Various Crumhorns

The crumhorn is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. It was popular in the Renaissance period. In the 20th century, there was a revival of interest in Early Music and people started to play crumhorns again. Image File history File links Crumhorns Source: german wikipedia de:Bild:Krummhorn. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... A woodwind instrument is a musical instrument in which sound is produced by blowing through a mouthpiece against an edge or by a vibrating reed, and in which the pitch is varied by opening or closing holes in the body of the instrument. ... In the traditional view, the Renaissance is understood as an historical age that was preceded by the Middle Ages and followed by the Reformation. ... Early music is European classical music before the classical music era and after Ancient music. ...

The name derives from the German Krumhorn (or Krummhorn or Krumphorn) meaning bent horn. This relates to the old English crump meaning curve, surviving in modern English in 'crumpled' and 'crumpet' (a curved cake). Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon) is an early form of the English language that was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland between the mid-fifth century and the mid-twelfth century. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

The crumhorn is a capped reed instrument. Its construction is similar to that of the chanter of a bagpipe. A double reed is mounted inside a chamber at one end of a long pipe. Blowing into the chamber produces a musical note. The pitch of the note can be varied by opening or closing finger holes along the length of the pipe. One unusual feature of the crumhorn is its shape; the end is bent upwards in a curve, so that the instrument resembles a banana, or more prosaically, the letter J. A piper playing the Great Highland Bagpipe. ... A double reed is a type of reed by means of which the sound is originated in various wind instruments. ...

Crumhorns make a strong buzzing sound. They have a limited range, usually an octave and one note; while it is theoretically possible to get the reed to overblow a twelfth above the fundamental note, this is practically extremely difficult, since the reed is not held in the mouth, so in practice all playing is confined to the fundamental series. Some larger instruments have their range extended downwards by means of additional holes and sliders or by dropping the pressure. Because of the limited range, music for crumhorns is usually played by a group of instruments of different sizes and hence at different pitches. Such a group is known as a consort of crumhorns. In music, an octave (sometimes abbreviated 8ve or 8va) is the interval between one musical note and another with half or double the frequency. ... A consort of instruments was a phrase used in England during the 17th century to indicate an instrumental ensemble. ...

Johann Hermann Schein included a padouana à 4 for crumhorns in his collection Banchetto Musicale, 1617. Michael Praetorius suggested the use of crumhorns in some of his sacred vocal works as a possible alternative to trombones, dulcians and other instruments. Some of the works of Anthony Holborne are suitable for crumhorns. Johann Schein Johann Hermann Schein (January 20, 1586 – November 19, 1630) was a German composer of the early Baroque era. ... Michael Praetorius Michael Praetorius (probably February 15, 1571 – February 15, 1621) was a German composer and writer on music. ... Anthony Holborne (c. ...

External links

• Crumhorn Home Page
• Crumhorn