Edmonds resident Gary Martin was one of 1,006 alphorn players who gathered in central Switzerland Saturday, Aug. 31 to set the new official Guinness World Record for the largest alphorn ensemble.

According to Martin, the previous official record was 366 in 2009. An unofficial record of 508 alphorn players was set in 2013. “Both of those were also in Switzerland, of course,” Martin said. “It was a fabulous experience!”

Martin, a University of Washington professor emeritus, spoke about the history and traditions of the alphorn during a May 2024 presentation at the Edmonds Waterfront Center. He was joined by Yannick Wey from the Competence Center for Music Education Research at Lucerne School of Music, Switzerland, who explored the instrument’s origins and its connections to the Alpine yodel. Wey also wrote a book on the musical connection between the alphorn and yodeling, which Martin translated from German into English with the collaboration of Wey and two co-authors.

According to Martin, Wey and book co-author Andrea Kammermann were selected by the Guinness team to be the two required independent observers who had to verify the tally and adherence to the rules for the record. “As you can imagine, shouts of joy and a few tears accompanied the official announcement by the Guinness rep,” Martin said. “I was proud to represent Puget Sound Alphorns.”