The bassoon has a compass of 31 octaves. It is written for in a bass or tenor clef on a stave in between the clarinet and the horn.

This large woodwind instrument, usually made of maple, can be identified by the fact that it is held diagonally across the body, supported by a neck sling or sometimes by a floor spike in the butt or bottom of the tubing. The longish, curved crook that carries the double reed is another distinguishing feature. The sound has different characteristics in different registers, but in legato passages in the upper register the sound has been compared to that of the human voice, and therefore has been called vox humana. (More…)

dodoHome Theater, Music Box, Music Equipments, Woodwinds23 Aug, 20085 Comments

Horn parts are written in treble and bass clefs without key signature, accidentals being written in as they occur. The horn is a transposing instrument and sounds a fifth lower than written in the treble clef but a fourth higher in the bass clef.

In his book on the French horn Morley Pegge described the sound of the instrument as ‘the most refined and poetical voice in the symphony orchestra’. Its emotional range certainly covers the moods from martial to melancholy. (More…)

dodoBrass, Piano23 Aug, 20083 Comments