Tarogato

The tarogato is an instrument associated with Hungarian music. It was originally developed as a variant of the Eastern oboe, played with a double reed. It was Wenzel Josef Schunda (1845–1923), a successful musical instrument manufacturer in Budapest, who invented and patented the modern tarogato in 1897, an instrument with a wide conical bore, usually made of wood, and a single beating reed mouthpiece. His experiments were aimed to construct an instrument suited to orchestral use, rather than the original and usual military association. This instrument is a Stowasser model no.19865, which was an improved system from Schunda's original. It is a simple conical tube made of fruitwood in three sections (two body joints and bell), with nickel-silver ferrules and keywork. It has seventeen cylinder-cup keys (five ring keys) mounted with pivots and screws on posts, with flat and needle springs attached to keys and posts, with cork paddings, and plastic rollers. The bell has ten vent holes. The instrument has an original mouthpiece, and a silver-plated ligature with monogram design, and cap probably original too.