The recorder is an instrument that falls under the internal duct flutes group and is part of the family of woodwind musical instruments. Internal duct flutes are flutes with a whistle mouthpiece, also known as fipple flutes.
A recorder differs from other duct flutes as it has a thumb-hole for the upper hand and seven finger-holes: three for the upper hand and four for the lower.
The recorder was first documented in Europe in the Middle Ages and was popular throughout the Renaissance and Baroque periods, and less so in the Classical and Romantic periods.
In the 20th century, it rose to popularity again as part of the historically informed performance movement. It was taken up widely by amateurs and used frequently as an educational instrument.
The recorder has a folk-like charm, with a sound that can be described as “clear and sweet”, and is often associated with birdsong.
Traditionally, recorders were crafted from wood and ivory, but today most modern recorders are constructed from molded plastic.
The internal and external proportions of the recorder vary, but the bore is generally reverse conical (i.e. tapering towards the foot) to cylindrical, and all recorder fingering systems make extensive use of forked fingerings.
Different types of recorders are in different keys. The key a recorder is played in depends on its size, and the different sizes roughly correspond to different vocal ranges.
The most common sizes are the soprano, also known as the "descant", which has a lowest note of C; the alto, known as "treble", with a lowest note of F; tenor with a lowest note of C, and bass, which has a lowest note of F.
Let’s take a look at each recorder type in closer detail:
Soprano recorder
The soprano recorder is in the key of C. It is the third-smallest instrument of the modern recorder family and, as its name suggests, it is usually played as the highest voice in four-part ensembles (SATB = soprano, alto, tenor, bass).
It’s usually played by children who are learning an instrument for the first time, as it has relatively small finger spacing in comparison to other instruments.
Tenor recorder
The tenor recorder has the same form as a soprano (or descant) recorder and an alto (or treble) recorder. However, it produces a lower sound than both of these, though this is not as low as the sound produced by a bass recorder and great bass recorder.
Like the soprano recorder, the tenor recorder is tuned in C, however, it’s pitched an octave lower. The tenor usually comes with keys, as these make it easier to play the lowest C and C♯, and occasionally D and D♯ - which would otherwise be difficult due to the instrument’s larger size.
In modern notation, the tenor is written at sounding pitch. This distinguishes it from the other recorder sizes, which, apart from occasionally the alto, are written an octave lower or higher than they sound.
Alto recorder
The alto recorder is tuned to F and was historically known as a consort flute and common flute. Up until the 17th century the alto recorder was normally in G instead of F.
In terms of its size, this recorder is somewhere between the soprano and tenor, and is correspondingly intermediate in pitch.
It has the same form as a soprano but is approximately 50% larger in all dimensions. Due to this 50% increase in length, the wavelength also increases by 50% for a given fingering, which lowers the pitch by a perfect fifth, from C to F.
The F alto is a non-transposing instrument, this means its basic scale is in F, which is a fifth lower than the soprano recorder and a fourth higher than the tenor (both with a basic scale in C).
As a result, F fingerings are used, as with the bassoon or the low register of the clarinet, as opposed to the C fingerings used for most other woodwinds. Its notation is usually at sounding pitch but occasionally is written an octave lower than it sounds.
Bass recorder
Finally, the bass recorder. The bass recorder is in F and plays an octave lower than the alto or treble recorder. In the recorder family, it is flanked by the tenor recorder and C great-bass (or quart-bass) recorder.
The longer length of this recorder means it requires a key to play the lowest tone, F. On modern instruments, keys are sometimes added for low F♯, G, and G♯, as well as for C and C♯.
In the early 17th century, Michael Praetorius used the term "basset" (small bass) to describe the size of this recorder as the lowest member of the "four-foot" consort, in which the instruments play an octave higher than the corresponding human voices.
Praetorius calls the next-lower instrument (bottom note B♭) a "bass", and the instrument an octave lower than the basset (with bottom note F) a "large bass".
The bass is usually the lowest recorder of the family, though it is sometimes used as an alto in the "eight-foot" register in the so-called "great consort" or grand jeux. This is when two larger sizes of bass recorder take the lower parts and a tenor may be used as an optional descant.
Final say
The key a recorder is played in is C or F, depending on the type of recorder. There are four primary types of recorder: soprano, tenor, alto, and bass, and these roughly correspond to different vocal ranges, with the soprano being the highest and bass being the lowest.
The length of the recorder also influences the key, and the smaller size of the soprano recorder, and its shorter finger spaces, makes it a popular choice for children who are learning to play an instrument for the first time.
Some types of recorder, such as the bass or tenor occasionally come with keys to make playing the lower notes easier.
