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The dulcian is a
The reed on the dulcian is fully exposed, allowing the player to control the sound and intonation by embouchure. At the time it first appeared, other double reed instruments either had the reed fully enclosed, like the crumhorn or the bagpipe, or partially enclosed by a '' pirouette'', like the shawm. It has been argued the dulcian displaced the bass shawm, on account of its more convenient size, but it has also been argued that the two co-existed and that the bass shawm appeared at about the same time as the bass dulcian.
The instrument seems to have been in wide use by the middle of the sixteenth century. A set of instruments in various sizes exist in Brussels: these have a maker's mark of "Melchor" and are thought to be Spanish. Another well known example is a slightly later instrument in Linz, leather covered and with a built-in mute. The latest commonly copied example is by Denner, 1700, which also has a built in mute. Modern copies of the Linz instrument have a smoother sound and reach the high notes more easily, this is even more the case for modern copies of the Denner instrument.
Dulcian Home Page
Hans Mons' excellent site
''Curtal, Dulcian, Bajón – A History of the Precursor to the Bassoon''
Maggie Kilbey's comprehensive book
IDRS
many useful articles {{Authority control Double-reed instruments Early musical instruments
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
woodwind instrument, with a double reed and a folded conical bore. Equivalent terms include , , , , , , and .
The predecessor of the modern bassoon, it flourished between 1550 and 1700, but was probably invented earlier. Towards the end of this period it co-existed with, and was then superseded by, the baroque bassoon. It was played in both secular and sacred contexts, throughout northern and western Europe, as well as in the New World.
Construction
The dulcian is generally made from a single piece of maple, with the bores being drilled and reamed first, and then the outside planed to shape. The reed is attached to the end of a metal bocal, inserted into the top of the small bore. Unlike the bassoon it normally has a flared bell, sometimes made from a separate piece of timber. This bell can sometimes be muted, the mute being either detachable, or built into the instrument. The outside of the instrument can also be covered in leather, like thecornett
The cornett (, ) is a lip-reed wind instrument that dates from the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods, popular from 1500 to 1650. Although smaller and larger sizes were made in both straight and curved forms, surviving cornetts are most ...
.
Although the bass in F is the most common size, the dulcian comes in many other sizes: tenor (in C), alto (in F or G) and soprano (in C). There are also examples of a "quart bass" dulcian in C and contrabass in F. The range of each instrument is two and a half octaves, centred on the range of the corresponding singing voice: for example, the bass ranges from C2 (two octaves below middle C), to G4 (the G above middle C).
Evolution
The reed on the dulcian is fully exposed, allowing the player to control the sound and intonation by embouchure. At the time it first appeared, other double reed instruments either had the reed fully enclosed, like the crumhorn or the bagpipe, or partially enclosed by a '' pirouette'', like the shawm. It has been argued the dulcian displaced the bass shawm, on account of its more convenient size, but it has also been argued that the two co-existed and that the bass shawm appeared at about the same time as the bass dulcian.
The instrument seems to have been in wide use by the middle of the sixteenth century. A set of instruments in various sizes exist in Brussels: these have a maker's mark of "Melchor" and are thought to be Spanish. Another well known example is a slightly later instrument in Linz, leather covered and with a built-in mute. The latest commonly copied example is by Denner, 1700, which also has a built in mute. Modern copies of the Linz instrument have a smoother sound and reach the high notes more easily, this is even more the case for modern copies of the Denner instrument.
Function and repertoire
The dulcian is a flexible instrument, capable of being loud enough to play in outdoor bands, quiet enough forchamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...
, and expressive enough to join in with the choir. Its uses would have included playing dance music with the shawms and sackbuts of the city watch, chamber music, and the grand polychoral repertoire from Venice and Germany, such as Giovanni Gabrieli
Giovanni Gabrieli (/1557 – 12 August 1612) was an Italian composer and organist. He was one of the most influential musicians of his time, and represents the culmination of the style of the Venetian School (music), Venetian School, at the t ...
and Heinrich Schütz
Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque music, Baroque composer and organ (music), organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach and one of the most important composers of ...
. There are explicit dulcian parts in the sonatas by Dario Castello.
References
* Waterhouse, William (2003). ''The Bassoon''. Kahn and Averill. .External links
Dulcian Home Page
Hans Mons' excellent site
''Curtal, Dulcian, Bajón – A History of the Precursor to the Bassoon''
Maggie Kilbey's comprehensive book
IDRS
many useful articles {{Authority control Double-reed instruments Early musical instruments