Flutes are woodwind instruments. They are played by blowing across
a hole on one end and plugging certain holes in the body to modify
pitch. Thus, the word "flute" comes from the Latin word
"flutus," meaning breath. It can be made of metal or wood,
depending on the tone the player wishes to produce. The most common
version of flutes are transversal flutes, a style in which the instruments
are held parallel to the ground. The common European flutes are
constructed so that it can be taken apart into three joints: the
head joint, middle joint, and foot joint. The preferred metals to
make flutes are silver, gold, or nickel silver (a blend of copper,
zinc, and nickel). Sometimes it is even made of platinum, but not
often. The preferred wood is Grenadilla, a hard, heavy wood found
in the Congo Basin in Africa. Some people believe that gold is the best metal for solo flutes because it vibrates the best. Scientists point out that it is not the metal or wood itself, but rather the air blown inside that vibrates. Therefore, it is unlikely that the material should affect the sound too drastically. Gold flutes usually do sound better, but that may be because more care is gone into constructing these instruments out of a precious, expensive metal. However, orchestra musicians prefer silver flutes (perhaps with a gold plate inside) because they tend to carry much better than delicate gold instruments. The flute's close relatives are basically larger or smaller versions. The piccolos are simply that, smaller flutes. The word "piccolo" comes from "flauto piccolo," meaning "little flute". Piccolos are usually made out of wood, plastic, and/or metal. They have most of the same fingerings as flutes, require a tighter embouchure, and are an octave higher. The octave difference is because the piccolo is half the size of flutes. As the ancient Greeks demonstrated, if you cut a string in half, the half-string will sound an octave higher than the original when plucked. The lower relatives of flutes include the alto, bass, and octobass. The alto is just a bit larger, and has three notes lower than the standard. The bass is twice the size and goes an octave lower. Because the bass is so large, it would be impossible to reach all the keys if it were stretched out to its full length. So, the head joint is shaped in a J in order for the mouthpiece and keysto be within the player's reach. The octobass is the same way, but has a curving foot joint as well as the head joint. This monster measures a full 3 meters when straightened and is made of 4.5 kilos of brass in weight. Flutes family is the oldest in the category of woodwind instruments.
Throughout history the size of the tube along the flutes length
has evolved in respect to its bore shape. The term "flute"
refers to a broad number of instruments which are found in many
different cultures. There are many names for this special kind
of flutes. These names include: cross flutes, German flutes, transverse
flutes and flauto traverso. What is important about all of these
names is that they define an instrument that is held horizontally
while being played. The instrument's earliest probable history
dates back to approximately 900 B.C. This instrument, which was
found in China, is called a ch'ie. |
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