Recent from talks
Alto flute
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Alto flute
The alto flute is an instrument in the Western concert flute family, pitched below the standard C flute and the uncommon flûte d'amour. It is the third-most common member of its family after the standard C flute and the piccolo. It is characterized by its rich, mellow tone in the lower portion of its range. The bore of the alto flute is considerably larger in diameter and longer than the C flute and requires a larger column of air (volume of air) from the player, though it also requires a slower airspeed. This gives it a greater dynamic presence in the bottom octave and a half of its range. Its range is from G3 (the G below middle C) to G6 (4 ledger lines above the treble clef staff) plus an altissimo register stretching to D♭7. It uses the same fingerings as the C flute and piccolo, but is a transposing instrument in G (sounding a perfect fourth lower than written).
British music that uses this instrument often refers to it as a bass flute, which can be confusing since there is a distinct instrument called the bass flute. This particular naming confusion originated in the fact that the modern C flute is pitched in the same range as the Renaissance tenor flute; implying that a lower-pitched instrument should be called 'bass', following the pattern of other instruments. However, the flute family's pitch-range naming system does not correspond correctly to human voice pitches (see description of ranges in the C flute article).
While there is no exact date that the alto flute was created, large flutes have existed for several hundred years. Some problems with early alto flute design included the long length of the tube, troublesome cross fingerings, inconsistent intonation, finger holes that were too wide across, and how far one's arm had to be stretched in order to reach the finger holes, particularly in the left hand. The greatest innovations to the alto flute were developed by Theobald Boehm in the 1850’s when he made the alto flute in G, and it was said to be his favorite flute. There is some research that shows this happened in the mid 1850’s, around 1854-1855, when he was 60 years old. The creation of this alto flute was to rid other lower pitch flutes of their current problems. The new flute design by Boehm had rational key systems and levers that were created in order to shorten the length that fingers needed to stretch. New changes were also made in modification to the bore size of the flute in order to support the low register of G. Along with the bore size, the placement and sizes of the keys were changed to complement the new, larger bore.
The first widely produced alto flute was created by Rudall Carte & Co. in London, 1891. They took many of Boehm's ideas and adjustments to create their alto flute. This alto flute was the lowest flute in the family, just under "Bass Flute G".
Like other Western flutes, the alto flute is constructed of three main parts: the head-joint, the body joint, and the foot joint. Those pieces include an embouchure hole, tone holes, keys, and the mechanism that operates the keys. The head-joint may be straight or curved; curved head-joints are often made in two parts. The straight head-joint is easier to play in tune in the high register due to its true conical bore shape, which is not possible with a curved head-joint. However, the curved head-joint could be a better option for those flutists who have smaller arms and/or smaller hands; it is frequently preferred by smaller players because it requires less of a stretch for the arms, and makes the instrument feel lighter by moving the center of gravity nearer to the player. The head joint is slightly tapered (conical bore) to accomplish precise tonal quality and it includes an embouchure hole. The body and foot joint of the alto flute are composed of either closed hole or open hole keys. Most alto flutes are made with closed hole keys; the Kingma system alto flutes are available with open holes. Open holed alto flutes have more possibilities for extended techniques.
The alto flute along with the other low flutes are constructed at a longer length than the concert flute; the larger the flute, the lower its pitch. The alto flute is about 1 inch in diameter and 34 inches in length. This compared to the concert flute makes it ¼ inch wider in diameter and almost 8 inches longer in length The tone holes on the alto flute are slightly smaller than those of the modern concert flute, relative to its size. According to Davis (1997), p. 26
The arrangement of the holes can differ depending on the maker of the flute.
The embouchure-hole for alto flute is similar to that for C flute, but in proportion to the size of the instrument. Hence the embouchure-hole sits lower on the lower lip, and the lip-aperture is wider.
Hub AI
Alto flute AI simulator
(@Alto flute_simulator)
Alto flute
The alto flute is an instrument in the Western concert flute family, pitched below the standard C flute and the uncommon flûte d'amour. It is the third-most common member of its family after the standard C flute and the piccolo. It is characterized by its rich, mellow tone in the lower portion of its range. The bore of the alto flute is considerably larger in diameter and longer than the C flute and requires a larger column of air (volume of air) from the player, though it also requires a slower airspeed. This gives it a greater dynamic presence in the bottom octave and a half of its range. Its range is from G3 (the G below middle C) to G6 (4 ledger lines above the treble clef staff) plus an altissimo register stretching to D♭7. It uses the same fingerings as the C flute and piccolo, but is a transposing instrument in G (sounding a perfect fourth lower than written).
British music that uses this instrument often refers to it as a bass flute, which can be confusing since there is a distinct instrument called the bass flute. This particular naming confusion originated in the fact that the modern C flute is pitched in the same range as the Renaissance tenor flute; implying that a lower-pitched instrument should be called 'bass', following the pattern of other instruments. However, the flute family's pitch-range naming system does not correspond correctly to human voice pitches (see description of ranges in the C flute article).
While there is no exact date that the alto flute was created, large flutes have existed for several hundred years. Some problems with early alto flute design included the long length of the tube, troublesome cross fingerings, inconsistent intonation, finger holes that were too wide across, and how far one's arm had to be stretched in order to reach the finger holes, particularly in the left hand. The greatest innovations to the alto flute were developed by Theobald Boehm in the 1850’s when he made the alto flute in G, and it was said to be his favorite flute. There is some research that shows this happened in the mid 1850’s, around 1854-1855, when he was 60 years old. The creation of this alto flute was to rid other lower pitch flutes of their current problems. The new flute design by Boehm had rational key systems and levers that were created in order to shorten the length that fingers needed to stretch. New changes were also made in modification to the bore size of the flute in order to support the low register of G. Along with the bore size, the placement and sizes of the keys were changed to complement the new, larger bore.
The first widely produced alto flute was created by Rudall Carte & Co. in London, 1891. They took many of Boehm's ideas and adjustments to create their alto flute. This alto flute was the lowest flute in the family, just under "Bass Flute G".
Like other Western flutes, the alto flute is constructed of three main parts: the head-joint, the body joint, and the foot joint. Those pieces include an embouchure hole, tone holes, keys, and the mechanism that operates the keys. The head-joint may be straight or curved; curved head-joints are often made in two parts. The straight head-joint is easier to play in tune in the high register due to its true conical bore shape, which is not possible with a curved head-joint. However, the curved head-joint could be a better option for those flutists who have smaller arms and/or smaller hands; it is frequently preferred by smaller players because it requires less of a stretch for the arms, and makes the instrument feel lighter by moving the center of gravity nearer to the player. The head joint is slightly tapered (conical bore) to accomplish precise tonal quality and it includes an embouchure hole. The body and foot joint of the alto flute are composed of either closed hole or open hole keys. Most alto flutes are made with closed hole keys; the Kingma system alto flutes are available with open holes. Open holed alto flutes have more possibilities for extended techniques.
The alto flute along with the other low flutes are constructed at a longer length than the concert flute; the larger the flute, the lower its pitch. The alto flute is about 1 inch in diameter and 34 inches in length. This compared to the concert flute makes it ¼ inch wider in diameter and almost 8 inches longer in length The tone holes on the alto flute are slightly smaller than those of the modern concert flute, relative to its size. According to Davis (1997), p. 26
The arrangement of the holes can differ depending on the maker of the flute.
The embouchure-hole for alto flute is similar to that for C flute, but in proportion to the size of the instrument. Hence the embouchure-hole sits lower on the lower lip, and the lip-aperture is wider.
Recent media