A transverse flute or side-blown flute is a flute which is held horizontally when played. The player blows across the

embouchure Embouchure () or lipping is the use of the lips, facial muscles, tongue, and teeth in playing a wind instrument. This includes shaping the lips to the mouthpiece of a woodwind instrument or the mouthpiece of a brass instrument. The word is o ...

hole, in a direction

perpendicular In elementary geometry, two geometric objects are perpendicular if they intersect at a right angle (90 degrees or π/2 radians). The condition of perpendicularity may be represented graphically using the ''perpendicular symbol'', ⟂. It ca ...

to the flute's body length. Parmenon Ovatio

Transverse flutes include the

Western concert flute The Western concert flute is a family of transverse (side-blown) woodwind instruments made of metal or wood. It is the most common variant of the flute. A musician who plays the flute is called a flautist (in British English), flutist (in Am ...

, the Indian classical flutes (the bansuri and the

venu The ''venu'' (Sanskrit: ; /मुरळि; ''muraļi'') is one of the ancient transverse flutes of Indian classical music. It is an aerophone typically made from bamboo, that is a side blown wind instrument. It continues to be in use in the ...

), the Chinese dizi, the Western fife, a number of Japanese fue, and Korean flutes such as

daegeum The ''daegeum'' (also spelled ''taegum'', ''daegum'' or ''taegŭm'') is a large bamboo flute, a transverse flute used in traditional Korean music. It has a buzzing membrane that gives it a special timbre. It is used in court, aristocratic, and f ...

junggeum The ''junggeum'' (also spelled ''chunggum'' or ''chunggŭm'') is a medium-sized transverse bamboo flute formerly used in traditional Korean music. Unlike the larger ''daegeum'', it does not have a buzzing membrane (although it did have one in anc ...

and

sogeum The ''sogeum'' (also spelled ''sogum'' or ''sogŭm'') is a small bamboo transverse flute used in traditional Korean music. Unlike the larger ''daegeum'', it does not have a buzzing membrane (although it did have one in ancient times). It is used ...

See also