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Basset-horn. Nominal pitch: F.

Technical description: dark maple (?) with ivory ferrules and brass keywork; Seven pieces: mouthpiece, composite barrel, body in three sections and globular bell, elbow-joint. Mouthpiece dark wood, full-length table, made for ligature, not stamped and almost certainly not original. Barrel with two flanged ivory ferrules. Upper section; the speaker has been given twin heads, the upper liner projects into the bore but the lower hole has been plugged. Tone-holes under keys are not lined. Middle section: angled (c 120°) socket with half-round ferrule; brass liner to finger-hole for R3. Lower section: all keys and finger-hole for R4 carried in fusiform swelling; keys for L4 and R0 have guides; heads of bascules carried in blocks; long keys have broad flat shanks; tone-holes of all keys except low C♮ lined with ivory (?); finger-hole has an ivory chimney. Elbow-joint bends c90°; has two half-round ferrules. Bell globular, with axial ferrules, fixed tenon, and circular hole on left side strengthened by smaller ivory ferrule. The side hole could be closed with the knee or calf to produce B♮. L0: T; speaker. L1: T; A♮; A♭ (short-tailed). L2: T. L3: T; E♭/B♭ (in pillars). L4: C♯/G♯ (in pillars); E/B♮ and F♯/C♯ (both with curved touches). R0: Basset D♮ (curved touch); basset C♮ (straight touch). R1: T; A♮/B♮ trill (with broad flat shank); side F/C♮(in pillars). R2: T. R3: T; B♭/F♮ (in pillars). R4: T; side B♮/F♯ (in pillars); G♯/E♭. Keymount type: rings or blocks; 5 in pillars. Keyhead type: flat, square or trapezoidal. Repair History: Barrel originally 89mm long; it appears to have been lengthened to 126mm by the addition of a piece of darker wood (cf. mouthpiece) with a half-round ribbed ivory ferrule. Extensive alterations to the barrel and speaker show that the instrument has been lengthened by some 37mm. It is likely that the five keys in pillars were added at the same time: if so, the instrument originally had only seven keys plus the two basset keys.

  • Measurements:Slant length (mouthpiece to bell) c925.