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The alphorn (German: Alphorn, Alpenhorn; French: cor des Alpes; Italian: corno alpino) is a traditional lip-reed wind instrument. It consists of a very long straight wooden natural horn , with a length of 3 to 4 metres (9.8 to 13 feet), a conical bore and a wooden cup-shaped mouthpiece .
The Hornbostel–Sachs system of musical instrument classification groups all instruments in which sound is produced through vibrating air. This can include a column of air being set in vibration (as in wind instruments) or an air-flow being interrupted by an edge (as in free-reeds).
The marching horn is also normally played with a horn mouthpiece (unlike the mellophone, which needs an adapter to fit the horn mouthpiece). These instruments are primarily used in marching bands so that the sound comes from a forward-facing bell, as dissipation of the sound from the backward-facing bell becomes a concern in open-air environments.
The bucium (Romanian pronunciation:, also called trâmbiţă or tulnic) is a type of alphorn from Romania and Moldova. [1] The word is derived from Latin bucinum, [2] originally meaning "curved horn", an instrument used by the Romans. The word is a cognate with English "bugle".
The word carnyx is derived from the Gaulish root carn-or cern-, meaning 'antler' or 'horn,' and the same root of the name of the god Cernunnos. [2] It is cognate with the Welsh carn. [3] Evocation of a Gallic ceremony in the sanctuary of Tintignac, La Tène culture
With an added adjective, the term lituus alpinus, was used in 1555 by the Swiss naturalist Conrad Gessner in the earliest published description of the Alphorn: "nearly eleven feet long, made from two pieces of wood slightly curved and hollowed out, fitted together and skillfully bound with osiers". [5]
The horn and the alpenhorn are both conical brass instrument that produce similar sounds. Brahms in his first symphony has a section which is said to be inspired by alphorn players in the alps themselves. This melody is played on the natural horn in the orchestra to produce the desired effect.
A lur, also lure or lurr, is a long natural blowing horn without finger holes that is played with a brass-type embouchure. Lurs can be straight or curved in various shapes. The purpose of the curves was to make long instruments easier to carry (e.g. for marching, like the modern sousaphone) and to avoid directing the loud noise at nearby people.