Piccolo

The piccolo is played horizontally as it is a transverse flute. Having the same fingerings, it is commonly considered a younger sibling of the flute. It also has notes that are an octave higher than that of a flute's and has half of a common flute's size. This gave rise to its name, Piccolo, which is Italian for small.

History

The piccolo gets its origins from the flute and made its first appearance in the orchestra on 1700. "Rinaldo" by Handel in 1711 was the earliest known performance with a piccolo. It was constructed with two sections with an E-flat key during the Baroque era. It was constituted in the orchestra around the middle of 1700 but was usually used in performances with a military disposition. It started to be used in symphonies after Beethoven wrote parts for it in his 5th Symphony.

Michael Janusch, a flute teacher, created the multi-key piccolo. It was like the flute with 6 keys which was traditional at that time. This gave rise to its development during the 19th century. The D-flat piccolo was used in many famous solos but is not heard of in the modern times.

Mollenhauer later revised the D-flat piccolo and this made the piccolo a popular instrument during the 20th century. It is now played as an integral element of the orchestra.