Half Moon (bugle or flügelhorn) in D 1813 Erdmuthe Juliane Liebel German One of the major tasks assigned to brass instruments was to signal and announce. The cavalry used trumpets while the infantry choose bugle horns for many military functions that included marking the time of day and alerting troops in the field. Bugles appear in many forms during the nineteenth century. Starting with the half moon, these forms incorporated a variety of coiled configurations for the tube, a feature that had no effect upon the tone quality. Mail-coach postmen in continental Europe used post horns, short coiled bugles, to signal the arrival and departure of the mail. This instrument was originally used for the hunt, half moons were also introduced to the military in the second half of the eighteenth century. Listen to experts illuminate this artwork's story Listen Play or pause #9317. Half Moon (bugle or flügelhorn) in D Supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies We're sorry, the transcript for this audio