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Flute and Piccolo
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 HistoryThe flute is the most ancient of wind instruments. The bone whistles of the Neolithic Period and the hollow reed blown across one end the first flutes. The most ancient musical instrument was a row of hollow reeds called the Syrinx or Pandean Pipes. Centuries later it was discovered that piercing the reeds at intervals produced different sounds. The historically oldest ancestor of the flute is seen in Egyptian monuments. They are still found among the Arabs and are called Nay. It is a vertical flute, producing sound by blowing across the open top. The western classical flute is a transverse flute. It first came from the East in the 12th century to Europe. The flute was a military instrument in the Middle Ages. It became used in the opera and court orchestra in the mid 17th century. The early flute had no keys, just holes, and was one piece It was poor in quality and pitch. The standard flute by the early 18th century had six holes and one key. Improvements were soon made by adding keys. The flute was also divided into three sections. Theobald Boehm of Munich changed the flute in the 1830's. He developed a cylindrical flute with 15 tone holes and 23 keys and levers. This was the first time in history that tone holes were placed in acoustically correct positions. Keys were also arranged so almost all holes opened normally. This flute has remained largely unaltered and is called the Boehm Flute. Top
DescriptionThe flute is a metal tube approximately 27 inches in length and is made in three pieces. The piccolo is half the size of the flute, being about12.5 inches in length, and is only two pieces. It is made of either metal, ebonite or grenadilla wood. The piccolo is one octave higher than the flute. They are both shaped as a cylindrical bore with the headjoint in a parabolic curve. The standard flute is prominent in chamber and
orchestral music. The piccolo is the smallest instrument
in the orchestra. The alto and bass
flute are only used in quiet passages because they can not be heard.
  
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Sound ProductionSound is produced by the player directing the air stream across the hole of the mouthpiece. The player's breath is deflected against the sharp edge, setting the air in the column in motion. The notes are produced by changing the length of the tube. This is accomplished through the use of keys. An open key permits air to escape the tube. A depressed key causes the air to continue through the tubing. This lengthens the air column.
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