FAGGEISHAH Sonorous Substances. Syria. Castanets. Several metal discs attached to a string to be shaken. FAGOTT, FAGOTTO See bassoon.
FAGOTTINO Double-Beating Reed. Europe. The Italian name for a small bassoon having a compass of only an octave. Its pitch is a fifth higher than that of the ordinary bassoon. See bassoon.
FAGOTTO Double-Beating Reed. The Italian name for bassoon, suggested by the resemblance in its. bent form to a bundle of fagots. Fagott is the German name. See bassoon.
FENG-LING or WIND BELLS Sonorous Substances. China. Small bells hung from the eaves of houses and pagodas. The clappers have streamers attached to catch the wind.
FETICH DRUMS Vibrating Membranes. Africa. Instruments reputed by the Africans, along with other inanimate things, to be in close connection with a supreme being. The relation is supposed to be sufficiently strong to give the possessor of the article especial influence with the deity.
FIELD TRUMPET See trumpet.
FIFE Transverse Flute. Europe. A small trans-verse flute. It has been in use in England and other European countries for hundreds of years. Shakespeare speaks of " the vile shrieking of the wry-necked fife." It is practically a flute in B flat, although sometimes pitched in C. The bore was formerly cylindrical and the instrument was without keys, the tone being in consequence faulty and ear-piercing. In its modern form it has a conical bore, and besides six finger-holes, keys numbering from four to six. The fife is played in conjunction with the side drum in fife and drum bands, although its music is supplemented in a slight degree by flutes in F or in E flat, and by piccolos. The change in construction came about during the last quarter of the Eighteenth Century.
FLAGEOLET Vertical Flute. Europe. A survival of the old straight flute ΰ bec. It was introduced into general notice in the Sixteenth Century. It has four holes in front and two in the back. It appears both in single and double form. In the latter the two tubes are side by side in a single block, and are blown by one mouthpiece and the instrument is fitted with an appliance by means of which either tube may be silenced. It was invented at the beginning of the Nineteenth Century. At the present day the flageolet finds no place in orchestral scores, but the instrument in G is given a place by Mozart in his " Entfόhrung aus dem Serail." Now, however, the part is transposed for the piccolo. Sullivan in a later day has given it a place in the part of Dr. Daly in " The Sorcerer." The flexibility of the instrument was appreciated by Du Maurier, who depicts Svengali training Trilby's voice by means of it.
FLAYERA Double-Beating Reed. Greece. This is a cylindrical tube with a cap which regulates the pitch of the instrument, and enables the player to silence the upper holes without regard to the musical scale. [t is similar to the Persian zourna. The name is also applied to a kind of vertical flute.
FLUGELHORN - Cup Mouthpiece. Europe. In Germany the name formerly referred to the horn used in the chase to designate the paths to be followed. Now it refers to the adaptation of valves to the ordinary bugle. When used in military bands this instrument has the B flat pitch, but is found in the C and A pitch. It has the cornet compass, but owing to the large bore, the tone is more mellow than that of the cornet. It was originally heard in the chase. It is played in the Italian, German and English army bands, and was used during the Civil War in America.
FLUTE Transverse Flute. Europe. The concert flute as it is used in the orchestra is the instrument which is generally considered as the flute proper. It has undergone many changes in passing from the recorder of former days to the instrument as it was perfected by Theobald Boehm in 1832 and 1847. Formerly the flute had been equipped with finger-holes, but Boehm furnished it with a complete system of keys manipulated by means of levers in such a way that the player has command over many more side holes than if he were compelled to apportion his fingers among finger-holes. The keys work in such a manner that the holes are open when not in use, thus lessening the length of the pipe and heightening the pitch. By means of the Boehm system of keys it became possible to play in many keys which had hitherto been beyond the flute's capacity.
The instrument has continued to be improved and it now consists of a cylindrical tube terminating at the end above the mouthpiece in a conical elongation. It is made of wood, silver, or German silver.
The compass of the flute is from middle C to the C three octaves above. The tones of the lowest octave are rather faint. Those of the second octave are produced by the same fingering as are those of the first octave, but require a more vigorous use of breath. They are much stronger than the first. The tones of the third octave require still more vigorous blowing and are very piercing, being suitable only for loud passages.
The flute is the most agile of the wind instruments and its tones are especially acute so that it can effectively carry any melody which the composer desires to predominate over the body of a harmony.
Its service in the orchestra is almost constant and it generally doubles the first violins in the melody. It always serves as the soprano instrument of the wood-wind group and is very brilliant in solos.
The characteristic voice of the flute is marked for suavity and gentleness.
FLUTE A BEC Vertical Flue. Europe. See recorder.
FLUTE D'AMOUR Vertical Flute. Europe. An antique flute standing in the key of A flat, and corresponding in pitch to the hautbois d'amour. Both were considered to possess a smooth and fascinating quality in tone, and hence the name. The bore was slightly larger than the present-day concert variety, and narrow in proportion to its length, to which fact it owed its peculiar quality. Although still made in the Eighteenth Century, it is now quite obsolete.
FLUTE DOUCE - See recorder.
FLUTE EUNUQUE See onion flute.
FLUTE HARMONIQUE Vertical Flute. Europe. A long narrow case containing a number of flue pipes of metal, on a similar principle to that of the flute douce. The instrument is furnished with little touches similar to the pistons used in brass-valved instruments, the naturals being white and the sharps black. An India rubber tube passes to the mouth, from which the wind is supplied. It was made in the Nineteenth Century.
FLUTE POLYPHONIQUE Combination. Europe. A Seventeenth Century instrument of Italian origin. It is a combination of five flutes douces inserted in a hollow cross-piece of wood, and having a central mouthpiece. One displayed in the Museo Liceo Musicale, Bologna, is described as follows : The first, third and fifth flutes are parallel, and the second and fourth are placed at an angle. The third, or central flute, is pierced with seven holes in the front and one hole at the back, giving a diatonic scale of two octaves and one note, from A flat to B flat. The second flute is pierced with three small holes in front, giving a diatonic scale from B flat to E natural. The fourth flute has one hole near the bell at the back, and gives A flat, and the fifth flute also, with one hole at the back, gives C. The first flute has no holes and gives E flat:. Its invention is attributed to Manfred Seltala, who resided in Rome about the middle of the Seventeenth Century.
FOLDING Or TRAVELER'S VIOLIN -- Bowed Strings. Europe. This is an instrument with a long narrow body, which can be dissected. Body, finger-board, bridge, tail-piece, and tail-pin can be separated from each other and packed snugly in a rectangular box. Even the bow folds up.
FRENCH HORN Cup Mouthpiece. Europe. The horn now used in the orchestra is provided with valves for lowering the pitch, although the composers of the Eighteenth and the first part of the Nineteenth Centuries wrote for the natural horn. In this instrument the pitch could only be
changed by means of crooks, extra pieces of tubing which were attached to the original horn at the end near to the player. This required a certain amount of time, and when a change in key occurred a rest of several bars in the scale was necessitated. Now the change can be made instantaneously, although the valves create a tendency toward a mechanical tone. The horn is of brass, and the tube, which varies in length from nine to twelve feet, according to the key, is coiled several times. It is a conical tube, gradually enlarging to the bell, and is played with a conical mouth-piece in the shape of which the horn differs from the other brass instruments.
In producing some of the higher harmonics the player increases the pressure of his lips against the mouthpiece, causing him to quickly tire when playing a passage in a high key. This naturally limits the compass in some keys. Some of the tones are not absolutely true, but any deficiency can be made right by inserting the hand in the bell of the horn and producing stopped tones, the quality of which adds to the pleasing effect of the horn. The chromatic horn, or that furnished with valves, has a compass of three octaves and six notes. The performer must be a musician, for he cannot successfully produce any tone unless he first has a mental impression of it. Composers use the horn in heroic or savage passages, and its tone can be made to depict poetic rusticity.
FURIN - Sonorous Substances. Japan. A bell with a broad, flat clapper, which extends below and resists the wind. Streamers are sometimes tied to the clapper. Furins were usually suspended from the eaves at the four corners of a temple.
FURI-TSUZUMl Vibrating Membranes. Japan. An instrument carried by the leader in processions. Two cylinders with heads of skin are placed one above the other, and a handle passes through them. Several small bells are suspended from the sides of the cylinders, and when the handle is twirled between the palms of the hands the bells strike against the heads of skin.
