Old Musical Instruments

 

Buying-Selling Early Musical Instruments

 

 

William Petit wpetit@sfr.fr  Tel 00 33 6 13 12 43 22

 

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Saxophones Selmer

Sopranino

Soprano

Alto

Tenor

Baryton

Bass

Saxophones Adolphe Sax

Soprano

Alto

Tenor

Baryton

Flûtes

Flûtes by Thomas Lot

Silver flûtes by Louis Lot

Wooden flûtes by Louis Lot

Piccolos flûtes by Louis Lot

Flûtes by Clair Godfroy

Flûtes by Auguste Bonneville

Recorders XVIII em Century

Other Wooden Flûtes

Other Silver Flutes 

Woodwind

French Bassoons

Heckel Bassoons

Clarinets

Sarrusophones

Oboes

English-Horns

Musettes-Bigpipes

Brasswind

Cornets

Trombones

Ophicleides

Bugles-Keys

Serpents

Natural-Horns

Mandolins

Luigi Embergher

Raffaele Calace

Gelas

Vinaccia

Miscellaneous

Strings

Classical Guitars

Romantic Guitars

Jazz Guitars

Lyre Guitars

Harps

Hurdy-Gurdy

Bow

Violin-Viola d'Amore-Quinton

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous

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Serpent, Russian Bassoons, Forveille, Baudouin, Dufeu, Piffault

 

The serpent is the bass wind instrument, descended from the cornett, and a distant ancestor of the tuba, with a mouthpiece like a brass instrument but side holes like a woodwind. It is usually a long cone bent into a snakelike shape, hence the name.

The serpent is closely related to the cornett, although it is not part of the cornett family, due to the absence of a thumb hole.

It is generally made out of wood, with walnut being a particularly popular choice.

The outside is covered with dark brown or black leather.

Despite wooden construction and the fact that it has fingerholes rather than valves, it is usually classed as a brass, with the Hornbostel-Sachs

scheme of musical instrument classification placing it alongside trumpets.

 

Around the middle of the 18th century, it began to appear in military bands and orchestras, and Mozart used two serpentini in his 1771 opera Ascanio in Alba. Richard Wagner used the serpent in place of the double bassoon in his opera Rienzi.

 

The instrument also appears in operatic scores by Spontini and Bellini, but it was replaced in the 19th century by a fully keyed brass instrument,

the ophicleide, and later on by valved bass brass instruments such as the euphonium and tuba.

 

After that the serpent dropped off in popularity for a period of time.

 

The new musical instruments are on my new website https://www.instruments-anciens.com/nouveautes

Website available on all devices :smartphones, tablets... Both websites are still online 

 

Russian bassoon Cuvillier

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 Serpent Forveille

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Serpent (1800 / 1810)

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Serpent by Dufeu

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Serpent (1800 / 1810)

Photo

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Serpent Forveille

Photo

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Serpent Forveille

Photo

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Serpent Forveille

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