Books › A descriptive catalogue of the musical instruments recently exhibited at the Royal Military Exhibition, London, 1890 …, 1891 › scan 86
Scan 86
A descriptive catalogue of the musical instruments recently exhibited at the Royal Military Exhibition, London, 1890 …, 1891
14 lines. Read by computer on 1 October 2026. Printed page 66. See the scan on archive.org.
1(ii.) The discant schalmey, of which the lowest note was d', and the length about 26 inches.
2(iii.) The alto pommer, the lowest note of which was g, and the length about 30½ inches.
3(iv.) The tenor pommer, which measured 4 feet 6 inches in length. It was pierced with six finger-holes; four keys enabled the compass to be extended thus:—
5(v.) The bass pommer, which was 6 feet long, and resembled the tenor; there were four keys, which gave:—
7(vi.) The great double quint pommer, which was 9 feet 8 inches in length. It had four keys, which carried its compass down thus:—
9All these instruments had a compass of two octaves, and the chromatic intervals were obtained both by half stopping and by cross-fingering. They were all made with six open finger-holes; the two smaller varieties had, in addition, a double hole for the little finger at the lower end. There were also two holes pierced in the bell, and which were not stopped by the fingers, but occasionally by the knee, so as to extend the compass of the instrument downwards.
11Towards the latter end of the 16th century, when Mersenne wrote, the larger pommers had been replaced by the bassoon or fagotto, then a comparatively recent invention. And the family then consisted of (i.) the schalmey; (ii.) the dessus, or discant schalmey, which did not differ from that described by Praetorius; (iii.) the taille or tenor; and (iv.) the basse.
13The discant schalmey became the oboe. The oboe, properly so called, assumed its present shape early in the 17th century; and was,
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