Bassoon History
The bassoon is a double reed woodwind instrument used mostly to play classical music. A primitive version of the bassoon has been around for a long time in variety of cultures.
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200-450 A.D.
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During this time period, the suona was played. It was also referred to as the laba or the zurna, and it was a double reed woodwind instrument invented in Persia. It was also played in China and may have roots in ancient Egypt.
1200-1460
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During the medieval and Renaissance periods, Europeans updated the zurna, calling it a shawm. The bottom of the shawm flared out more than the zurna. They used this version until the curtal and the modern bassoon were invented.
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1460-1600
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Heironymous Bassano invented a bass reed woodwind instrument called a curtal. The curtal was very similar to the bassoon. The curtal was eventually referred to as the fagoto because of its similarity to a previously invented instrument. As it became more popular, artisans began adding two, three, four or even five pieces to it to create more sounds.
1600-1712
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Martin Hotterre was probably the creator of the modern bassoon. He added the bell at the bottom and pieces that allowed for more keys. In 1678, the first opera to use a bassoon was Psyche by Jean-Baptiste Lully.
1880
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The development of the contrabassoon began. Wilhelm Heckel perfected the full-scale contrabassoon and corrected pitch problems of previous bassoons.
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