Piccolo

Piccolo

The piccolo (Italian pronunciation: [ˈpikkolo]; Italian for "small") is a half-size flute, and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. The modern piccolo has most of the same fingerings as its larger sibling, the standard transverse flute, but the sound it produces is an octave higher than written. This has given rise to the name ottavino (Italian for "little octave"), by which the instrument is called in the scores of Italian composers. It is also called flauto piccolo or flautino. In the orchestral setting, the piccolo player is often designated as "piccolo/flute III", or even "assistant principal". The larger orchestras have designated this position as a solo position due to the demands of the literature. Piccolos are often orchestrated to double the violins or the flutes, adding sparkle and brilliance to the overall sound because of the aforementioned one-octave transposition upwards. In concert band settings, the piccolo is almost always used and a piccolo part is almost always available.

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