How the flageolet makes its sound
In the Hornbostel–Sachs system, which classifies instruments by how they produce sound, the flageolet belongs to the flutes (edge-blown): an air jet is split on a sharp edge, setting the air column vibrating – flutes, recorders, whistles and panpipes.
More broadly it is one of the aerophones (wind instruments), where sound comes from vibrating air.
Its timbre – the colour that lets you tell it apart from other instruments playing the same note – comes from the mix of overtones its body and resonator emphasise.
From Wikipedia
The flageolet is a woodwind instrument and a member of the family of duct flutes that includes recorders and tin whistles. There are two basic forms of the instrument: the French, having four finger holes on the front and two thumb holes on the back; and the English, having six finger holes on the front and sometimes a single thumb hole on the back. The latter was developed by English instrument maker William Bainbridge, resulting in the "improved English flageolet" in 1803. There are also double and triple flageolets, having two or three bodies that allowed for a drone and countermelody. Flageolets were made until the 19th century.
Other flutes
Frequently asked questions
What does a flageolet sound like?
As one of the flutes, its sound comes from the way an air jet is split on a sharp edge, setting the air column vibrating.
What type of instrument is the flageolet?
It is classified as flutes (edge-blown) (Hornbostel–Sachs 421.221.12).
Sources & credits
- Wikidata Q1001877 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Flageolet – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Image by No machine-readable author provided. BenP assumed (based on copyright claims). – CC BY 2.5