Arban, J.-B. (Jean-Baptiste), 1825-1889

Joseph Jean-Baptiste Laurent Arban was born on February 28, 1825, in Lyon, France.

He was a French cornetist, conductor, composer, pedagogue and the first famed virtuoso of the cornet à piston or valved cornet. He studied trumpet with François Dauverné at the Paris Conservatoire from 1841 to 1845. After graduating from the Conservatory with honours, Arban began to master the cornet. He was appointed professor of saxhorn at the École Militaire in 1857 and professor of cornet at the Conservatoire in 1869. In 1864, he published his influential Grande méthode complète pour cornet à pistons et de saxhorn. In 1876, at the invitation of Alexander II, Arban conducted concerts in Pavlovsk. He apparently made a phonograph cylinder recording for the Edison Company shortly before his death. Arban's cornet method of 1864 is often referred to as the "Trumpeter's Bible" and is still studied by modern brass players. The Arban Method book is available by various publishers, with Carl Fischer and Alphonse Leduc being the most prominent.

He died on April 8, 1889, in Paris, France.