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A flageolet is a woodwind musical instrument
Musical instrument

A musical instrument is an object constructed or used for the purpose of making music. In principle, anything that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument....
 and a member of the fipple flute
Fipple

Fipple Flute or Tubular Ducted Flute mouthpiece are commonly found on end-blown woodwind instruments such as the tin whistle and the recorder....
 family. Its invention is ascribed to the 16th century Sieur
Seigneur

'Seigneur'  Juvigny in 1581. It had 4 holes on the front and 2 on the back. The English instrument maker William Bainbridge developed it further and patented the "improved English flageolet" in 1803 as well as the double flageolet around 1805. They were continued to be made until the 20th century when it was succeeded by the tin whistle
Tin whistle

The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
.

Flageolets have varied greatly during the last 400 years.






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A flageolet is a woodwind musical instrument
Musical instrument

A musical instrument is an object constructed or used for the purpose of making music. In principle, anything that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument....
 and a member of the fipple flute
Fipple

Fipple Flute or Tubular Ducted Flute mouthpiece are commonly found on end-blown woodwind instruments such as the tin whistle and the recorder....
 family. Its invention is ascribed to the 16th century Sieur
Seigneur

'Seigneur'  Juvigny in 1581. It had 4 holes on the front and 2 on the back. The English instrument maker William Bainbridge developed it further and patented the "improved English flageolet" in 1803 as well as the double flageolet around 1805. They were continued to be made until the 20th century when it was succeeded by the tin whistle
Tin whistle

The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
.

Flageolets have varied greatly during the last 400 years. The first flageolets were called "French flageolets", and have four tone-holes on the front and two on the back. This instrument was played by Frédéric Chalon
Frédéric Chalon

Fr?d?ric Chalon was a France musician born in the 18th century.He was the son of a violinist who played at the Op?ra of Paris, and about 1801 he became a flute and oboe at the Th??tre Feydeau and Th??tre de l'Op?ra Comique to 1821....
 and Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys

Samuel Pepys, Fellow of the Royal Society was an English people Navy Board and Member of Parliament, who is now most famous for his diary. Although Pepys had no maritime experience, he rose by patronage, hard work and his talent for administration, to be the Chief Secretary to the Admiralty under James II of England....
, and Henry Purcell
Henry Purcell

Henry Purcell...
 and George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel

George Frideric Handel was an England Baroque music composer of Germany birth who is famous for his operas, oratorios, and concerto grosso. His life and music may justly be described as "cosmopolitan": he was born in Germany, trained in Italy, and spent most of his life in England....
 both wrote pieces for it.

Small versions of this instrument, called bird flageolets were also made and were used for teaching birds to sing.

The number of keys on French flageolets range from none to seven, the exception being the Boehm system
Boehm System

The Boehm system is a system of keywork for the flute, created by inventor and flautist Theobald Boehm between 1831 and 1847.Prior to this time, flutes were most commonly made of wood, with an inverse conical bore , eight keys, and tone holes which were small in size, and thus easily covered by the fingertips....
 French flageolet made by Buffet crampon
Buffet Crampon

Buffet Crampon et Compagnie is a manufacturer of high-quality woodwind instruments including oboes, flutes, saxophones, and bassoons. The company is perhaps most famous for their clarinets, as Buffet is the brand of choice for many professionals....
 which had thirteen keys.

In the late 18th and early 19th century certain English
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
 instrument makers started to make flageolets with six finger-holes on the front. These instruments are called "English flageolets" and were eventually produced in metal as tin whistle
Tin whistle

The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
s. The keys range between none and six. Some were produced with changeable top joints which allowed the flageolet to be played as a flute
Flute

The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike other woodwind instruments, a flute is a reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air against an edge....
 or fife
Fife (musical instrument)

A fife is a small, high-pitched, transverse flute that is similar to the piccolo, but louder and shriller due to its narrower bore. The fife originated in medieval Europe and is often used in Military band and marching bands....
.

An English maker, William Bainbridge, in around 1810 patented a double flageolet which consisted of two English flageolets joined together so that the player could harmonise the tunes that he played. He also produced a triple flageolet which added a third, drone
Drone (music)

In music, a drone is a harmony or monophony effect or accompaniment where a note or chord is continuously sounded throughout much or all of a piece, sustain or repetition , and most often establishing a tonality upon which the rest of the piece is built....
 pipe which was fingered in a similar way to an ocarina
Ocarina

The ocarina is an ancient flute-like wind instrument. While several variations exist, an ocarina is typified by an oval-shaped enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouth tube projecting out from the body....
.

The flageolet was eventually entirely replaced by the tin whistle
Tin whistle

The tin whistle, also called the tinwhistle, whistle, pennywhistle or Irish whistler, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument....
 and is rarely played today. However, it is a very easy instrument to play and the tone
Timbre

In music, timbre is the quality of a musical note or sound or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production, such as voices or musical instruments....
 is soft and gentle. It has a range of about two octave
Octave

In music, an octave The octave is occasionally referred to as a diapason.The octave above an indicated note is sometimes abbreviated 8va, and the octave below 8vb....
s.

See also

  • Three-hole pipe
    Three-hole pipe

    The three-hole pipe, also commonly known as Tabor pipe is a wind instrument designed to be played by one hand, leaving the other hand free to play a Tabor drum, Bell , Psalterium or tambourin ? cordes, Bones , Triangle or other percussive instrument....
  • Shvi
    Shvi

    The Shvi which means whistle in Armenian language, is a woodwind instrument with a libium mouth piece. Commonly made of wood or bamboo and up to 12 inches in length, it typically has a range of an octave and a-half....


External links

  • — a site devoted to the flageolet