Resources - Acquiring Instruments

For many musicians and ensembles looking to perform band music of the 19th-century on period instruments, acquiring the period instruments themselves can be one of the trickiest (and most expensive) steps.

Musicians have three options: originals, reproductions, or modern

It is my opinion that the most important thing is that the repertoire is being played period. If playing on period instruments (original or reproduction) is not possible, playing on your modern instrument is totally fine. That being said, there is undoubtedly unique insight that can be gleaned from playing and hearing this music on period instruments.

It is my recommendation to just do what you can. Start somewhere and upgrade if possible. Be wary that original historical brass instruments likely will play at high pitch (HP) and can be anywhere from A=448 to A=460 as opposed to the modern standardized pitch of A=440. So mixing and matching modern, reproduction, and original can be problematic if the tuning is incompatible.

I have compiled a list below of some places you can check to possibly acquire period instruments.