London, England
Addison & Lucas

Brass
ca. 1865-1870
Height: 14 in; Bell rim diameter: 6.5 in
Wind Instruments – Brasswinds – Alto Horns / Flugelhorns/ Mellophones

An Addison & Lucas (1865-1870) bell-forward circular vocal horn.   It was to resemble the sound of the male voice, hence ‘vocal horn.’  The vocal horn is another name for a ballad horn that is a 3-valved circular instrument with a conical bore and a bell about half the size of a French horn.  Unique to the vocal horn is that it has a narrower bore than the sax horn at the same pitch.  According to the St. Cecilia’s Museum, The University of Edinburg, the vocal horn was designed as a parlor instrument to be played with pianoforte accompaniment and is pitched in C, making it convenient to play vocal music using the fingering familiar to most valve brass players. 

Resource:  https://collections.ed.ac.uk/stcecilias/record/96169