty of playing a French horn consistently well . In a French horn, the length of tubing (and the bore size) make the partials much closer together than other brass instruments in their normal range and, therefore, harder to play accurately . The F mellophone has tubing half the length of a French horn, which gives it an overtone series more similar to a trumpet and most other brass instruments . </P> <P> In summary, the mellophone is an instrument designed specifically to bring the approximate sound of a horn in a package which is conducive to playing while marching . Outside a marching setting, the traditional French horn is ubiquitous and the mellophone is rarely used, though they can be used to play French horn parts in a concert band or orchestra . </P> <P> C.G. Conn developed the 16E "Mellophonium" and first marketed it in 1957 . Kenton himself was not involved in the design of the mellophonium, though he provided an endorsement for Conn's advertising, upon adopting the instrument, in 1961 . Kenton had for several years wished to add another brass voice alongside his trumpet and trombone sections and experimented unsuccessfully with additional instruments with before discovering the Conn Mellophonium which bridged the gap he was seeking to fill . The instrument's advantage was that it supplied a new timbre and could be used by a trumpet player with relative ease, though most Mellophonium players in Kenton's band were reluctant users of the instrument . (1) Kenton used a four - man mellophonium section September 1960 through November 1963 on 11 albums; two of those LPs received Grammy Awards (Kenton's West Side Story and Adventures In Jazz). </P> <P> The Vincent Bach Corporation also produced a mellophonium, with the shape of the tubing more reminiscent of the cornet . </P>

What is the difference between a mellophone and a marching french horn