The Chalumeau and the Clarinet

2147 Words5 Pages

This paper will explore the early instrument known as the chalumeau and the various types of instruments that have evolved from it. The chalumeau group of instruments were folk instruments that were played with a single reed and the chalumeau itself is most commonly known as the predecessor to the modern-day clarinet. The instrument has only eight tone-holes on its cylindrical bore. There are many other single reed instruments that resemble the chalumeau and were in existence during the same time period. I will be discussing the history of the chalumeau and its repertoire, similar instruments of the time, and the evolution from the chalumeau to the modern day clarinet. My sources will include scholarly articles from online databases, such as Oxford Music Online, as well as books written on the topic. Such sources include The Baroque Clarinet by Albert R. Rice and Some Light on the Chalumeau by Edgar Hunt. Through this paper, I hope to shed more light on not only the group of instruments in the chalumeau family, but also the people who helped to adapt and modify the chalumeau itself, and the specifics of those modifications to create what we now see as the modern day clarinet.
The instrument we know as the chalumeau, sometimes referred to as the baroque clarinet, is a single reed instrument with seven holes for the fingers as well as a thumb hole on the opposite side of the instrument (Lawson). It is often described as a long pipe with a cylindrical bore similar to that of the recorder. The chalumeau came into being after many attempts to increase the amount of sound produced by the recorders of the age. Because the chalumeau had a high and low range but lacked a middle range, two more keys were later added to the instrument that a...

... middle of paper ...

...aboration, both creators of the Boehm system split off and continued to modify and improve the clarinet.

Sources
Albert R. The Baroque Clarinet. Oxford [England: Clarendon, 1992. Print.
Colin Lawson. "Chalumeau." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press.Web. 15 Oct. 2013.
Janet K. Page, et al. "Clarinet." Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press.Web. 15 Oct. 2013.
Karp, Cary. "The Early History of the Clarinet and Chalumeau." JSTOR. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2013.
Lawson, Colin. "The Chalumeau: Independent Voice or Poor Relation?" JSTOR. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2013.
"Musette De Cour." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 16 Oct. 2013. Web. 24 Oct. 2013.
"Single-reed Instrument." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Sept. 2013. Web. 21 Oct. 2013.
"Shawm." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Oct. 2013. Web. 26 Oct. 2013.

More about The Chalumeau and the Clarinet

Open Document