Flute

A flute is a musical instrument belonging to the woodwind family. It is typically made of metal, wood, or plastic and consists of a long, cylindrical tube with finger holes. The player produces sound by blowing air across a small opening near the top of the instrument, creating vibrations. By covering and uncovering the finger holes along the length of the flute, the player can produce different pitches.

The most common type of flute is the Western concert flute, which is often made of silver, nickel silver, or other metals. The flute is known for its clear and bright tone and is used in various musical genres, including classical, jazz, and contemporary music. There are also other types of flutes, such as the piccolo (a smaller, higher-pitched flute), the alto flute, and the bass flute, each producing different ranges of sound.

The oldest musical instruments ever found are flutes that inhabitants of southern Germany laboriously carved from bird bone and mammoth ivory at least 42,000 years ago.

The oldest playable musical instrument in the world is a flute carved from a bird’s wing bone made more than 9,000 years ago. It was discovered with other flutes at an ancient burial site in China.

Flutes of some sort were known to primitive peoples, to the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Greece, and to virtually all earlier societies throughout the world.

The earliest written reference to a flute is from a Sumerian-language cuneiform tablet dated to c. 2600–2700 BC.

Wandering minstrels played the flute as early as the 13th century in Europe.

From the 16th through the 19th century, the number of holes in the flute increased, and their placement changed. These alterations resulted in an instrument capable of a wider range, more precise tuning, purer sound, and greater agility.

The modern flute, which replaced the earlier instruments in general use, was developed in the early 19th century by the German instrument maker Theobald Boehm. Boehm devised numerous improvements, evolving the size and placement of tone holes, the key mechanism, and the fingering system used to produce the notes in the flute's range. These refinements gave the modern flute a greater volume and richness of tone and an even greater agility.

Many salutes players suffer from 'flautist's chin,' a medical complaint caused by dribbling which leads to a fungal infection on the lower face.

Because the flute doesn’t have any reeds, it usually requires more air than any other wind instrument.

Ian Anderson, the frontman for the rock band Jethro Tull, told Uncut magazine that he took up the flute after he realized  that he would never be "as good as Eric Clapton" on the electric guitar.

Here is a list of pop songs featuring flutes

Source Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia © 1998 The Learning Company, Inc.