Scan 84
The American History and Encyclopedia of Music, 1908
49 lines. Read by computer on 18 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1basson russe
2connection with the bassoon, or points of similarity with it.
4bassoon
5A wooden double reed instrument which forms the natural bass for oboe and other similar reed instruments. It probably descended from a class of ancient instruments called bombardo, brummers or pommers, and the early instruments had a contrivance somewhat on the order of the crooks and transposing slides of modern brass instruments; there were holes stopped by the fingers as well as holes closed by pegs and used only in certain keys. The modern instrument consists of five parts called the crook, wing, butt, long joints and bell, which fitted together form a hollow cone about eight feet long, tapering from three-sixteenths of an inch at the reed to an inch and three-fourths at the bell. In the butt joints the bore is bent abruptly back upon itself, both sections being pierced in the same block of wood and united at the lower end. The prolongation of the double tube usually being stopped by a flattened oval cork, or the more effective modern method of a U-shaped sliding tube. The whole length of the tube is ninety-three inches, about twelve in the crook, thirty-two in the downward part and forty-nine in the upward joints. The extreme length of the instrument is little over four feet. Its finger holes are brought within reach of the fingers of one hand by having the upper holes, which are stopped by the forefinger, bored obliquely upward into the wood and those for the third and ring finger bored obliquely downward. Three holes are in the projecting piece of wood, called wing joint, and three on the front of the butt joint, closed by the first three fingers of left and right hands, respectively, a hole on the back of the butt joint closed by the thumb of the right hand and a series of interlacing keys on the long joint producing the lowest notes of the scale by means of the left thumb. The bassoon is held in the hollow of the hands on a level with the breast, the right hand being a bit below and behind the left thigh.
7The bassoon has a range of from B flat on the third space below the base clef to A flat on the second space of the treble clef. It has a very complicated scale which varies in different models, so that a player must be thoroughly familiar with his individual instrument. It is much used in orchestra and was written for by the most celebrated composers. Abbr, B., bn.
9bassoon, Russian
10See Russian bassoon.
12bassoon stop
13An organ stop composed of pipes which give a tone similar to that of the bassoon.
15Basspommer (bäs'-pôm-měr) Ger. n.
16The lowest member of the pommer family. See also Pommer.
18Bassposaune (bäs'-pō-zōw'-ně) Ger. n.
19A bass trombone. Abbr. B. P.
21Bassaite (bäs'-zī-tě) Ger. n.
22Literally, bass string: the string of an instrument upon which the lowest note is sounded.
24Bassstimme (bäs'-shtĭm-mě) Ger. n.
25Literally, the bass part, or bass voice.
27basta (bäs'-tā) It. interj.
28bastante (bäs-tän'-tě) It. adj.
29Enough, sufficient. Play no further unless so directed by the conductor.
31bathyphon
32Deep sounding. A wood wind-instrument probably invented by Skorra or Ureprecht of Berlin in 1829. It seems to have been somewhat like the serpent and bass horn, and had a mouthpiece like a clarinet. Its compass was from D on the second space below the bass clef to B flat on the first space above.
34bâton (bă-tōñ) Fr. n.
35Literally, stick.
361. The rod with which the orchestra conductor beats time.
372. A rest or pause of two or more measures.
383. A thick vertical mark across one or more spaces of the staff which indicates a rest of as many measures as there are spaces covered by the mark, written thus:
40indicating rests for one, two, three, four and five measures. Rests of more than two measures, however, are usually indicated by numbers over the signs. See also rest.
42bâton de mesure (bă-tōñ dŭ mŭ-zūr')
43Fr.
44Stick or measure: the rod with which the leader of an orchestra beats time.
46bâton de reprise (bă-tōñ dŭ rŭ-prēz)
47Fr.
48Literally, stick or taking back: a direction term meaning to repeat.
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